Compare the2023 Audi SQ8VS 2023 Cadillac Escalade-V

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Audi SQ8 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-V doesn’t offer pretensioners for its second-row seat belts.

Both the SQ8 and Escalade-V have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The SQ8 has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Escalade-V’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The SQ8 has a standard Secondary Collision Brake Assist, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Escalade-V doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

For better protection of the passenger compartment, the SQ8 uses safety cell construction with a three-dimensional high-strength frame that surrounds the passenger compartment. It provides extra impact protection and a sturdy mounting location for door hardware and side impact beams. The Escalade-V uses a body-on-frame design, which has no frame members above the floor of the vehicle.

Both the SQ8 and the Escalade-V have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors, rear cross-path warning and available night vision systems.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its available headlight’s “Acceptable” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the SQ8 the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2022, a rating granted to only 164 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Escalade-V has not been tested, yet.

The SQ8’s corrosion warranty is 6 years longer than the Escalade-V’s (12 vs. 6 years).

For smoother operation, better efficiency and fewer moving parts, the SQ8 has an overhead cam design, rather than the old pushrod design of the engine in the Escalade-V.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Cadillac vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Audi 7 places higher in reliability than Cadillac.

As tested in Car and Driver the Audi SQ8 is faster than the Cadillac Escalade-V:

On the EPA test cycle the SQ8 gets better fuel mileage than the Escalade-V (14 city/20 hwy vs. 11 city/16 hwy).

Regenerative brakes improve the SQ8’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Escalade-V doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the SQ8’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. The Escalade-V doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

For better stopping power the SQ8’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Escalade-V:

The SQ8 stops shorter than the Escalade-V:

For better traction, the SQ8 has larger tires than the Escalade-V (285/45R21 vs. 275/50R22).

The SQ8’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Escalade-V’s standard 50 series tires. The SQ8’s optional tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Escalade-V’s 50 series tires.

The SQ8 Prestige offers active sway bars, which help keep it flat and controlled during cornering, but disconnect at lower speeds to smooth the ride and offer greater off-road suspension articulation. This helps keep the tires glued to the road on-road and off. The Escalade-V doesn’t offer an active sway bar system.

The SQ8 Prestige offers an available adjustable active suspension system, which counteracts cornering forces actively, limiting body roll and improving handling and stability. Cadillac doesn’t offer an active suspension on the Escalade-V.

The SQ8 Prestige handles at .92 G’s, while the Escalade-V pulls only .69 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Audi SQ8 may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 950 to 1150 pounds less than the Cadillac Escalade-V.

The SQ8 is 1 foot, 3.3 inches shorter than the Escalade-V, making the SQ8 easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The SQ8 is 9.2 inches shorter in height than the Escalade-V, making the SQ8 much easier to wash and garage and drive (lower center of gravity).

Unibody construction lowers the SQ8’s center of gravity significantly without reducing ground clearance. This contributes to better on the road handling and better off-road performance and stability. In addition, unibody construction makes the chassis stiffer, improving handling and reducing squeaks and rattles. The Escalade-V uses body-on-frame design instead.

The SQ8 has a much larger cargo volume than the Escalade-V with its rear seat up (30.5 vs. 25.5 cubic feet).

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the SQ8 easier. The SQ8’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 33.7 inches, while the Escalade-V’s liftover is 37 inches.

The SQ8’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Escalade-V’s (7700 vs. 7000 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 SQ8 has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Escalade-V doesn’t offer headlight washers.

A manual rear sunshade and power rear side window sunshades are optional in the SQ8 to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Escalade-V doesn’t offer a rear or rear side window sunshades.

The SQ8 Prestige’s Park Assist Plus can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Park Assist Plus will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The Escalade-V’s automatic parking system does not offer parking by remote control.