Compare the2023 Cadillac LyriqVS 2023 Kia Niro EV

Both the Lyriq and Niro EV have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Lyriq 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 Niro EV’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 Cadillac Lyriq 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 Niro EV doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

The Lyriq has all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Niro EV doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

The Lyriq has a standard HD Surround Vision to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Niro EV only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

Both the Lyriq and the Niro EV have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras and rear cross-path warning.

The Cadillac Lyriq weighs 1889 to 2117 pounds more than the Kia Niro EV. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

The Lyriq’s corrosion warranty is 1 year and unlimited miles longer than the Niro EV’s (6/unlimited vs. 5/100,000).

The Lyriq’s standard electric motor produces 139 more horsepower (340 vs. 201) and 34 lbs.-ft. more torque (325 vs. 291) than the Niro EV’s electric motor. The Lyriq’s optional electric motors produces 299 more horsepower (500 vs. 201) and 159 lbs.-ft. more torque (450 vs. 291) than the Niro EV’s electric motor.

As tested in Car and Driver the Cadillac Lyriq is faster than the Kia Niro EV:

The Lyriq can travel longer on a full charge than the Niro EV on a full charge:

For better stopping power the Lyriq’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Niro EV:

The Lyriq’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Niro EV are solid, not vented.

For better traction, the Lyriq has larger standard tires than the Niro EV (265/50R20 vs. 215/55R17). The Lyriq’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Niro EV (275/40R22 vs. 215/55R17).

The Lyriq’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Niro EV’s standard 55 series tires. The Lyriq’s optional tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Niro EV’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Lyriq has standard 20-inch wheels. Only 17-inch wheels are available on the Niro EV. The Lyriq offers optional 22-inch wheels.

The Cadillac Lyriq’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Kia Niro EV only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

Having a flat tire is dangerous, inconvenient and expensive. The self-sealing tires standard on the Lyriq can automatically seal most punctures up to 3/16 of an inch, effectively preventing most flat tires. The Niro EV doesn’t offer self-sealing tires.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Lyriq’s wheelbase is 14.8 inches longer than on the Niro EV (121.8 inches vs. 107 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Lyriq is 4.1 inches wider in the front and 3.7 inches wider in the rear than on the Niro EV.

For greater off-road capability the Lyriq has a 1.1 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Niro EV (7 vs. 5.9 inches), allowing the Lyriq to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The Lyriq uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Niro EV doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

The Lyriq has 5.4 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Niro EV (105.1 vs. 99.7).

The Lyriq has 2.8 inches more front legroom, 3.2 inches more front hip room, 2.6 inches more front shoulder room, 2.7 inches more rear legroom, 1.3 inches more rear hip room and 3.2 inches more rear shoulder room than the Niro EV.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Lyriq’s rear seats recline. The Niro EV’s rear seats don’t recline.

The Lyriq has a much larger cargo volume than the Niro EV with its rear seat up (28 vs. 22.8 cubic feet).

Pressing a switch automatically lowers the Lyriq’s rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Niro EV doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

The Lyriq offers up to a 3500 lbs. towing capacity. The Niro EV has no towing capacity.

Standard Trailer Sway Control on the Lyriq uses the StabiliTrak® sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The Niro EV doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Cadillac service is better than Kia. J.D. Power ranks Cadillac second in service department satisfaction. With a 46% lower rating, Kia is ranked 26th.

The Lyriq’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Niro EV’s standard passenger windows don’t open or close automatically. With the Niro EV Wave’s power windows, only the front windows open or close automatically.

The Lyriq’s LED headlights produce a whiter, brighter light (up to 3x) using five times less power than the Niro EV’s projector halogen headlights and light instantly. LED lights also last over twenty times longer than halogen.

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the Lyriq has standard cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Niro EV doesn’t offer cornering lights. The Lyriq also has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle.

The Lyriq’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Niro EV offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The Lyriq has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel costs extra on the Niro EV.

The Lyriq has standard massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Niro EV.

To keep a safe, consistent following distance, the Lyriq has a standard Adaptive Cruise Control, which alters the speed of the vehicle without driver intervention. This allows the driver to use cruise control more safely without constantly having to disengage it when approaching slower traffic. The Niro EV doesn’t offer an adaptive cruise control.