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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  Real Head Turner - 2007 Cadillac Escalade EXT
  By kirk - January 16 - 3:46 am

  The ride is much more comfortable than my GMC Denali. It handles and responds well.It has plenty of storage room.It accelerates great and corners well. I would recommend this truck (luxury vehicle) to anyone that asks. However it could stand some improvements to compete with the imports.

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  Ameri-cant - 2004 Cadillac CTS
  By Murry - January 15 - 2:30 pm

  It handles great in dry conditions, but not in snow, which is miserable. Fuel economy is disappointing for a V6 with VVT. The transmission makes a whinning noise, and the car is known to have issues with trannies. Comfortable, stylish, and fun, but not quality, reliable, or practical. Overall a decent value IF you get it at a cheap price, but Ill never buy another caddy again- HIGH maintenance costs, and not great quality. Get an Acura- 10x the quality for about the same price. Do not even consider if you drive in winter conditions.

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  Catillac CTS A Quality Car! - 2005 Cadillac CTS
  By Rich - January 14 - 8:08 pm

  My 2 neighbors have the CTS. They are both very pleased with the performance. I purchased 1 month ago and driven the car another 2,000 miles! My car had 22,674 miles on it. The drive is smooth and quiet. I traded a Toyota Solara. I cant believe the ride difference. I also have a 2005 Acura TL. The Cadillacs ride, feel and quality so far are better than the Acura! The gas mileage is the same as the Acura at 23 to 25 mpg combined highway and city. The steering wheel controls are excellent. The car is tight and looks brand new! I have the Navigation with Bose system and XM. Wow it has fantastic sound. The two tone seats and wood trim, make the car stand out!

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  90 Cadillac Deville beast! - 1990 Cadillac Deville
  By VINNIE - January 13 - 5:47 pm

  The 1990 Cadillac Deville is one of the best American cars in history! I just got this car from my grandparents with a little over 153,000 miles. Even with the high amount of miles it runs great. I pretty sure the water pump has gone out though. The car will rocket to speed very eaisily. It gets about the same gas miliage as my brothers 1994 Chrysler LHS ant it only has a 3.5 litre V6. Overall the 1990 Cadillac DeVille is a great and reliable car.

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  Best in Class - 2009 Cadillac CTS
  By LScanlan - January 13 - 2:24 pm

  I had been waiting for the right time to buy a CTS and when GM offerred the employee pricing promotion I jumped in. Didnt have to negotiate because the price was right. Although I wasnt planning to, because of the price I bought a fully-optioned DI mode. Wow. What a car. I traded in my 6 year old S-Type Jag for the CTS. Electronics have sure come a long way since the Jag was new. Now I have all the toys in a solid, powerful, beautiful, and moderately priced American vehicle that I can have serviced anywhere. If all GM vehicles were designed, built and equipped like the CTS, GM would rule the automotive world. This is a fun car to drive and a quite haven from road noise. Good job GM.

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  Hard and Fast - 2002 Cadillac Eldorado
  By Daniel - January 10 - 1:27 pm

  Was intended to be a around town shopping car, but since I work out of town now it is a interstate highway car. Really enjoy the W.O.T. exercise when entering the highway from various rest stops. Fuel mileage is good at 23 to 26 mpg. Plus it just looks good and feels good to drive it.

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  Disappointed Driver - 2001 Cadillac Catera
  By catera cruiser - January 8 - 9:53 pm

  This was my first Cadillac. Two year after owning this car nothing worked correctly. Every 3 months I,m spending $1000 in repairs at the dealer. Usually I have to make several trips to the dealer to fix the same problem. Currently,I have no heat in the car, the headlights have died (the dealer is charging $340 per bulb.) The odometer has stopped working, the light on the dash board has gone out. So far its been to the dealer three time for this heating problem.

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  Another GM Turkey - 1993 Cadillac Deville
  By Bigguy - January 8 - 3:07 pm

  Well, its sitting in the driveway waiting for a recycle dealer to pick it up. The tranny went out for a second time and I aint gonna put any more money into it. The car has 85k miles, the tranny went out at 60K. Shop says these 90s model V8 FWDs are prone to tearing the tranny up, poor design by GM. Another problem has been the battery- it seems all the fancy electronics, especially the "Load leveling system" drain the battery and cause premature failure there too.

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  Value for Money spent. - 2004 Cadillac Deville
  By R - January 6 - 12:25 pm

  I drive a classic muscle car (66 Charger)for fun and I use a daily driver the rest of the time. I picked up my Deville with 32k on the clock for $11,800. Dark Blue with the chrome wheels. This car is fully loaded and clean. It has all the toys except the sunroof and Nav system. This is a great car in all areas. The northstar is a terrific engine. For a large car it handles well. I love all the gadgets it has. Heated and cooled seats. And the heated steering wheel, which I thought was a silly idea until it got cold and I started using it. I dont think I would have paid $45k new for this car. But for the price of a used ex rental fleet Malibu? Gotta have it.

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  Awesome - 2005 Cadillac XLR
  By Sharon - January 5 - 4:16 pm

  I traded a 1993 red Corvette for my 2005 Xenon Blue XLR and I have no regrets. I get whistles, thumbs up, nice color, nice car comments from people ages 16 to 75. Truly a fun car to drive and own.