2025 Cadillac Lyriq still on track for 2024 arrival

General Motors Australia and New Zealand has confirmed the 2025 Cadillac Lyriq remains on track for release later this year, when the all-new large luxury electric SUV will spearhead the official return of the US premium brand to Australia for the first time since 1940.

This week, Cadillac also pledged a quick succession of additional models to follow from 2025 as it recommitted to an EV-only line-up Down Under, at least “for now”.

“We’ve got a very well laid-out timeline here internally, and we will be sharing a lot more information on the Lyriq over the coming months,” GMANZ chief Jess Bala said in a briefing with local media this week.

“We’ve got store openings planned, sale dates planned and some pop-up activations, which will all start about two months from now. So you will definitely learn more very soon.

“But we are still on track to launch in the fourth quarter of this year.”

Cadillac’s decision to launch with the Lyriq has raised some eyebrows in Australia, especially considering the luxury electric SUV’s price, which is tipped to approach $150,000.

Full Australian details are yet to be confirmed, but all Lyriq vehicles will come standard here with a dual-motor all-wheel drive powertrain, as well as a 33-inch 9K-resolution digital display, AKG 19-speaker audio and both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Also confirmed as standard equipment for Australia is Nappa leather trim, tri-zone climate control, heated front and rear seats, ventilated and massaging front seats, a panoramic fixed-glass roof, intersection automatic emergency braking, adaptive headlights and a black crystal shield front grille.

Pricing, model range, full equipment details, warranty, servicing and other aftersales details for the Lyriq are yet to be released.

However, Bala is adamant the 2.6-tonne SUV will work as a torchbearer for Cadillac in Australia, and deserves its place in the premium SUV space, which includes rivals like the Audi Q8 e-tron, Mercedes-Benz EQE and BMW iX.

“We can’t share any more on price, but I can say we are targeting BMW, Audi and Mercedes-Benz in terms of that mid-size luxury electric SUV space,” she said.

The five-seat Lyriq is expected to be joined in Australia next year by the smaller Cadillac Optiq mid-size electric SUV, which will rival the top-selling Tesla Model Y, followed by the larger seven-seat Vistiq electric SUV and the full-size Escalade IQ electric SUV flagship.

Bala once again watered down talk of Cadillac bringing in its most recognisable models including the combustion-powered Escalade full-size SUV, but said the door would remain ajar in case circumstances change.

“We’re definitely following up with more models and we will share more about those in 2025. It’s probably pretty obvious about what they might be, but we’re definitely excited about them,” she said.

“We will announce more details on those models around the second quarter of 2025, and with some lead time… we are hoping to see those examples here by the end of next year.

“For now Cadillac is an EV-only brand in Australia.”

Cadillac’s rollout in Australia will be initially heralded by three ‘experience centres’ in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, plus a strong online presence.

Local Cadillac officials this week again alluded to a ‘phase two’ of the Australian expansion, but were reticent to give any more details.

Bala said GMANZ was examining customer service provisions offered by other manufacturers in terms of servicing, charging options and lifestyle opportunities.

“From our standpoint, Cadillac is still intended to be a niche entry,” she said.

“We’re not going after mainstream volumes, we’re going after that higher end luxury premium space, where we think we can deliver not just a stunning car that matches the brand and delivers on the brand promise, but also the customer experience that will go along with that.”

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