Cadillac Information

History

• Cadillac was founded by Henry Leland in 1902 and was purchased by General Motors in 1909. Cadillac has always set the standard in luxury automobiles since its inception. The early postwar years through the 1960s were Cadillac's finest era, with GM's Harley Earl styling aircraft-inspired designs for the Eldorado and Coupe de Ville. However, the oil embargoes of 1973 and 1979 gutted Cadillac engine horsepower, and styling through the early 1990s was pedestrian, according to Motorera.com.
  
  

Types

• Historically the Cadillac was hidebound to the sedan and coupe, with the exception of the late-1980s two-seater Allanté and a mid-1970s station wagon. Cadillac began looking beyond the traditional luxury sedan by introducing the Escalade sport-utility vehicle in 1998. Cadillac has since expanded its horizons to include the 2010 DTS, CTS and STS sedans, the SRX Crossover, the CTS Sport Wagon and the hot-rodding CTS-V.
  
  

Crossover Bandwagon

• The Cadillac SRX Crossover debuted in 2004 to gain a toehold in the luxury crossover market. Like its competitors, the SRX possesses truck-like characteristics but all the comfort and handling of a passenger car. It's not a big vehicle, seating only five and powered by a 265-horsepower 3-liter V-6 engine, but it's an excellent alternative to the brawny Escalade. Luxury goodies are a sunroof, leather upholstery, power liftgate, heated front and rear seats, navigation system/back-up camera and an optional turbocharged engine.
  
  

Big Show

• The SRX Crossover's big brother, the Escalade is a masculine, thirsty monster that oozes the image of success in a bling-bling style reserved for celebrities. Everything about it is big, from its massive grille garnished with Cadillac's wreath-and-crest badge to the living room-sized interior. The 2010 Escalade features 18-inch alloy wheels, power liftgate, fixed running boards and rear parking sensors. Inside are leather upholstery, heated front seats, power-adjustable pedals, Bluetooth connectivity, OnStar navigation system and a Bose audio system. Under the hood is a 403-horsepower 6.2-liter V-8.
  
  

Family Car

• To reach global customers, Cadillac took a page from European automakers that cater to the regional popularity of the station wagon. To tap into that market, Cadillac developed the CTS Sport Wagon, which debuted in 2008. The wagon sits on a tight 113.4-inch wheelbase but offers 25 cubic feet of cargo space. It's powered by standard 270-horsepower 3-liter V-6 or the optional 304-horsepower 3.6-liter V-6.
  
  

Young at Heart

• In case doubters wondered whether Cadillac acquiesced to soccer moms, it still has the CTS-V, a brute of a high-performance car cloaked in four-door sedan sheet metal (or the sportier coupe). It's powered bay an almost unreasonably supercharged 556-horsepower, 6.2-liter V-8 that could be dangerous to the careless, overconfident driver.