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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  FINALLY GOOD CONSTRUTION!!! - 2004 Cadillac CTS
  By ALFRED GREEN - May 29 - 2:00 am

  This is my 3rd caddy and I always felt they needed to be more tightly fitted. This cts has a good solid feel. Not as much fun to drive as my 99 Eldorado though. If maintenance wont become a problem then Cadillac has a winner.

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  wife should have gotten another Expediti - 2007 Cadillac Escalade
  By RJ - May 27 - 7:19 pm

  First of all, still no fold flat third row seats, primitive!!! fill er up every 4 to 5 days small gas tank, and premium fuel. good power, seems smaller than 04 expedition which rode and handled better, went a week and half on full tank. seems to shake. oh yeah ladies with two rows of captains chairs never go shopping with more than 4 people. No room behind the third seat. Stuck now should have went with a nav L.

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  Classic American Big Car - 2004 Cadillac Deville
  By ends and odds - May 27 - 10:47 am

  It used to be that all big cars rode and handled like this - including Buicks and Mercurys. Now you have to spend $45K to get that feeling back - shame. Anyway - love my Caddy - a couple of reliability quirks including window and heated/cooled seat problems but they were all covered under the decent warranty. GMs OEM Brakes still stink too but thats easily improved once changed out. Exceptional comfort, safety, security and power are what this great family sedan is all about. Recommended.

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  Cadillac XT5 Start/Stop Feature - 2017 Cadillac XT5
  By Eugene Zamiska - May 24 - 12:52 pm

  I think that I am having troubles with the start/stop feature since the car has not turned off in almost 3 weeks and about 1000 miles of driving. I contacted the service dept. at the dealer about 2 weeks ago and the service adviser didnt even seem to know that the XT5 had a no-turn- off start/stop system so he told me to just keep driving. I then called the salesman who told me to drive the car until the weather cooled down to see if it would turn off on its own. Today I visited the dealers service department to make sure that I was not injuring the cat since it does seem to try to turn off at the same intersections that it used to. Todays service adviser printed off reasons that the system does not work and they are the same reasons that I saw long ago on the internet or in the manual. He told me to just drive the car normally and that I would get a warning from the car if something was wrong. He also assured me that there are many XT5s out here and that none has reported a start/stop problem, although he did not bother to check my car.

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  My Last Cadillac - 2007 Cadillac STS
  By Former Caddy Owner - May 22 - 8:50 pm

  This is my 3rd or 4th Cadillac (lost count) but it is surely my last one. This little STS has had one annoying problem after another...and NO MILES ON IT!!! This evening it has shut down completely and doesnt recognize fobs, wont open the trunk or move out of PARK. Road Side Assistance sent a tow truck out to carry the car back to the dealer, but, the tow driver couldnt budge the car out of PARK. Thankfully, we are home and have a second vehicle (Toyota) so we arent stranded. Now, if this was happening at a mall or anywhere on the road, this incident would be more than infuriating. I would not advise anyone to buy a Cadillac.

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  Looking good at a price. - 2009 Cadillac SRX
  By J fiordimondo - May 17 - 6:16 am

  Great car expensive to run. More to fix. Overall you get what you pay for I guess.

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  Great buy, a few minor issues - 2008 Cadillac CTS
  By cpatterson - May 8 - 1:16 pm

  I bought my 08 CTS in August of 2008 as a demo car, so it already had about 5k miles on it. Have had no major problems or defects. The DI engine is awesome, especially when you use premium gas. There are a few rattles that come from the dash and the drivers seat does do some squeaking, especially when the leather is cold. My only complaint has been the brakes, which started squeaking about a month after I bought it. Dealer tells me its because of the parts used and GM should have a replacement out by January 09 - but its May and still no way to stop the squeaking. Brakes work fine though. Overall, very happy with my purchase - its a beautiful car, fun to drive, and a really good price.

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  US and quality, just does not exist - 2001 Cadillac Catera
  By SrMast - May 8 - 10:01 am

  I bought this car because it was built in Germany. Shortly after I found out that many components have been altered to fit GMs US-requirements, which do not include quality. I have the same issues as many posted here, electrical issues (US version has an extensive OBD-II emission system which is not even cleaner than Europes)and mechanical issues (rough running engine, stalling).

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  Love it, but please change DVD/audio sys - 2007 Cadillac Escalade
  By love it, but - May 1 - 1:58 am

  Absolutely the best SUV and has lived up to all of our greatest expectations over last 2 years. Definitely recommend it. I was 9 months pregnant during the test drives - it had the only comfortable seats (many A+ compliments to GM)! Love the growl/purr of the engine, great looks, sporty handling & acceleration. Only 1 gripe - hate the lawyers version of the DVD/NAV/AUDIO. Its ridiculous that you have to come to a complete stop to use many features (scroll XM stations, calls, destination, etc) when there is a passenger to do it without causing distraction for the driver. Could utilize the front on/off airbag switch to "unfreeze" the features while in motion. Hate that on the highway!

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  92 caddy - 1992 Cadillac Brougham
  By caddy man - April 29 - 3:07 pm

  one of the best riding vehicles around, floats like a caddy should very comfortable. I would absolutely by another one but I wont have to because this one will last forever.