It’s good to be king. The enormous and imposing Cadillac Escalade dominates its category in terms of sales, representing the mind’s image for many people when someone utters the words “luxury SUV.” For the 2025 model year, Cadillac gifted the Escalade a fresh tailor-made suit and completely revamped interior while adding an all-electric variant in the Escalade IQ. This work helped the devastatingly luxurious brute impress our jury, earning its votes and being crowned as the Best Full-Size Luxury SUV in the 2025 AutoTrader Awards.
Our jury of more than 20 automotive experts from across the country considered every single full-size luxury SUV available for Canadians to buy and voted for the best ones using a dozen different criteria ranging from safety and quality to efficiency and performance. These criteria are weighted with a critical eye to the segment’s intended purpose and the jury votes for vehicles that raise the bar, representing vehicles they would confidently recommend to family and friends.
A new front-end design and updated taillamps modernize the gasoline-powered Escalade for 2025 while retaining a look that can be mistaken for nothing else but a Cadillac. Over-the-top details include a floodlit front crest, towering vertical lighting, and an imposing front end that permits drivers to clear traffic by filling up rearview mirrors with what seems like a million square feet of chrome grille. The electric Escalade IQ shares most of these traits but swaps the grille for an illuminated shield.
Under the hood of most gasoline-powered trims is a proven 6.2L V8 engine making 420 horsepower and 460 pound-feet of torque. The almighty V-Series adds a supercharger to that equation to create 682 hp and 653 lb-ft of twist. All IQ variants presently have dual electric motors making an estimated 750 hp and 785 lb-ft, and have unique features like four-wheel steering and a battery that permits an estimated 740 kilometres on a single charge.
But it’s the interior that defines vehicles like the Escalade and Escalade IQ. Fresh for 2025 is a curved 55-inch infotainment screen stretching from pillar to pillar, integrating a gauge cluster and centre touchscreen into a 35-inch display that is supplemented by a 20-inch screen ahead of the passenger. Yet another screen is dedicated to climate controls. Sumptuous materials abound from the knurled dials and controls to the buttery upholstery offered in an array of colours. Super Cruise, GM’s hands-free highway driving system, remains a tremendous anti-fatigue tool.
The second-row seats are thrones, available with massaging functions and twin 12.6-inch entertainment screens. The new Executive Second Row Seating Package gives those passengers a rear command centre for vehicle functions, climate-controlled 14-way seats with massage, dual wireless charging, and stowable tray tables. If you can’t get comfortable in this environment, please make an appointment with your chiropractor.
Pricing for the gasoline-powered Escalade starts at a heady $115,040, but it’s worth noting that it’s not too much more expensive than the GMC Yukon Denali Ultimate. Snooty neighbours may lord their top-rung Escalade over lesser trims, so when they pull up in a $159,440 Sport Platinum, you may fantasize about running your base model through an industrial-sized shredder. Ponying up for the biblically powerful V-Series will require a stunning $220,585 including fees and Canadian luxury tax, though options can push that sum close to a quarter-million. The all-electric Escalade IQ will start at $163,599 for a Luxury or Sport trim, rising to $183,699 for more lavishly equipped versions of those same trims.
With attributes like these, it’s easy to understand why the Cadillac Escalade and Cadillac Escalade IQ have earned the 2025 Best Full-Size Luxury SUV award. King, here’s your crown.