Words by: Adam Allen
EV’s are so….not hot right now.
What seemed to be the coveted must-have of our trend conscious society has seen demand fall off a cliff.
Why?
Well, the walking back of government incentives is a big one. So is the price of admission. But to us and many would be buyers out there, the biggest repellant to EV ownership is still the compromises required. Long trips require significant planning around stops for charging, public charging infrastructure itself continues to be abysmal, and range anxiety- compounded by the negative effect winter temps have on stored electrons we’re dealing with at this time of year in the Great White North- and you have a collective turning up of noses at the prospect of ditching gasoline powered vehicles. Headwinds continue to blow, so much so that Ram has shelved it’s EV pickup program while Ford just recently announced they are pulling the plug (pun!) on the F-150 Lightning despite a huge financial gamble.
But it’s not all doom and gloom if you prioritize battery packs over pistons. There’s still a large cohort of people that remain transfixed by the positive benefits EV ownership could mean for their lifestyle. Giving up oil changes and gas stations are big selling points, as is the serenity and smoothness they offer, not to mention the impressive turn of speed made possible by the instantaneous hit of low-end torque. So if people are going to insist on purchasing electric cars we should at least help them make the right choice. And if that choice includes a midsize luxury SUV well, they’ve certainly come to the right place. We just spent a week flogging Cadillac’s Vistiq and here’s what we noted during its tenure in the Carpages Garage.
The first thing we noticed occurred before even we slid behind the wheel. Looking over Cadillac’s press materials, we learned that the Visitq is replacing the XT6 in the brand’s lineup. While it’s not polite to speak of the recently departed with disrespect, we won’t be shedding any tears of sadness over the departing of that model. That left a gaping hole in the brand’s portfolio that needed filling. Enter the Vistiq stage left.
Replacing a brisk selling ICE product with an EV is a bold move. Yet Cadillac had the foresight to give the Vistiq the same vibe as its range topping Escalade and we think it paid off handsomely. The styling is just that- handsome- and the interior is so decadent and well turned out that any lingering doubt to the XT6’s demise will be dismissed post haste.
Open the door and take in your surroundings. They are very posh and the blue leather trimmed seats look like they were lifted out of a Bentley. Usually when a brand throws so many types of materials and textures together the result is busy and incoherent. Not so with the Vistiq. Cadillac designers have somehow made piano black, aluminum and wood trim, leather and glass all work harmoniously. It is every bit the consummate Caddy interior and reminds us that the brand can still knock interior design out of the park this side of the hand built Celestiq that sells for five times the cost of the Vistiq.
There’s a few highlights that left us with very positive impressions of what life is like living with the Vistiq. The first resonates with the audiophiles among us with the 23-speaker AKG audio system. Standard across all strains of Vistiq, it sounds incredible and even more so if the music you’re listening to was mastered using Dolby Atmos. The 33 inches of screens seemed like a letdown at first- we love us some traditional buttons and switches- but Cadillac has done a commendable job of making everything function intuitively and with a snappiness to commands that were praised by all. The last bit of kit that made an impact on us was Super Cruise. Full disclosure: most times we much prefer to do our own driving rather than leave it to cameras and microprocessors. We’ll usually try out the technology on everything we drive solely in the name of science. But this time was different. Super Cruise is revelatory in the way it functions. Just when you think you’re going to catch it making a mistake, it shows clairvoyance and polish far beyond what the other guys are currently offering. Perhaps Elon and his minions of engineers could do some reverse engineering of Super Cruise and apply it to their cars- but we digress.
Other than impressive kit, the interior boasts excellent build quality and a serene environment to while away the kilometers. For those if you have been bemoaning the lack of pop is Caddy interiors the Vistiq should easily change your mind.
It’ll also change your mind about acceleration. If you have never driven an EV all ate up with horsepower- in the case of the Vistiq, there’s 615 on tap- you will be awestruck at the SUV’s turn of speed. Its o-100km/h sprit of less than four seconds is on par with its gloriously overpowered stablemate, the CT5 Blackwing, and that car makes 53 more horsepower and weighs in at a lot less. There’s no need to worry about launch control - just introduce the throttle to the plushy carpeted floorboards and hold on. Straight line speed isn’t the Vistiq’s only dynamic party trick but it will eclipse the braking and handling in terms of what makes the car so great to drive. It’s not that it can’t stop or becomes flummoxed by curves, but the Vistiq’s mission isn’t stopping on a dime and slaying apexes. Driven as intended, drivers will appreciate the composed way it pours itself down the road, offering a feeling of planted confidence. It truly shines on the highway too, offering effortless cruising in luxurious silence. Our tester was equipped with the air suspenders which not only turn the ride quality up a couple of notches but hunkers down when you park it for ease of entry and exit while also making it look certifiably badass in the process. There’s a V Mode driving mode that allows the Vistiq to feel more engaging and we admit to selecting it often. Doing so will not force you to endure a punishing ride or nervous steering, just a Vistiq that feels like it had a Red Bull at breakfast instead of a coffee.
As adept as Red Bull is at giving your day a hearty kickstart, there are some negatives surrounding such behavior, and the Vistiq has some if is own demerits to navigate should you choose to partake. Thankfully, none of the issues are glaring enough to be of major importance. The first bone we have to pick is Cadillac’s choice of badge nomenclature. The rear badge says 900- 900 what? We know there’s a reason they decided to go that route but it seems to be devoid of sense as to why they did so. We also wish that Cadillac would change its mind by making the 6-piston Brembo brakes for the Platinum trimmed models as standard kit, or at least available, across the lineup. The Vistiq isn’t exactly what you’d call svelte, and you feel all those kilos when asking it to hustle and then bring all that kinetic energy safely to a stop. The last thing we didn’t much care for was the way you get in to start it. Simply place your butt on the seat, step on the brake pedal and put it in Drive and off you go. Tesla offers a similar set up and at first blush it is kind of cool not to have to thumb a start button. But the novelty wore off fast for us, most notably when the windows froze shut after a frigid night and the Vistiq thought we were ready to park when we were simply opening the doors at the drive thru when getting our morning caffeine fix.
Niggles aside, we came away impressed by the Vistiq. We can safely say that it is far superior to the XT6 it replaces and should challenge the usual suspects for best-in-class honors. We’d choose it overwhelmingly over the Mercedes Benz EQE line, Audi’s Q8 e-tron and certainly anything wearing a Tesla badge. While EVs might not be so hot right now, we think the Vistiq is.
2026 Cadillac Vistiq Premium Luxury - Specifications
- Price as tested: $115,498
- Body Type: 4-door, 7 passenger SUV
- Powertrain Layout: Front and Rear Electric Motors/All-Wheel Drive
- Battery Capacity/Type: 102-kWh liquid cooled lithium-ion
- Total Horsepower: 615 @ 0 rpm
- Total Torque (lb-ft.): 650 @ 0 rpm
- Transmission: 1-speed direct drive
- Curb weight: 2,900 kg (6,393 lbs)
- Observed Energy Economy: 28 kWh/100km
