Experience Archives - EV Rider

2026 Cadillac Vistiq: Stylish 3-Row Family Hauler

Dan Scanlan — Wed, 10 Sep 2025 10:43:39 +0000

So, the obvious question is – what is a Vistiq? For that matter, how about Cadillac’s Celestiq, Lyriq or Optiq?

Well, one does not need a genius IQ to see that Cadillac, one of the oldest car companies around, has latched onto a new way to describe its electric vehicles – of which it has many, from the 190-inch-long Optiq to the 196-inch Lyriq, all the way up to the 228-inch-long Escalade IQL and slightly shorter Escalade IQ.

Cadillac Vistiq Design Tour

Our Vistiq Sport, which shares its GM BEV3 platform with the Chevrolet Blazer EV, Acura ZDX and Honda Prologue, is in the middle of the Cadillac pack – a 3-row, 6- or 7-seat EV crossover with some serious tech, power and shape. So envision (oops, that’s a Buick) the Vistiq as the scion of the Escalade. It sure looks a bit like one.

Stroll up to it and flush door handles pop open as its LED light blades pulse front and rear. Under the smoked chrome bar atop the smooth, blunt nose is a false grille with an alloy, lighted Cadillac emblem high-center. A smooth, gently curved panel frames it, while 10-element LED headlight units are on the fenders’ outer edges. There’s a deep lower intake.

Gloss black frames gently-flared front and rear wheel wells, wider black with smoked chrome spears accenting lower sills. The roof, from windshield pillars to tailgate, is also gloss black with satin alloy spears along roofline sides, while rear side windows get an intriguing Mondrian pattern graphic that adds visual drama and lightens the window tinting.

In back, LED blades light rear D-pillar corners, while lower lights mimic the stacked look of the headlights. There are no exhaust tips to mar the black lower fascia with black and silver accents.

What impressed me is how low and wide this crossover looks, so well-planted on its 21-inch Goodyear Eagle Sport rubber on 6-blade black and silver alloys. It marks the night with puddle lights glowing around it. Each door handle is lit with an LED strip. All but the roof and rear fenders are aluminum. But a 3-row design is inherently boxier – the Lyriq is the Caddy crossover look I like best.

Cadillac Vistiq Instructional Videos

2026 VISTIQ | Seat Configurations | Cadillac

2026 VISTIQ | Unlocking the Velocity Max Mode | Cadillac

2026 VISTIQ | Adjusting Your Air Ride Adaptive Suspension | Cadillac

2026 VISTIQ | Front Command Center | Cadillac

2026 VISTIQ | Personal Comfort in the Rear Command Center | Cadillac

Cadillac Vistiq’s Interior Highlighted by 33-inch Screen

Entering the Vistiq’s cabin means grabbing the pop-out door handle and gently tugging as sensors register your hand and open it. You settle into firm, supportive black leather bucket seats with heat, cooling and massage functions, with white stitching and inset stripes. Doors are accented with copper-hued carbon fiber panels and LED accent lights. Seat controls are on the doors. A twist of a knurled knob flips the climate control screen in the center console into the seat massage or heat/cool control. I’d prefer a one-button approach.

The dashboard design is very clean – black leatherette with buff alloy accents and thin air vents with knurled knobs. There’s a 33-inch diagonal LED screen that stands free of the dashtop, accented with a ribbed panel that did rattle a bit on bumpy roads.

That big screen begins (l-r) with a trip/economy touchscreen that also allows you to activate lane-keep, and change the center screen display. We liked the strip displays for range and power/charging, with digital speedometer. But there is no digital charge display available, just a bar display. You only know percent of charge left when you get in, and that left display shows it before you turn it on.

To turn on this EV, just tap the brake pedal and its all powered up. To turn off, just put the gearshift in “Park,” and open the door.

The center of the screen can show everything from surround-view cameras and audio to full map, charging or battery status, or just a mix of map and audio. The 23-speaker AKG system, with front head restraint and overhead speakers, sound great – but there’s no HD Radio option so you’ll be missing out on a bunch of available broadcast channels. And as sleek as the multiple touchscreens are, you have to tap a tiny icon to open the glove box – and the Vistiq has to be on. To set headlights to auto-on, or just on, there’s an icon on dashboard left. And a few other functions are buried inside touchscreen menus.

