Cadillac Escalade Hybrid
Cadillac Escalade Hybrid
MSRP: $73,840
Estimated MPG: 20 city / 23 highway
Class: Full-size SUV
The Cadillac Escalade Hybrid takes the same gasoline / electric architecture used to underpin both the Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid and GMC Yukon Hybrid and provides it with a full-on luxury spin. The result is a thoroughly decadent sport-utility vehicle that doesn’t spoil the environment at nearly the same rate that it spoils its occupants.
Unsurprisingly, the Cadillac Escalade Hybrid doesn’t alter the excellent two-mode hybrid game plan that GM has rolled out across their full-size SUV lineup. The vehicle’s 6.0 liter V8 engine enlists the aid of two 60-watt electric generators to offer up a combined 379 total horsepower and 367 lb-ft of torque. Rear or four-wheel drive can be specified when the vehicle is ordered, and an electronically-variable automatic transmission simulates a four-speed auto with a fair amount of accuracy. The goal of the gearbox is to provide variable gear ratios during regular driving and default to more defined ratios when demand increases during towing or hauling.
The Escalade’s fuel mileage rating of 20 miles per gallon in the city and 21 miles per gallon on the highway is a phenomenal improvement over the standard edition’s 12 miles per gallon city rating. On the highway, the Escalade is also capable of shutting down up to 4 cylinders and cruising along with a concomitant reduction in fuel usage. Given that there are no other full-size hybrid luxury SUV’s being produced in North America, the fact that Cadillac has made such an effort to increase the Escalade’s efficiency is laudable.
In addition to the novelty of cruising at speeds approaching 25 miles per hour on battery-power alone, the truck features a number of other luxury offerings sure to please the crowd that purchases vehicles within its lofty price range. Retractable running boards, three zones of climate control, heated and cooled front leather seats, a rearview camera that combines with a parking assist feature and of course an entertainment system for rear seat passengers are all in the cards.