The Optiq is smaller in size than Cadillac's only EV currently on sale in China, the Lyriq, and is expected to take on stiff competition at lower prices.
Cadillac, the premium brand of General Motors, has filed for a new electric SUV in China that is expected to offer a new option in an increasingly competitive market.
China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) released its latest catalog of models that will be allowed to be sold for public comment today, and the Cadillac Optiq is included.
The public can submit feedback between July 14 and July 20. Entry into the catalog is the last major regulatory process by which a model can be allowed to be sold in China.
The Cadillac Optiq that entered the catalog has 2 versions, both of which are single-motor models.
It has a length and width of 4,822 mm and 1,912 mm respectively, a height in two figures of 1,642 mm/1,644 mm and a wheelbase of 2,954 mm.
For comparison, the Nio ES6 has a length, width and height of 4,854 mm, 1,995 mm, 1,703 mm and a wheelbase of 2,915 mm.
The two versions of the Cadillac Optiq have motors with a maximum power of 150 kW and 180 kW, respectively, and their battery packs are supplied by a joint venture between SAIC and CATL.
The model will be built at SAIC's plant in Wuhan, Hubei province, central China, according to the filing.
The only all-electric Cadillac model currently on sale is the Lyriq -- its first model based on GM's Ultium EV platform, which began accepting reservations in June 2022 from Chinese customers.
The Cadillac Lyriq is larger than the Optiq, with length, width and height of 5,003 mm, 1,978 mm and 1,635 mm respectively, and a wheelbase of 3,094 mm.
On July 10, Cadillac announced that an entitlement package that had been included in the Lyriq's prices had become optional, thereby lowering the starting prices of all models by RMB 60,000 ($8,400).
With the package stripped out, the three versions of the Lyriq will start at RMB 379,700, RMB 399,700 and RMB 419,700 respectively.
The move is similar to what Nio (NYSE: NIO) did a month ago, when the Chinese EV maker stripped out its free battery swap entitlement, lowering the starting prices of its entire lineup by RMB 30,000 yuan.
($1 = RMB 7.1385)
Cadillac takes page from Nio, dramatically reduces Lyriq prices in China by scaling back benefits
