Most cars exist in the hopes that hundreds of thousands of people will buy one every year. A tiny handful exist, instead, to prove what’s possible. There’s no other explanation for the 2025 Cadillac Escalade IQ.
Yes, some people will buy those unicorns. Most, though, will just learn something from their existence. So let’s get that out of the way right away: The Cadillac Escalade IQ is a full-size, all-electric SUV that comfortably seats up to seven very large adults, gets around faster than many sports cars, and drives farther than 500 miles on a single charge (really, we’ll get to that).
Yes, that’s a real thing in the world you can own. In the early days of electrification, it stands like the Burj Khalifa among buildings. Like a Simone Biles vault among jumps. Like Harrison Ford among crotchety old men we all love anyway.
It shows that it’s possible to do more than we ever imagined.
I drove the Escalade IQ for a week, seeking out a mix of stop-and-go urban traffic, highway cruising, and windy country roads. I tested every seat and entertainment screen because who would get out of this thing?
Which Trim Level
My tester was the Escalade IQ Sport 2 in Black Raven with an interior in a camel brown shade Cadillac calls Camelia. If you’re shopping for a 2025 model, the Sport 2 is the top of the line. For 2026, Cadillac has shuffled trim names. The closest equivalent will be called Premium Sport.
New 2025 Cadillac Escalade IQ Prices
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Retail Price
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Fair Purchase Price (92620)
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$150,590 |
TBD |
Favorite Feature
The best feature of the Escalade IQ is the simple fact that its drivetrain exists.
It gets 750 horsepower from two electric motors, one per axle, giving it all-wheel drive (AWD). Cadillac advertises a range of 465 miles, but charged to 100%, my tester’s meter read a jaw-dropping 506. I did not drive it to empty to test that figure.
It gets from zero to 60 mph in under five seconds and goes from New York City to Cleveland without stopping to recharge. Two years ago, feats like that were impossible and routinely used as examples of why electric vehicles (EVs) would never be practical.
Now, they’re here, only at extraordinary prices. But first, you prove it can be done. Then you mass-produce it and let economies of scale bring the cost down.
What It’s Like to Drive
Because all-electric super-luxury SUVs are a new category, the only things I can fairly compare the Escalade IQ’s performance to are internal-combustion-powered high-performance models like the Cadillac Escalade-V or the Mercedes-AMG G 63.
Like those, the Escalade IQ leaps to highway speeds as quickly as sports coupes a third its size — 4.7 seconds, according to Cadillac. Unlike those, the IQ does it utterly without drama.
An Escalade-V lets you know explosions are powering it to a sprint, and it’s taking great joy in the immense effort. An Escalade IQ does it as if it has no idea what effort is. Race-car-like acceleration feels casual in this giant SUV.
All four wheels steer, making the handling tighter than in the gas-powered equivalent, too. That’s all the more remarkable when you realize this one is over 15 inches longer.
Brakes are grippy and confident, as they should be. The rotors alone are 18 inches — larger than many wheels.
Interior Comfort and Technology
Cadillac didn’t stop trying to prove a point when it finished the powertrain. The Escalade IQ’s interior is a testament to what’s possible.
For example, to get in, you can pull the door open or just touch a small button inside the handle and watch it open for you. Sensors prevent it from opening far enough to hit anything in a parking lot. Don’t feel like closing them, either? Just tap a button on the lower of the two touchscreens. The Escalade IQ is happy to close its doors softly for you.
The AKG Studio Reference sound system features 36 speakers. The only production car I’m aware of with more is the $300,000-plus Cadillac Celestiq, which has 38.
Some ultra-luxury SUVs seem to have as many buttons as a 747. Cadillac designers have laid out the Escalade IQ’s controls extremely well. There’s an upper touchscreen handling vehicle settings and infotainment functions, and a lower touchscreen handling climate and those cool soft-close doors. The dual-screen layout prevents you from paging through menus – everything you want regularly is in easy reach.
Two wireless phone charging pads up front are also a nice touch. This car has enough, or more than enough, of everything.
The second and third rows are spacious enough for large adults, and an available rear-seat entertainment package gives second-row passengers their own Netflix access. It’s a $1,995 option, but at this price point, that’s not unreasonable.
Keeping with the oversized theme, the frunk (front trunk) offers 12.2 cubic feet of storage space under the hood. That’s not much smaller than the trunks of some cars. It’s so large that Cadillac dealers offer a slide-out drawer for it, and I can see the point; not everyone could reach in all the way.
Limitations
If I had a complaint during my time in the Escalade IQ, it would be that Cadillac’s haptic warning system is hyperactive. It vibrates the seat to warn you of dangers. I like that it shakes on the right to alert you of right-side obstacles and on the left for things in your left-side blind spot. But it signaled often enough that I often had no idea why it was engaging.
See 2025 Cadillac Escalade IQ inventory available
