Cadillac is becoming increasingly aggressive in the pure electric market.
The Cadillac Lyriq rear-drive standard endurance luxury version (hereinafter referred to as “standard endurance version”) officially went on sale at the Guangzhou Auto Show on November 17, priced at CNY 297,700.
This means that as a mid-to-large sized luxury SUV with a length exceeding 5m and a wheelbase exceeding 3m, the price of the Lyriq standard endurance version has reached the level of most luxury mid-sized SUVs currently available.
Cadillac is also increasingly competitive in the transition from fuel to new energy.
To put it in more detail, reaching the price of CNY 297,700 is part of Cadillac’s strategy to further reduce the pricing burden in the new energy vehicle market and prepare for battle.
Once the pricing burden is lightened, Cadillac can wield more power to pursue greater development potential amidst the inescapable competition in the market.
Establishing superior value: is the intention to surprise its competition?
As the price drops, the value of the Lyriq standard endurance version continues to rise, which offers value-perception that is almost impossible to provide compared to its petrol and new energy counterparts of the same price range.
Battery losing weight, full power retained
The main reason why the Lyriq standard endurance version could reach the price of CNY 297,700 is the decrease in battery capacity – from 95.7 kWh to 68.4 kWh. Naturally, the CLTC endurance has consequently been reduced from 653 km to 502 km.
This change is actually closely related to Cadillac’s observation of the real demands of Lyriq users.
According to official Cadillac research, the average Lyriq user’s weekly travelled distance is 284 km, with 84% of users travelling less than 500km per week.
Hence, the value of the Lyriq long-range version with a 95.7 kWh large Battery, in reality, is partially wasted by Lyriq users, causing some unnecessary expenditure.
Therefore, Cadillac needs a product like the Lyriq standard endurance version to complement the Lyriq series and better meet the actual needs of its users.
At the same time, even if the battery capacity is reduced, the endurance practicality of the Lyriq standard endurance version will not be discounted. The key to this lies in the robust electronic control capability of the Lyriq standard endurance version, providing a solid range.
According to official data, the Lyriq standard endurance version’s power consumption per hundred kilometers is 14.4 kWh. Such power consumption data is clearly at a leading level in the industry.For the actual cruising ability of the Lyriq Standard Endurance Edition, you can keep an eye on our evaluations. Currently, you may refer to our previous tests on the Lyriq Long Endurance Luxury Edition at 42Test.
During the test, the initial full-electric range of the Long Endurance Luxury Edition was 522 km. It drove a total of 480 km in an outdoor temperature of 15-19°C, with a set temperature of 22°C and 2nd gear air conditioning, a constant speed of 120 km/h, and a remaining battery life of 1.5%. The electric consumption was 19.3 kWh / 100 km.
Clearly, the cruising ability of the Lyriq Long Endurance Luxury Edition is quite stable and reliable.
As seen, the problem of falsely labelled endurance with the Standard Edition of Lyriq is likely non-existent. For daily commutes within your city, the Standard Endurance Lyriq can fully meet your needs.
Moreover, it is owing to SAIC GM’s decision to reduce the battery capacity of the Standard Lyriq that it shows superior performance in other aspects compared to the Long Endurance variant. Firstly, fast charging time is reduced to 33 minutes; secondly, the vehicle’s weight is reduced, accelerating to 100 km in just 5.9 seconds.
Despite a decrease in battery capacity and cruising range, the superior experience in aspects like charging and accelerating offered to the Standard edition of Lyriq users is worth it, especially since it allows for much leeway in terms of price.
The Classic ‘American’ Touch
Even with a trimmed-down battery size, the Lyriq Standard Endurance Edition didn’t skimp on SAIC GM’s unwavering ‘American Luxury’.
In terms of appearance, the Lyriq Standard Edition features a body size of 5003 x 1977 x 1637 mm, and its wheelbase extends to 3094 mm. A stable full-size SUV, it’s comparable to the higher-priced BMW X5L and significantly superior to similarly priced vehicles like the NIO ES6 and BMW iX3.
Its mid-large size SUV body makes the Lyriq Standard Edition look strong and imposing. With the addition of the distinctive front face of the Lyriq series, it manages to retain the visual impact and design recognizability of Lyriq vehicles.
As for the interior, Lyriq Standard Edition continues to feature abundant leather wrapping, comfortable and spacious sofa seats, and other luxurious design elements. Compared to luxury brands or new models at the same price point, the Lyriq Standard Edition has extra classic touches, such as ornate wood grain panels and knob carvings. Turn on the ambiance light, and this classic feel intensifies.
While maintaining the classic texture, the more trendy sense of technology should not be missed.
The Lyriq renewed edition still comes equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon 8155 cockpit chip and a 33-inch 9K surround screen. At the car show, Cadillac also announced that IQ OS V3.0 would be pushed successively soon, and MiGu Video, KuGou Music will be online to continue enriching users’ entertainment experience.
