- The 2024 Cadillac Celestiq debuts as probably the most extravagant and costly mannequin the model has ever constructed.
- The electrical Celestiq is an avant-garde, four-seater hatchback that is made by hand and constructed to order.
- Cadillac matches each mannequin with an anticipated 600 horsepower, an estimated 300 miles of vary, and a base value of round $340,000.
UPDATE 8/8/23: The Cadillac Celestiq may have a base value round $340,000. That is in response to GM Authority, who reported that Cadillac Chief Advertising Officer Melissa Grady Dias in a current publish on social media revealed the automobile’s beginning value—which does not embrace the vacation spot payment. Automobile and Driver has reached out to Cadillac to substantiate the worth, however we have but to listen to again.
When was the final time Cadillac was really thought-about the Commonplace of the World? If you happen to’re like us and must telephone a pal to reply that query, then you definately may must have your grandparents’ landline on velocity dial. The purpose is it has been a very long time, however the model appears to be like to return to these former glory days as a legit luxurious coachbuilder with the 2024 Celestiq, a moonshot mannequin the corporate claims is without doubt one of the most vital in its 120-year historical past.
For these already conversant in the Celestiq idea that Cadillac revealed again in July, the manufacturing automobile’s specialness will not be a shock, particularly because it’s almost equivalent to the previous present automobile. Cadillac principally simply changed the idea’s camera-fed exterior mirrors with conventional ones and known as it good.
Nonetheless, this is a fast recap or primer: The Celestiq is a battery-electric avant-garde four-passenger hatchback that is constructed by hand and tailored for particular person prospects. It additionally encompasses a bespoke platform primarily based on Common Motors’ Ultimum battery expertise.
A Caddy for Kings and Queens
If you have not already related the dots, this Caddy is not attainable for blue-collar of us, irrespective of how fats their yearly bonus test is. And that is the purpose. Cadillac commissioned this bold automobile to reconnect with its heritage, reboot its picture, and be the flagship of the model’s plans to go totally electrical by 2030.
Evidently, the Celestiq is extraordinarily costly, with a $340,000-plus base value that’ll rise primarily based on prospects’ particular person customizations. Cadillac additionally says it is going to solely construct a restricted quantity yearly at GM’s International Technical Heart in Warren, Michigan. These allocations will solely be accessible to these on a waitlist.
So, what does Celestiq imply and the place did the title come from? That is not vital. What’s vital is that it does not have a generic alphanumeric moniker like another fashions Cadillac sells.
It additionally maintains Cadillac’s plan to make use of the suffix “iq” on the finish of its electrical automobiles’ mannequin names, a pattern that started with the lately launched Lyriq electrical SUV. That is higher than the Celestiq being known as the CT7 or one thing equally uninspiring.
Dramatiq Celestiq
What’s not uninspiring is the Celestiq’s dramatiq (see what we did there?) proportions. We have been fortunate sufficient to see it in particular person, and to name it beautiful is an understatement.
Shining in hand-painted Santorini Blue (simply considered one of 200 accessible exterior colours Cadillac mastered for the Celestiq, not counting the infinite color-match choices), the massive EV appears to be like extremely lengthy and low-slung. We’re advised its windshield is angled steeper than that of the newest Corvette.
In contrast to the mid-engined Chevy sports activities automobile, the electrical Celestiq’s bodywork is tastefully sculpted. Its slippery floor hides in depth carbon-fiber physique panels which can be just about void of outlined strains.
There is no belt molding or door handles, both. The big power-operated entrance and rear doorways open on the contact of discreet buttons on the B-pillar, however not earlier than the Celestiq welcomes the motive force with a light-weight present when it detects the important thing fob is inside 15 ft. We’re advised the sequence takes benefit of Cadillac’s first-ever “digital micromirror” headlights that characteristic 1.3 million pixels every.
Whereas the Celestiq’s grille design and hockey-stick-like taillights look much like these of the Lyriq, its remaining particulars provide a singular showcase of the actual manufacturing processes Cadillac employs to construct this machine. The Celestiq’s underbody consists of six mega-sized aluminum castings which can be mentioned to scale back usually mandatory parts by 30–40 components apiece.
Each mannequin additionally options 300-plus fabricated bits which can be made by a course of that may bend and fold steel like origami (versus conventional stamping methods). Cadillac additionally went loopy with 3-D printing on the Celestiq, and the EV boasts 115 such components on the likes of its steering wheel and inside trim.
