Cadillac expects one of every three vehicle sales to be EVs in 2025

SAN FRANCISCO — Cadillac expects roughly one of every three vehicles it sells in the U.S. this year to be all-electric models, as the automaker continues to expand its EV lineup despite industrywide slower-than-expected adoption of the vehicles.

The General Motors luxury brand is expected to offer five electric vehicles by the end of this year, including its recently launched Escalade IQ and Optiq entry-level crossover. They join the Cadillac Lyriq, which will be followed later in the year by the three-row Vistiq crossover and the bespoke, $300,000-plus Celestiq car.

“The momentum is really there,” Brad Franz, Cadillac’s director of marketing, told CNBC. “We’re going to ride that momentum and we’re not launching the vehicles to redistribute the business among [internal combustion engines] and EV portfolio. It’s to grow the business.”

Cadillac is targeting EVs to make up between 30% and 35% of its total domestic sales in 2025, Franz said. That would be a notable increase from 18% of U.S. sales, or 29,072 vehicles, in 2024.

EVs represented 8.1% of the roughly 16 million vehicles sold last year in the U.S., according to Cox Automotive. That was lower than the 10% analysts expected to begin the year.

The additional EVs and expected sales increase follow Cadillac walking back plans to exclusively offer all-electric vehicles by 2030. Instead, the company said the elimination of gas-powered vehicles will be determined by customer demand, but that it would still offer a full lineup of EVs.

Cadillac is one of several brands to abandon plans to exclusively sell EVs in the years to come, as consumer adoption of the vehicles has not occurred as quickly as previously expected. There’s also increasing concern for EV sales amid President Donald Trump’s lack of federal support for the vehicles.

“Our EV portfolio will complement our gas power side of the portfolio and bring new customers to the brand,” Franz said during a media event to launch the Escalade IQ and Optiq. “It’s our commitment to choice and offering those customers choice.”

Cadillac’s U.S. sales last year increased 8.8%, led by more than tripling sales of the Lyriq, which first went on sale in late 2022.

The Escalade IQ, including a larger “L” version, and Optiq are important new “bookend” vehicles for the carmaker, which aims to be the top-selling luxury EV brand in the country. The company does not include Tesla, which is the top-selling EV brand in the U.S. and has some vehicles at similar price points to Cadillac, in its definition of “luxury.”

“Optiq and Escalade IQ are going to ramp up very fast,” Franz said. “We’re taking everything that Escalade means today in the marketplace and now offering it as an EV halo that customers will recognize and trust.”

The Escalade IQ, starting at roughly $130,000, is the largest all-electric SUV offered by any automaker. It is set to test the large SUV market for EVs, while expanding the lineup of Cadillac’s best-known and highly profitable vehicle. The vehicle features similar design cues to Cadillac’s other EVs, as well as the gas-powered Escalade.

The Optiq will act as the “gateway” entry-level EV, starting at about $55,000 — roughly $4,000 less than the larger Lyriq. It enters an increasingly competitive electric crossover segment, which is currently led by the Lyriq.

The Optiq will also debut a new partnership with Dolby Laboratories for the audio company’s “Atmos,” a surround sound technology that initially debuted for theaters. The system will grow across Cadillac’s lineup.

Cadillac expects the Lyriq — produced in Tennessee — to continue to be its top-selling EV despite the Optiq being less expensive, Franz said.

The Optiq is being produced at one of GM’s plants in Mexico. Franz declined to comment on how potential 25% tariffs being threatened by Trump on vehicles from Mexico are expected to impact the vehicle’s sales.