Latest news with #CadillacCelestiq
29-06-2025
- Automotive
There was 'insane pressure' to get the $350K Celestiq right, chief engineer says
In 32 years, Tony Roma has done it all. The longtime engineer, who started his General Motors career working on the C4 Corvette, replaced Tadge Juechter last July as executive chief engineer for Corvette and the performance cars team. Roma's toughest project, though, may be the Cadillac Celestiq, the pinnacle of Cadillac engineering and a halo vehicle for the brand, which is on U.S. drivers' radar again for its current roster of sleek and competent electric SUVs. Roma and his team were tasked with creating an ultra-luxe sedan that was technologically advanced and delivered the performance expected of a vehicle with a six-figure price tag (655 horsepower and 646 lb.-ft. of torque; zero to 60 mph in 3.7 seconds). Six years later, customer deliveries of the $350K sedan have commenced. Each unit is built by hand in Warren, Michigan, and Roma is still heavily involved in the vehicle's planning and rollout. Roma sat down with ABC News to talk about the pressures of making an engineering and design masterpiece, why EVs are fun to drive and how the Celestiq is "trying to make your life better." The interview below has been edited for clarity. Q: You've been working on the Celestiq for six years. What was more important to achieve: performance, design or comfort? A: I was employee No. 1 on the Celestiq. When you're creating something like Celestiq, all the things you mentioned are equally important. It had to fulfill the design -- that was mission critical. It had to be a rolling work of art. The craftsmanship had to be authentic and real. At the same time, at least from an engineering perspective, it had to back it up by an actual, credible car -- it had to be amongst the best cars in the world. Well executed, surprisingly comfortable, nimble, athletic -- it had to be surprisingly beautiful and surprisingly well crafted and dynamic and comfortable. Q: How important is the car's performance to customers? A: Different clients come at it for different reasons. One of our clients is an owner of an art gallery in Miami. He's certainly buying this car because of the aesthetics and the vision. But this person will be delighted by the fact that it's a competent luxury car. For other customers, if the Celestiq didn't have the [driving] dynamics, they wouldn't be interested. Q: Why does everyone care about horsepower in an electric vehicle? The instant torque already makes them so fast. A: It's not trying to be the best electric car in the world -- the Celestiq is trying to be among the best cars in the world. It just happens to be propelled by electricity. The gimmick with EVs is that they're quick. There's a difference between quick and fast. Top speed usually isn't an EV thing. It's all about going 0-60 mph in these frankly uncomfortable numbers. If you've ever been in some of these, you can get queasy as a passenger. Sometimes it's not even an enjoyable thing. For Celestiq, we don't talk about big power numbers. Zero to 60 in 3.7 seconds is plenty fast -- it doesn't need to show off in that way. It's not a differentiator anymore -- all EVs are fast. But what else can you do for me? With Celestiq, it's the ride, air springs, the MR dampers, the technology. The rear steer when you're maneuvering around parking lots -- it pivots into these parking spots with confidence even though it's huge. Q: The main competitor to the Celestiq is the Rolls-Royce Spectre, which is now available as a Black Badge. Would we see a variant like that for Celestiq? The Celestiq V maybe? A: Honestly I doubt we'll do a performance variant of the Celestiq. We wouldn't just add power and call it a V. The volume on this car is so incredibly low. I don't think there's a huge market ... I would be surprised if we decided to do that. Q: EVs drive very differently depending on the brand. So what was important from an engineering aspect for this vehicle? Did you want it to drive like a internal combustion luxury sedan? A: I wanted it to drive like a competent luxury sedan. You want your car to be your co-conspirator. You want it to be precise and turn in well and not be jarring. If you're on phone call, you want the noise to go away. Whatever you're doing, you want this car to help you do it in a way to make your life easier. Step on the brake and the power doors close. This car is trying to help make your life better. Q: This car is so niche and so expensive, did you face any pressure -- even from yourself -- to get it right? A: Yes. There's insane pressure. This is a do it right or don't do it kinda thing. There's no halfway in this segment. We had a ton of very dynamic conversations along the way, arguing about whether a line on the door has to go that way. So yes, there was a lot of pressure but at the same time that's what we come to work for -- the opportunity to work on a project like this. It was awesome. Q: What's more exciting for you as an engineer - how to squeeze every ounce of horsepower from an ICE engine or working on new battery technology? A: It's solving hard technical problems. That's what gets us all out of bed in the morning. I'm a driver and I really enjoy driving, so you can kinda guess which vehicles I gravitate toward.- But the Celestiq has been a fantastic project. A: I think people don't like change. I think there's just an inertia to that change. A certain segment of the car community does think EVs are fun because they are -- the sudden acceleration, the instant torque. There are a number of EVs that handle really well and I have driven them on tracks. It will just take time. We're changing the culture of the car community in a very fundamental way. You can still buy a 1,064 hp monster Corvette -- nobody took that away from you. Q: How important are motorsports events like Le Mans, where Cadillac had four cars in the Hypercar class, for selling Cadillacs to U.S. drivers? A: It's the whole reason we've been doing the V-Series for the last 20 years. If you want to be a modern luxury brand, the expectation is this element of sport and competition and racing has been part of V-Series since the very beginning. It's been baked into our DNA. A lot of us who work on the street cars work on the race cars and travel with the race team. And I think our customers expect it and our brand would lose a certain amount of appeal if we didn't do things like this.