The center console is a multi-level dream. There’s that touchscreen flowing out of its stitched leather and carbon fiber-clad design, with haptic-feedback icon buttons for control of a/c front, center and rear. A knurled metal knob handles volume, while a twist/tap/scroll knob works all center screen functions, with main menu buttons for audio, map, etc. nearby. There’s lots of room under the center armrest, as well as side pockets, and more room underneath. Ahead of the touchscreen are dual inductive phone chargers.

Cadillac Vistiq 2nd, 3rd Row Highlights

The second row occupants also get stitched leather bucket seats with center armrests, plus their own touchscreen to control a/c and seat heat/cooling. There’s good head and leg room. I appreciated the stitched leatherette panels on the hard backs of the front seats. Overhead there’s a long. opeing sunroof with a power sunscreen.

The second row seats flip and fold forward to access the third row’s bench, parked low on the floor with outboard cup holders and armrest storage. That said, leg room is tight for adults here unless the second row slides forward. Behind the last row, there’s a wide and roomy storage area with deep under-floor cargo room. Third-row seatbacks power up and down via rear-mounted buttons. More buttons drop second row seatbacks for a very roomy cargo area if needed. The rear hatch powers up and down – just tap the illuminated alloy Cadillac badge. Hold the unlock button, and all four windows drop when you are parked.

Cadillac Vistiq Performance

Want to see what moves the Vistiq? Pop the hood. Where many EVs have a front (frunk) trunk, the Vistiq’s bonnet bounds up to display the charging system components that move its 180kW front drive motor with differential/offset gear set and mechanical transmission fluid pump. It got lots of looks when I parked at a hot rod cruise-in. At the rear, there’s a 250kW drive motor, one differential/offset gear set and mechanical transmission fluid pump and housing. There are five drive modes: Touring; Sport, Snow/Ice, MyMix (set your power, steering, suspension, even a nice motor sound effect) and V-Mode (fully enhanced shift-tuning, suspension, steering, exhaust, motor sound, brake feel and traction control). We found that this is a very quiet CUV, with only some tire hiss and wind noise even at highway speed.

There are 12 lithium-ion cells to form a 102-kilowatt-hour battery pack, giving those motors 615 hp and 650 lb.-ft. (880 Nm) of near-instant torque along with a Cadillac-estimated 305 miles of range, when equipped with our 11.5 kW onboard charging module. An optional 19.2 kW charging module is also available.

We played mostly in Touring, with full regen (lift off the accelerator, and motors become generators). But depress that pedal and this 6,326-lb. CUV leaps out of the gate to 60 mph in a quick 4.9 seconds. Tap in Sport mode, and it launches harder and faster to 60 mph in 4.3 seconds. And tap V-Mode, and the Vistiq rears back with an immediate lunge and launch to 60 in 4 flat. There’s no wheelspin in any mode, and it does not take much pedal to pass anything smoothly. But play in Sport or V-Mode, and range drops quick – an indicated 6-mile drop in less than a mile of playing. But stay in Touring mode with full regen, and range drops slower than actual miles.

As for range – we started with 80% battery charge, and an indicated 247 miles of range. We drove the Vistiq for three days in Touring mode, as well as having some fun in Sports mode, and opted to Level 3 charge when we were left with 29% battery and 89-miles of indicated range. We had driven 141 miles, a bit less than the 158 miles of indicated range seen on the display. Taking it from 29% to 80% charge took a quick 26 minutes, and cost $34.55 – and again claimed an indicated 247 miles of range. DC fast charging is almost always more expensive than charging at home.

The Vistiq rides on multi-link front/5-link rear suspension with semi-active dampers. It gave us a controlled, comfortable ride that ate up most bumps without any issues, the semi-active dampers reining in any after-bounce. With the front and rear EV motors allocating power to the end needing it, expressway ramps were taken neutrally, with minimal body lean. Play more athletically, and we heard a hiss of understeer in corners, easy to handle. Sport mode is the most fun, with tighter steering, quicker damping and better passing power – I liked it. As for Sport mode on our steady-state skid pad, the Vistiq had a bit more understeer, but never washed out – this handles pretty well for a big CUV, probably helped by some low battery placement.