What’s worth mentioning is that the Lyriq renewed edition has not only not downsized in its American luxury, but also made more reasonable adjustments based on user feedback, such as changing the touch door handle to a pop-out one, equipping card key and anti-glare rearview mirror, etc.
In general, in the luxury pure electric market priced at around 300k, the Lyriq renewed edition has overpowering space, true pure electric platform, and sincere intelligent configuration compared to mainstream luxury brands of the same price.
As for high-end new-force brands at the same price point, the Lyriq renewed edition also boasts overpowering space, a highly recognizable design, deeper brand accumulation, and a more solid and stable range.
In a nutshell, the Lyriq renewed edition offers a value that surpasses its price of 300k, rendering the product highly competitive.
Compared to some competing models, the Lyriq renewed edition is virtually delivering a dimensionality reduction blow with its product power, which may well bring higher sales for Cadillac in the pure electric market.
Second Half: Pure Electric
Although in the new energy vehicle market, we often say that a brand’s long history can become a burden in its transformation, but Cadillac’s 120-year history has not turned it into a stick-in-the-mud. On the contrary, it seems to be even more flexible than other brands of similar age.
From being at the forefront of mainstream luxury brands and launching Lyriq, created based on the pure electric platform, to continuously adapting to price wars to adjust prices and rights and interests, to now launching the Lyriq renewed edition that carries a superior value.
Standing at this turbulent crossroads, Cadillac has been continuously streamlining its relationship with the market to find new points of intersection with the new energy vehicle market.
Understanding the relationship requires an important tool: user demand. However, finding and promptly addressing demand is not an easy task.For Cadillac, the launch of the Lyriq extended-range version signifies the brand’s focus on user needs, and meeting these needs relies on the Altium intelligence platform.
Introduced by SAIC GM in 2021, the Altium intelligence platform is a purely electric vehicle platform. It empowers car models in terms of performance, intelligence, and safety, while also offering high flexibility which can satisfy different mileage, drive methods, and performance product requirements. With the backing of SAIC GM, Altium also has significant scale advantages.
Thanks to the Altium intelligence platform, Cadillac can confidently market the “same price for oil and electric” strategy in the new energy market, while adjusting prices in line with current market trends, and even gaining competitive pricing advantage against other cars in the same class.
Notably, in order to expand its influence in the new energy-vehicle market, Cadillac showcased a brand new electric car model — OPTIQ — set to hit the market next year, among other products during the Guangzhou Auto Show.
However, official information about OPTIQ is yet to be released. Based on data registered with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the OPTIQ is 4,822 mm long, 1,912 mm wide, 1,642 / 1,644 mm high, with a wheelbase of 2,954 mm, a size smaller than the Lyriq series.
According to Cadillac’s official plan, in addition to OPTIQ, another two new electric car models will be launched next year, further expanding its product map of pure electrics.
Clearly, with the Lyriq series leading the way, Cadillac is striving to capture the new energy market. As Cadillac Marketing Director Gu Ye Bin stated:
“The major theme for Cadillac in the second half is all about IQ Electrics. Similarly, powered by the Altium intelligence platform, Cadillac’s IQ Electric products have a significant advantage, which is ‘strong inside, stunning outside.’
As the core of electrification, Cadillac is accelerating its product map expansion while simultaneously improving its energy replenishment system.
Currently, Cadillac has partnered with Tesla to use Tesla’s charging piles open to non-Tesla vehicles. Also, on the day of the announcement, Southern Power Grid’s charging piles were fully launched on the Cadillac IQ app.
According to the latest official data, Cadillac has access to 580,000 charging piles covering over 320 cities nationwide.
In the current anxiogenic yet inspiring market transition, the new energy ecosystem of Cadillac, including SAIC GM’s product lineup and recharging infrastructure, is maturing step by step.
Of course, to translate this into actual sales figures, Cadillac needs to continue its strategic planning, devoting efforts to brand, product, and pricing tactics.
Looking at the Lyriq version, Cadillac demonstrates more aggressive forces in the new energy vehicle market, which have the potential to yield greater returns. Whether the Lyriq version can enable Cadillac to lead in the second half of the pure electric market, we will wait and see.
Final Words
After entering the new energy vehicle market, the reshaping of the market pattern is deeply troubling all brands.
Whether they are new or old brands, they are caught up in it. On the one hand, they are swayed by brutal competition, and on the other, they are shaping that very competition.
Cadillac, in the midst of this, naturally finds itself susceptible to the brutal competition,
yet from pure electric platforms to 8155 chips, from expanding their product roster to providing comprehensive refueling systems, from pure manual driving to intelligent driving, under the major trends of electrification and intelligence, Cadillac follows the pace that caters to consumer demand and market changes.
Now, the starting price for the Cadillac Lyriq series has reached the level of 300,000, bringing new possibilities for its own pure electric vehicle sales and leaving a challenge for how other mainstream luxury brands will operate in the 300,000 pure electric market.
This means that the overall market pattern is more enigmatic due to the brutal competition.
This article is a translation by AI of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.