I had to check, but the Cadillac Celestiq show car was revealed in July 2022. That means we’ve been hearing about the new “Standard of the World” from GM’s luxury brand for the last three years—or whereabouts. Much has been written about it, like how it has a wheelbase longer than 10 feet, a roof that’s actually the largest piece of automotive glass in the world, and a starting price of roughly $340,000. But now, I’m writing about how the first Celestiq road car has been delivered to a customer.
VIN 001 was handed off to its incredibly wealthy new owner earlier this week, on June 23. The spec is unique—of course, all Celestiqs are, as no two will be the same. But this one is painted in Dolce Metallic with a Cinnamon and Camelia interior. I’m personally glad it’s not grey or black or white, and I’m especially happy that it’s brown.
Cadillac didn’t disclose much else about the car, and it didn’t say a word about the owner’s identity. That’s OK, as I’m sure TMZ will dox them the first time they take it out on the town. What we do know is that this Celestiq makes 655 horsepower and 646 lb-ft of torque like all the rest will. It also has 300 miles or so of range.
I can’t say this for sure, but I think the car’s new owner will care more about the Celestiq’s backseat appointments than how quick it is. Rest assured that Cadillac paid plenty of attention to that space as each passenger gets their own climate control zone along with seats that are heated, cooled, and massaging. Heck, the headrests even blow cool air on the passengers’ necks to keep them from getting too sweaty. In all, Cadillac says there are “33 unique microclimate devices” for comfort. That sounds like a lot to me.
Essentially everything about the Celestiq is superlative. It’s as pricey as a Rolls-Royce Ghost and as long as a standard shipping container at 18.1 feet. It’s a total moonshot from Cadillac, and now that the tires are meeting the road, it’s time to find out how it fares against Earth’s greatest luxury cars. And no matter how patriotic you are or aren’t, it feels hard to root against the U.S.A. on this one.
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From running point on new car launch coverage to editing long-form features and reviews, Caleb does some of everything at The Drive. And he really, really loves trucks.