The Car Connection Expert Review
Likes
- Standard AWD
- Standard Super Cruise
- Well equipped
- Clean cabin design
Dislikes
- No Apple CarPlay or Android Auto
- Some odd angles and cuts
- Etched rear quarter windows
- Which features are standard?
Buying tip
features & specs
The 2025 Cadillac Optiq costs about $10,000 more than the related Chevy Equinox EV, but comes with dual-motor all-wheel drive and Super Cruise.
Cadillac's newest car and its smallest electric crossover will be reviewed in full later this year before it goes on sale.
What kind of vehicle is the 2025 Cadillac Optiq? What does it compare to?
The 2025 Cadillac Optiq is a midsize luxury take on the related Chevrolet Equinox EV in GM’s growing family of electric crossover SUVs. With seats for five but smaller than the Cadillac Lyriq, the Optiq rivals the Genesis GV60, Audi Q4, and everything from the Volvo C40 to the Tesla Model Y.
Is the 2025 Cadillac Optiq a good SUV?
It’s expensive for even an entry-level luxury model, but Cadillac equips it with next-level features and dual-motor all-wheel drive. The styling tries hard and the specs are promising, but we won’t assign a TCC Rating until we drive it late this summer. (Read more about how we rate cars.)
What's new for the 2025 Cadillac Optiq?
It’s new, though it shares a plant and platform with the Chevy Equinox EV. GM steers for a more well-heeled buyer with the Optiq, but one that’s younger and more tech reliant than traditional Cadillac fans.
The styling reflects this youthful appeal with more pronounced lighting and more daring angles wedged into its otherwise curvy silhouette. The design appropriately prioritizes aerodynamics, and accents such as tiered grille ruled by a small Cadillac crest grille insert as well as triangular air intakes share its lineage with the larger Cadillac Lyriq.
The Lyriq was no stranger to small lights making marquee effects, but the Optiq takes it even further with more vertical running lights climbing up the flanks. That’s duplicated at the rear, where Cadillac’s classic vertical taillights bow at the beltline and taper out at the bottom while up top, they extend into the sloped roofline and integrated roof spoiler.
The rear quarter window, etched on the glass like ribs, extends into the upper taillight in a polarizing way. The quarter-window design is one of the great challenges of the small electric crossover with a hatchback-like body, and Cadillac is trying here but the jury is hung. One other questionable design component hides behind the side mirrors and the windshield.
The inside reflects the lightshow of the Lyriq with astounding graphics stretched across 33 inches of pixelated screen. The dash bows out in the center, underscored with a key set of climate buttons, and wood or metallic trim as well as aluminum speaker grilles uphold its luxury pricing. It’s a clean but driver-centric cabin.
With some influence from the Blackwing performance line and standard dual-motor all-wheel drive, the Optiq may aim for more sporting drive impressions. It employs an 85-kwh battery pack and a larger permanent-magnet motor up front and a smaller induction motor on the rear axle. Making an estimated 300 hp and 354 lb-ft of torque, the system favors the front axle that lets it operate in front-wheel drive at cruising speed for efficiency.
Cadillac estimates 300 miles of range, but that will vary based on the Tour, Sport, Snow/Ice, and My Mode settings. A one-pedal driving function allows for regen braking to a stop, and the Optiq rolls on 20-inch wheels or optional 21s.
Cadillac estimates owners should be able to add close to 80 miles of range in just 10 minutes on a DC fast charger, but the brand didn’t disclose at what charge rate. It can tow up to 1,500 pounds.
How roomy is the 2025 Cadillac Optiq?
It’s nearly the same as the Chevrolet Equinox EV. At 190.0 inches long and with a wheelbase of 116.3 inches, the 2025 Cadillac Optiq stretches out longer than the XT5 in Cadillac’s crossover family. Here, Cadillac leans into the advantages of EV packaging, with a wide open floor plan courtesy of the flat battery pack underneath. There’s no drive shaft tunneling down the center of the car as in other EVs that share platforms with combustion engine design.
The back seats present 37.8 inches of rear legroom, enough for a 6-footer to sit behind and beside another 6-footer in comfort, but the sloping roofline trims some headroom for taller passengers. The cargo floor sits low and offers up to 26.0 cubic feet of space, and when the rear seats fold down it expands to up to 57.0 cubic feet. It lacks a front trunk, but those specs measure up as voluminous in the small crossover space.
How much does the 2025 Cadillac Optiq cost?
The 2025 Cadillac Optiq will cost about $54,000 including destination when it arrives later this year, and it should qualify for the $7,500 federal EV tax credit that can be applied while finalizing the paperwork at the dealer. That makes it cost nearly the same as the Cadillac XT5 compact crossover.
It will come in Luxury and Sport trims but the full feature set hasn’t been announced yet. Cadillac targets a younger demographic and equips it accordingly. A 19-speaker AKG sound system with Dolby Atmos comes standard and a 33-inch dash display with a 9k resolution belts the dash, but it doesn’t support Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. Instead, it relies on Google built-in and all its associated apps. This means you’ll need to subscribe to separate data coverage for the Optiq rather than going through your phone. At least there are buttons for the climate control, and massaging seats are an option.
Cadillac includes three years of Super Cruise hands-free driving system before it too becomes a subscription, but a full suite of active safety features including adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitors, and automatic parking will be standard.
Where is the 2025 Cadillac Optiq made?
The Optiq is made alongside the Chevrolet Equinox EV in GM’s plant in Ramos Arizpe, Mexico.
