2023 Cadillac Lyriq

Information

The Cadillac Lyriq (stylized LYRIQ) is an electric mid-size luxury crossover SUV manufactured and marketed by the Cadillac subdivision of General Motors. As Cadillac’s first fully electric vehicle, and the first GM production vehicle using the BEV3 platform, the Lyriq introduces a new version of GM’s Super Cruise semi-autonomous driving system.

Assembled at Spring Hill Manufacturing in Spring Hill, Tennessee for North America and at a new EV-only plant in Yantai, China for Asia, Cadillac started accepting customer orders for the 2023 Lyriq in the United States in May 2022.

History
At the 2019 North American International Auto Show, CEO Mary Barra presented several details about the group’s upcoming series of EVs, which included a crossover from Cadillac. The name Lyriq follows a pattern of several prior Cadillac concept vehicles, including the Evoq, Provoq, and Celestiq, all ending in “q”.

Cadillac originally planned for a US-market presentation of the Lyriq (as a “show car” or concept car) on April 2, 2020, followed by a launch soon thereafter for the 2021 model year. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was postponed to August 6. Production of the Lyriq was also delayed to early 2022.[13][14] Chinese and Asian market production at a new plant at Shanghai GM’s Yantai complex built for Ultium will start slightly before Spring Hill starts Lyriq assembly for North America.

Following the public debut of the Lyriq show car at the 2021 Shanghai Auto Show, the production version was presented on April 21, 2021.

Batteries for both Yantai and Spring Hill production will be sourced from LG Chem, with Spring Hill initially getting pouch-type Ultium cells from an LG Chem plant in South Korea. This will be done until GM and LG Chem expand Spring Hill to accommodate Ultium battery production for both domestic use and exports to Mexico. According to Cadillac, all the interior components were newly designed for the Lyriq and no pre-existing GM parts were used.

The Lyriq was first delivered to American dealerships in the highest demand markets of New York, Los Angeles, and Detroit in the first week of July 2022. GM delivered a total of 122 Lyriqs to U.S. customers in 2022.

On November 15, 2023, Cadillac confirmed it will launch the Lyriq in Australia in late 2024.

For the 2024 model year, EPA range estimates for the dual motor models increased from 312 miles (502 km) to 314 miles (505 km). Additionally, a new $1200 OTA update for the dual motor models increases the torque output and allows for a reduction in 0–60 mph (0–97 km/h) times from 4.7 to 4.4 seconds. A more conventional door access system was implemented, with remote activated flush pop-out handles replacing an electronic unlatch button which lacked discrete handles.

Specifications
Powertrain
At debut, the Cadillac Lyriq was offered with a single motor driving the rear wheels, while dual motor all-wheel drive models became available for the 2024 model year. In both configurations, synchronous AC motors with permanent magnets and bar wound stator is used. The single motor generates 340 hp (254 kW; 345 PS) and 325 lb⋅ft (441 N⋅m; 45 kg⋅m) torque, while the all-wheel drive, dual motor version adds an additional motor to the front axle and has an estimated combined output of 500 hp (370 kW; 510 PS) and 450 lb⋅ft (610 N⋅m), increasing to 524 lb⋅ft (710 N⋅m) with the Velocity Package.

The motors draw from a 102 kWh gross capacity (100 kWh usable capacity) Ultium battery with an EPA estimated 314 miles (505 km) range for the single motor, and 307 miles (494 km) for dual motor models. The single motor drivetrain achieves a combined 89 mpg‑e (38 kW⋅h/100 mi) under EPA testing, while the dual motor is rated at 88 mpg‑e (38 kW⋅h/100 mi). The vehicle supports 19.2 kW Level 2 AC charging and DC fast charging at up to 190 kW.

Chassis
The Lyriq was the first vehicle built upon GM’s third generation BEV platform called BEV3. It is a unibody chassis with a skateboard style powertrain, where the battery is a flat shape that sits underneath the floor of the vehicle. All models have five-link multilink suspension paired with passively frequency sensitive hydraulic dampers on both the front and rear axles. In addition to regenerative braking, the vehicle is equipped with 17 in (430 mm) brakes on the front wheels, and 18 in (460 mm) rotors on the rear wheels. Run-flat all-season tires fitted to 20 inch wheels are standard on all trims, with 22 inch wheels optional. All-wheel drive models have a 3,500 lb (1,600 kg) towing capacity, while rear wheel drive models have no tow rating.