Let the Cabin Be Your Canvas
Cadillac’s elegant strategy to design is mirrored contained in the Celestiq, which encompasses a refreshingly easy structure that is supposed to function a canvas for purchasers. The corporate needed the inside supplies entrance and heart, and the individualization provided is just about limitless.
It is all about how far down the rabbit gap you need to go, as one Cadillac spokesperson advised Automobile and Driver. There’s even an possibility for leather-wrapped flooring due to course there’s. The cast-aluminum piece on the sprint permits for customized engraving; the identical goes for the steel components on the door sill, edges of the ground mats, and so on.
If you happen to assume the 38 inches of curved OLED screens within the Cadillac Escalade are spectacular, put together to choose your jaw up off the ground. The Celestiq options 55 inches of glass that spans from the left entrance pillar to the fitting entrance pillar.
The only piece of glass hides two separate screens, with the motive force dealing with one and the entrance passenger dealing with the opposite. For security causes, the passenger’s aspect has a privateness characteristic that shields it from the motive force’s view to allow them to’t side-eye a film whereas driving.
The Celestiq’s inside expertise additionally consists of an 11.0-inch touchscreen that sprouts up from the entrance heart console. Whereas there’s an ominous lack of bodily buttons, there is a rotary controller and a quantity knob on the middle console. Phew.
These within the Celestiq’s two particular person and extremely adjustable rear seats even have their very own digital command heart by means of an 8.0-inch touchscreen show. The setup consists of settings for the Gentherm four-zone local weather system that is mentioned to permit intimate tailoring of temps, together with these for the heated and cooled cushions.
Whereas among the Celestiq’s options would not be misplaced on a Mercedes-Benz S-class, others are extra according to the Caddy’s hefty price ticket. Take the Celestiq’s good glass roof that makes use of permits individuals to regulate the quantity of sunshine that comes by in 4 separate sections.
Each Celestiq can also be outfitted with GM’s Extremely Cruise hands-free driving-assist expertise that makes use of a mixture of cameras, radars, and lidar in an effort to work on greater than two million miles of assorted roadways (together with however not restricted to highways) in the US and Canada.
The Flagship of Electrical Cadillacs
Cadillac did not simply construct the Celestiq to be a giant cozy cruiser that appears like greater than 1 / 4 of one million bucks, and each considered one of these huge EVs comes outfitted with an air suspension system and the fourth technology of GM’s magnetorheological shocks. Moreover, the Celestiq additionally has rear-wheel steering and a variable-ratio electrical steering system. It additionally marks the debut of Cadillac’s lively anti-roll bars.
The entrance and rear suspension each characteristic unbiased five-link configurations. Massive 23-inch wheels, that are wrapped with a set of Michelin Pilot Sport EV summer time tires that have been specifically developed for the Celestiq (they also have a distinctive sidewall graphic), function the mediators between the Caddy’s chassis and the street beneath.
The Celestiq is motivated by a pair of electrical motors (one at every axle) that work collectively to generate an estimated 600 horsepower and 640 pound-feet of torque. Cadillac claims this permits the all-wheel-drive Celestiq to race to 60 mph in 3.8 seconds.
Preserve a light-weight sufficient proper foot, although, and Cadillac estimates the Celestiq will go 300 miles on a full cost of its 111-kWh battery pack. (That is gross capability, as Cadillac’s at the moment mum on the pack’s useable capability.) To maximise inside house, Cadillac positions the Celestiq’s battery cells horizontally.
As with most ultra-luxury automobiles, the 2024 Cadillac Celestiq, which enters manufacturing in December 2023, actually must be seen in particular person to be appreciated. Sadly, its unique nature will probably make it a uncommon sight. In fact, that is what Cadillac needed when it got down to design the Celestiq.
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Senior Editor
Eric Stafford’s vehicle dependancy started earlier than he might stroll, and it has fueled his ardour to put in writing information, critiques, and extra for Automobile and Driver since 2016. His aspiration rising up was to change into a millionaire with a Jay Leno–like automobile assortment. Apparently, getting wealthy is tougher than social-media influencers make it appear, so he prevented monetary success totally to change into an automotive journalist and drive new automobiles for a residing. After incomes a journalism diploma at Central Michigan College and dealing at a day by day newspaper, the years of principally burning cash on failed venture automobiles and lemon-flavored jalopies lastly paid off when Automobile and Driver employed him. His storage at the moment features a 2010 Acura RDX, a guide ’97 Chevy Camaro Z/28, and a ’90 Honda CRX Si.
