2025 Cadillac Optiq revealed as entry-level EV for North America

Cadillac has officially raised the curtain on yet another EV — following the Lyriq, Vistiq, Escalade IQ and Celestiq — this one serving as the brand’s entry model in North America. The 2025 Cadillac Optiq slots below the Lyriq as a compact luxury crossover with an automaker-estimated 300 miles of range, and standard dual-motor all-wheel drive and GM’s Super Cruise.

The Cadillac Optiq boasts an 85-kilowatt-hour battery pack providing the aforementioned 300 miles of estimated range. Cadillac didn’t provide a specific peak DC charge rate, but said the Optiq could recoup up to 79 miles in 10 minutes on a fast charger. Its front permanent magnet and rear induction motor provide a total system output of 300 horsepower and 354 pound-feet of torque. The Optiq features both one-pedal driving and GM’s Regen-On-Demand paddle borrowed from the likes of the Chevy Bolt and Cadillac Lyriq.

As for its size, the Optiq is about 189.8 inches in overall length, or about 6.9 inches shorter than the Lyriq. Its wheelbase is 166.3 inches (5.7 less than Lyriq), and it’s 83.7 inches wide with mirrors (about 3.2 inches narrower than Lyriq) and 64.7 inches tall (0.4 inches taller than Lyriq).

The Optiq is a handsome vehicle in person, with looks similar to its big brother Lyriq, but with some unique touches. It’s decidedly luxury, with the black crystal grille with illumination that greets the owner much in the way the Lyriq does. From the side, you see flush door handles and a layered-glass rear quarter-panel window with a pattern reminiscent of Cadillac’s Mondrian-style crest. In back, it has vertical light bars flanking the rear glass, and another set below those on the lower portion of the liftgate. It also has spoilers both above and below the rear glass, and no rear wiper.

Inside, the dash is dominated by a 33-inch LED display in 9k resolution serving as both infotainment and instrument panel. It uses Google Built-In technology, with integrated Google Assistant and Google Maps (Apple CarPlay is no longer available, but individual iPhone apps will embed in the Google Built-In system). A light bar across the top of the wheel provides information from the standard Super Cruise hands-free highway driving assist. The Optiq features a standard AKG audio system with 19 speakers and Dolby Atmos capability.

A cantilevered center console is covered in fabric woven from recycled yarn, a material found throughout the cabin. The interior’s “PaperWood” veneer is made from tulip wood and recycled newspaper. There are many open (and softly illuminated) storage areas throughout, lined with a soft-touch, non-woven “Tide” fabric made from repurposed materials. As for roominess, the floor feels a little high — not uncommon in most EVs with the battery under the floor — but legroom is ample in both rows. Second-row headroom is a bit scarce, though. Behind the second row is a generous-for-the-segment 26 cubic feet of cargo space, as well as some additional storage space underneath the load floor. Cargo volume expands to 57 cubic feet with the second row folded.

The Cadillac Optiq will start around $54,000, coming in Sport and Luxury trims. For now, Cadillac is only offering the Optiq with all-wheel drive; 80-85% of Lyriq customers have opted for AWD. That said, Cadillac is listening to its customers, and seems to be implying that a 2WD Optiq is possible if the demand is there. When asked by press about the possibility at a preview event earlier this month, Cadillac VP John Roth told the press, “We’re launching with a dual-motor setup, and more to come on what comes next. We gotta leave a few unanswered questions out there to make sure that you all continue to come back.”

To that, Cadillac Optiq Chief Engineer John Cockburn added, “And there’s reason to come back.”

The Optiq represents the next step in Cadillac’s dual-pronged future. Cadillac VP John Roth told the press at an Optiq preview event earlier this month that, “We will be offering an all-electric portfolio by the end of the decade and will let the customer be the guide,” with offering being a key word. Cadillac says EVs and internal-combustion vehicles will “coexist for a while.” In addition to Cadillac’s coy words about possible other versions of the Optiq, when asked about the possibility of a smaller Cadillac EV, Roth told the gathered press he would “never say never, but I have nothing new to announce today.”