The automotive world is turning electric in a hurry, so it’s only obvious we would be seeing an all-electric car from Cadillac any time soon, and this is exactly what the Cadillac CELESTIQ Show Car is that we’re seeing today, inspired by Cadillac’s 120-year heritage, but a clear indication of the vision they are going for in the future for a hand-built, all-electric flagship model.
“The CELESTIQ show car is the purest expression of Cadillac,” said Magalie Debellis, manager, Cadillac Advanced Design. “It brings to life the most integrated expressions of design and innovation in the brand’s history, coalescing in a defining statement of a true Cadillac flagship.”
The new Cadillac CELESTIQ continues in a lineage of cars like the early V16 prewar models that were bespoke builds or the hand-built 1957 Eldorado Brougham, “Those vehicles represented the pinnacle of luxury in their respective eras, and helped make Cadillac the standard of the world,” said Tony Roma, chief engineer. “The CELESTIQ show car — also a sedan, because the configuration offers the very best luxury experience — builds on that pedigree and captures the spirit of arrival they expressed.”
The CELESTIQ was started from a blank sheet, a design that was meant to boast an animal-like, magnetic attraction to onlookers, keeping in line with the classic design we’ve become accustomed to in the past, but clearly showing a future vision for the Ultium-based EV architecture … this car evokes an emotional response from both people on the outside, and those being seated in the ultimate luxury cabin of this large sedan. “We’ve combined the beauty of function with the beauty of form,” said Laetitia Lopez, creative designer, Cadillac Color and Trim. “We had to reconsider all aspects to immerse the customer, all of their senses, and create a connection with the vehicle through the finest genuine materials, exceptional detailing, and advanced technology.”
On the interior, you’ll find a massive 55-inch diagonal LED display, not one, but five HD advanced LED interactive displays, while that massive LED display that runs right into the passenger space comes with an electronic digital blind, an active privacy technology so the passenger can enjoy a movie in front of him or her, while not posing a distraction to the driver, which can focus on the road ahead, or just leave that to the hands-free driver assistance technology Cadillac plans to integrate, aptly named ‘Ultra Cruise’.
But we have to draw your attention to the roof now, or we should say the ‘Smart Glass Roof’, which comes with an SPD, a Suspended Particle Device, allowing a total of four zones of variable lighting so passengers can fine-tune their cabin experience for completely personalized comfort and visibility, and make no mistake, Cadillac fully intends to offer all these technological innovations on the actual production version of the CELESTIQ, but we don’t have an ETA yet on when that will happen.
Right now, GM is investing a massive $81,000,000 towards the assembly of the CELESTIQ production model at the GM Global Technical Center, a landmark campus originally designed by Eero Saarinen and the heart of the company’s engineering and design efforts, in fact, the new Cadillac CELESTIQ will be the first production vehicle assembled at this location since the center’s inauguration back in May 1956.
