2011 Platinum Edition Cadillac Escalade Esv on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Lutz dishes dirt on GM in latest Autoline Detroit

Bob Lutz sits down for Autoline Detroit - Click above to watch video after the jump
Autoline Detroit recently played host to Bob Lutz, and, as is always the case, the former General Motors vice chairman dished out some great commentary. Lutz was promoting his new book Car Guys vs. Bean Counters: The Battle for the Soul of American Business, and talk quickly turned to his role as it related to product development and high-level decision making at GM. While on the topic of brand management, Lutz revealed a few rather interesting tidbits about his former employer:
All Chevrolet vehicles were required to have five-spoke aluminum wheels and a chrome band up front, as part of the Bowtie brand's overall image.

2023 Cadillac Lyriq production model revealed with range, power, price

We got our first look at the Cadillac Lyriq's design last August, and now the company is revealing the official production version of the electric crossover. The good news is that it looks almost identical to the preproduction version no matter where you look, inside or outside the car. It has the same long hood, low roof, creased body work, illuminated grille and groovy taillights. The interior retains the 33-inch instrument and infotainment screen and wood and metal trim. Only detail changes to things like the camera in the grille and the reworked control knob in the center console distinguish it from the concept. So if it basically looks the same, what's new here? Well, we finally have specifics on all the stuff that powers the concept-car body. At launch, the Lyriq will only be offered with a single motor and rear-wheel drive. The motor makes 340 horsepower and 325 pound-feet of torque funneled through a single-speed transmission. Supplying the motor with juice is a 100-kWh battery, though Cadillac didn't specify if that's the usable capacity or gross capacity. Cadillac estimates that the battery will provide more than 300 miles of range on a single charge. The initial models will be equipped with on-board charging equipment that can handle 19.2-kW Level 2 charging and 190-kW DC fast charging. The former can add 52 miles of range in an hour, and the latter can add 76 miles of range in 10 minutes and 195 miles in half an hour. Cadillac has made no mention of an 800-volt extra-fast DC charging system like in the GMC Hummer EV. There's a chance a system like that could be offered later, just like the forthcoming all-wheel-drive Lyriq variant. The Lyriq rides on multi-link independent suspension at all four corners, using "passive-plus" shocks, so it won't be adaptive or use GM's fancy magnetic suspension, at least at launch. Braking is provided by large 17-inch rotors at the front and 18-inch units at the back, welcome additions for the 5,610-pound crossover. Cadillac also gave us some basics on what equipment will be offered with the first run of Lyriqs. Only two colors, a silver and a black, will be available to begin with, and another silver will come a tad later. We imagine more colors will be offered on later Lyriq models. The interior comes in gray or black. Twenty-inch wheels are standard with 22-inch examples available as an option.

2023 Cadillac Lyriq vs Tesla Model Y, Audi E-Tron, Jaguar I-Pace | Specs compared

The 2023 Cadillac Lyriq is the latest electric luxury crossover to enter a quickly growing segment. It brings with it the company's trademark creased design language along with high-tech features and an impressive amount of range. The Cadillac also happens to have a price and specifications that put it square in the middle of a competitive group, so we had to line up the numbers to see how it compares. We've gathered up a selection of premium electric crossovers including the Tesla Model Y, Audi E-Tron and Jaguar I-Pace, all of which seem like the closest rivals for the Cadillac. We've assembled all the raw numbers in the chart below. We've also got some additional analysis below that. And now, onto the data. Power, range, efficiency Interestingly, the Cadillac is the least powerful of the bunch. This is a bit surprising considering that GM will have a 1,000-horsepower electric Hummer pickup coming out soon. But in the Lyriq, Cadillac only uses a single electric motor powering the rear wheels. While its 340 horsepower and 325 pound-feet of torque should be more than adequate, it falls short of all the dual-motor, all-wheel-drive competition. Because Tesla does not provide horsepower or torque numbers, we're not sure how much the base model makes. We assume it's close. The true power fiends will likely want the optionally available Model Y Performance, though. It also doesn't have publicized power numbers, but its 0-60 mph time of 3.5 seconds suggests its substantially more powerful than the other crossovers, here. Power is all well and good, but range is arguably more important for an electric car. The Tesla is on top, here. The base Long Range trim has an estimated range of 326 miles. The company doesn't specifically say how large the battery is for it or the Performance, which goes 303 miles. The Cadillac is close behind with a current estimate of more than 300 miles on its 100-kWh battery. Cadillac doesn't say whether that number is the gross amount or the usable amount. The Audi and Jaguar lag behind with less than 250 miles from their 95- and 90-kWh batteries, respectively. Audi is the only company that notes that the usable capacity is less than the total, which is a common strategy employed to extend the life of the battery and to maintain consistent ranges over time. 2020 Audi E-Tron View 13 Photos While not as broadly discussed as range, we also wanted to touch on efficiency.