The electric power steering was direct if a bit over-boosted in Touring mode, really stiffening up in Sport mode, where it felt a bit artificial as it loaded up in corners. This long-wheelbase Caddy did have a tight turning radius.

Doing much of my driving in one-pedal mode – a very natural way to stop or go – only when a light changed or someone cut me off did I invoke the effective 13.5-inch front/13.58-inch rear disc brakes. Like many regenerative braking systems, the pedal felt a bit wooden, without a lot of feel – but they stopped this Caddy very well, with minimal nose dive and no trace of fade after some repeated hard use.

More Cadillac Coverage

2026 Escalade ESV Platinum Sport Review

Cadillac With Corvette Heart: 2025 CT5 V Blackwing

2025 Cadillac Escalade Combines Pace With Grace

Why Former Rivian, Tesla Owner Switched To Escalade IQ

1st Look: 2026 Cadillac Lyriq V

Cadillac Gets Its Mojo Back

EV Rider’s 2023 Top 10; What’s Ahead In 2024

Owner Review: Cadillac Lyriq Debut Edition

GM Follows Ford In Adopting Tesla Supercharger Standard

Cadillac Celestiq, Buick Wildcat EVs Draw Crowds

The lane-keep system, with seat bottom buzzers if you stray over lines, was insistent. Adaptivbe cruise control maintains speed and distance between cars, even “reading” speed limit signs and slowing down to that MPH. And Super Cruise autonomous driving, with auto-lane changes if it sees a need, stayed on course and speed except for an occasional wander in lane after hitting dips. It even worked on a winding 2-lane state road, keeping the curves, although some divided state highways saw the autonomous mode click on and off. Seat buzzers and more alert the driver when that happens.

Our red Vistiq had a base price $77,895; with options limited to $1,225 paint, $800 captain’s chairs/6-passenger seating and $600 black roof for a final as tested price of $81,915.

Bottom line: Great looks, solid people and cargo carrying, decent range and very good performance and drivability – and that Radiant Red paint job looked nice too.

2025 Cadillac Vistiq Sport Specifications

Vehicle type – 6-passenger all-wheel-drive EV luxury crossover
Base price $77,895 ($81,915 as tested)
Engine type – Dual motor w/12 Lithium-ion NCMA cathode, blended graphite anode battery modules and 102 kWh of useable battery energy
Horsepower (net) – 615
Torque (lb-ft) – 650
Transmission – direct drive
Wheelbase – 121.8 inches
Overall length – 205.5 inches
Overall width – 86.7 inches
Height – 71 inches
Front headroom – 40.9 inches
Front legroom – 43.1 inches
Second row headroom – 38.9 inches
Second row legroom – 40.1 inches
Rear headroom – 39.5 inches
Rear legroom – 30.6 inches
Cargo capacity – 15.2 cu.ft./43 w/3rd row folded/82 w/2nd and 3rd row folded
Towing capacity – up to 5,000 lbs.
Curb weight – 6,326 lbs.
Max estimated range – 305 miles
Mileage rating – 86-MPGeDan, write your review above and below this playlist of Cadillac Vistiq instructional videos & delete this note.

The post 2026 Cadillac Vistiq: Stylish 3-Row Family Hauler appeared first on EV Rider.

Bill Bortzfield’s Resume

Bill Bortzfield — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 17:41:02 +0000

EV Rider.TV | Sept. 2021-Present

Owner | Location: Jacksonville, Fla.

Bill launched the evrider.tv website and YouTube channel after departing WJCT Public Media.

He handles all aspects of the multimedia endeavor, which includes weekly videos and stories on a range of topics from EV cars and motorcycles to the people and places in Florida along with environmental topics such as solar.

WJCT Public Media (NPR/PBS) | Sept. 2017-Sept. 2021

Digital Content Editor | Location: Jacksonville, Fla.

Bill oversaw WJCT’s digital news and social media products. He edited the work of the WJCT News team along with doing audio reporting for WJCT News 89.9 FM and doing occasional videos for WJCT’s digital and TV platforms. His multimedia projects included a variety of elections, City Hall coverage, business and daily news. Bill also served as an occasional contributor to First Coast Connect and filled in for the station’s news director during her maternity leave. | Bill’s WJCT story archive

Jacksonville.com/The Florida Times-Union | 1999-2011, 2013-2017

Positions held: Digital Engagement Specialist, Homepage Editor, Content Manager, Multimedia Manager, Asst. Managing Editor – Online News, Online News Editor | Location: Jacksonville, Fla.

