No blackwing, though Cadillac gives the Lyriq a race car-inspired glow-up Now there's a Lyriq with 615 horsepower and Le Mans-inspired sounds. Jonathan M. Gitlin Jan 23, 2025 8:00 am | 9 Credit: Cadillac Credit: Cadillac Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreThe Cadillac Lyriq was the first of a new breed of General Motors' electric vehicles. Built around a common battery platform (which used to be called Ultium), the midsize SUV has been on sale for about three years now, and for model year 2026, there's a new version available, the first Cadillac EV to wear the V-series badge."V-Series captures the spirit of Cadillac, embodying our relentless pursuit of engineering excellence through our racing and production vehicles," said John Roth, vice president of Global Cadillac. "LYRIQ-V takes this commitment a step further in the EV era, pushing our performance pedigree of V-Series to new heights with a powerful, personalized and high-tech driving experience that fits perfectly into our customers' lives," Roth said.As with other Cadillac V-series cars, you can expect a much higher power output than the base models. In this case, that's a hefty 615 hp (459 kW) and 650 lb-ft (880 Nm)not quite double the output of the single-motor Lyriq we drove back in 2023. The Lyriq-V uses a pair of motors to achieve that output, powered by the same 102 kWh battery pack as in the normal Lyriq.That's sufficient for an EPA range estimate of 285 miles (459 km), which is less than the regular all-wheel drive Lyriq, but the range hit is probably down to the Lyriq-V's 22-inch wheels. (When fitted to the regular Lyriq, the larger wheels also sap some of that car's 307-mile EPA range.)There are some other new additions to the Lyriq-V to go with that increased output, like V-mode, which delivers a 060 mph time of 3.3 seconds when you engage launch control. There's also Competitive mode, which Cadillac says "enables a suite of traction management features specifically engineered to increase vehicle agility." Cadillac Cadillac Super Cruise is standard on the Lyriq-V. Super Cruise is standard on the Lyriq-V. Push the red V button when you want to have fun. Cadillac Push the red V button when you want to have fun. Cadillac Super Cruise is standard on the Lyriq-V.Push the red V button when you want to have fun. Cadillac To go with this improved canyon-carving ability, the new front seats have more side bolstering, and there's a sporty new soundtrack, with powertrain sounds that were inspired by Cadillac's V-Series.R sports prototoype, which make use of the 23-speaker Dolby Atmos sound system. There are also bigger front brakes from Brembo and some unique styling parts like the front fascia and side rockers.Oh, and did we mention it still features Apple CarPlay, unlike GM's slightly more recent (but still Ultium-based) EVs?Production of the Lyriq-V begins in the coming weeks at GM's Spring Hill factory in Tennessee, with a starting price of $79,990 (including destination charge).Jonathan M. GitlinAutomotive EditorJonathan M. GitlinAutomotive Editor Jonathan is the Automotive Editor at Ars Technica. He has a BSc and PhD in Pharmacology. In 2014 he decided to indulge his lifelong passion for the car by leaving the National Human Genome Research Institute and launching Ars Technica's automotive coverage. He lives in Washington, DC. 9 Comments