Electric Super-SUV Title Fight: 8 Heavy Hitters, 9 Rounds, 5 Belts

There was a time when “electric SUV” meant a sensible crossover with a smug badge and a range anxiety problem. That time is over. The electric super-SUV has arrived, and the top of the market now looks like a fight card: four-digit horsepower, 400-kW charging, quad-motor torque vectoring, six-figure price tags and curb weights that would make a Suburban blush.

Heading into the 2027 model year, this has become the most interesting weight class in the car business. Rivian and Porsche have crossed 1,000 horsepower. Lucid is chasing efficiency and handling. Mercedes-Benz has electrified its most famous shape, and Maybach its most exclusive badge. Cadillac went the other way entirely and built an SUV with a battery big enough to run a typical American home for about a week.

Every one of them costs roughly $100,000 or more, and every one of them claims to be the answer for a buyer who refuses to compromise. So we put all eight on the scales. Nine rounds. No mercy. No participation trophies. Figures are the latest published by each manufacturer or independent tester; where 2027 model-year specs haven’t been released, we use current specs.

Meet the Fight Card

• Cadillac ESCALADE IQ — The heavyweight. 750 hp, 205-kWh battery, 460-mile EPA range, seven seats, from $127,405.
• Lucid Gravity Grand Touring — The technician. 828 hp, 450-mile EPA range, up to seven seats, from $98,900.
• Rivian R1S Quad — The brawler. Four motors, 1,025 hp, 2.6 seconds to 60, seven seats, from $125,990.
• Porsche Cayenne Turbo Electric — The sprinter. Up to 1,139 hp with overboost, 2.4 seconds to 60, from $163,000.
• Mercedes-Maybach EQS 680 SUV — The aristocrat. 649 hp, Maybach badge, from $180,000.
• Mercedes-Benz G 580 with EQ Technology — The icon. Four motors, 859 lb-ft, spins in place, from $163,750.
• BMW iX M70 — The tactician. Up to 650 hp with launch control, from $112,675.
• GMC HUMMER EV SUV — The sparring partner. Same GM Ultium family, up to 830 hp, from $97,200.

Round 1: Presence — Winner: Cadillac ESCALADE IQ

Park these eight side by side and there is no debate about who owns the valet stand. The ESCALADE IQ stretches 224.3 inches — nearly two feet longer than the Mercedes-Maybach EQS SUV (201.8 inches) and the Rivian R1S (200.8 inches) — and the long-wheelbase ESCALADE IQL pushes that to 228.5. Its face is a flat, upright wall of light: vertical blades, an illuminated crest, a black-glass panel where a grille used to be. Most of this field was shaped at least partly with the wind tunnel in mind. The Escalade was shaped with the red carpet in mind.

The G-Class deserves an honorable mention — gloriously square, and nothing on the road is more recognizable. But recognizable and imposing are different skills, and the Cadillac simply takes up more of the world.

Round 2: Straight-Line Violence — Winner: Porsche Cayenne Turbo Electric

Four-digit horsepower changes the conversation. Porsche’s Cayenne Turbo Electric makes up to 1,139 horsepower with overboost — the most powerful production Porsche ever built (ECN covered the Cayenne Electric’s arrival in detail) — and claims 2.4 seconds to 60 mph. The Rivian R1S Quad is right behind it with 1,025 hp, 1,198 lb-ft and a 2.6-second sprint, and Rivian quotes a 10.5-second quarter mile in Launch mode for its Quad-Motor models. The Lucid Gravity Grand Touring ran 60 mph in about 3.3 seconds and a 10.9-second quarter at more than 131 mph in Edmunds’ testing — numbers Edmunds said would embarrass most sports cars.