Bill held a variety of positions at The Florida Times-Union and Morris Communications ( the TU’s former parent company) during rapid-fire editorial, technological and business change. He served as Content Manager, focusing on mobile and other digital products for Jacksonville.com. Project leader roles included guiding the development of Jacksonville.com and Augusta Chronicle applications for iPad, iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, Windows Phone and Palm webOS. He also produced page A2 of The Florida Times-Union, wrote an automotive blog and co-hosted/produced a podcast as well as coordinated projects with a variety of vendors and media partners. He served as Jacksonville.com’s homepage editor and a digital producer for jacksonville.com and staugustine.com, focusing on social and multimedia. He was an automotive columnist/reporter for the Times-Union and website. His column, First Coast Gears, quickly became a staple in Jacksonville’s automotive enthusiast community; generating more than 100,000 page views per month.

Bill decided in 1999 to make the full-time jump from television news to the Internet, joining The Florida Times-Union’s internet department as the Online News Editor of Jacksonville.com. He quickly transformed the site into an up-to-the-minute news source, instilling the sense of urgency that has become commonplace on websites today. One of the first changes Bill made was instituting time stamps on the homepage to let Web users know at a glance how recently a story had been published or updated and guaranteeing users a completely fresh homepage by lunch time with The Midday Update.

Bill was instrumental in helping The Times-Union develop a news partnership with WJXX-ABC 25 and WTLV-NBC 12, collectively known as First Coast News. He helped print reporters make the transition to multimedia platforms and assisted the newspaper with building a TV studio.

Bill designed and launched Jacksonville.com’s first co-branded website with First Coast News, Stormtrack.tv, which has since been retired. Following that success, a co-branded election site, also retired, was launched.

Another venture Bill launched and was in charge of was Jacksonville.com’s trio of retired Internet radio stations, known collectively as RadioJax. They featured adult contemporary, modern country and urban music. Each station’s music format was supplemented with local news, weather, sports, community and automotive programming. RadioJax marked the launch of Jacksonville.com’s first smartphone app.

Perhaps one of the most important projects Bill undertook was the creation of First Coast Fugitives. The website was a public/private partnership that brought together more than a dozen law enforcement agencies, including its primary partner, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Web users could quickly access a database of fugitives in their area and e-mail or phone in tips to law enforcement. The site was retired after Bill’s departure and an ownership change at the Times-Union.

First Coast News, WJXX-ABC 25/WTLV-NBC 12 | Oct. 2011-March 2013

Positions held: Digital Director (Oct. 2011/Dec. 2012), Automotive Columnist (Nov. 2011/March 2013) | Location: Jacksonville, Fla.

Bill headed the digital media efforts at WJXX-ABC 25 and WTLV-NBC 12, known collectively as First Coast News, following a large downsizing at the Times-Union. He returned to the T-U in April of 2013.

While at the then-Gannett television stations, his flagship product, firstcoastnews.com, enjoyed consistent growth each quarter, while mobile saw increases of more than 100%.

He directly supervised a team of four but worked with all departments, especially news. Bill oversaw the editorial and production aspects of FCN’s Web and mobile products as well as many of the stations’ social media efforts.

He led a statewide Gannett effort to create a political application that featured contributions from every Florida Gannett newspaper and TV station in the state. Political Florida was launched in time for a presidential debate at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville, which was held ahead of the Florida primary. The app was available on Android, iPad, iPhone, mobile and Windows Phone.

Bill also brought integrated social contesting to the stations. Facebook contests he produced included a TV giveaway, tablets giveaway, cutest baby photos and others. He worked to increase interactive television with such things as a text-to-win gas contest and text-to-vote during newscasts.

The First Coast News Facebook page regularly led in terms of Likes among all Jacksonville media during his tenure as Digital Director, growing by 54.3%. The stations were active on other social platforms as well such as Twitter, Pinterest and Get Glue.

Among his accomplishments was the creation of an automotive section called First Coast Gears, which began averaging more than 100,000 page views per month within six months.

