2024 Cadillac Lyriq Sport AWD Road Test: Old-school driving with a new-school look

It’s been almost two years since we drove the Cadillac Lyriq for the first official drive of the car. In case you were wondering, no, that’s not the usual amount of time between when we first drive the car and when it’s available for more extensive testing via a weekly loan. But very few things about the Lyriq launch and the production problems that followed were normal. Only now that Cadillac is confident in its ability to get enough Lyriqs to keep the sales charts high — 5,800 were sold in the first quarter of 2024, up from just 968 delivered in the same period in 2023 — do we get to drive the SUV again. electricity.

The Lyriq in question here is a version we haven’t run before, either. Specifically, it’s the Sport 3 trim, and it comes with a dual-motor all-wheel drive powertrain that puts out 500 horsepower and 450 pound-feet of torque. The single-engine, rear-mounted Lyriq we drove earlier has 160 fewer horsepower compared to the two-engine, but frankly, this electric SUV is less about performance and more about luxury.

That’s clear when you jump into the cabin and discover the care that Cadillac put into the Lyriq’s design. The final price of my loaded tester may be $83,500, but the Lyriq’s interior feels like an $80,000 interior. Point the Tesla Model Y’s $45,000-$55,000 price tag all you want – there’s a reason it’s cheaper, as it doesn’t quite match the Lyriq’s level of luxury and equipment quality.

It’s easy to get distracted by all the fancy decorations, but I jumped right into the big 33-inch display to see how that’s done. If you recall, the Lyriq’s Ultium co-platform, the Blazer EV, had all sorts of issues with its infotainment system when it was launched, which, among other things, forced a sales halt. Despite the platform relationship, Cadillac’s infotainment is its own monster. It retains Apple CarPlay and Android Auto functionality (albeit compromised in a small box due to the odd screen shape), but also runs GM’s Android Automotive app that lets you sign in to your Google account. It was definitely seamless to check in, although there was a 10 minute delay before I could use the native Google Maps navigation system. After fighting the bug, it worked flawlessly throughout my week-long test.

Getting your bearings inside the Lyriq will take a few minutes if you’re used to other Cadillac interiors. It’s mostly due to the unique buttons on the steering wheel that give you quick access to a number of things through a light touch, but also because Cadillac has gone full Mercedes with its door-mounted seat controls. Even the lumbar and massage settings are accessible from the door, since there is zero control on the seat itself. All of these high-quality buttons and switches (there’s basically a physical control for every possible car control used most often) go against what most other brands are using on EV interiors. For the long-time Cadillac buyer and anyone getting into their first EV, it will be an easy learning curve.

At first start, it’s obvious that the Cadillac is bringing some old-school vibes to the party with a surprising driving style. It’s a little tricky at first as you need to engage the lock more than is normal with modern steering racks when doing sharp maneuvers. Engineers tell us the Lyriq’s slow steering is intended to provide “a balance of smooth, predictable low-speed steering and a firm, responsive feel at high speeds.” In reality, it feels like the kind of steering wheel you’d find in a Cadillac before the brand made a radical 180-degree turn with a high-performance chassis modification: slow, lazy and a little labored. I would have preferred a quicker rack which would make the car feel lighter at lower speeds, but that said, I liked it at higher speeds when testing its handling and overall stability on the highway. Faster racks can make the car feel dark or light on its feet, but there are still benefits to the simple strategy Cadillac took here.

That same easy-to-do feeling applies to full offline apps, too. You’d think that 500 horsepower would be a good time, but regardless of the driving situation, the Lyriq will – once again, on purpose – pull itself off the line before pulling you back once you’re underway. . To top it off, quick bursts of sound at high speeds will be responded to gracefully, but you won’t be able to scare anyone by triggering launch control like many other EVs boast.

Ride quality on Michigan’s rough roads is respectable enough, though it’s worth noting the Lyriq’s lack of dampers, which are optional on other Cadillac models. GM struck a balance of transportation that’s neither mega-plush nor razor-sharp for handling, instead sitting in a nice middle ground between the shifting standards and the Cadillac era. Most Mercedes and BMW EVs are pleasant, but I think many will find the Lyriq’s ride pleasant. When you start pushing a chassis like one of Cadillac’s beloved sedans — the CT4 and CT5 — it doesn’t fall apart, but you’ll know the all-wheel-drive Lyriq weighs 5,789 pounds each corner and when it brakes hard. It takes smooth roads like a muscle car – it’s still capable enough to drive at speed but it does so as if it’s saying, “I’d rather be in a straight line.” And hey, 500 horsepower is never it is not fun, making the Lyriq oodles more comfortable than any of Cadillac’s gas-powered crossovers.

The active noise canceling technology that uses sensors on the wheels works amazingly to eliminate any kind of tire noise from the 22-inch wheels wrapped in Michelin Primacy all-season rubber. However, this test car had unusually loud wind noise from what sounded like the windshield meeting the roof. I asked Cadillac about it, and their engineering team looked into the problem. Turns out, there was a problem with the A-pillar trim piece on this test car, Cadillac tells me. We will look to see if the next Lyriq we drive has this wind noise sorted.

Fortunately, the noise was quiet enough that playing songs on the 19-speaker AKG sound system could drown it out — and hey, this is one system that rocks when you turn it on. It’s a pleasure to listen to when you’re logging highway miles on Super Cruise, which is as cool and sophisticated as it gets when paired with the Lyriq. Its active lane-change is very well-executed, and its overall compliance and ability to follow lane markings remains unmatched. That said, the Super Cruise inexplicably canceled more than a few times during the 100-mile stretch of highway driving in areas it had never attempted before. The system intelligently shuts down in tricky construction zones or freeway junctions, but the Lyriq’s unexpected cancellation felt more like a glitch than a system that recognizes dangerous situations, since I was only traveling on normal, empty highways that shouldn’t have caused a shutdown. To further emphasize this point, the system would allow me to re-participate in Super Cruise immediately after this closure, making it even more eyebrow-raising.

The 102-kilowatt-hour battery pack is rated for 307 miles of range, even in this Sport 3 model with its larger 22-inch wheels. That’s surprising considering the single-engine RWD Lyriq can only go another 7 miles at 314, according to EPA. Given that small range penalty, it’s basically a no-brainer to go for an all-wheel drive if your budget is going to add an extra $3,500 it costs. You get improved speed and all-weather traction without having to worry about cold weather being too dangerous. Charging is consistent with a 190-kW maximum charge rate, but while that may have sounded good a few years ago, it’s now in the middle of the pack compared to other EVs.

One thing that hasn’t changed since the Lyriq’s launch, though, is how good it looks. Funky taillights, plenty of light when approaching/departing, and a sleek, aerodynamic shape still look very attractive in the near future. Details like the contrasting leather interior and lower front seat storage will bring a smile to my face every time I get into the car. Plus, the colors offered inside and out (green on green is an option!) will ensure you can go as bright or as low-key as you like.

At this point, Cadillac seems confident in its electric SUV, so much so that it is finally building them in the right numbers. That said, the few faults this test car had are enough to give me pause, even if the week in it was largely a luxury time. Cadillac’s lost the first-to-market feature with mass production delays, too, as the Genesis GV70 Electrified, Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV and others were able to stake their claim on the market more firmly. Regardless of the competition, it’s great to see that the Lyriq is finally getting its big break, and that you can now get a slice of what the future of Cadillac is meant to be.

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