The ESCALADE IQ? Edmunds clocked 4.9 seconds to 60 and a 13.1-second quarter mile at 108.1 mph. That’s savage for a three-row luxury SUV with a test weight of about 9,500 pounds. In this company, it’s at the back of the grid, with the G 580 (4.6 seconds claimed) and the Maybach (4.1) as its nearest neighbors. The BMW iX M70 splits the difference at 3.5 seconds in Edmunds’ testing, and the HUMMER EV SUV 3X claims about 3.5 with Watts to Freedom engaged.

Round 3: Range — Winner: Cadillac ESCALADE IQ, by Knockout

The Cadillac lands its haymaker here. Its 460-mile EPA estimate leads the field on paper, but the real story is what happens on the road. In Edmunds’ standardized real-world range test, the ESCALADE IQ went 558 miles, the first vehicle out of more than 100 EVs Edmunds has tested to clear 550. On the same test loop, the Lucid Gravity Grand Touring — EPA-rated at 450 miles — managed 400.

Highway tests tell the same story. The State of Charge channel drove an ESCALADE IQ 607 miles at a steady 60 mph and 482 miles at 70. Against that, the G 580’s 249 EPA miles and the BMW iX M70’s 284 to 303 look like they brought a lunchbox to a road trip.

The secret isn’t sorcery. It’s a 205-kWh usable battery — versus 140 kWh in the R1S Quad, 123 kWh in the Gravity per Edmunds, 118 kWh in the Maybach, 116 kWh in the G 580 and 113 kWh gross in the Cayenne Electric. Cadillac didn’t out-engineer the field on efficiency. It out-sized it.

Round 4: Charging Speed — Winners: Lucid Gravity and Porsche Cayenne Electric

A giant battery is a giant glass to refill. Cadillac says the IQ can take up to 350 kW on its 800-volt system and add about 117 miles in roughly 10 minutes on a capable charger. Solid. Not class-leading.

Lucid says the Gravity Grand Touring adds 200 miles in under 11 minutes on a 400-kW charger. Porsche quotes 10 to 80% in about 16 minutes for the Cayenne Electric, also at up to 400 kW. The G 580 tops out at 200 kW, and Mercedes-Benz quotes 29 minutes for a 10-to-80% charge. On a road trip, the Lucid and the Porsche spend the least time plugged in. The Cadillac, thanks to that enormous tank, simply stops the fewest times.

Round 5: Space and Seats — Winner: Cadillac ESCALADE IQ

Only three contenders here are true three-row, seven-seat family haulers: the ESCALADE IQ, the Lucid Gravity and the Rivian R1S. The Maybach, the G-Class, the Cayenne, the iX and the HUMMER EV SUV are five-seaters. That cuts the field hard for anyone moving a family, a nanny or a golf foursome plus luggage.

Among the three, the Cadillac is the biggest box. It offers up to 119.1 cubic feet behind the first row plus a 12.2-cubic-foot eTrunk up front, and the IQL stretches the cabin further still. The Gravity packages impressively well for its footprint, and the R1S has a usable third row, but neither matches the Cadillac’s sheer volume.

Round 6: Handling — Winner: Lucid Gravity

Physics is undefeated, and it has the Cadillac on the ropes here. Edmunds measured the ESCALADE IQ at 0.73 g on the skidpad with a 139-foot stop from 60 mph, and described the handling as floaty and disconnected when pushed. The Lucid Gravity, at roughly 5,940 pounds in Edmunds’ test, pulled 0.91 to 0.95 g and stopped from 60 in 107 to 125 feet depending on tires. That’s the gap between a luxury liner and a super-SUV that actually enjoys a canyon road.

The Porsche will likely challenge for this belt once full independent test data is in. The BMW iX M70, per Edmunds, stops hard but rolls and understeers on its air suspension when pushed. For now, the Gravity has earned it.

Round 7: Off-Road and Party Tricks — Winner: Mercedes-Benz G 580

This is the most entertaining round on the card. The ESCALADE IQ borrows GM’s four-wheel steering to perform Arrival Mode, a low-speed diagonal crab-walk that’s as useful in a tight parking structure as it is hilarious to watch. Its sibling, the HUMMER EV SUV, does the full CrabWalk and adds King Crab mode, and the R1S Quad’s four motors let it vector torque wheel by wheel off-road.

