Cadillac’s Vistiq is a luxury electric SUV for families

By Stephen Edelstein Published November 12, 2024

Cadillac’s electric vehicle rollout got off to a strong start with the Lyriq, but now the General Motors luxury brand is looking to tackle the all-important three-row family SUV segment with the 2026 Vistiq. As with the current gasoline XT6, Cadillac won’t be the first to market. But it hopes to compete with its own distinctive design and tech.

Arriving next year, the 2026 Cadillac Vistiq merges the slab-sided appearance of the XT6 with a new version of the front-end treatment from the Lyriq, which designers nicknamed “The Mandalorian” because of its resemblance to a certain bounty hunter’s helmet. Some tricks were applied to hide the Vistiq’s tall roof, and it has a rear-end treatment inspired by the cult classic Cadillac CTS-V wagon, but this is still a beefy-looking SUV that’s almost Escalade-like in appearance.

The Visitiq launches with a dual-motor all-wheel drive powertrain rated at 615 horsepower and 650 pound-feet of torque, which will get this seven-seat SUV from zero to 60 mph in 3.7 seconds using a launch control mode called Velocity Max, Cadillac estimates. Not bad for a 6,326-pound vehicle. Available air suspension and rear-wheel steering should help to further mask that bulk, while a road-noise cancellation system aims to limit the ambient sounds that become more apparent when you don’t have a gasoline engine under the hood.

Cadillac estimates 300 miles of range, which is the minimum to justify the Vistiq’s large 102-kilowatt-hour battery pack. An available 19.2-kilowatt onboard charger can add 46.7 miles of range per hour of charging, and like other new GM EVs, the Vistiq has vehicle-to-home (V2H) functionality that allows it to serve as a home backup power source.

For family road trips, The Vistiq can replenish up to 79 miles of range in about 10 minutes with DC fast charging. Cadillac did not specify whether the Vistiq would ship with a Combined Charging Standard (CCS) port like the Lyriq or a Tesla-style North American Charging Standard (NACS) port, but it’s launch timing overlaps with the period when GM has said it would switch to NACS. Even if it doesn’t get the Tesla port, Vistiq owners will be able to charge at Tesla Supercharger stations via an adapter.

Inside, the Vistiq has a 33.0-inch display for the driver, with smaller 8.0-inch touchscreens for both the first and second rows to handle functions like the available five-zone climate control and 23-speaker AKG audio system. The Vistiq has the same Google-based infotainment system as other GM EVs, meaning it doesn’t have Apple CarPlay or standalone Android Auto. A frunk is also absent from the equipment list, but Cadillac notes that the Vistiq already has more space behind its third row than the gasoline XT6.

Production starts early next year at GM’s Spring Hill, Tennessee, factory, which also builds the Lyriq and once made cars for the defunct Saturn brand. Deliveries are scheduled to start next summer, with pricing set at $78,790. That’s about where the Vistiq needs to be to compete against other high-end three-row electric SUVs like the Rivian R1S, Volvo EX90, and Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV.