Cadillac will introduce a compact electric luxury SUV called the Optiq, likely for the 2025 model year.
The company released a photo of the model today and didn’t beat around the bush about it. Many rivals slowly tease the reveal of a new model with shadowy photos and stylized drawings to build anticipation.
None of that for Cadillac. They simply sent us two full photos of the car.
The Optiq, Cadillac says, “will act as the entry point for Cadillac’s EV [electric vehicle] lineup in North America, slotting in below Lyriq.” The brand promises “spirited driving dynamics.”
The photos show a slightly more conventional look than the Lyriq, with a smaller version of its giant glossy back faux grille and the same signature vertical daytime running lists as other Cadillac SUVs.
The company revealed no mechanical details.
But all of its new EVs — the Lyriq, the giant Escalade IQ, and the ultra-luxury Celestiq sedan — ride on GM’s Ultium electric vehicle platform. EV platforms let engineers use common batteries, motors, suspension, and steering components, scaled up or down, to build vehicles of different classes. They use software to control performance. Identical motors often provide around-town power in affordable EVs and track-like speed in more expensive models.
With that in mind, we’d expect power levels to be down slightly from the Lyriq so the two don’t compete for the same buyers. The Lyriq has 340 horsepower in rear-wheel-drive (RWD) form and 500 in all-wheel-drive (AWD) form. Engineers will likely keep the Optiq slightly lower than those numbers.
We’ll know more soon. Cadillac says details on the Optiq will come “next year.” Next year isn’t far away.