But the G 580 is the undisputed showman. Four individually controlled motors let it perform a G-Turn — rotating in place on loose surfaces — and G Steering pivots it around an inside rear wheel to tighten its turning circle. Its sealed battery lets it ford 33.5 inches of water, 5.9 inches deeper than the gas G-Class. On the trail, nothing here does more.

Round 8: Opulence — Winner: Mercedes-Maybach EQS 680 SUV (by Split Decision)

The ESCALADE IQ throws big punches here: a 55-inch pillar-to-pillar display, an AKG Studio audio system with up to 42 speakers, and standard Super Cruise hands-free driver assistance. Cadillac is also launching Curated by Cadillac, a $54,995 program for the 2027 ESCALADE IQ with more than 160 exterior colors and finishes and hand-finished builds from its Artisan Center.

But the Maybach badge still carries a weight in the world’s driveways that the Cadillac is working to earn, and at $180,000 the EQS 680 SUV is priced — and positioned — as the most rarefied thing on this card. The Cadillac wins on tech and scale. The Maybach wins on pedigree. The judges lean Maybach, barely.

Round 9: Value — Winner: Lucid Gravity

At $98,900, the Gravity Grand Touring undercuts the ESCALADE IQ by nearly $30,000 while delivering more horsepower, a quicker sprint and a 450-mile EPA rating. For a buyer who doesn’t need the Escalade’s name or its sheer size, that’s a hard number to argue with. The HUMMER EV SUV starts lower still, but in five-seat form and with much less range at the top of its lineup.

The Ones Who Missed the Weigh-In

Tesla Model X Plaid. The original electric super-SUV — 1,020 horsepower and falcon-wing doors — is out of the fight. Tesla announced in January 2026 that it would end Model S and Model X production, and the last units rolled out of Fremont in May as the plant shifted to building humanoid robots. A farewell Signature Edition went only to select existing owners.

Range Rover Electric. The contender everyone wanted to see stepped onto the scales just as this card was being settled. Land Rover revealed it in September 2026 with 544 horsepower from twin motors, a 118.5-kWh usable battery, a claimed 4.3 seconds to 60 mph and 350-kW charging that takes it from 10 to 80% in a quoted 22 minutes. Land Rover’s announcement quotes U.K. pricing; U.S. pricing and EPA range figures weren’t part of it. When it reaches American showrooms, the presence round gets much more interesting.

The Scorecard

The Belts

On raw points, Cadillac and Lucid split the card three rounds apiece, Porsche takes one outright and shares another, and Mercedes-Benz and Maybach take one each. No single SUV sweeps this division, and that’s the most important result on the card. The right champion depends entirely on what kind of fight you’re buying for.

Heavyweight Champion — Cadillac ESCALADE IQ. It is not the quickest, the sharpest or the fastest-charging, but it goes the farthest, carries the most people and things, and has the most road presence of anything here. For a family that wants a true full-size flagship with no range math, nothing else in the class comes close.

Pound-for-Pound Champion — Lucid Gravity. Lighter, sharper, quicker and nearly $30,000 cheaper than the Cadillac, with seven seats and range that gets within shouting distance on paper. If you want the best-engineered electric super-SUV, this is it.

Fastest in the Division — Porsche Cayenne Turbo Electric. Up to 1,139 hp, a claimed 2.4 seconds to 60 and 400-kW charging. It gives up a third row, but nothing on this card hits harder in a straight line. The Rivian R1S Quad is the seven-seat alternative that runs it close.

King of the Trail — Mercedes-Benz G 580. The most capable and most charismatic off-roader here, with tricks no rival can match. Just plan your trips around its 249-mile EPA range.

