The Cadillac LYRIQ was recently shown and garnered some pretty positive impressions from the public. Cadillac’s first electric car came with a good design and competitive specs, but now it looks like we can add ‘competitive price’ to its list of accolades.
The Cadillac LYRIQ is a luxury SUV from GM’s luxury brand and promises a 300-mile range, 150 kW charging, a plush interior, and a huge screen. With all that in mind, it would not have surprised many if the LYRIQ would have started at a price of $70,000 or more, in the realm of the Tesla Model X, Audi e-tron, and Jaguar I-Pace.
However, GM’s North American President, Steve Carlisle was happy to report that the price would be much lower and will actually start below $60,000. At the JP Morgan Auto Conference Carlisle stated:
“We need to be in the same price zone. This car will need to be priced similar to how the industry prices midsize lux SUVs today, maybe a slight premium at the outset. It’s a price that won’t be high five digits. It won’t start with a seven and it won’t start with a six.”
This is probably a surprise to many as not only does this undercut the price of LYRIQ’s competitors like the Model X and e-tron, but it puts in striking distance of the Tesla Model Y. While there will still be a $10k difference between the Long Range and LYRIQ, the Performance Model Y is right under $60,000 and might even be the more expensive option if GM can get the price of the LYRIQ down to the mid-$50,000 region.
The biggest issue now for the LYRIQ will be time. I said it in the unveil post, while the specifications sound very good now, you have to wonder if they will still be good in two or three years. The LYRIQ is not scheduled until 2022 and by that point, its competitive price and competitive specs might not look as competitive as they do now. Still, it seems like many other automakers are dragging their feet, so while the LYRIQ might have its gap to Tesla widened over the next two years, it may still be competitive to the offerings of Cadillacs peers. Or maybe the LYRIQ will evolve over these next two years and remain competitive through the wait, who knows.
Regardless in the present day, the price is pretty good and it shows that Cadillac is willing to push their future electric cars and bring something competitive to market.
What do you guys think of the price? Let me know down in the comments below.
