Fleshing Out the EV Lineup
Back in 2019, when Cadillac first teased the Lyriq, the brand announced plans to go fully electric by 2030. While that deadline probably won’t be met, with the launch of the new 2026 Vistiq, Cadillac has at least created a fully electric parallel universe of its gas-powered SUV lineup. Some of the gas models will be sticking around for some time, but Cadillac now has an electric, luxury utility in all the size segments Americans seem to care about. These EVs run the gamut from the compact Optiq, the midsize two-row Lyriq, the upper-midsize three-row Vistiq, and the gargantuan Escalade IQ.
Cadillac is following a similar pattern with the Lyriq and Vistiq as it did with the gas-powered two-row XT5 and three-row XT6. The three-row Vistiq rides on the same 121-inch wheelbase as its two-row sibling and has the same 102-kilowatt-hour battery pack. Compared to the lower and sleeker fastback Lyriq, the Vistiq has a longer, more upright body with proportions more like the Escalade. In fact, Cadillac designers and marketers refer to it as the “baby Escalade,” which, given the Vistiq’s size, just demonstrates how large an Escalade is.
Inside and Out
Like the rest of Cadillac’s electric SUVs, the Vistiq features a handsome design that builds on the brand's EV styling language. The front fascia uses a similar approach as the Lyriq, with lighting elements behind a black-painted front fascia laser etched with a pattern.
When you approach with the key fob, it wakes up and puts on a little light show, including a waterfall effect in the vertical headlamp stack. At the same time, the door handles pop out to provide access. The Vistiq also has etching between the layers of the rear quarter side glass, similar to the smaller Optiq, that provides a sense of motion.
Climbing into the Vistiq, there is a sense of familiarity to anyone who has sat in the Optiq or Lyriq. It has the same 33-inch curved display, with a small section on the left and a larger section on the right for infotainment, which is touch-enabled. The smaller left panel allows the driver to switch between standard vehicle information, maps, an augmented reality view, or a minimal view.
The biggest difference from the Lyriq in the front cabin is a smaller touchscreen near the edge of the center console for climate control functions. I personally prefer the Lyriq's row of switches, but the screen was selected because the larger SUV has five-zone climate control (two each in the first two rows and a fifth for the third row), which would have required too many buttons and switches. At least the vent controls remain fully manual, unlike the hidden touch controls recently adopted by Lincoln.
One nice detail about the climate control is that weight sensors in the second and third rows are used to turn off climate functions if no one is sitting there, reducing the load on the battery and improving range. Speaking of the third row, I could comfortably fit my 5-foot-10-inch frame back there without my knees touching the second row. I had sufficient headroom for my long-torso proportions, but the seating position was a bit knees up. Nonetheless, adults can sit there for short to medium trips without any pain.
Adding More Super to Cruising
In 2017, Cadillac was the first brand to introduce an advanced driver-assist system that allowed the driver to take their hands off the steering wheel while in motion. While it took several years before Super Cruise expanded beyond the now-defunct CT6 sedan, it’s now offered on about 20 different models, and GM keeps improving it to help it stay ahead of the pack, at least in North America. Since the second-generation version debuted several years ago, GM has expanded the types of roads it can be used on from divided highways to rural two-lane roads, added automated lane change, the ability to use it while towing, and more.
The Vistiq brings another big step forward for Super Cruise. It now has more integration with built-in Google Maps, hands-on lane centering, and an auto-engage feature. One of the challenges with Super Cruise was knowing which roads you could engage it on. Until recently, drivers had to press the Super Cruise button on the steering wheel to see if it engaged or if a message popped up saying road information was unavailable.
While the high-resolution maps from the Dynamic Map Platform still determine where Super Cruise can be used, Google Maps now helps out as well. When using navigation, Google Maps has always shown the drive route with a bold blue line. Now, if the road the vehicle is on is Super Cruise capable, there is a white line down the center of the blue.
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Google Maps has also had a lane guidance feature for many years when approaching a turn or highway interchange. A couple of miles ahead of an interchange, a box shows how many lanes are available and highlights which lane you should be in for your exit or turn. Super Cruise now takes that guidance and automatically moves the vehicle to the appropriate lane for the next exit.