Top Gear
25-06-2025
- Automotive
- Top Gear
This is the very first Cadillac Celestiq EV
This is the very first Cadillac Celestiq EV Rolls-Royce Spectre rival has the hit showrooms. Here's a reminder of what you get for the money Skip 6 photos in the image carousel and continue reading Turn on Javascript to see all the available pictures. 1 / 6 The very first customer example of the Cadillac Celestiq has landed, and the car's goal is simple: dethrone the Rolls-Royce Spectre as the world's finest electric luxo-barge. Prices start at $340,000 for a base-spec, which has a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive powertrain putting out 655bhp and 646lb ft. 0-60mph is cited at 3.7s, with just over 300 miles of range drawn from its 111kWh battery. Advertisement - Page continues below There's lots of supplementary tech too bundled in, including active air suspension, rear-wheel steering and body roll control, all tasked with making the Celestiq a worthy challenger. A challenger wearing a body made from carbon fibre and peppered with lots of funky traits: thin light signatures, active grille shutters, much glass and a unique silhouette that sits somewhere between a saloon, fastback and shooting brake. Heavy silhouette, mind: this thing weighs 3.1 tonnes. But the cabin is where the really very big coachbuilt Caddy earns its paper. It's like a first-class lounge, with four massage seats covered in lavish fabrics, a single piece 55in mega screen and a panoramic roof with individually dimmable areas. The price will then inflate depending on just how many boxes you tick on the options list, ranging from etchings on the 3D-printed parts, to the use of crystal glass and woven carbon fibre materials. You get the gist. Advertisement - Page continues below Reckon the Celestiq has a chance against the Spectre? Looking for more from the USA? READ THE LATEST USA NEWS Top Gear Newsletter Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. Look out for your regular round-up of news, reviews and offers in your inbox. Get all the latest news, reviews and exclusives, direct to your inbox. Success Your Email*
NZ Autocar
12-06-2025
- Automotive
- NZ Autocar
Wealthy Aussie buys $1m Cadillac Celestiq EV
An Australian collector has bought one of the world's most exclusive cars, but there's a catch to ownership. They cannot drive the opulent electric Cadillac on Australian roads. The well-to-do enthusiast splashed out on a Cadillac Celestiq that starts from $US358,000. However, the price can virtually double depending on which option boxes are ticked. Crafted as an American alternative to Rolls-Royce, the Celestiq employs meticulous attention to detail in creating an American luxury car that's competitive at the highest echelon. Cadillac says it can customise just about any aspect of the Celestiq, apart from one. It can't build the vehicle in right-hand drive. Aletha Israels, a Celestiq Concierge employed by Cadillac to keep its special customers happy, said a collector flew from Australia to Detroit to customise their dream machine. 'The intention was for the vehicle to be delivered to the States for him, not to Australia,' she said. 'A lot of our clients fly in and out on the same day in private jets.' The 5.5m dual-motor large swoopy sedan weighs in at just under three tonnes, but with dual motors and AWD its 488kW and 877Nm output can propel it to 96km/h in 3.7sec. It has usable battery capacity of 111kWh and suggested range of 485km.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
The Cadillac Celestiq in Photos
More from Robb Report First Drive: The $340,000 Cadillac Celestiq Is a Quiet Tour de Force With a Lot Riding on It Lexus's New IS 500 Ultimate Edition Might Be the Last of Its Kind The New Hummer EV Is the Fastest One Yet Best of Robb Report The 2024 Chevy C8 Corvette: Everything We Know About the Powerful Mid-Engine Beast The World's Best Superyacht Shipyards The ABCs of Chartering a Yacht Click here to read the full article. The all-electric Cadillac Celestiq, the marque's first hand-built production car since the 1957 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham. The model is a four-door hatchback presenting a mid-century modern aesthetic. The Celestiq has a low-slung fastback profile, but its wheelbase exceeds that of a Cadillac Escalade. With 655 hp and 646 ft lbs of torque, the car is claimed to cover zero to 60 mph in 3.7 seconds on its way to a purported top speed of 130 mph. The interior features a 3-D-printed steering-wheel casing, hand-polished aluminum controls, and options that include leather floors and eucalyptus-fiber mats. A smart-glass roof features four quadrants for passengers to control opacity. The car embodies America's 'very optimistic, very strident view of the world' in the 1950s, '60s and '70s, according to Michael Simcoe, Cadillac's vice president of global design. The Celestiq is Cadillac's most technologically advanced production vehicle to date, which factors into the car's next-level pricing compared to others in the automaker's model line. Cadillac hopes the Celestiq will capitalize on the brand's legacy while catapulting the automaker into the future.
