Cadillac Escalade Luxury 6.2L PREMIUM LUXURIOUS SUV

As the flagship of the Cadillac brand—and therefore the entirety of the General Motors portfolio—the 2022 Escalade SUV offers every high-tech item and the utmost in luxury features. Luckily, due to the Escalade's massive size, Cadillac could fit it with a lot of those features. Fine leather, genuine wood, and shiny metal trims line the cabin. A huge, curved digital display dominates the dashboard, serving up both infotainment- and the driver-gauge displays in a unique way. The Escalade's exterior draws inspiration from the gorgeous Escala concept car scaled up to size XXL and adapted to the Escalade's boxy silhouette. Most Escalades will roll with the standard 6.2-liter V-8 but Cadillac also offers a more fuel-efficient 3.0-liter turbo-diesel inline-six as an option. No matter the engine, the Escalade's ride and handling are luxury-car appropriate—but, of course, don't expect the playfulness you'll find in the brand's sedans.
Lane-keeping assist and lane-departure warning are now both standard on the base Luxury trim while the Premium Luxury, Sport, and Platinum models now come standard with Cadillac's Super Cruise semi-autonomous driving feature as well as front and rear automated emergency braking. The new Touring package adds air suspension, soft-close doors, and illuminated door sill protector plates to Premium Luxury and Sport models.
Cadillac's biggest SUV is powered by either a 6.2-liter V-8 engine that makes 420 horsepower and can deactivate half of its cylinders when cruising to save fuel or a turbo-diesel 3.0-liter inline-six. A 10-speed automatic transmission will be standard with both engines, and buyers will be able to choose from rear- or all-wheel-drive setups based on their individual needs. As with its siblings, the Chevrolet Tahoe and Suburban and the GMC Yukon, the Escalade rides on an independent rear suspension to help provide a smooth ride. Higher-end models also offer an air suspension with adaptive dampers that use computer-controlled shock absorbers. At our test track, the long-wheelbase Escalade ESV with the V-8 engine sprinted to 60 mph in just 5.9 seconds. The diesel engine sounds less refined than the V-8, but for some buyers that compromise is worth the improved fuel economy and low-end torque.
As the flagship of the Cadillac lineup, the 2022 Escalade ups the ante on in-cabin luxury. Faux leather is used in the base Luxury trim, but all other trims receive the real deal, with Platinum models getting soft semi-aniline hides. Leather-covered dash and door panels, aluminum speaker grilles, and adjustable interior ambient lighting provide an upscale appearance. Like the outgoing model, both a standard and long-wheelbase model are offered, the latter of which yielding more legroom for third-row riders and additional cargo space.
To truly deck out the Escalade in its best features, go for the Premium Luxury Platinum trim. It adds semi-aniline leather, 16-way power-adjustable front seats with massage, soft-close doors, and an AKG audio system with 36 speakers. It also comes standard with a self-parking feature, a head-up display, and adaptive cruise control.
In addition to the extra luxury features in the cabin, Cadillac has completely tricked out the Escalade in the electronics department. The main showpiece is the digital dashboard that's comprised of three curved OLED displays that layer on top of one another to create a cool 38-inches of combined digital real estate, some of which serves as the driver's gauge cluster while the rest projects the CUE infotainment system for the driver and passenger. The collection of displays is reminiscent of the Mercedes-Benz GLS-class's giant monolithic infotainment setup, but the Escalade's stacked setup creates depth and looks less tacked-on than the Benz. Other tech features include an augmented-reality navigation system and an available rear-seat entertainment package that includes two 12.6-inch displays with streaming capability. Apple CarPlay/Android Auto integration and a Wi-Fi hotspot are also standard. Audiophiles will be in for a treat no matter which Escalade model they choose. Cadillac has partnered with Grammy-award winning audio and acoustics company AKG to develop the Escalade's standard and optional sound systems. A 19-speaker Studio Sound system is standard on the Luxury, Sport, and Premium Luxury models, but Platinum trims get the AKG Studio Reference system with a whopping 36 speakers.