Engaging Super Cruise has also become easier. Once the driver has activated cruise control and the vehicle is on an approved road, the steering wheel light bar will turn green automatically, and the driver can release the wheel. If the vehicle comes to a construction zone with a lane shift or some part of the road that's not approved, the light bar turns red and the haptic seat buzzes to remind the driver to take the wheel. But now, lane centering assist is still enabled. As long as the driver doesn’t tap the brake to cancel cruise control, hands-off will automatically resume when it can, with no button presses required.
At highway interchanges where the road splits, hands-off mode will remain active through the transition until a merge is required, for which the driver will need to take the wheel briefly. We tried this on the north side of Ann Arbor, transitioning between I-94, M-14, and US-23. Super Cruise remained active for the I-94 to M-14 transition and requested hands-on for the US-23 merge — it worked flawlessly. In early 2024, GM announced plans for Super Cruise to expand from 400,000 miles of roads in North America to 750,000 by the end of 2025, and it is currently nearing 600,000, making it far more useful and by far the best performing of any of these systems currently on the market.
Augmented Reality Head-Up Display
Back in 2021, when Cadillac first unveiled the Lyriq, the brand indicated that it would feature a new type of augmented reality head-up display (AR HUD). That didn’t happen, but an AR HUD finally arrived on the Vistiq. The AR HUD is a dual-plane HUD developed with a UK startup that GM Ventures invested in called Envisics.
Most HUDs currently available only display information in a single plane that floats roughly above the front bumper of the car. It uses lasers and some optical trickery to display the traditional vehicle information above the driver and additional information that appears well out in front of the vehicle. For example, when in Super Cruise, arrows will appear in the lane you’re travelling, showing your path well ahead of the vehicle. When the system wants to do an automatic lane change, it will show curved lines indicating where the corner radar is looking to detect a gap in traffic. As the system prepares to move over, those arrows rotate up and in the direction of the movement to help provide confidence to the driver about what the system is seeing.
The use of lasers for illumination allows for a broader color space to be projected, providing richer situational awareness for the driver. In the future, there will be opportunities for more information to be projected, such as highlighting pedestrians in the sensors' field of view or enhancing lane markings, especially when driving in low light or poor weather. It’s a significant enhancement over traditional HUDs.
Scoot to 60 MPH in 3.7 Seconds
The Vistiq comes standard with dual-motor all-wheel drive, delivering 615 horsepower and 650 pound-feet of torque. Pressing the velocity max button on the steering wheel unleashes all of that power and will push this big, people hauler to 60 mph in about 3.7 seconds. Even in normal drive mode, the Vistiq is more than quick enough to make passing maneuvers on two-lane rural roads or highway merges a breeze.
Cruising down the road is an exceptionally quiet experience in the Vistiq. Models equipped with the optional 23-inch wheel and tire package include tires with foam inside that helps to quell road noise. The Vistiq also has a road noise mitigation system that uses accelerometers on the chassis and microphones to detect what's going on on the road and generate opposing sound waves from the audio system. It certainly worked well in the Premium Luxury trim we drove.
The Premium Luxury and Platinum trims get an air spring suspension with adaptive dampers and active four-wheel steering, making this big machine surprisingly maneuverable. The steering feel is good during curves, and ride quality was excellent even with its big wheels on notoriously bad Michigan roads.
While official EPA range numbers haven’t been published yet, GM estimates that the Vistiq will go about 300 miles on a charge. For now, it’s still equipped with a CCS charging port, but it does support the use of Tesla Superchargers with a suitable adapter. Like the Lyriq, it will charge at about 200-kilowatts using a DC fast charger, and it includes bidirectional vehicle-to-home capability that can power your house during an outage if you have a home enablement kit installed.
Not sure how DC fast charging works? Here's a quick primer.
The Bottom Line
The base Vistiq Luxury trim starts at $79,090, including delivery. The Premium Luxury model we drove for a few hours came to a grand total of $94,915, which included the $695 Celestial metallic paint, which looks great in the sun. The Platinum trim launching later this summer will go for $98,190.
While it’s not cheap, the Vistiq offers more performance and a vastly more usable rear seat than either the Volvo EX90 or the Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV. Even fully loaded, it costs thousands less than the Mercedes. For those looking for a luxury three-row electric utility, the Vistiq should absolutely be on the shopping list.
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