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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  Best Cadillac Ive ever owned! - 2009 Cadillac STS
  By Thomas Pascucci - January 13 - 8:52 am

  This car is a great road car with all the power you need to take on all challengers. Bought mine used with low miles from a man who meticulously kept it in pristine condition and I intend to following his footsteps.

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  great car - 2006 Cadillac DTS
  By Mac - January 12 - 2:20 am

  Very reliable and comfortable

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  LADY RICKI - 2010 Cadillac STS
  By Ted - January 2 - 7:15 pm

  The car needs 2 new tires 2 have 33,300 mi. & 2 have 19,000 two cause some road noise because of having flat spots caused from setting on dealer lot too long. The car is a 2010 purchased new in Aug. 2011 Dealer replaced two and should have replaced all 4 at the same time only fixed half the problem. Otherwise the car is in perfect condition was serviced at dealership and( I HAVE EVERY SERVICE BILL IN GLOVE BOX)

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  Love my Allante - 1992 Cadillac Allante
  By Bill Leyton - December 22 - 8:00 am

  You will have to spend $2,000.00 on the ABS braking system by Bosch if it goes out. The top is not fully electric which is crazy-a 57 Eldorado had a fully electric top! That said, this is the best driving and handling car I ever had. I have driven Porsche, Corvette,Bentley-you name it and this one beats them all. Handles like a champ and accelerates quickly. My 25 year old Caddy can still compare favorably with the new 600 horsepower beasts on the road. This is my second Allante as I donated my first one when even the dealer couldnt fix the ABS.

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  Its a Cadillac. - 1990 Cadillac Eldorado
  By J.D - December 22 - 5:56 am

  Ive always loved the small boxie style Cadillac had in the early 90s. Both the 4.5 and 4.9 were the best engines Cadillac Ever built. They were built with what Cadillac stands For Luxury and Dependability.

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  Reliable car. Head turner. - 2013 Cadillac Escalade
  By Matthew - December 15 - 8:11 pm

  Comfortable on long trip.

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  Found a peach! - 2008 Cadillac DTS
  By Terry Herron - December 2 - 3:59 pm

  This 2008 DTS has ALL the bells and whistles! Even an electric roller shade in the back window. It rides like youre in your own living room! When you sit inside and start it up, you think youre in a space ship...lights all around! Its designed to work with OnStar, so we had to get an aftermarket bluetooth adapter. The navigation is CD (DVD?) driven, so future updates should not be a problem. I LOVE the dual heated and cooled front seats, and the rear seats also have heat!

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  Great car but - 2006 Cadillac DTS
  By Steve - December 1 - 6:44 am

  I have had this car for about 18 months and bought it used. It has needed some repairs but for a 10 year old car what do you expect. Other than 12 mpg fuel economy, but being the performance model with a big V-8 and a 4000 pounds and mostly city driving I guess 12 mpg is not too bad I can not really find anything to complain about with this car. I have the performance model and for a 4000 pound car it has great get up and go. Plenty of room in this car and living in PA it was great in the snow with Michelin tires on it. This having been almost 60,000.00 dollars for this car new you would expect nice things from it. I recently looked at a new Toyota Avalon XLE premium and it still cant compare to this Cadillac. I was going to trade in the Cadillac for a brand new car but cant find one reason why I would want to give up this DTS.

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  10/10 would buy again - 1997 Cadillac Eldorado
  By Anon - November 10 - 9:27 pm

  I originally had a 1995 Pontiac Grand Am Gt Coupe with a bad head gasket, power steering pump, radiator and countless other issues. Leaked a quart a week. I traded that car and $500 and got me a 97 Eldorado. Its pearl white with a soft top and girls love it. Real head turner. It was a fixer upper, had a bad alternator and heater core and hoses, gas gage didnt work. I fixed the heater core and alternator for a total of $300. No complaints on performance except sometimes it takes a while to get going after stopping. Has 124k on it, Im second owner and it came from Florida and has no rust at all. Premium gas gets it 16.5 mpg.

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  The beast - 2005 Cadillac Escalade
  By Trevor - November 8 - 8:50 pm

  We own a car dealership and have had just about everything. But havent came across nothing like the Escalade we love the power luxury and how same we feel in it. We wouldnt be afraid to take it anywhere.