Having seen performance sports cars and user-friendly models amidst the era where electric vehicles are on a gradual rise on the horizon, Cadillac has finally announced its first electric vehicle, LYRIQ, in order to show the world that American muscle and the sentiment of technology can coexist in electric vehicles.
Cadillac officially announced its first battery electric vehicle LYRIQ, which is pronounced as LYRIC, and apart from showcasing its American style, the vehicle is also infused with numerous captivating high-tech elements, which is a great offer for a pristine electric vehicle.
This battery electric SUV is capable of almost 500km in driving range, and is equipped with 150kW DC fast charge and 19kW AC slow charge, which is considered acceptable in terms of battery capacity. In terms of performance, the company has yet to provide details, though there will be two models to choose from, including the real-wheel drive model with long driving range, and the high performance full-wheel drive model (dual power units from the front and the rear axles).
LYRIQ is built on top of the BEV3 platform from General Motors, and is equipped with the new Ultium battery system that is produced with the modified NCMA battery, where aluminum has been incorporated to reduce the requirement of rare-earth element cobalt, which according to the explanation from the engineers at General Motors that such approach has lowered 70% of cobalt usage.
How would the reduced battery cost be reflected on the final price? Cadillac has not announced the official price for the vehicle, though what is certain is that it will help with the acceleration in production since the company will no longer have to fight for lithium batteries with other manufacturers.
The biggest highlight of the vehicle lies on its interior design, especially with the 33-inch display in front of the driver’s seat, which not only provides a head-up display, driving information, and entertainment function, but also renders one billion colors. As claimed by Cadillac, this is the display with the highest resolution in the automotive industry that has 64 times the resolution than that of competitors.
We are unable to tell if the display is 64 times better than other variations, though the demonstration video shows that Cadillac is indeed remarkable with its aesthetics, and the display sure looks phenomenal. Having paired with General Motors’ long developed advanced driver assistance system Super Cruise, the display satisfies both in functionality and appearance.
Regarding appearance, the headlights and taillights have become the peacock’s tail, where they just keep getting more flamboyant. LYRIQ is equipped with LED arrayed headlights and taillights, which resembles special effects whenever they are turned on and off, and one may suspect that the company have taken references from the design elements of Iron Man.
As the first electric vehicle of the company, LYRIQ somewhat serves as the navigator for the traditional automotive manufacturer in entering the next phase by adopting the honor and disgrace of General Motors’ BEV platform, and allows the world to inspect if the so-called autonomous driving technology that offers “first liberated hands in the industry” claimed by Super Cruise 3 lives up to its name.
LYRIQ is expected to make its debut in 2022, and will most likely be launched in China first, where North America may have to wait until second half of 2022 to see the vehicle.
(Photo source: Cadillac)