He planned and implemented an Olympics website in partnership with NBC. It included live video chats from London and many other interactive features. Other launches included The Country Channel 24/7 webpage for WTLV-TV 12.2 as well as heading up the digital elements of special projects coverage such as the 26.2 with Donna to Finish Breast Cancer and Operation Sandy Relief, which raised more than 15,000 pounds of supplies for people in the Northeast affected by the October 2012 hurricane.

ABC 25 News – WJXX-ABC 25 | 1997-1999

Position: News Producer and Web Producer | Location: Jacksonville, Fla.

Bill was an afternoon newscast and Web producer at WJXX-ABC 25 in Jacksonville. Bill and WJXX launched the most technologically advanced news operation in Jacksonville’s history in December of 1997. He line produced the very first edition of ABC 25 News at 6. In May of 1998 Bill went on to produce ABC 25 News at 5. ABC 25 News at 5 was expanded to an hour within a month of Bill taking over the newscast. In addition to producing, Bill was responsible for updating the WJXX Web site. He also did cross promotions between the TV news side and the website.

Bill put in his resignation at WJXX-ABC 25 in April of 1999 to pursue a full-time web-based career. He agreed to stay on at WJXX until a suitable replacement could be hired and trained. His last day as a full time employee at WJXX was July 16, 1999, when he completed training his replacement.

Bill returned to ABC 25 Online on a free-lance basis in September of 1999 to provide continuous Internet news updates on Hurricane Floyd.

Gannett announced it was buying WJXX in December of 1999. The deal was completed the following March. Gannett closed down the ABC 25 News operation on the day it took over, moving WJXX employees that weren’t let go to WTLV-NBC 12, which today houses both stations and is known collectively as First Coast News.

When WJXX debuted ABC 25 News, it was a state of the art television station that used DVC PRO digital gear, commercial playback file servers, a Devlin designed set and robotics. The ABC 25 weather lab was unparalleled. It featured Jacksonville’s first Live Doppler Radar. ABC 25 News also provided Jacksonville viewers with the market’s only helicopter coverage. When WTLV took over, the helicopter operation was suspended.

TV 3 News – KESQ-ABC 3 (Channel 42) | 1996-1997

News Director | Location: Palm Springs, Calif.

Bill headed up the 29 person KESQ news department. He was in charge of all aspects of the #1 Nielsen-rated (during his tenure) Palm Springs, Calif. newsroom operation. His duties included providing editorial direction and leadership along with handling all news department hiring, budgeting, and scheduling.

He was responsible for implementing station goals and projects related to the news department. Among Bill’s accomplishments at KESQ was the creation of TV 3 First News at 4:30, which led to a news staff expansion.

Bill also successfully lobbied ABC News to have KESQ designated as one of only six affiliate beta test sites in the country for the network’s desktop video news feed service.

Fox 26 News – KRIV-Fox 26 | 1988-1996

Positions held: Asst. News Director, Interim News Director, News Producer | Location: Houston

As Assistant News Director at Fox 26, Bill provided editorial and production direction for a newsroom staff of 87. He handled newsroom personnel matters, scheduling, etc. and aided in the creation of Fox News 7am, including the concept and production of opens, bumps, music, set design and format of the newscast. He worked with Delphi to develop a website for the station.

Bill was also in charge of obtaining a new news set for KRIV. He handled that project from start to finish, including the bidding process. Bill produced newscasts and handled special project events as needed. He served as Interim News Director during his news director’s maternity leave. He was also in charge of the station’s internship program.

Before becoming Asst. News Director, Bill was the producer of Fox News 12:30. Bill joined KRIV as the midday producer in September 1988. He was responsible for the editorial, production and graphic content of Fox News 12:30.

His duties included approving scripts, assignments, and video. He also timed the newscast and determined story placement.

Bill produced other newscasts as needed and won an Associated Press Honorable Mention for Best Spot News Newscast in the State of Texas (large market category).

Other producing highlights included taking the show on the road for the Economic Summit and the Republican National Convention.

Eyewitness News – WBRE-NBC 28 | 1986-1988

News Producer | Location: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Pa.

Bill was in charge of the six and 11pm editions of Eyewitness News at WBRE.
He won Second Place for Best Medium Market Newscast in Pennsylvania as judged by the Associated Press.

