Auto review: Hands-free in the Caddy ‘Baby Escalade' Vistiq
The Baby Escalade is Cadillac's most mature electric vehicle.
The Vistiq is the fifth and final piece in the GM luxury brand's EV squadron and, at $79,290, its combination of size, speed and tech make it the best value of the quintet. That value is relative as Caddy's EV lineup makes a big move to the ultra-luxury EV market (led by its $340K Celestiq flagship) over its outgoing internal combustion models. Expect the EVs to cost $20,000-$40,000 more than their ICE peers.
My all-wheel-drive Luxury model asks a 30-grand premium over the comparable $50K gas-powered XT6 Luxury model, which is retiring after this year.
On Patterson Lake Road's rollercoaster in Livingston County, I confidently leapt from turn to turn in the three-ton, three-row, three-story Vistiq despite its girth. Thanks to the 102-kWh battery's location in the basement, my tester sported a low center of gravity to stay planted through the twisties.
That low CG is an EV trait - but in the smaller Optiq and Lyriq crossovers, it's, um, outweighed by a lack of nimbleness compared to their 1,000-pound-lighter internal-combustion engine peers. In a three-row SUV class where everything tips the scales over two tons, however, the low CG stands out. Add rear-wheel steer in upper Premium Luxury and Platinum trims, and this is a rhinoceros in tennis shoes.
The rear-drive feature is shared with Papa Escalade IQ, but the electric family's patron will set you back another (cough) 40 grand. ZOT! I buried my right foot and Vistiq hit 60 mph in a fantast-iq 3.9 seconds merging onto I-94 West. Baby Escalade coming through!
Vistiq is also a technology showpiece. Without taking my eyes off the road, I toggled the raised adaptive cruise switch on the steering wheel and set my speed at 75 mph, then fingered a nearby braille pad for Super Cruise. The steering wheel lit green for hands-free driving.
While Baby Escalade took over driving duties, I rearranged icons on the 33-inch curved dash screen as I would my phone. I dragged icons for DRIVE MODES, CHARGING and SELF PARK ASSIST (features I used frequently) to the left side of the screen.
GM pioneered hands-free driving in 2017, and has been neck-and-neck with Tesla ever since. Tesla's Full-Self-Driving system leap-frogged GM cars last year when it went hands-free with navigation, enabling its cars to take you door-to-door across secondary roads and divided highways. Super Cruise is slowly adding secondary roads to its network of mapped, divided highways - but it won't navigate.
What it will do, like Tesla, is automatically change lanes. At 75 mph, Vistiq sensed slower traffic, automatically applied its turn signal, moved into the fast lane and swept by a line of cars. Safely clear, it automatically pulled back into the slower lane. Terrif-iq.
Approaching my off ramp, Tesla FSD would automatically transition to the slower secondary road. The Caddy? It handed driving duties back to me, the steering wheel light turning red.
Super Cruise comes standard on Vistiq for three years, plenty of time for owners to learn the system. You won't want to go back. Not standard is an augmented reality head-up display available on Premium Luxury and Platinum trims. Caddy's been a HUD pioneer, and AR advances the game by placing directions over the road ahead. Alas, my standard Luxury version did not option even a regular head-up display. Neither did it have a frunk for storage like the Escalade IQ - or Rivian and Tesla models.
Baby Escalade doesn't have big brother's curved, A-pillar-to-A-pillar 55-inch jumbotron, but the 33-incher does just fine, thank you very much. Especially as the touchscreen is paired with the same console climate touchscreen found in Escalade. Like a scarf and mittens, they make a nice pair.
Not that I touched them much. Vistiq is powered by Google Built-in, so I could talk to the car for many of my needs.
Hey, Google, turn the driver's side temperature to 68 degrees.
Hey, Google, tune to Sirius XM Comedy Greats.
Hey, Google, Tell, me a joke.
Google: How do trees access the Internet? They log in.
Hey, Google, what was the score of the Tigers game?
Google: The Tigers won on Wednesday, 6-5 against the Red Sox.
Pick up the kids from school in my Luxury tester and it will fit seven passengers across three rows including bench, second-row seats (captain's chairs optional). Even the third row is comfortable, accommodating my long 6'5" frame. If the second row is empty, I encourage taking a seat in the third row. I dropped the second-row bench seat and used it like an ottoman - stretching my legs so I could work on my laptop.Longer trips, however, are three-row EVs' kryptonite. The Escalade IQ is so expensive because it packs a mighty 202-kWh battery with 460 miles of range. Vistiq keeps its cost below $100K with a 102-kWh battery that makes similar range (302 miles) as little brothers Lyriq and Optiq.Navigate to your cottage up north (in perfect 70-degree weather) going 75 mph on I-75 and real range is 225 miles - or 75% of EPA estimates. In truth, your range will be 181 miles because charging to over 80% of battery range at a fast charger slows to a crawl.Are we there yet?
To prevent hearing those infamous words from your kids, a 250-mile trip north (to, say, Charlevoix) is best done with one charging stop in Bay City for 20 minutes so the kids can tinkle and stretch their legs. In less ideal temperatures, your range could crater to 50% as it did in a brutal three-stop, subfreezing December trip I took in one of Vistiq's competitors, the $78K Kia EV9 GT-Line, a couple of years back.
If you have a second home, install a 240-volt charger to ease end-to-end range anxiety. Staying in a hotel? Find lodgings with 240-volt charger so you can charge your battery to 100% overnight for a fresh a.m. start.
Faced with these restrictions, GM buyers may prefer a comparably priced family-sized Chevy Tahoe with Google Built-in, 456 miles of range and more third-row seat and cargo room. Or (horrors) you might cross the road to a Lincoln dealer and pick up a $62K three-row Aviator ICE with Blue Cruise hands-free driving and 505 miles of range.But if you want a three-row EV that can drive you hands-free across Michigan, then Baby Escalade has a leg up on peers from Rivian, Volvo, Hyundai and Kia.
Next week: 2025 Nissan Murano and Nissan Titan
2026 Cadillac Vistiq
Vehicle type: Battery-powered, all-wheel-drive, six- or seven-passenger SUV
Price: $79,090, including $1,395 destination fee ($79,890 Luxury as tested)
Powerplant: 102 kWh lithium-ion battery with dual electric-motor drive
Power: 615 horsepower, 650 pound-feet of torque
Transmission: Single-speed direct drive
Performance: 0-60 mph, 3.7 seconds (mfr.); towing, 5,000 pounds
Weight: 6,326 pounds
Range: 302 miles
Report card
Highs: Livable interior; Super Cruise
Lows: No frunk; limited range for a family hauler
Overall: 3 stars
____
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