2023 Cadillac Lyriq 450E First Test: The Electric SUV as Reset Button

Speculation can be simple, a few folks gathered at a bar and wondering about the future. Creating a physical manifestation of that future and bringing it to life is anything but. Our process began with Garrett DeBry, an ArtCenter College of Design grad, concept artist for BMW and Toyota, and the man who developed our first Apple Car concept in 2016.DeBry is a proper futurist, spending hours poring over Syd Mead designs and listening to the Interstellar and Blade Runner 2049 soundtracks while working on sketches. From our side, we looked further into the future this time around, which afforded DeBry the freedom to design a vehicle that would fit into an Apple Car ecosystem, rather than imagining a comparatively simple autonomous Uber competitor.His inspirations range from the wraparound corner windows of Apple's flagship Chicago store to Amazon warehouse robots to the natural materials and organic shapes of the iconic midcentury modern Charles Eames lounge chair. On this project, DeBry worked to minimize automotive design to its core elements. This thought process is how we ended up with the ultra-slick suspended teardrop you see here, but that was only the start.Once DeBry submitted final sketches, we called on teams from around the world to lift his design off the page. Our second take on the Apple Car was painstakingly modeled in CAD so we could provide the files to a local 3-D print shop. After multiple days printing the 16-piece scale model you see here and bringing DeBry's design into the material world, it received countless coats of paint and finishing touches.Once we reached that point, Mumbai, India-based automotive photographer Kunaal Kelkar came to town to employ his own wizardry. Kelkar's work first came to our attention in 2020 when he published a shockingly realistic photo set that was in reality a scale Lamborghini Huracán posed on a wet treadmill. For the Apple Car, he spent four days building a future city almost entirely out of Apple products found around our offices. The results speak for themselves.

ford f-150 Full OverviewIn announcing our MotorTrend 2022 Truck of the Year, we observed that today's trucks are far more than workhorses. They're also commuter cars, family haulers, weekend toys, and luxury vehicles. It's a trend at least 20 years in the making, but one that doesn't make everyone happy. Indeed, some of you wrote to us and expressed your displeasure with this mission drift and argued for trucks to be treated like trucks again. That's easier said than done, as it turns out. Take, for example, this 2021 Ford F-150 XLT Supercrew 4X4 we just tested.This isn't a blinged-out luxury truck; it's an XLT with cloth seats, a column shifter, basic four-wheel drive, a bedliner, and a max-towing package. One step above the base model, this should be a work truck, yet it's priced at $59,520 as tested. How the heck did that happen?What's an XLT, Anyway?A 2022 Ford F-150 XLT trim starts at a more reasonable $39,825 (banish the thought of a full-size truck starting for less than $30,000; those days are gone), but that only gets you a single cab, the base engine, and rear-wheel drive. Single cabs are old school, and every truck maker in the industry will tell you full four-door cabs like this F-150 Supercrew are bestsellers. That's an extra $5,260 right there.Four-wheel drive is a $3,425 upgrade, and getting a stouter engine adds at least $1,195. If you want to tow and haul heavy things on the job site or at the farm, you need power. This 3.5-liter twin-turbo EcoBoost V-6 has plenty of both, but it costs $2,595. After destination and acquisition fees, you're already nearing $50,000 without any other options.The rest of the asking price is made up of both the necessary and the nice to have. The max-trailer-towing package is $1,995, and the spray-in bedliner is another $595. Pro Power Onboard 2.0 kW, handy on the jobsite and in the field, is $995. Now we're at $54,000 for a work truck. The other $8,000 covers stuff you don't need for work but is nice to have, like the big infotainment system, optional wheels, etc.TowingYep, modern work trucks are expensive. The good news is you still get a lot of work for your money. We hitched this Ford F-150 XLT up to a high-profile two-horse trailer and found it to be the comfortable, stable towing platform we've come to expect from Ford. After returning the livestock, we filled the bed with a yard of hot, fresh mulch for the garden. Here again, the torquey twin-turbo V-6 made light work of the added weight, and the sizable payload and tongue-weight ratings meant the truck barely squatted.A Pleasant RideMore impressive, though, is how well the Ford F-150 XLT rides, either empty or loaded. With leaf springs capable of holding up 2,100 pounds of payload, you'd reasonably expect a stiff ride, but Ford's engineers worked wonders. The F-150 is as pleasant and comfortable to drive while doing work as it is cruising into town for groceries.Track TestingIt'll get you down to the market quick, too. Unburdened, the 3.5-liter twin-turbo V-6 hustled this 5,345-pound truck up to 60 mph in just 5.3 seconds and