Cadillac Optique
How it looks when you see on the street: When I finally sorted out my charging situation deep in the heart of Brooklyn, I pulled up next to a 2025 Cadillac Lyriq. Over the next half hour I chatted with the Lyriq owner, who was in love with his ride. The Lyriq came first and had longer, more robust proportions. Both had charging ports in an inconvenient location – driver’s side about two inches too close to the door to my liking. This became an issue on my ride, where the Tesla standard meant that public charging required taking up two spaces. More on that later. But despite the handsome sculpture, Optiq grew on me over time. I drove it up and down I-95 through the country, cities and suburbs. It attracted spectators in parking lots and was super comfy for a four person road trip.
How it makes you feel when you get in: The 9K res 33 inch screen is impossible to miss – it frames the cabin experience. Lots of native apps, such as Google Maps, to compensate for lack of Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. Splashes of colors and accents zhuzh up the interior.
For our fourth grade passenger, we blasted a lot of Taylor Swift and the pop jam “Lush Life,” which felt like this car’s carefree soundtrack with this impressive Dolby system.
How it drives: Optiq is propelled by an all-wheel drive dual motor that produces 300 horsepower. The range is posted at 302 miles – I ended up topping out about 275 charging up at various stations, and in truth it burned a bit brighter under my heavy foot. On long stretches of highway, I played around with standard Super Cruise, a solid driver assistant companion. The Tesla charging is a nice idea, but as you’ll see with a deeper search, the cords are not designed to stretch far enough to neatly fit at a Tesla Supercharger. In short, if you’re using public charging, prepare to wait and the dirty looks when you take up two chargers.
Space for people and things: Optiq’s backseat is spacious. We easily fit several suitcases. Fold-down rear
What to compare it to: Porsche Macan, BMW iX3
How much does it cost: Our test vehicle had the Premium Sport trim, had a base price of $53,600 and with options like propulsion AWD, was priced at $62,557.