Compare the2023 Cadillac LyriqVS 2023 Tesla Model X

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Lyriq are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Model X doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Lyriq’s standard pretensioning seatbelts also sense rear collisions and remove slack from the front seatbelts to help protect the occupants from whiplash and other injuries. The Model X doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Lyriq has standard Reverse Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Model X doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The Lyriq has a standard HD Surround Vision to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Model X 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.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Lyriq’s standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert uses sensors in the rear to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side and Rear Cross Traffic Braking automatically engages the brakes to help avoid a collision. The Model X doesn’t offer a rear cross-path warning system.

The Lyriq has standard OnStar®, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to get turn-by-turn driving directions, remotely unlock your doors if you lock your keys in, help track down your vehicle if it’s stolen or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The Model X doesn’t offer a GPS response system, only a navigation computer with no live response for emergencies, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.

Both the Lyriq and the Model X have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger 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 and rearview cameras.

There are almost 4 times as many Cadillac dealers as there are Tesla dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Lyriq’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Cadillac vehicles are better in initial quality than Tesla vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Cadillac above average in initial quality. With 63 more problems per 100 vehicles, Tesla is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Cadillac vehicles are more reliable than Tesla vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Cadillac 2 places higher in reliability than Tesla.

For better traction, the Lyriq’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Model X (275/40R22 vs. 265/35R22).

The Cadillac Lyriq’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Tesla Model X 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 Model X doesn’t offer self-sealing tires.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Lyriq’s wheelbase is 5.1 inches longer than on the Model X (121.8 inches vs. 116.7 inches).

For better maneuverability, the Lyriq’s turning circle is 1.1 feet tighter than the Model X’s (39.7 feet vs. 40.8 feet).

The Lyriq has 3.2 inches more front legroom, .8 inches more front hip room, .9 inches more rear legroom and 1.7 inches more rear shoulder room than the Model X.

The Lyriq has a much larger cargo volume than the Model X with its rear seat up (28 vs. 15 cubic feet).

The Lyriq’s standard rear seats fold to accommodate long and bulky cargo. The Model X 6-Passenger doesn’t offer folding rear seats.

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

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the Lyriq’s liftgate can be opened and closed just by kicking your foot under the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Model X doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

The Lyriq’s entire steering wheel hub sounds the horn, facilitating hitting the horn in an emergency. The Model X has a small, single button on the steering wheel spoke that can be hard to find quickly in an emergency.

The Lyriq’s power window, power lock, power mirror and cruise control switches are lit from behind, making them plainly visible and easier to operate at night. The Model X’s cruise control switches are unlit, making them difficult to find at night and operate safely.

The Lyriq’s standard side window demisters help clear frost or condensation from the side windows in the winter. The Model X doesn’t even offer side window demisters, so the driver may have to wipe the windows from the outside to gain side vision.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Lyriq has standard extendable sun visors. The Model X doesn’t offer extendable visors.

The Lyriq’s sun-visors swivel front-to-side to block glare from the side windows. The Model X’s visors are fixed into the windshield header.

The Lyriq has a standard center folding armrest for the rear passengers. A center armrest helps make rear passengers more comfortable and it can provide a boundary between children. The Model X doesn’t offer a middle row seat center armrest.

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 Model X.

The Lyriq has a 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Model X doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Lyriq is available in both rear-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Model X doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.