Cadillac reveals three-row SUV as its next electric car
The 2026 Cadillac Vistiq is the American luxury brand’s next electric vehicle (EV), slotting in between the Lyriq and the flagship Escalade iQ.
It’ll serve as the brand’s rival for the likes of the upcoming Volvo EX90; the Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV could also be counted as a rival.
Cadillac has revealed a couple of images of the Vistiq, and by calling it a 2026 model it points to a North American launch sometime in 2025 – around a year after the Escalade iQ and entry-level Optiq.
Cadillac reveals three-row SUV as its next electric car
A local trademark filing for the Vistiq name suggests the new model could join the Lyriq here as Cadillac gears up to relaunch in Australia in 2024. General Motors has also trademarked the Optiq and Escalade iQ nameplates.
Cadillac hasn’t released any pricing or specifications for the Vistiq, but says it will do so during 2024.
It’s recognisably a member of Cadillac’s electric SUV family, with an expansive, striped grille area and the brand’s trademark tall, vertical lighting clusters up front.
The styling is crisp, and isn’t quite as bluff as the larger Escalade iQ. There’s a boxier roofline than the Lyriq to accommodate the third row, but there’s still a gentle slope to it.
Down back, there are vertical lighting clusters on either side of the tailgate, both at number plate level and at window level. A 600 E4 badge confirms the Vistiq will offer all-wheel drive.
The look of the rear is reminiscent of the Optiq and Escalade iQ, though there’s also a row of segmented lights running horizontally below the rear window that link with the vertical clusters.
Lyriq
Cadillac has yet to reveal the interior, so it’s unclear if we’ll see a curved display like in the Lyriq or a more angular dashboard with displays extending almost the full width of the dash, as in the Escalade iQ.
The brand has now revealed electric counterparts to its entire American combustion-powered SUV line-up.
The Optiq is the electric alternative to the Audi Q3-rivalling XT4; the Lyriq lines up with the Q5-rivalling XT5; the Vistiq with the Q7-rivalling XT6; and the Escalade iQ with, naturally, the Escalade.
Lyriq
The Lyriq will spearhead Cadillac’s return to Australia, and will be available through a “reimagined luxury direct-to-consumer experience” with two “Cadillac Experience Centres” in our market: one in Melbourne, and one in Sydney.
But more will come, and indeed more products will come, though executives wouldn’t confirm which vehicles will follow the Lyriq.
Executives at a recent reveal event in Melbourne made multiple mentions of Cadillacs selling in “exclusive volumes”, though newly appointed GM Australia and New Zealand managing director Jess Bala was enthusiastic about the brand’s chances.
Optiq
“It’s going to do incredibly well here,” said Ms Bala, saying Cadillac will appeal to luxury car buyers who want to stand out and who consider themselves trendsetters.
Despite all the talk of “exclusive volumes”, Ms Bala said pricing of the Lyriq wouldn’t be lofty.
“It’ll be priced competitively inside that mid-sized SUV [segment],” said Ms Bala, confirming the Lyriq will battle similarly sized electric SUVs from European luxury brands like the BMW iX.
Cadillac hasn’t officially sold vehicles here since the 1960s, but did come tantalisingly close to returning to Australia in the 2000s, only to have a global financial crisis and its parent company’s bankruptcy pull the rug out.
Escalade iQ
It announced a return to Australia in 2007, obtaining local certification for the sale of the CTS. This would have been sold alongside Saab and Hummer products in a new GM Premium dealership network.
GM even imported several dozen CTS sedans, before the brand’s launch was cancelled in January 2009 just weeks before they were due to go on sale.
New local boss Jess Bala is an Australian who worked for Cadillac.
She most recently served as director of global product planning and product strategy for Cadillac, which saw her play a central role in the luxury brand’s transition to being electric-only by 2030.
MORE: Cadillac locked in for Australia in 2024: Everything you need to know