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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  good - 2004 Cadillac XLR
  By jason ziegler - March 20 - 2:00 am

  this vechile is grrrrrrrreeeeeaaat.

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  My CTS - 2004 Cadillac CTS
  By Fred Livingstone - March 20 - 2:00 am

  I entered the Cadillac marketin 1998 with a Catera. It was fun to drive, but not too dependable. I traded it for the CTS in 2002. the CTS was even more fun to drive and has been a very dependable performer so far. I really like this car. I have owned about 15 new cars over the years and this one is up there among the best.

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  excellent - 2004 Cadillac Escalade
  By eg - March 20 - 2:00 am

  simply awesome! Luxury, name, and performance! Cadillac really made this the best!

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  wow - 2004 Cadillac XLR
  By BUDDY - March 19 - 2:00 am

  head turner and reminds me of the old wave axiom of the corvette when you see other car nuts

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  you gotta luv cadillac - 1993 Cadillac Deville
  By Caddylover4ever - March 17 - 2:00 am

  When I was looking for a car to buy I came across the cadillac deville, it was love at first sight. When i first purchased this car I felt like a million bucks. It has a great sound to the 4.9L V8, and is still quite fuel economic for its size. It is a smooth quite ride, with tons of space and comfortable leather seats. The exterior is beautiful with the hood ornament and chrome grill. This car is built so well that it most likely could last up to 230,000 miles. Every little feature to this car is excellent! if you buy this car youll be noticed!

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  zak - 2004 Cadillac XLR
  By zak - March 17 - 2:00 am

  very very very nice car

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  Cadillac xts..old skool cool! - 2017 Cadillac XTS
  By James - March 16 - 1:47 pm

  This is by far the nicest vehicle ive ever owned! Simply put, its DA BOMB!!! Huge...Sleek...powerful...refined...super comfortable..roomy...eye catching....just beautiful! We first drove the new CT5 and really liked it, but the ride was nothing compared to the xts which we drove afterwards. Got the base model in black with black interior and dark tinted windows, it looks like the top of the line model but for much less. She drives like a dream, like floating on a magic carpet...but also handles surprisingly well for such a large car. It has tons of high tech stuff that I could care less about, but it does look nice. The other thing is very few peeps have one where I live, so its something different and special as well. Ginormous interior, but drives like a smaller car....silky smooth and I get compliments everywhere I go. And since most peeps are buying suv/cuvs now, sedans have much larger rebates...the xts is no different, with the gm card...giant gm rebates and dealer discounts, I bought this beauty for less then you could buy a new bmw 320i for...the xts is much nicer, larger, more powerful...getting 30mpg on the highway as well...only downside is slightly restricted side and rear view, put a couple of those stick on convex mirrors and your good to go! I feel like a rock star driving it and Highly recommended!

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  just great - 2004 Cadillac Escalade
  By regina wooster - March 16 - 2:00 am

  solid suv. nice looking and ride. like the on star feature.wish ut came with a navagation system.

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  1997 Cadillac - 1997 Cadillac Deville
  By BobHem - March 15 - 2:00 am

  Excellant Quality. Little trouble. Glad latter years required regular unleaded rather tha premium.

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  Best car I ever had. - 2004 Cadillac CTS
  By Roy Anderson - March 14 - 10:00 am

  I have the base automatic .The only thing this car needs to make this car the best car I ever had is dual power seats.The driver seat is a power seat.This car has every thing else you need class ,style and sport car all in one.And I even like it when I take it into servicing.