- The 2026 Cadillac Optiq now comes with a Tesla-style North American Charging Customary (NACS) plug and has native Supercharger entry.
- Usually, it might go from 10% to 80% cost in about 25-Half-hour, with a most charging velocity of 150 kilowatts.
- Sadly, charging from a low battery to 80% on a Supercharger took longer than that.
Each electrical automobile I’ve pushed from Common Motors this yr has been higher than the final. Today, the Detroit automaker has a broad lineup of battery-powered choices throughout a number of worth ranges with stable vary, spectacular tech (even when Apple CarPlay is off the desk) and hands-free freeway Tremendous Cruise.
In idea, the deal must be even sweeter quickly as increasingly GM EVs add a Tesla-style North American Charging Customary (NACS) plug. One of many first to take action is the 2026 Cadillac Optiq, which dumps the cumbersome CCS port for Tesla’s sleeker possibility and comes with native Tesla Supercharger entry. These EVs now have entry to greater than 20,000 extra locations to plug in to allow them to get again on the highway rapidly, and ones with out can use a NACS adapter to do the identical factor.
However not that rapidly, as I discovered this weekend once I charged the brand new Optiq at my native Tesla Supercharger station. And whereas extra charger choices are all the time a plus, house owners might need to mood their expectations a bit.
Picture by: Patrick George
2026 Cadillac Optiq: The Fundamentals
Let’s begin with the fundamentals. The Cadillac Optiq has an 85-kilowatt-hour battery pack, which is a bit greater than common for the compact-midsize EV class it is in. The Tesla Mannequin Y has a 75 kWh pack, whereas the Hyundai Ioniq 5 has an 84 kWh battery pack. The Cadillac’s battery is utilized in many different GM EVs, together with the intently associated Chevrolet Equinox EV and Chevy Blazer EV.
However not like some rivals, that battery has by no means been a fast-charging champion. On the Optiq and Equinox EV, the max charging velocity is 150 kilowatts, which is form of midpack at greatest lately. Charging instances have been on the slower facet with varied checks we have carried out and lined.
Picture by: Patrick George
On one such take a look at from charging skilled Tom Moloughney, who truly owns the Equinox EV in query, he by no means noticed greater than 100 kW speeds on a 150 kW charger. And it does not fare that significantly better on a extra highly effective charger, like a 350 kW unit. Tom reviews that he is seen charging instances of about 35 minutes to go from 20% to 80%—not horrible, but in addition properly above the 25-30 minute mark that is more and more turning into a normal expectation within the DC fast-charging house.
And it is by no means very constant, both. “It is form of odd that I do not know what to anticipate once I cost the Equinox EV from daily,” Tom stated in a video printed final yr.
GM does not publish a normal 10% or 20% to 80% charging estimate as many automakers do, nevertheless it does say the Optiq will add as much as 81 miles in about 10 minutes on a 150 kW charger. It is an odd metric, nevertheless it does show that somebody can get sufficient vary to finish a good journey within the time it takes to hit a relaxation cease and seize some snacks.
Picture by: Patrick George
However now the Optiq has a NACS plug. So how will it do on a Tesla V3 Supercharger, with as much as 250 kW of charging energy on faucet? Here is what I discovered once I tried it.
2026 Cadillac Optiq: The Tesla Supercharger Check
As with different charging checks I’ve performed previously, this is not a tightly managed experiment with tons of graphs and information for individuals who like to geek out on these things. It is a real-world take a look at, meant to simulate the expertise any peculiar proprietor may need in the event that they lived with this EV daily.
Picture by: Patrick George
I rolled as much as my native Supercharger station with 14% cost and simply 35 miles of vary left. I pre-conditioned the battery about 20 minutes earlier than I arrived. Once I did, I fired up my Tesla app and plugged in, encountering no points getting began. My take a look at began at 1:11 p.m. once I received a quote of 35 minutes to 80%—a bit disappointing proper out of the gate.
And straight away, the Optiq jumped to charging speeds of 147 kW, nevertheless it did not grasp on the market lengthy. I used to be at 21% by 1:14, however because the cost price climbed, speeds went down extra rapidly than anticipated.
Picture by: Patrick George
By 37%, I used to be at 129 kW with a quoted 25 extra minutes to achieve 80%. Not precisely dazzling. By 42%, speeds have been right down to 124 kW, then beneath 120 kW as I hit 50%. By 58%—which, by the best way, is 170 miles of vary—I used to be right down to 112 kW, but I nonetheless had one other quarter-hour to hit 80%.
