The Cadillac brand’s transition into and out of alphanumeric nomenclature has been controversial and, at times, confusing. Some brand loyalists were upset when America’s luxury brand started abandoning storied names like “DeVille” and “Eldorado” in favor of alphabet soup names like “CTS” and “SRX.” Then, GM started throwing in numbers with names like “CT6” and “XT5.” Although it’s returning to words for model names as the brand goes electric, it seems Cadillac just can’t help itself from slapping some seemingly jumbled numbers and letters on the liftgates. Such is the case with the 2025 Cadillac Optiq, which will wear a badge that reads “500E4.”
In case you missed it, the number on the back of a Cadillac indicates an approximation of the vehicle’s torque rating in Newton-meters, rounded to the nearest 50. Every USDM 2025 Cadillac Optiq has the same dual-motor electric powertrain rated at 300 horsepower and 354 pound-feet of torque. That translates to 479 Nm, optimistically rounded up to 500 for the badge. The “E4” suffix indicates electronic all-wheel drive.
The big brother of the 2025 Cadillac Optiq, the Cadillac Lyriq, has been wearing a 600E4 badge on its dual-motor models since the 2024 model year. That’s because the U.S.-spec dual-motor Lyriq makes 450 pound-feet of torque, which shakes out to 610 Nm. Single-motor, RWD variants sport a 450E badge.
In China, the Lyriq Sport AWD gets a 700E4 badge because of its 524 pound-foot/710 Nm torque rating. The Chinese-market Lyriq also features a unique Ultium battery pack with cylindrical cells as opposed to pouch-style cells we get in North America.
The upcoming Cadillac Escalade IQ is going to wear the highest number yet for this badging scheme: 1000E4. With Velocity Max mode on, the full-size electric luxury SUV’s dual-motor powertrain will produce 750 horsepower and 785 pound-feet (1,064 Nm) of torque.
This new badging may seem confusing, but all you really need to know is that a higher number means higher performance. For luxury EV shoppers who don’t know much about the technical side of electric vehicles, this branding device might make it a little easier for them to shop for their next Cadillac.
Production of the 2025 Cadillac Optiq for the U.S. market began earlier this month, and deliveries should begin by the end of 2024, following the usual quality hold that comes with all-new models.
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Comments
I have no interest in yet another SUV. But if I were buying one of these, the first thing I’d do when I got home would be to remove that stupid 500 E4 junk. If it didn’t look good with it removed, then I’d pick up a classy “Cadillac” script emblem and put that where the other was removed. Or maybe I’d just remove the Optiq script as well leaving just the center Cadillac emblem.
This comment is what’s really stupid.
“Every USDM 2025 Cadillac Optiq has the same dual-motor electric powertrain rated at 300 horsepower and 354 pound-feet of torque.” This is more HP and torque than most V6 and some V8 engines in gas cars. If I buy one, I am taking to our local drag strip to make new timing and speed numbers. I will see many jaws dropping as other watch a baby Cadillac run so fast.
Nice to hear positive remarks from owners instead of IF people