Demand for luxury electric vehicles (EVs) appears to be falling overseas, but that hasn’t stopped Cadillac from pushing on with its electric-first relaunch in Australia.
Due to arrive before the end of 2024, the Lyriq is Cadillac’s only model confirmed for a local launch, and it’s being benchmarked against circa-$130,000 electric SUVs such as the BMW iX, Audi Q8 e-tron, and Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV.
These EVs aren’t volume sellers in Australia, totalling 853 sales in the first half of 2024. Audi recently announced it’s planning to end Q8 e-tron production early, directly referencing “a global decline in customer orders in the electric luxury class segment”.
This doesn’t worry Cadillac though, with General Motors Australia and New Zealand managing director Jess Bala telling Australian media the Lyriq isn’t intended to sell in high volumes.
“You’re right in the aspect that it’s a premium luxury vehicle, but that’s absolutely the intent of it,” said Ms Bala.
“From our standpoint, it’s still intended to be a niche entry. We’re not going after mainstream volumes.
“We’re going after that higher end luxury premium space where we think we can really deliver not just the stunning car that matches the brand and delivers on the brand promise, but also the customer experience that will go along with that.”
Since going on sale in the US in mid 2022, Cadillac has sold almost 13,100 examples of the Lyriq according to GM Authority.
However, approximately 1.4 million EVs were sold in the US throughout 2023, with the 9154 Lyriqs delivered last year accounting for just 0.65 per cent of the overall market.
For context, if the Cadillac Lyriq was able to match this share of Australia’s EV market, it would be on par with the Ford Mustang Mach-E in the sales race, and ahead of the aforementioned BMW iX.
The Australian EV market is dominated by brands with a Chinese headquarters or factory, which has resulted in lower prices for battery-powered models and increased competition.
While Cadillac doesn’t have to face these challenges in its home market, where the limited number of Chinese EVs on sale are now impacted by a 100 per cent tariff, Ms Bala says the brand has an opportunity to set itself apart from its rivals in Australia.
“I actually think it’s really exciting, what’s going on in the market here right now, and just the range that customers have access to means that it gives us an opportunity to do something different and that’s what we’re really going to be doing and making sure that everything end-to-end is very customer centric,” Ms Bala said.
“And on top of that, I really truly believe that once people get in and see the Lyriq in person, it will blow them away.
“I think once we get it out and into the public a lot more, it will definitely do an amazing job of selling itself and that will allow us to set ourselves apart, on top of everything else from all the other options that the customers have here.”
More details on pricing and specifications for the Cadillac Lyriq are due to be announced ahead of its Australian launch later this year.
The brand is also set to announce which models will join its local lineup throughout 2025, with deliveries potentially starting before 2026.
It’s expected both the Optiq and Vistiq are on Cadilac’s Australian wishlist, though neither have been locked in.
MORE: When we’ll know more about Cadillac’s expanded Australian lineup