past the quarter-mile mark in 13.9 seconds at 99.9 mph.Power is not a problem, and neither is stopping. The Ford F-150 XLT was consistent in our braking tests from 60 mph, achieving a best result of 126 feet, about average for a full-size pickup. Even better, the stops were drama-free, with little nosedive or wiggling around.Handling tests were similarly uneventful. We discovered excellent composure for a pickup truck, with well-controlled body motions, good brakes, and strong traction. The 0.76-average lateral g it pulled on the skidpad and its 28.0-second figure-eight lap at 0.62-average g are on the right end of the full-size-truck class—and undersell how well the 2021 Ford F-150 XLT takes a corner without any weight loaded into it.SafetyOpt for Ford's $750 Co-Pilot360 Assist 2.0 suite of driver aids and included among all the safety stuff are adaptive cruise control and lane-keep assistance, which helps steer the vehicle and keep it in the center of the lane. Ford's system, which takes some load off your mind on long highway slogs, is one of the better hands-on systems on the market.Wrapping UpThe rest of the driving experience isn't bad, either. The cloth seats are plenty comfortable and feature a pleasing contrasting color scheme. The column shifter frees up a ton of center-console bin space and allows you to use the flip-out tray table while the truck is moving. The rear seat could use a bit more thigh support and recline, if we're being picky, but we like how much space it frees up when you fold it out of the way.As mentioned earlier, our truck was fitted with the big infotainment screen, and it's good to see how far Ford's Sync system has come. This latest incarnation is more user friendly and intuitive, sports modern graphics, and has a handy split-screen mode that lets you use Apple CarPlay or Android Auto simultaneously with other built-in programs like the radio without having to change screens.Simple fact is, unless you're a fleet manager buying dozens of trucks from a commercial dealer, even work trucks are pricey these days. Yes, the convenience and dress-up options can run up the bill, but even the stuff you need to get the job done will dent your budget hard. The good news is, these trucks drive, tow, and haul better than any time in history.Looks good! More details? 2021 Ford F-150 XLT 4x4 Specifications BASE PRICE $45,850 PRICE AS TESTED $59,520 VEHICLE LAYOUT Front-engine, 4WD, 5-pass, 4-door truck ENGINE 3.5L Twin-turbo port- and direct-injected DOHC 24-valve 60-degree V-6 POWER (SAE NET) 400 hp @ 6,000 rpm TORQUE (SAE NET) 500 lb-ft @ 3,100 rpm TRANSMISSION 10-speed automatic CURB WEIGHT (F/R DIST) 5,345 lb (58/42%) WHEELBASE 145.1 in LENGTH x WIDTH x HEIGHT 231.7 x 79.9 x 77.2 in 0-60 MPH 5.3 sec QUARTER MILE 13.9 sec @ 99.9 mph BRAKING, 60-0 MPH 126 ft LATERAL ACCELERATION 0.76 g (avg) MT FIGURE EIGHT 28.0 sec @ 0.62 g (avg) EPA CITY/HWY/COMB FUEL ECON 18/23/20 mpg EPA RANGE, COMB 720 mi ON SALE Now Show All

honda hr-v Full OverviewWe rather liked the old Honda Fit-based HR-V, even if it was pretty poky. More power, a bit more space in the back, and a richer-feeling interior were all the little SUV really needed. On paper, the all-new Civic-based 2023 Honda HR-V resolves all those issues. But do the improvements elevate the experience overall?Step InsideAs much as there is to like about the new HR-V small SUV, most folks will appreciate the interior upgrade most of all. Basically an adaptation of the wonderful Civic interior, it looks far more upscale than before and brings a great deal more functionality. The hidden vents in the decorative honeycomb trim are classy, the infotainment system is massively improved, and the center console's been rearranged for far greater functionality.We really want to drill down on the center console and armrest, because it was one of the least-liked aspects of the old model. Honda moved the cupholders from under your elbow to forward of the shifter, making them easier to reach and increasing the real estate for elbows. The passthrough shelf that was by your knees has been moved behind the shifter by your thighs, where it's easier to reach. The USB ports, which were a massive pain to access, have been relocated to much more ergonomic positions. Pity there still isn't a single USB port in the rear seat, and even the 12-volt outlet is gone.We're equally disappointed to report the folks in the back still don't get air vents, either, but they're not totally left out of the cabin updates. Legroom was never a problem, but the new platform and body opened up more hip-, shoulder-, and headroom in the back row, so it's a more comfortable space to be. And although the trick-folding "Magic Seats" are gone, Honda makes up for the deletion with a larger cargo area behind the second row.Go for a DriveHonda's decision to switch to the new global platform pioneered by the latest Civic sedan and hatchback was a smart move. We like the Civic an awful lot, and the HR-V compact SUV benefits mightily from the association. One turn of the wheel, and you immediately appreciate how good the chassis is. The HR-V rides nicer than most cars at this price point and handles better than most