Writer Falls for GM's 9,000-Pound Electric Escalade

A tech writer who called GM's new electric Escalade a "monstrosity" just discovered she might be the kind of person who loves a 9,000-pound luxury tank after all.

Connie Loizos borrowed the 2026 electric Escalade IQL for a weekend ski trip to Tahoe, and her journey from skeptic to convert offers a surprisingly heartwarming look at how wrong our first impressions can be. At 228 inches long and 94 inches wide, the $130,000 vehicle made her own cars look like toys in the driveway.

Her initial experience wasn't promising. Driving up her San Francisco hill, the hood sat so high she couldn't see what was directly ahead. She felt embarrassed tooling around town, quickly explaining to friends that this wasn't her actual car.

But five days later, everything changed. The massive electric SUV won her over not through flash, but through thoughtful design and genuine capability.

The interior revealed GM's commitment to comfort over cramming. Front passengers get 45 inches of legroom, while even third-row riders enjoy a spacious 32 inches. Seven adults could road trip together without getting on each other's nerves, thanks to individual screens for entertainment and massage seats in the premium version.

The technology impressed without overwhelming. A 55-inch curved dashboard display functions like a command center, while polarized screens let passengers binge-watch shows without distracting the driver. The 38-speaker sound system delivered concert-quality audio, and Google Maps handled navigation seamlessly.

What truly sealed the deal was performance when it mattered most. During a serious snowstorm on the mountain drive, the electric Escalade's weight and engineering provided stability and confidence that smaller vehicles simply couldn't match.

Why This Inspires

This story reminds us that our knee-jerk reactions don't always serve us well. Loizos assumed anyone driving an Escalade must be compensating for something or showing off. Instead, she discovered that sometimes larger vehicles serve genuine purposes, from safely transporting families through dangerous weather to providing accessible comfort for long trips.

The electric powertrain also signals progress in an unexpected place. GM took one of America's most excessive gas-guzzlers and reimagined it for a cleaner future, proving that sustainability doesn't require everyone to drive tiny cars.

Her honest transformation from critic to reluctant fan shows the power of keeping an open mind. The things we're quickest to judge sometimes have the most to teach us about our own assumptions.

When it came time to return the Escalade, Loizos had gone from embarrassed borrower to genuinely sad to see it go.