Even minus Super Cruise, Cadillac Lyriq epitomizes the EV luxury experience

Industry

Published: 03 Jul. 2024, 16:47 Updated: 03 Jul. 2024, 17:07

Even minus Super Cruise, Cadillac Lyriq epitomizes the EV luxury experience

Cadillac’s Lyriq luxury EV finally landed in Korea. [GM KOREA]

[TEST DRIVE]

POCHEON, Gyeonggi — Cadillac’s much-awaited Lyriq has finally landed in Korea after several months of delay, but the "Cadillac of EVs" — literal as well as figurative in this case — lives up to its best-in-class reputation.

The launch could be particularly significant to the Korean market as the Lyriq is the first-ever EV powered by batteries manufactured by Ultium Cells, a joint battery venture of LG Energy Solution and General Motors (GM).

The Lyriq, Cadillac’s first EV, came to Korea without some of GM’s flagship services, like Super Cruise, but with a slightly lower price tag than in the United States or Europe.

Cadillac sings new song with luxurious Lyriq EV

The Lyriq welcomes the driver carrying the key with a choreographed light show from the exterior LEDs in the front grille. [SARAH CHEA]

The Korea JoongAng Daily recently got a chance to get behind the wheel of the luxury EV on a 100-kilometer (62-mile) roundtrip from Seoul to Pocheon, Gyeonggi.

The first impression of the Lyriq was quite disconcerting, albeit in a charming way. Over five meters (16 feet) long, the car strutted its majestic stuff with sharp and distinct faces, defying the stereotype that all EVs are round and futuristic.

Cadillac’s Lyriq luxury EV finally landed in Korea. [SARAH CHEA]

The car “welcomed” the writer — well, the key in her pocket, anyway — with a choreographed light show from the exterior LEDs in the front grille.

As the writer approached the car, the door handles popped out and lit up. This is when the writer finally understood why the Lyriq was the best-selling luxury EV in the North American market in the first quarter.

The interior is undoubtedly unique, with an emergency blinker on the ceiling instead of on the center fascia. The center fascia was simple and devoid of unnecessary buttons. Instead, it had a storage space for valuables like credit cards.

Interior of the Cadillac’s Lyriq [SARAH CHEA]

Cadillac’s Lyriq 33-inch center display [SARAH CHEA]

The Lyriq offers a powerful yet soothing ride with no noise or road roughness. It was definitely this writer's most satisfying EV driving experience of the past year. A total of 26 ambient lighting options transform the interior mood at will, a plus in the luxury segment.

The world’s first Regen On Demand feature allows drivers to use a paddle on the back of the steering wheel to slow the vehicle or completely stop without using the brake. This could be a plus point for inexperienced drivers.

The 19-speaker AKG Studio sound system with headrest speakers provided remarkable audio quality.

Cadillac’s Lyriq has a spacious interior [SARAH CHEA]

Lyriq offers a storage space under the center fascia. [SARAH CHEA]

However, the absence of Super Cruise, GM’s latest hands-free driver assistance, was disappointing. Due to the absence, when the car zigzags, it doesn’t return to the lane, a widespread feature in today’s cars.

All the car does for the driver is display a warning sign and vibrate the seat. The heads-up display and navigation were also unavailable.

“The Super Cruise system is based on Google Maps, but Korea currently does not allow the use of the app due to security issues,” a GM Korea spokesperson explained. “This is why many maps-related features, including Super Cruise, are unavailable in all Cadilac models in Korea.”

Lyriq offers a phone charging box. [SARAH CHEA]

The electricity usage also fell short of expectations. When starting the test drive, the dashboard showed that the car could go 447 kilometers, but after running around 49 kilometers, only 370 kilometers were left.

This may be because the air conditioner was blasting during the entire test drive. The car got 3.6 kilometers per kilowatt hour during the test drive, considerably lower than the company’s claim of 4.1 kilometers per kilowatt hour.

The phone charging box in the center console also seemed to work poorly. This writer left her iPhone 14 in the box for an hour, yet only 2 percent had been charged.

The rear of Cadillac’s Lyriq [GM KOREA]

Powered by Ultrium’s 102-kilowatt-hour NCM batteries, the car can run up to 465 kilometers per single charge, according to the manufacturer.

However, the Lyriq is second to none in terms of performance. It boasts a maximum of 500 horsepower and 62.2 kilogram-meters of torque. It can reach a top speed of 210 kilometers per hour and accelerate from zero to 100 kilometers per hour in just 4.6 seconds.

The sticker price starts from 107 million won ($77,000) in Korea, around 20 million won cheaper than the U.S. and European prices. Delivery will start in July.

Lyriq is the latest bet for GM Korea to boost Cadillac sales in the domestic market. Cadillac, whose annual sales peaked in 2018 with 2,100 units, sharply dropped to 975 last year.

Cadillac sales in Korea heavily depend on the Escalade, which accounts for around 60 percent of the brand's total sales.

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]