Cadillac’s Australian return set to be confirmed next week

General Motors luxury brand Cadillac is expected to be confirmed for an Australian relaunch next week.

GM Australia and New Zealand (GMANZ) has invited automotive media to a function in Melbourne next Wednesday (November 15) for what it describes as a “world-first GM announcement”.

It is expected GMANZ will confirm a battery-electric Cadillac model line-up for Australia led by the Cadillac Lyriq, a mid-size electric SUV that would compete with the Tesla Model Y, Australia’s top-selling EV.

The battery-powered Cadillac Escalade iQ large SUV and the yet-to-be-revealed Cadillac Optiq crossover could also be confirmed as part of the all-EV Cadillac announcement.

Cadillac previously confirmed that all of its future models will be battery-electric and, according to US reports quoting GM insiders, Cadillac EVs will be factory-built in North America in right-hand drive for markets such as the UK and Australia.

If the right-hand drive production and sales of Cadillac EV models is confirmed, then it certainly qualifies as a ‘world-first’.

The media invitation to next week’s event stated:

“Join us for an exclusive General Motors media moment where details of a significant evolution of the GM business in Australia & New Zealand will be revealed.

“This promises to be an iconic event with GM executives available for interviews, and the opportunity to see this breathtaking and ground-breaking new premium addition for yourself.”

Our sources have confirmed the announcement will focus on Cadillac and the expectation that the iconic American premium brand will return to Australia after an absence of more than 50 years has grown in recent times as model nameplates have been registered locally.

Australian GM distributor General Motors Specialty Vehicles (GMSV) will likely be responsible for the sales and servicing of Cadillac vehicles via its local dealer network.

GMSV is also expected to confirm the GMC Yukon full-size SUV will soon join the closely-related Chevrolet Silverado pick-up in its locally-converted model line-up.

It’s also due to add the Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray hybrid supercar to its growing C8 Corvette range alongside the Stingray and Z06.

Cadillac was on the brink of relaunching in Australia with the CTS sports sedan in 2009 before the GFC prompted a last-minute backflip. Its return looked likely again in 2015 but that was quickly ruled out.

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