Overview & Reviews

Owned by General Motors, Cadillac is America's most prestigious domestic luxury automaker. For most of its existence, the company was known exclusively for its cushy, senior-friendly sedans, but in more recent years the automaker has revised and expanded its lineup in a successful effort to attract a new, younger generation. Cadillac's roster now includes SUVs (its Escalade is a favorite of both rappers and suburban moms), a crossover and even a high-performance wagon.

Born in 1902, Cadillac was founded by Henry Martyn Leland, a manufacturer of automotive components. He named the company after a noted French explorer who discovered Detroit in the early 1700s. Leland helped create one of the company's earliest offerings -- the Cadillac Osceola, noted for being the industry's first concept car and the first closed-body car made in America. Only one Osceola was made, but it helped spark a trend; closed bodies caught on and spread like wildfire through the industry.

Cadillac quickly gained a reputation for specializing in precise craftsmanship and for using standardized parts. The success of early Cadillacs like the Model A and the "30" made the brand a sales success, so much so that the automaker was purchased by General Motors in 1909. The marque became GM's luxury division, and its list of innovations grew. Cadillac was the first U.S. auto manufacturer to produce a V8, the first to use thermostatic control of a cooling system and the first to offer dash-controlled headlights. During the 1930s, the brand earned a strong reputation for producing powerful and smooth V12 and V16 engines.

Soon after World War II, Cadillac history hit a high point as its tailfinned and chrome-laden cars became the epitome of American postwar automotive style. Cadillac's tailfin took its cue from Lockheed's P38 Lightning Aircraft, and was the brainchild of designer Frank Hershey. Vehicles like the Coupe de Ville and Fleetwood El Dorado made Cadillac a staple in upscale neighborhoods and among the Hollywood set.

By the 1960s, Cadillac's flashy tailfins had given way to a new styling cue: vertical taillights. This attribute was in evidence on one of Cadillac's most successful new cars of that decade, the Fleetwood Sixty Special. The Fleetwood offered luxury features that were cutting-edge for its day, such as fold-down writing tables, footrests and a tilt-and-telescoping steering wheel.

The gas crunch of the 1970s, however, started a downward trend for the company. Cadillac's Titanic-sized behemoths that ruled the highways in previous decades were increasingly out of touch and out of favor. Cadillac responded to the changing times by downscaling the dimensions of many vehicles in its lineup. Despite this smart maneuvering, the automaker's fortunes suffered in the late '70s when it unveiled a diesel engine that quickly earned a reputation for spotty performance.

The 1980s saw the redesign of the Seville, a vehicle whose unique bustle-back styling sparked a trend and inspired its share of imitators. That decade also witnessed the rollout of the Cimarron, a small car that was essentially a rebadged Chevy Cavalier, the latter an economy car not exactly known for excellence. Understandably, the Cimarron never caught on with the public. Things got worse when Cadillac launched a series of underpowered, unreliable V8s during the first half of that decade that, along with the notoriously unreliable diesel, cost the automaker thousands of customers, millions of dollars and immeasurable damage to its reputation.

By the early '90s, Cadillac started a major turnaround as it brought out redesigned, stylish models with vastly improved engines. Shortly after the new millennium bowed, the company adopted its "Art & Science" design philosophy. With styling cues that included sharp, almost severe lines and stacked headlamps, Art & Science was first seen on Cadillac's 1999 Evoq concept roadster. By the mid-2000s, this bold new look had reinvigorated the company's sales, and was seen on hits such as the Escalade SUV and the CTS sport sedan.

This fresh styling, coupled with improvements in performance and overall product quality, has done a great deal to help Cadillac recover much of its previous status. Today's Cadillacs, which include coupes, sedans, crossovers and SUVs, are known for offering powerful engines, chiseled lines, sharp handling and a full accoutrement of luxury features.

User Reviews:

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  Fun to drive but... - 2005 Cadillac CTS
  By Paul Shorts - December 18 - 10:40 am

  Jumped into this after 4 years of driving a Buick Century. Couldnt resist the feel and performance, and fun of the 6 speed manual. Had great luck with the cheap old Buick so I figured Id be safe purchasing another GM product. Purchased the car with 92,000 miles and it looked and drove like new. Had all dealer service records so I thought Id be safe. Whoops! Pros - The car handles amazing, and is extremely comfortable and fun to drive. Cons - At 105K a grommet on the gear shift went out. Could still get 1st - 6th gears fine, but couldnt put it in reverse. $300 part, but Cadillac was out of them, and nothing aftermarket was available. Had to drive for 2 months with no reverse while waiting for the part. Sortly after purchase I noticed I was having fairly high oil consumption. Never had a car do this so I contacted Cadillac. Told them I was burning 2.5 quarts per 5000 miles. I was told by a mechanic at a Cadillac dealer that "thats really low consumption for the 3.6 motor". Now with 170K miles on it, its using 1.5 - 2 quarts every 1000 miles. At 126K the motor broke a valve. Needed a full valve / upper motor job. $3500! At around 125K the traction control / ABS started acting up. Traction control engages when not needed, and occasionally the ABS engages when stopping, which can be a little scary. Transmission started leaking at about 125K. Too expensive to fix, so just keep adding oil to the MT when I change the oil. At 150K the brake lights quit working. Turns out its a problem with the wiring loom. Repair was ridiculous so I just re wired it myself direct from the relay to the brake lights. Right catalytic converter now needs to be replaced. Cant get an inexpensive aftermarket cat in California. Going to be dumping this "beauty" as a non-op when its time to get it smogged. Still cant believe that my cheap old Buick ran so well and never had a problem, and the sweet Caddy has literally been a piece of junk.

