Cadillac admits that after buying an EV, you don’t go back to gas as sales surpass 100K

With over 100,000 EVs sold in the US, Cadillac said that those who go electric are likely to choose another EV as their next vehicle.

Cadillac EV sales cross 100,000 in the US

After introducing the Lyriq in 2022, the brand’s first all-electric vehicle, Duncan Aldred, GM’s senior VP and president of North America, announced that Cadillac has now sold over 100,000 EVs in the US.

“Today, I’m proud to share that we’ve surpassed 100,000 total Cadillac EV sales,” Aldred said on Thursday. In four years, Cadillac has grown to become one of the most popular luxury EV brands in the US.

While it may not seem like much compared to Tesla, which sold over 100,000 electric vehicles in the US in the first quarter alone, Cadillac now offers a full lineup of luxury electric SUVs, ranging from the entry-level Optiq (Check out our review of it) to the massive Escalade IQ.

Cadillac’s EV lineup now includes entry-level SUVs (Optiq), midsize (Lyriq), three-row (Vistiq and Escalade IQ), performance models (Lyriq-V and Optiq-V), and ultra-luxury (Celestiq).

According to Duncan, about 75% of Lyriq, Optiq, Vistiq, and Escalade IQ buyers are new to Cadillac, “many coming from Tesla, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi, and Lexus,” he added.

While the luxury brand is poaching buyers from rival brands, Duncan said, just as importantly, “the broader data shows that once customers move to an EV, they tend to stay, and they are likely to choose another EV for their next vehicle.”

The “growing loyalty” is the reason why Cadillac is “confident the market will continue to shift in our direction,” Duncan explained.

Cadillac was one of the few brands that stood out in the first quarter, with EV sales up nearly 20%. According to Cox Automotive’s Q1 2026 EV sales report, Cadillac sold just over 9,500 electric vehicles in the first quarter, up 19.8% from 7,972 in the same period last year.

With 4.4% market share, Cadillac leads over rival brands including BMW (2.3%), Lexus (2.1%), Mercedes-Benz (0.5%), and Porsche (0.6%).

By model, Cadillac’s best-selling EV in Q1 was the Lyriq at 3,370, followed by the Optiq (2,847), Vistiq (1,902), and Escalade IQ (1,432).

Electrek’s Take

While 100,000 EVs sold is something to celebrate, Cadillac, or better yet, GM, recently scaled back its push toward electrification in the US, leaving the door open for luxury brands like Rivian and Lexus to steal market share.

Rivian is basically a “tech company on wheels,” one of the most vertically integrated pure EV makers outside of Tesla, with its own software, in-house battery packs, drive units, charging infrastructure, and an autonomy platform.

In the first quarter, Rivian outsold Cadillac, delivering 10,365 EVs for a 4.8% market share. With the more affordable R2 set to go on sale soon, Rivian is poised to take an even bigger slice of the market over the next few years. Lucid is also planning to begin production of its midsize platform later this year.

While Cadillac was initially set to become an all-electric brand by 2030, it now plans to continue selling and developing internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, which will likely set it further behind pure EV players like Rivian.

So, if Cadillac is saying EV buyers don’t go back to gas vehicles, why is it still making them?

Interested in seeing one of Cadillac’s EVs for yourself? To keep up with the competition, Cadillac is offering a $2,000 lease bonus to those who trade in a competitive luxury brand vehicle. You can use our links below to see available Cadillac electric SUVs in your area.

• Cadillac Escalade IQ near you
• Cadillac Optiq near you
• Cadillac Lyriq near you
• Cadillac Vistiq near you