Compare the2023 Infiniti QX80VS 2023 Cadillac Escalade

For enhanced safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Infiniti QX80 have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Cadillac Escalade doesn’t offer pretensioners for its second-row seat belts.

The Infiniti QX80 has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Escalade doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The QX80 has standard Active Head Restraints (AHR), which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the AHR system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Escalade doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The QX80 has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them and moves the vehicle back into its lane. Only the Escalade Premium/Platinum/Sport offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the QX80 has a standard rear cross-path warning system, which uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Escalade Premium/Platinum/Sport has a rear cross-path warning system.

Both the QX80 and the Escalade have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, around view monitors and available all wheel drive.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Infiniti QX80 is safer than the Cadillac Escalade:

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The QX80 comes with a full 4-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Escalade’s 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 10,000 miles sooner.

The QX80’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the Escalade’s (7 vs. 6 years).

Infiniti pays for scheduled maintenance on the QX80 for 3 years and 36,000 miles. Infiniti will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Cadillac only pays for the first scheduled maintenance visit on the Escalade.

For smoother operation, better efficiency and fewer moving parts, the QX80 has an overhead cam design, rather than the old pushrod design of the engine in the Escalade.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Infiniti vehicles are more reliable than Cadillac vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Infiniti 10 places higher in reliability than Cadillac.

On the EPA test cycle the QX80 RWD gets better fuel mileage than the Escalade 6.2 OHV V8 RWD (14 city/20 hwy vs. 14 city/19 hwy).

The QX80 has 2 gallons more fuel capacity than the Escalade (26 vs. 24 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

For better stopping power the QX80’s standard brake rotors are larger than those on the Escalade:

The rear suspension of the QX80 uses air springs for a smoother, controlled ride than the Escalade, which uses coil springs. Air springs maintain proper ride height and ride more smoothly.

The QX80 AWD handles at .72 G’s, while the Escalade Sport Platinum 4WD pulls only .67 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The QX80 AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.8 seconds quicker than the Escalade Sport 4WD (28.3 seconds @ .64 average G’s vs. 30.1 seconds @ .53 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the QX80 has a 1.2 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Escalade (9.2 vs. 8 inches), allowing the QX80 to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the QX80’s middle and third row seats recline. The Escalade’s third row seats don’t recline.

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the QX80 easier. The QX80’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 35.8 inches, while the Escalade’s liftover is 37 inches.

The QX80 has a standard third row seat which folds flat into the floor. This completely clears a very large cargo area quickly. The Escalade doesn’t offer seats that fold into the floor.

The QX80’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Escalade’s (8500 vs. 8000 pounds).

While the Escalade 4WD Diesel can only tow 7800, any QX80 can tow a minimum of 8500 pounds.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The QX80 Sensory has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Escalade doesn’t offer headlight washers.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the QX80 is less expensive to operate than the Escalade because it costs $200 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost much less on the QX80 than the Escalade, including $104 less for a water pump, $715 less for a muffler, $28 less for front brake pads, $38 less for fuel injection, $143 less for a fuel pump, $593 less for front struts and $260 less for a power steering pump.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Infiniti QX80 will be $682 to $8685 less than for the Cadillac Escalade.