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  The American Standard of Luxury not here. - 2013 Cadillac ATS
  By Elaine Mico - November 5 - 11:18 am

  I leased a 2013 Cadillac ATS 4 door Sedan turbo, The car has been nothing but problems from the start. We are talking about the American standard for luxury vehicles, obviously this car is not. I am not going to completely trash the car because it does have some good points such as the handling, acceleration, interior looks as well as an appealing exterior, definitely a great looking vehicle. But the CUE system is inoperable while driving for fear of getting too distracted or frustrated and getting into an accident. The radio is useless its always acquiring the HD signal so it sounds terrible, every once in a while it loses all the pre-set stations. I had front end problems since the begining of my lease, the car is in the shop every few months for different problems, already had about 7 recalls, There is absolutely no pleasure in driving this car. As I write this it is in the shop for noise vibrations on engine and rear. They called me and told me that there were loose screws on engine/door as far as the back vibration is concerned they said that all 4 rims are bent due to the potholes on roads. Now this definitely doesnt sound right, I can understand one rim possibly getting bent/damaged but not all four of them this leads me to believe that there is an apparent design/structural fault or that the materials used are too weak to support the weight of the vehicle. I have owned/leased well over 15 different vehicles during my life and never had a problem where I was told that the rims were bent/damaged. This ATS has been nothing but headaches since we got it and I must say that the dealership has been no help. When I last contacted the owner of the dealership he told me that I should call Cadillac/GMC directly and complain to them so let me get this straight you buy the car and after that they are done with you so now when you have a complaint or problem you have to contact the manufacturer yourself. What is the point in buying from a dealership when they are not there to help you, we may as well be allowed to buy directly from the manufacturer since ultimately they are the ones that you have to deal with. Lastly I must say that my experience with this vehicle has been nothing but frustrating and overall unpleasant, what is the point of having a car that you have absolutely no joy or pleasure in driving. I would be willing to possibly understand having so many problems if the car was used but for a brand new car it does not appear to be reasonable and at this point the car only has 27,000 miles practically still pretty new.

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  Worst car ever - 2015 Cadillac XTS
  By H. Mitchell Rivenbark - October 21 - 2:44 pm

  You do not want this car I have had it for less than 3 months < I have to put air in every tire, and there is no spare tire, the paint on the back bumper is discolored, the car inside the the from seat makes me feel like am tied up, with no room to move. The liner in the trunk keeps falling down, this is the most wasted amost $ 60,000 I have ever spent, and their online site sucks got locked out after one visit. I will never buy another GM product.

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  BEWARE - 2006 Cadillac CTS
  By Antonio - October 11 - 11:03 am

  This is one of the worst cars Ive ever bought a lot of problems with the computer I changed it twice, also bad motoralso, fuel injectors suck. Cadillac makes cheap luxury cars

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  Could have really been great - 1999 Cadillac Deville
  By SnoopDeville - October 6 - 2:40 pm

  Good: 1. It was pretty fast for such a big car (Used to laugh at civic SIs) 2. Got pretty good MPG at 23MPG all around and over 30MPG on the highway if you kept your foot out of it 3. The bench seats are awesome 4. Enough room to fit all your friends in the back seat.. (And it they pissed you off, they could all fit in the trunk on the way back) 5. It gives you a very protected safe feeling 6. Hitting huge pot-holes feels like running over gravel Now.. Why it got such a bad number of stars.. 1. I bought the car used it had 68K miles on it. 2. The car started to have over heating issues.. I replaced the radiator with a triple core aluminum dragster radiator off of a chevy dragster. The Thermostat didnt circulate the coolant until it was too late, which at 236 degrees for the system to start to circulate is what caused the issues with the head gaskets on these cars. Pulling the Thermostat and buying one made for a different engine (shortstar) and using that one with a bypass on the two 26K CFM fans cured the overheating issues. (NOTE: you cant do the head-gaskets on the 98-02 Northstar, since the head is structural and the engine will warp when you pull the heads.. Entire engine must be replaced) 3. When it rained the tail lights didnt work 4. The alarm would randomly go off. 5. Replaced the power window motors with other Cadillac ones, Twice, before using Toyota Camry ones modified to work in the caddy frames. 6. Dealership wanted to charge me 150.00 for Windshield washer blades.. (Are they high?) 7. Exhaust rotted off the bottom of the car (Stainless isnt a choice on a 40+K dollar car?) (No matter though some Super40 flowmasters and two 3-1/2in chrome tips sounded great) 8. quality of the interior materials are made from cheaper plastics than rubber maid garbage cans. 9. car had electrical issues, and eventually randomly caught fire. (Ironically after the fire department put it out, all it took was some new ignition wires and it started right back up. ) Verdict: These cars can be fantastic cars for people who have some automotive repair skills, they are also fantastic cars for people who live in areas where there isnt heavy traffic. If you live in the middle of mid-town Manhattan, look for a Fleetwood, which while these look alike the fleetwood LT1 is a much better engine. If you however are stuck on one of these for whatever reason.. Keep an open eye for coolant leaks, oil leaks, transmission slips, and mostly overheating. Have the person start and run the car, wait for the coolant fans to kick in before you buy one. Most of these cars are marketed at needing a "head gasket" however, you cant replace the head gasket on the 98-00 Northstar, the head is a structural part, and pulling it will warp the block, which will result in leaking head gaskets as well as other issues. If you find one without the over heating issue, replace the thermostat with a lower temp thermostat immediately, and replace the coolant fan switch with a manual, or adjustable one, choosing to kick on the fans at a much cooler temp (201 vs 236). Doing this will enable you to have a car that will get you around at a very low price.

