Cadillac will electrify its most excessive SUV, the Escalade

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In 2020, Ars tested the then-new Cadillac Escalade. The big SUV is Cadillac’s best-seller, and while we might not have enjoyed the way it drove, or its thirst, it did feature some interesting driver assistance technology. There’s a chance we might prefer driving the next Escalade, though—on Monday afternoon Cadillac revealed that it is working on an electric Escalade, called the Escalade IQ, and it will show off the new electric SUV later this year.

There’s quite a lot riding on the electric Escalade. The regular version accounts for about a third of Cadillac’s total sales each year, and automakers in general make the most money from large, loaded, and expensive vehicles.

That probably explains why the electric version will still be called an Escalade—you’d be silly to throw away that brand identity—although appending an “IQ” to the end creates a corporate link with Caddy’s other EVs, the $60,000 Lyriq and $300,000 Celestiq. (No, that’s not a typo.)