Motor Trend
15-05-2025
- Automotive
- Motor Trend
Personalizing the $340,000 Cadillac Celestiq Is Crazy and Crazy Fun
Driving the Cadillac Celestiq is one thing; crafting one to suit your personal taste is another. It all starts with a signal of interest, whether through a dealer recommendation, contact with executives, or simply registering on Cadillac's website. (Don't get any ideas; all applications are fully vetted before moving forward.) This kicks off a process where one of four in-house concierges gets to know you and your personal likes and dislikes, learns your history with Cadillac, and introduces you to the broad spectrum of trim, color, and material choices. These design sessions are typically done via one or more video calls, and the options are narrowed down to a small number of favorites. The next step is for the buyer to visit Cadillac House at the fabulously midcentury modern, Eero Saarinen–designed GM Tech Center in Michigan. We went through an abbreviated version of this process at Cadillac House and were blown away by the attention to detail, the building itself, and the skill of the concierges, who come from the worlds of fine art, automotive design, fashion design, and high-end furniture. Upon arrival, buyers are greeted by their personal concierge and their favorite refreshments before moving to a small sculpture garden. This area is populated with painted shapes and figures chosen to demonstrate how lustrous the Celestiq's 90-plus standard colors can be—even the blacks—all of which are available in metallic or matte finish. Next comes a full walkaround and ride and drive of a sample Celestiq to make what's until that point only been discussed over video into something tangible. If the buyer has a deep affinity for a past Cadillac model—maybe they own one, or their grandfather did—Cadillac will pull an example from its heritage fleet to display on the floor of Cadillac House as inspiration. Final trim, color, and material selection then happens at a large table, which will be laid out with samples of favorites from the video consultations. Should you need more options, a nearby wall is made from motorized doors that open to reveal lighted cubbies holding scale sculptures of the car in nearly all the available paints, the wheel designs, chunks of interior trim, and swatches of leather, fabric, and carpet in myriad hues. Various etchings and imagery can be applied to the metal pieces, too, including the wheels. In all, there are more than 350,000 combinations possible from the baseline set of choices, and Cadillac is also happy to cater to any desire as long as it doesn't run afoul of safety regulations or Cadillac's own brand guidelines. Yes, some buyers have asked if a hood ornament is possible. The answer is no, it's not. The interior has 150 individually hand-wrapped components, so every stitch, panel, piece of piping, and surface can be customized, and you can watch your selections applied in real time on a 10-foot screen as another staff member manipulates software during the conversation. All the while, the concierge is carefully guiding changes and deftly offering suggestions so perfect they seem like they were your idea. If someone winds up with a hideous Celestiq, it won't be the concierges' fault. See All 22 Photos This is our Celestiq build as rendered by Cadillac's design program. It's pretty rad, if we do say so ourselves—check out more images in the gallery. How long the process takes depends on a lot of factors, only one of which is the actual assembly of the car. (Although that's not a quick process; the 12-coat paint takes two weeks to apply by hand alone.) The buyer's personal schedule, their level of decisiveness, if they want to order off-menu, and whether they even have a design point of view can all affect the timeline. Our concierge said the average time from start to completion is three to four months, although some clients have completed their choices in as little as 45 minutes and another has been in the design process for more than a year. Based on our experiences at Cadillac House and behind the wheel, your own bespoke Celestiq is worth however long it takes.
