Cadillac has seemingly been in rebirth mode for well over a decade. Its latest chapter will see parent automaker General Motors position the brand as its beacon for electric cars and luxury, perhaps a Tesla rival of its own.
While we'll have to let the future vehicles and the public's reaction decide success, Cadillac Design Director Brian Smith said we definitely won't see regular-looking Cadillac designs put in place with batteries and electric motors. Instead, the luxury brand's EVs will have a distinct look about them.
Smith told Automobile in an interview published last Wednesday that the design team took the current design language, which draws a lot of inspiration from the stunning Escala concept, and planned a "departure."
"Crisp features" will blend with "more muscular lines and beauty in the surface," Smith told the publication. The chief designer even praised Tesla for this way of thinking and its ability to show the world EVs didn't have to be "weird-looking," in Smith's words.
Cadillac is on a mission to make electric cars desirable, and its first checkpoint will be the Lyriq electric SUV. We were supposed to see the model already, but the coronavirus pandemic pushed its debut out. We still don't know when exactly Cadillac plans to show the SUV, but Smith reiterated that the program is on schedule, as GM has said in the past. Cadillac simply told Roadshow in a statement to "stay tuned" for later this year.
Following the Lyriq will be the Celestiq -- a flagship electric sedan. Roadshow viewed the model during a press preview earlier this year before COVID-19 ran rampant, and guys, it's a beauty. Smith even dished out a fun nugget of information on the upcoming Celestiq: The flagship car was originally born with an engine. But when Cadillac began reviewing projects, it turned into an electric car that Cadillac will aim for the moon with, according to the designer.