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  Not so Good - 2007 Cadillac STS
  By Sammy Sam - September 16 - 9:17 am

  This is my second Caddy. I thought Id get a four door car because my family grew. Well this car I got from the dealer was a eye catcher and test drove it fine. After a couple weeks, I started to have some issues, the dealer couldnt figure it out and the warranty on the car wouldnt kick in since they cant nail what the problem was. Basically the noise sounded like a belt going bad, they changed everything imaginable and still the issue was there. Brakes are horrible, and electronic pieces go to quickly such as the steering wheel controls for the radio. Additionally, to replace your headlights you have to remove the entire bumper off to do so, dealer asks 350.00 in labor only, which is a rip off, although I do it myself, I have to take the day out on a weekend to do it which then the rest of the weekend is gone. My opinion is that they need to make a car that is consumer friendly for repairs such as maintenance for lighting etc. and then the dealers need to know how to fix these issues. So far this is my last Caddy and wouldnt buy another.. Going back to BMW. Way better car.

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  Stay away! Keep family Away - 2012 Cadillac CTS
  By Dylan - September 15 - 12:08 pm

  I bought an 2012 CTS Lux. It was used with 11,000 miles on it by an one owner who upgraded every six months. In May 2014 I had to take it in due to my airbags randomly being deployed while it was parked in my garage. Under warranty Cadillac replaced both driver and passenger airbag and also said the wiring was messed up and they corrected it. November of 2014 the airbag light came on and I took it down to Cadillac (45 minute drive from where I lived. Same dealer that I bought it from) get there and was told they would get right on looking at it because it was a slow day. 4 hours later I get told they couldnt find out what was wrong with the car and just reset the light. April 21, of 2015 my car now has 32,000 miles on it and Im on vacation visiting family 900 miles away from home. i drove to a friends house to pick her up to go get my oil changed before I headed back home. My car is off and parked. My keys are in my pocket my wallet and cell phone along with a newer MacBook Pro is in my car locked. My cars electronics for the navigation and airbags and everything else catches fire and destories my trunk and everything in the back seat before the fire is able to be put out. My insurance totals the CTS but they get out of paying GAP of 5,000 dollars. Granted I paid a lot more on my car payments then my 500 dollar a month payment. I contact Cadillac and my insurance both because now Im stuck with a 500 dollar car payment on a car that is now torched. Cadillac want nothing to do with it since no one died and insurance said they dont care and not there job too. Weve always bought GM products and now I think we will be sticking with paying higher repair bills with European cars then with American anymore. So if you are serious about buying this car ask yourself is your life or families live worth the risk?

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  Cadillac and Crap start with "C" - 2013 Cadillac ATS
  By Howard C. Anderson - September 3 - 10:22 pm

  GM stands behind their dealers, so the dealer takes the bullet. Purchased 2013 ATS, car is in shop on average of once every 8 weeks. 13+ items had to be fixed in 2 years. GM no longer has extended warranty, and they will not pay for extended warranty. GM will take NO RESPONSIBILITY for the poor quality. List of items and how many times they had to be fixed: QUE 4 times Sunroof 3 times Sterling wheel 2 times Drivers seat 2 times

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  Srx 2005 - 2005 Cadillac SRX
  By Vickie - July 30 - 12:32 am

  Have more money into this vehicle than any vehicle I have ever owned! I have very low mileage and mainly drive to and from work 14 miles round trip!! Constant and costly repairs! Will never purchase a cadillac again!!

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  2009 CTS - 2009 Cadillac CTS
  By Joan David - July 29 - 2:39 pm

  Sharp but expensive to repair which I have had to do frequently. Also, headlight problems and hard to get any support with a recalled wiring harness which now they are trying to say its discontinued maybe to avoid covering the cost on a recalled item? My advice, sell the car quickly and never buy another one. That is exactly my next move. I have had this car five years and thought after I paid it off it would last another five years. WRONG! Cant afford the repairs and hoping I can get rid of it.