Cadillac Strives for ‘New Standard of Automotive Luxury’ With Celestiq
GM unveils the Celestiq – a combination of “celestial” and IQ for the brand’s electric car line – a hand-built, plus-$300,000 halo car designed to take Cadillac beyond stratospheric heights.
WARREN, MI – Among all the elements that make up the Celestiq, Cadillac’s stunning battery-electric halo car, General Motors President Mark Reuss without hesitation points to one feature that stands out to him.
“The redesign of the Goddess,” says Reuss, noting the significance of the symbol’s restyling as an example of the Detroit automaker’s emphasis on remaking its luxury brand as the “Standard of the World,” as it was known for most of the 20th century.
“Cadillac has always come up just a bit short,” Reuss says, pointing out how the brand in the past four decades has too often failed to capitalize on its potential as a luxury marque.
Not this time: the Goddess logo, which appears everywhere from fenders to door sills to data screens (pictured, below left), gets a full sculptural makeover in the ’24 Celestiq.
“The Goddess image is about capturing the heritage of the brand while moving it forward,” says Erin Crossley, design director-Celestiq and Cadillac.
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Hand-built at GM’s Global Technical Center here starting in December 2023, the long and wide 5-door liftback is intended to establish a new benchmark for Cadillac in terms of exclusivity, personalization and price, competing with the likes of high-end marques such as Rolls-Royce and Bentley. The sticker price will start “north of $300,000 and increase based on level of personalization,” the company says.The car is available by reservation only, with the order bank opening late this year or in early 2023, says Rory Harvey, vice president-Global Cadillac.
Production will average two vehicles per day, depending on complexity, with no more than six units under assembly at a given time. Delivery timing will vary per vehicle based on the amount of specialization.
Built on GM’s Ultium BEV platform, in this case featuring a 111-kWh lithium-ion battery pack sending power to two motors, one for each axle, GM estimates output at 600 hp and 640 lb.-ft. (868 Nm) of torque and a 0-60 mph (97 km) time of 3.8 seconds.
Driving range is pegged at 300 miles (483 km), with the Celestiq capable of accepting DC fast charging up to 200 kW, adding an estimated 78 miles (126 km) of range in 10 minutes, the company says.
GM says unique axle gear ratios – 11.59:1 in front and 11.63:1 in the rear – contribute to the Celestiq’s range and performance.
Brandon Vivian, executive chief engineer, says the Celestiq’s battery pack serves as a structural element and combines with six “mega” aluminum castings, reducing component counts and improving rigidity.
The car employs adaptive air suspension, Magnetic Ride Control 4.0, Active Roll Control anti-roll bars and rear-wheel steering. It rides on 23-in. wheels and Celestiq-specific Michelin self-sealing summer tires with noise-reducing foam inside the tires.
3-D printing is employed to produce 115 parts, including switchgear, decorative trim, structure pieces and the seatbelt guide loop, as well as the steering-wheel center that GM says is the largest production metal part the company has printed.
In overall design, Cadillac eschews popular tall CUV styling for a swoopy fastback appearance that deliberately enhances the vehicle’s length and width.
“It’s a progressive vision of Cadillac exterior design language that breaks from the norm of the ultra-luxury paradigms,” says Taki Karras, exterior design manager. “Every element and every surface was pushed to the next level with meticulous detailing, delivering a visionary design that is unique and breathtaking.”
Michael Simcoe, vice president-Global Design, says “the message is it’s a passion for us as well as for the customer. When this goes down the road, there will be nothing like it.”
The private-jet-like interior is highlighted by a 55-in. (140-cm) pillar-to-pillar high-definition display, one of five screens in the car along with twin 12.6-in. (32-cm) rear passenger displays and front and rear control screens.
The car’s smart glass roof features four quadrants that can be electronically dimmed for each passenger area. Similarly, the vehicle’s Gentherm ClimateSense system provides 33 “microclimates” for each of the four seating positions.
Audio is pumped into the interior via a 1,000-watt, 38-speaker AKG system while active noise cancellation and active road-noise cancellation reduce unwanted sounds from intruding into the cabin. Finally, Cadillac’s Electric Vehicle Sound Enhancement technology provides appropriate propulsion system sound.
Additional technology includes Google Built-In connectivity, connected interior and exterior cameras and Ultra Cruise advanced hands-free driving hardware capable of over-the-air updates to bring the system to full functionality when available, Vivian says.
Buyers will have the opportunity to customize their coach-built Celestiq, from exterior colors to interior shades and materials, says design director Crossley, “meaning Celestiq is more than a unique piece of art. It’s a live experience full of discovery.”
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