of them, too. The excellent body control resists pitch and dive and lean, and it handles bumps quickly and neatly, even when the suspension is already loaded up in a corner. Few people go looking at inexpensive compact SUVs for good driving dynamics, but the HR-V delivers anyway and is genuinely pleasant to drive.Life in the Slow LaneFor as much as Honda got right on the new HR-V, the engine choice is all wrong. This 2.0-liter four-cylinder is a little more powerful on paper, but it's pulling a larger, heavier vehicle. It should be no surprise, then, that the acceleration is abysmal. An unscientific stopwatch test showed we needed more than 11 agonizing seconds to reach 60 mph from a stop; if that result holds when we get to strap in our official timing equipment, the new HR-V would be at least 1.5 seconds slower than the old—and already slow—HR-V. Getting to 60 requires the CVT to run the engine up to nearly redline and stay there, which is a noisy place to be. People who live at altitude will spend a lot of time with their foot on the floor and the engine screaming like a giant blender.The only good news here is that you don't really notice the dearth of power as much when you're moving. Our same unofficial stopwatch said the new HR-V is about as quick to execute a 45-65-mph passing maneuver as the old one, so the difference is in the launch. Getting around town and driving on the highway, the CVT reacts very quickly when you ask for more speed. Some people like to bag on CVTs, but this one is a hero. It gets every last bit of performance out of this underperforming engine.It's worth noting we were only able to drive loaded HR-Vs with all-wheel drive. A base front-drive model will accelerate differently, although it's impossible to say if it'll be quicker or slower until we test one, as it will depend on how much the all-wheel-drive system contributes to the initial launch from a stop.More Fuel to the FireBeing a bigger and heavier vehicle (by 100 to 300 pounds) with a larger engine means the HR-V's fuel economy wasn't going to go up, but it didn't go down an awful lot on the EPA test, either, losing 2 mpg pretty much across the board. In the real world, though, you'll be lucky to hit the official 26/32/28 mpg ratings given the heavy pedal required to keep pace with traffic from a stop.For its part, Honda says it knowingly sacrificed a bit of fuel economy for more power and space, but given the performance we'll call it a bad deal. The company refuses to say if there will be another engine option in the future, but we're hoping like hell for the Civic's 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder or a hybrid powertrain.The Road Less TraveledAs this is ostensibly an SUV and it does have all-wheel drive, we felt compelled to test whether it can actually leave the pavement, and the result was a surprising yes. None of the HR-V's off-road stats are impressive, but take it somewhere its ground clearance can handle, and the all-wheel-drive system will get you back. Honda has reprogrammed the setup to send more power to the rear wheels sooner, and combined with solid traction control programming, we couldn't get the new HR-V stuck on miles of muddy forest service roads. Sure, we scraped the bottom splashing in and out of some of the biggest mud puddles, but the SUV never struggled for grip in the slippery stuff.The Tech StuffThe AWD system isn't the only piece of technology Honda upgraded. Now, all versions of the HR-V get the Honda Sensing package of active and passive safety technologies as standard equipment. In addition to collision avoidance features, you also get fancy convenience items such as adaptive cruise control and lane keeping assistance that does a very good job of keeping the car in the center of the lane.Inside, there's now a half-digital instrument cluster that can be configured to show nearly a dozen different information screens. The other screen—the main infotainment display—has attendant knobs for volume and tuning, and they're connected to a much-improved onscreen experience. It isn't the best user interface on the market, but take some time to learn the system, and you'll find an appreciable level of customizability.Let's Talk MoneyAll the extra stuff you get in this new model ain't free. The base price has gone up, and with fuel economy going down, running costs will also increase a little (about $200 per year, according to the EPA). That's a bit of a bummer, but the silver lining is you' get a much nicer vehicle than before. It drives better, it has more space, it has a better interior, and it has a lot more tech. Inflation being what it is right now, it's hard to get excited about an affordable car getting more expensive, but the 2023 HR-V delivers more than enough value to make up for the price increase.Looks good! More details?2023 Honda HR-V Specifications BASE PRICE $24,895-$30,195 LAYOUT Front-engine, FWD/AWD, 5-pass, 4-door SUV ENGINE 2.0L/158-hp/138-lb-ft DOHC 16-valve I-4 TRANSMISSION CVT CURB WEIGHT 3,150-3,350 lbs WHEELBASE 104.5 in L x W x H 179.8 x 72.4 x 63.4-63.8 in 0-60 MPH 11.5 sec (MT est) EPA FUEL ECON 25-26/30-32/27-28 mpg EPA RANGE, COMB N/A ON SALE Now Show All