Picture by: Patrick George
Issues actually sank at 60%, which was round 20 minutes into the take a look at. By then, the automotive was solely pulling speeds of 85 kW, virtually half what it ought to have been able to. I finally known as the take a look at at 1:37 p.m., after 25 minutes of charging, which gave me 194 miles of vary at 65% cost. And once I completed, the automotive was solely seeing speeds of 67 kW.
Picture by: Patrick George
I needed to get it to 80% for the needs of the take a look at, however I had all of the vary I wanted—plus my spouse was getting irritated as a result of we had different stuff to do this day.
Picture by: Patrick George
So what provides right here?
Tesla Supercharger Check, Outcomes Defined
Within the broader context of contemporary EVs, it is a bit of a letdown, even when Tesla Supercharging generally is a bizarre blended bag. And within the case of the Optiq, you possibly can blame the charging curve.
Picture by: Patrick George
Let me supply some context. A NACS-equipped Hyundai Ioniq 5 (which, once more, has a similar-sized battery) will cost at a Tesla station with “solely” speeds of about 126 kW, which is way lower than that EV is able to. Nevertheless it does 126 kW steadily, all through the entire take a look at. That is why it can go from 10% to 80% in a quoted Half-hour—faster than the Cadillac.
Or take the 2026 Subaru Solterra, which I additionally Tesla-charged not too long ago. It has a smaller battery than the Cadillac at 74.7 kWh. Nevertheless it additionally held increased charging speeds on a Supercharger extra persistently. I did not see speeds beneath 100 kW till the Solterra was properly previous a 65% cost. That is why it went from 16% to 80% in about 25 minutes on that take a look at—once more, much less battery to refill, however a greater charging curve.
From our buddies at State of Cost: See how briskly the Equinox EV’s speeds drop off?
Picture by: State Of Cost
That time period, by the best way, refers to how briskly an electrical automotive prices over time—how rapidly your automotive will add miles at completely different factors, and how lengthy a full cost may take. Practically all EVs cost rapidly at first when battery ranges are low however taper off as extra power will get added. It is like filling a glass with water: you possibly can pour rapidly when it’s empty, however because it will get near the highest, you must pour extra slowly to keep away from spilling.
The Ioniq 5 has an excellent charging curve, staying at a constant 126 kW all through a lot of the cost on a Tesla plug. The Subaru did fairly stable on this division too; it did not lose a three-digit cost till properly into the take a look at. However the Optiq’s charging speeds dropped off fairly rapidly, so for a lot of the cost, it did not really feel prefer it was pulling as a lot power as rivals would.
2026 Cadillac Optiq: The Tesla Supercharger Verdict
Picture by: Patrick George
As I’ve stated earlier than, my Tesla Supercharger take a look at has three parameters: in case your battery is low, how lengthy does it take to get to 80%? Should you do not go to 80%, do you continue to get again on the highway moderately rapidly? And does the automotive do what it claims to do?
On the primary query, for those who use a Tesla Supercharger, you are greater than half an hour on the plug to go from low to 80%. If it’s essential to prime off rapidly for a bit of increase of vary, then the Optiq does simply effective—it did, in any case, go from 34 miles of vary to 140 miles in about quarter-hour. That is not dangerous in any respect. I suppose the automotive does what it claims to do; GM has by no means promised lightning-fast cost instances for this automotive, and outcomes have been just like what we have seen earlier than.
Picture by: Patrick George
I additionally actually just like the Cadillac Optiq. Pound-for-pound, it is maybe my favourite general execution of GM’s EV method thus far. It is highly effective sufficient (with some critical upgrades in only one mannequin yr), snug, trendy, high-tech, and nice and enjoyable to drive. And it reliably delivered that 300-plus miles of vary it promised, even in colder November temperatures right here in upstate New York.
However fast-charging is an space the place I would prefer to see GM get higher. Certain, the big-battery GM EV vehicles are charging monsters, typically seeing speeds north of 350 kW. That simply hasn’t been true on a lot of the extra mainstream electrical crossovers to date. Even the Cadillac Lyriq and Blazer EV max out at 190 kW, which is beginning to really feel uncompetitive as expertise advances.
Charging speeds aren’t all the pieces with EV possession, however this Cadillac leaves some room for enchancment.
Contact the creator: patrick.george@insideevs.com
