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:

• 

  good car - 2008 Cadillac CTS
  By Carolyn - April 29 - 9:05 pm

  I just bought a black 2008 Cadillac CTS. I Love it. It is a great car, but it has had a sensor break about 2 months after I bought the car. Luckily my warranty covered that. The build quality is pretty good but there is a bunch of cheap plastics. Overall its a great car and I would recommend it to anyone.

• 

  2007 Cadillac SRX, V8 - 2007 Cadillac SRX
  By Foudre - April 27 - 12:20 am

  Weve owned Cadillacs over 30 years but this is first crossover vehicle. It is exceptionally efficient on ice and snow. Would I buy another SRX? Probably not. When I have passengers in the SRX there is no place for my purse except in cargo area which is very inconvenient. Mileage per gallon is poor and the small gas tank requires frequent stops to buy gasoline. Rear entry door is exceedingly slow opening and closing. Aluminum trim on heat vents on dash reflect and glare badly in both outside rear view windows, a serious problem. Lacks interior dash control for rear entry door, very inconvenient.

• 

  Comfortable but poor quality - 2001 Cadillac Deville
  By David L. - April 23 - 4:58 pm

  This car looks and drives good. Its so quiet and smooth that you have to be careful not to fall asleep on long trips. Quality is another story... Engine started burning oil at the rate of 1 quart every 400 miles. Thank heaven I got the extended warranty! Dealer rebuilt the motor, new pistons and rings, $5600.00 and 3 days in the shop. This car had something break every month. All 4 power window regulators broke, 3 fixes on the brake lights, torque converter problems, stability control warnings, too many things to list here. I recently traded it in because the warranty was about to expire, which had a $100 deductible for each occurrence. Quality was crappy at best. car had less than 70k mi

• 

  Just ok - 2006 Cadillac CTS
  By ok - April 21 - 8:02 pm

  I leased this about 18 months ago and it has been a very reliable car. It handles poorly with just the smallest amount of snow or wintry precip on the ground. The gas mileage is around 23 mpg with all highway driving.

• 

  Big Disapointment - 2006 Cadillac SRX
  By Jason - April 21 - 7:29 pm

  This is my first Cadillac and over all I have been very pleased. The ride is "Cadillac", handling and performance is more than I expected. However, after only two plus years I am going to trade it in for another SUV. Im in sales and drive over 35K miles per year. My SRX burns a quart of oil every 1.5K miles. It seems as often as I put gas in I put in oil. No Cadillac dealership either wants to or can help me with my issue. Most disappointing!

• 

  Even Stretched - 1990 Cadillac Brougham
  By LimoMan - April 21 - 2:47 pm

  I actually have a limousine version of this car, which I used as my daily driver for a year and a half. Even with the extra 5 foot stretch on the body it still manages to move itself well with the 5.7 liter engine. Accelerating quick around corners and out of stop lights is mighty fun when youre longer than even the biggest SUVs around! Adding custom stereo equipment was easy (including running wires to the trunk and access under the dashboard). Even though the car is in great shape, lots of repairs have accumulated over the years including water pump, steering pump, fuel tank, hubcaps (they started to squeak and chop up the valve stems), and rear axle (blame that on the extra limo weight).

• 

  STS not so good - 2008 Cadillac STS
  By David Lovitt - April 19 - 1:36 pm

  Car has been into shop twice with less than 400 miles on the odometer. Today it completely died after refusing to shift into any gear higher than second. Problems with stability control and antilock brake system at 200 miles. Also has some paint flaws that need to be addressed. Im sorry I tried so hard to buy this vehicle.

• 

  Pretty to Look at, but in the shop often - 1991 Cadillac Deville
  By rt - April 17 - 1:45 pm

  I bought this car used 90K miles after owning two other Caddys as used cars before. The check engine light came on periodically and I had some stalling after a month. The cause of the check engine light was dismissed after multiple diagnostic tests as just "needing a tune up". After a year I replaced the fuel pump, a/c compressor, water pump, starter and had some sort of what seemed like a fuel line problem that no one could find. The Caddy dealer could not find the problem in two hours despite the check engine light. Suspension was like an old taxi after two years. I wouldnt buy another Caddy used.

• 

  Love the car ! - 2001 Cadillac Catera
  By William H. Helfer - April 16 - 10:15 am

  The car looks great, drives great and has gives me excellent gas mileage. The engine should have more pep. The engine should run a bit more quietly.

• 

  I just dont know - 2000 Cadillac Catera
  By drika - April 13 - 2:58 pm

  I just got this car and the rear end went out on it where the dealer told me there was nothing wrong with the car. now Im working on getting the check engine light off