Bill also did occasional field reporting during his first year-and-a-half at the NBC affiliate.

Action News – WBNG-CBS 12 | 1985-1986

Asst. News Producer/Reporter | Location: Binghamton, N.Y.

Bill started his career at WBNG in March of 1985 as the Associate Producer of the noon edition of Action News.

After working on the noon show, Bill reported for the 6pm edition in the afternoons. He also served as a fill-in anchor for Action News Morning Edition.

Bill produced the six & 11pm editions of Action News during his final month at WBNG.

Awards

Journalism, websites, television and other forms of multimedia require teamwork. So while Bill is proud of the achievements listed below, he gratefully acknowledges that the honors are the result of teamwork and that his colleagues as much or more credit for the awards.

August 2015 – William S. Morris IV Innovation Award – Honored for work on Value Added Measure databases on teacher quality.

July 2014 – Third Place Niche Site/Channel – Awarded by the Florida Society of News Editors for local automotive car culture story, video and photo coverage at jacksonville.com/gears.

November 2010 – Times-Union Employee of the Month nominee – For mobile marketing campaign that included a car giveaway and resulted in more than 890,000 smartphone app impresssions.

January 2004 – Best Overall News site/Digital Edge Awards – Jacksonville.com, the Web site for The Florida Times-Union was named the best overall news site in the 75,000 to 250,000 print circulation category by the National Association of America’s New Media Federation.

May 2003 – Davis Productivity Award – The Davis Productivity Awards recognize state government employees whose work significantly increases productivity and promotes innovative ways to deliver services. In this case the award was given to FDLE and Jacksonville.com for a public/private partnership Web site, First Coast Fugitives, which Bill designed and served as project leader on. The Web site brought together more than dozen law enforcement agencies to help catch fugitives across the First Coast.

November 2002 – Times-Union Employee of the Month – For overall good work.

June 2001 – Times-Union Employee of the Month – For simultaneously launching two major projects for Jacksonville.com (Stormtrack2001.com & GetJaxWheels.com) while maintaining his day-to-day duties.

January 2000 – Best Overall News site/Digital Edge Awards – Jacksonville.com, the Web site for The Florida Times-Union was named the best overall news site in the 75,000 to 250,000 print circulation category by the National Association of America’s New Media Federation.

June 2000 – Jacksonville.com won first place in online services for the Division A category of the Florida Society of Newspaper Editor’s 2000 Journalism Competition. Division A is for newspapers with daily circulation above 125,000.

1990 – Honorable Mention for Best Spot News Newscast in the State of Texas (large market category) as judged by the Associated Press for producing Fox News 12:30 on KRIV-Fox 26 in Houston.

1988 – Second Place for Best Medium Market Newscast in Pennsylvania as judged by the Associated Press for producing Eyewitness News at 6.

Education/University of Delaware | Bachelor of Arts Degree, 1984 | Newark, DE

After graduating from Wilmington’s Salesianum High School in 1980, Bill went on to attend the University of Delaware. He had picked up his interest in broadcast journalism while in high school, deciding on a Major in English with a concentration in Journalism. Bill soon became a writer for The Review, which was the university’s bi-weekly newspaper.

The paper had an average circulation of about 18,000. In his senior year he was one of 25 students admitted to the Communications Department’s WTV program. WTV, which stood for Winter Term Television, was a daily newscast run by university students and cablecast on Rollins Cablevision.

Bill served as a reporter for WTV. In addition to juggling classes, WTV, The Review, and an internship at WHYY-TV 12, Bill also worked at the Ferris School For Boys and the Memorial Division of the Wilmington Medical Center, now known as Christina Care Health System to pay for a large portion of his education.

In May of 1984 Bill graduated from the University of Delaware with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English. In the fall of 1999 Bill returned to school, attending New Horizons Computer Training Center in Jacksonville.

He studied software programs such as Photoshop, Flash, Illustrator, CorelDRAW, PowerPoint and others. Bill stays current with the latest software trends, currently working primarily in WordPress, Adobe Premiere, Cyberlink PowerDirector, Adobe Photoshop, DaVinci Resolve, Microsoft Office along with a wide variety of web-based applications. Through the years he has mastered a wide variety of content management systems.

The post Bill Bortzfield’s Resume appeared first on EV Rider.