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 Q4 e-tron doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.
The Cadillac Lyriq has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags help 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 Q4 e-tron doesn’t offer knee airbags.
In a Vehicle-to-Vehicle Frontal Crash Prevention 2.0 test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the Cadillac Lyriq achieved a “Good” rating - the highest possible - for its performance in forward collision warning and automatic braking systems, demonstrating its excellent capabilities in preventing collisions. The Audi Q4 e-tron has not been tested.
The Cadillac Lyriq comes with a standard HD Surround Vision and it also offers an optional rear camera washer to make backing always safe, regardless of road dirt or grime, while the Audi Q4 e-tron doesn’t offer a camera washer, requiring manual cleaning.
The Lyriq’s optional driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Q4 e-tron doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.
Both the Lyriq and the Q4 e-tron have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact 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 631 to 1153 pounds more than the Audi Q4 e-tron. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Cadillac Lyriq is safer than the Audi Q4 e-tron:
|
Lyriq |
Q4 e-tron |
OVERALL STARS |
5 Stars |
4 Stars |
|
Driver |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Neck Injury Risk |
18.8% |
33.2% |
Neck Compression |
24 lbs. |
75 lbs. |
Leg Forces (l/r) |
96/127 lbs. |
72/157 lbs. |
|
Passenger |
|
STARS |
4 Stars |
4 Stars |
HIC |
259 |
264 |
Chest Compression |
.6 inches |
.8 inches |
Neck Compression |
54 lbs. |
132 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Cadillac Lyriq is safer than the Audi Q4 e-tron:
|
Lyriq |
Q4 e-tron |
|
Into Pole |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
3 Stars |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Lyriq, with its five-star roll-over rating, is 2.4% less likely to roll over than the Q4 e-tron, which received a four-star rating.