Most Rarefied — Mercedes-Maybach EQS 680 SUV. At $180,000, the most exclusive thing in the division, and the badge still carries weight no newcomer can buy.

The BMW iX M70 and the HUMMER EV SUV leave without belts but not without fans: the BMW brings serious speed in a compact luxury package, and the HUMMER delivers the most spectacle per dollar in the class.

Why It Matters

A few years ago, a luxury EV comparison would have been a debate about compromise — who gave up the least to go electric. This card shows how far that has flipped. Porsche and Rivian are chasing four-digit horsepower, Lucid is chasing efficiency and dynamics, Mercedes-Benz is chasing icons, and Cadillac is chasing sheer scale. The Range Rover Electric is next into the ring. The segment isn’t converging on a single answer. It’s splitting into weight classes. That’s what a healthy performance category looks like, and it’s the best news electric luxury has had in years.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best electric super-SUV for 2027?

It depends on the buyer. The Cadillac ESCALADE IQ is the best choice for range and full-size space, the Lucid Gravity offers the best overall balance of performance, handling and value, the Porsche Cayenne Turbo Electric is the quickest, the Mercedes-Benz G 580 is the most capable off-road, and the Mercedes-Maybach EQS 680 SUV is the most exclusive.

Which electric SUV is the fastest from 0 to 60 mph?

Of the vehicles compared, the Porsche Cayenne Turbo Electric is quickest, with a claimed 2.4 seconds using up to 1,139 hp on overboost. The Rivian R1S Quad follows at a claimed 2.6 seconds.

Which electric SUV has the longest range?

The Cadillac ESCALADE IQ has the highest EPA estimate in this group at 460 miles, and it covered 558 miles in Edmunds’ real-world range test. The Lucid Gravity Grand Touring is EPA-rated at 450 miles and covered 400 miles in the same Edmunds test.

How do the Cadillac ESCALADE IQ and Lucid Gravity compare?

The ESCALADE IQ is larger, goes farther and costs more, starting at $127,405 with 750 hp. The Lucid Gravity Grand Touring starts at $98,900 with 828 hp, and in Edmunds testing it was quicker, stopped shorter and cornered harder, while weighing roughly 5,940 pounds against the Cadillac’s approximately 9,500-pound test weight.

Which electric luxury SUVs have three rows of seats?

In this comparison, the Cadillac ESCALADE IQ, Lucid Gravity and Rivian R1S offer three rows and seating for up to seven. The Mercedes-Maybach EQS 680 SUV, Mercedes-Benz G 580, Porsche Cayenne Electric, BMW iX M70 and GMC HUMMER EV SUV seat five.

Is the Tesla Model X Plaid still available new?

No. Tesla announced in January 2026 that it would end Model S and Model X production, and the final units were built at its Fremont plant in May 2026.

Is the Range Rover Electric available yet?

Land Rover revealed the Range Rover Electric in September 2026, with 544 hp, a 118.5-kWh usable battery and charging at up to 350 kW. Its announcement quoted U.K. pricing; U.S. pricing and EPA range figures had not been announced.

Which electric super-SUV is the best value?

The Lucid Gravity Grand Touring offers the strongest mix of power, range and price among the contenders, starting at $98,900 with 828 hp and a 450-mile EPA rating.

Sources

• Cadillac — 2026 ESCALADE IQ specifications
• Cadillac Newsroom — Curated by Cadillac ESCALADE IQ
• Lucid — Gravity specifications
• Rivian — Quad-Motor R1S
• Porsche Newsroom USA — Cayenne Electric
• Mercedes-Benz USA — Mercedes-Maybach EQS 680 SUV
• Mercedes-Benz USA — G 580
• GMC — HUMMER EV SUV
• Range Rover Media Newsroom — Range Rover Electric
• U.S. EPA and DOE — fueleconomy.gov range ratings
• State of Charge — Escalade IQ highway range tests

Instrumented test figures credited to Edmunds in the text come from Edmunds’ published testing.