There are Cadillacs, and then there’s the Escalade. The hulking luxury family hauler has been around since the late 1990s and has become a showcase for the automaker’s technology and design prowess, but GM is going electric, and a three-ton V8-powered SUV doesn’t fit with that vision. Of course, Cadillac couldn’t just drop the Escalade, so it’s going electric with the 2025 Escalade IQ, an impressive and expensive EV that looks every bit as deluxe as its liquid dinosaur-guzzling counterparts. 

The IQ’s $130,000 Starting price buys a three-row SUV with curvier lines than the current gas model, and Cadillac said it’s the most aerodynamic Escalade to date. Riding on 24-inch wheels, the SUV has air suspension, a 450-mile range, and eye-popping specs. It delivers up to 750 horsepower using the Velocity Max setting, and there’s a whopping 785 pound-feet of torque. Those numbers enable a sub-five-second 0-60 mph time and up to 8,000 pounds of towing capacity. 

Like the GMC Hummer EV, the Escalade IQ has rear-wheel steering and its own version of the funky crab walk feature that helps the big-boy Cadillac maneuver in tight spaces. The IQ also offers one-pedal driving and adjustable regenerative braking. Cadillac also equipped a heat pump system that improves range and speeds up charging. It can also redirect heat from the battery to the SUV’s climate control system.

The current Escalade’s cabin is packed with screens, and the IQ will follow suit. It features 55 inches of screen that stretches across the dash. The system uses a powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon processor and runs Google built-in. That said, one of the most notable stories about the IQ’s tech comes from what it’s missing: Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. GM promised that the features would not be available in its upcoming EVs, and we’re now starting to see the controversial policy in action.

Cadillac equips a long list of safety features, including intersection automatic emergency braking, blind spot steering assist, and an HD surround-view camera system. Super Cruise comes standard with a three-year free subscription through OnStar, bringing hands-free driving on more than 400,000 miles of highway in the U.S. and Canada.

The IQ will be built in GM’s Factory Zero in Michigan and enter production in the summer of 2024. 

[Images: Cadillac]

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