Cadillac says it will only introduce battery-powered new models from now on, and the Lyriq is the first in the line.
The balance between form and function is always a delicate one when carmakers introduce new models, as the fantastic shapes conceived by creative designers meet the harsh realities of government regulations, manufacturing requirements, and everyday useability.
This was important, because as the first in the line of Cadillac’s all-electric models , the Lyriq serves to illustrate everything Cadillac aims to be going forward. So that means challenges like working out noise management, now that the combustion engine is no longer there providing background white noise to drown out other, more unpleasant sounds.
To catch and keep more such buyers, the Lyriq needs to break Cadillac’s history of nearly-there efforts. These have been cars that Cadillac enthusiasts, if there were any, could accept as a reasonable facsimile of the BMW the cars were trying to be. But there were still shortcomings. Plastics that looked out of place. Wonky infotainment interfaces whose processors were inadequate for their task.
As is the norm for such vehicles, the Lyriq has fake engine noise in the cabin that provides aural cues to the car’s power state. It also has multiple drive modes, so drivers can choose from Touring, Sport, Snow/Ice, and a personalized “My” mode. These settings tweak the power delivery, brake response, and fake sound levels.
So in the Lyriq, drivers can switch the function off, or they can choose low or high levels of deceleration. This means that just by lifting off the accelerator pedal, the Lyriq will slow at 0.23 g of force in the low setting or 0.30 g in the high setting. Additionally, the driver can squeeze a paddle on the back of the steering wheel that provides proportional braking that varies by how much they squeeze the paddle to produce 0.