Cadillac. A symbol of the American dream
Cadillac is not just a luxury car brand… It’s a whole era! For many years, the Cadillac has been a symbol of the American dream and the favorite car of Americans. Only in 2018, Cadillac stopped being the most popular national premium brand in the US - first time in postwar history. Who overtook it? Tesla… “Life, liberty, and the pursuit (of happiness)!” – this is the slogan of Cadillac, which repeats the basic human rights of the US Declaration of Independence. Cadillac cars are sold in more than 50 countries and territories but most of them, of course, in the USA and Canada. General Motor and Cadillac are the third car sellers in the world. Only Toyota and Volkswagen have sold more cars (as of 2011-2019).
Only in 2018, Cadillac stopped being the most popular national premium brand in the US - first time in postwar history. Who overtook it? Tesla…
And at the same time, it was the Cadillac that became synonymous with American priggishness and absurdity in automotive design because of the iconic Cadillac Eldorado. But that’s what jealous people say:) After all, the very Eldorado of 1959, became the embodiment of the Cadillac style. Twin headlights, a body without a b-pillar, a polished stainless steel top… All these gave Eldorado its unique look.
Cadillac 1959 has been the best interpretation of the Cadillac’s “airplane” style in the automotive industry.
The legendary Cadillac 1959, designed by Harley Earl, has been the best interpretation of the ‘airplane’ style in the automotive industry. Its famous ‘tailfins’, a reinterpretation of the fighter jet fins, reached an incredible size. Other features of the Cadillac Eldorado include the massive design of Dagmars bumpers, panoramic windshields, and, of course, the abundance of chrome in the body finish. And all these became the object of admiration of a few generations of Americans.
The history of the legend
Cadillac is the oldest car manufacturer in the world, of course, except for Buick… Founded in 1902 on the wreckage of the Detroit Automotive Company, which went bankrupt after Henry Ford left it and was subject to liquidation. Henry M. Leland, machinist and engineer, let the company avoid liquidation. He decided to restart the car production started by Ford. But he too humble to give his cars his name, as it was customary in his time. Leland named the company after the founder of the city of Detroit, Antoine de la Mothe, Sieur de Cadillac. So it was named. 7 years later, in 1909, General Motors bought the Cadillac car company for 5,969,200 US dollars. General Motors President William Durant asked Leland to govern and run the company as is still was his own.
Without General Motors there would be no Cadillac but maybe without Cadillac, there would be no General Motors! At least, the largest US automobile corporation that we know, being the largest car manufacturer in the world for 77 years. Cadillac was the embodiment of General Motors' prestige. And the Cadillac brand remains the symbol of US luxury cars.
Elvis Presley preferred a pink Cadillac. General Douglas McArthur used the Series 75 Cadillac as his official car. Cadillac has been the exclusive White House car supplier since 1993, and the ‘Cadillac No 1’ is traditionally called the ‘Beast’.
Elvis Presley was a big fan of Cadillac. Having earned his first money, he immediately bought the Cadillac and regularly updated his models. The famous pink car was one of his favorites! General Douglas McArthur used the Series 75 Cadillac as his official car. Cadillac cars were used by many American presidents, including Bill Clinton, George Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump. Cadillac has been the exclusive White House car supplier since 1993, and the ‘Cadillac No 1’ is traditionally called the ‘Beast’. Donald Trump’s “Beast” is based on Cadillac CT6 but compared to the production model, this car has been reworked a little more than completely. For security reasons, not much official data about it is known but the presidential limousine is rumored to weigh about 9 tonnes and has 20-cm thick military-grade armor as a bodywork. The president’s security uses more modest but also very special Cadillac Escalade.
‘Life, liberty, and the pursuit (of happiness)!’ – this is the slogan of Cadillac, which repeats the basic human rights of the US Declaration of Independence. Cadillac was the first brand officially sold to African Americans, thanks to the President of Cadillac, Nicholas Dreistadt, who defended the rights of black buyers.
Designed by art and science
Nowadays, Cadillac keeps abreast of the times, resisting the trend towards ‘retro’ models such as Volkswagen New Beetle. In the 21st century, the style and design of the Cadillac exterior are called Art and Science Design (A&S) - a modern, energetic, and high-tech design expressed in the combination of solid lines, heavy curves and sharp angles. The new design from the original CTS has spread throughout the range, right up to the XLR roadster.
Even competitors respect the new A&S philosophy. BMW’s chief designer said of the Cadillac CTS: “I respect the guys from Detroit for bravely abandoning retro in favor of radical techno. The looks of Cadillac resemble computers, fiction, cyborgs, and Star Wars. Everything European burgers think about America and Hollywood.” And he was right!
Cadillac of the XXI century resembles computers, fiction, cyborgs, and Star Wars. Everything European burgers think about America and Hollywood.’
Most cars, similar in proportions of external design on CTS coupe, can be found only among concept cars. Modern Cadillac CTS-V is considered the world’s fastest mass-produced sedan by many experts. That’s no wonder! Cadillac CTS-V with an automatic, a direct competitor to the acclaimed BMW M5, passed the Nurburgring lap at 7:59.32, and it was a record!
Automotive pioneer
It is safe to say that the Cadillac, together with Ford, laid the foundation of modern mass-production cars. Cadillac has first shown complete interchangeability of exact car parts and proved to be the very first brand of American high-class cars.
Cadillac developed many automotive devices and appliances and pioneered single-unit electrical systems including starters, ignition, and lighting. Cadillac introduced the first silent synchromesh gearbox. The first car air conditioner was also installed on a Cadillac car. The first prototype of the climate control system – a fully automated heating-and-conditioning system that allows you to regulate the temperature - was also introduced by Cadillac. And the ‘memory seat’ which memorizes the settings for the driver’s seat, was also the first installed on the Cadillac. Cadillac was the first to install an impact-resistant triplex on the windshield and the first to install an all-steel top on the passenger car, before it, all the tops were made of wood.
Cadillac released its first SUV - a charismatic Cadillac Escalade - only in 1998.
Three engine designs were developed under the Cadillac brand, one of which, an overhead-valve V8, set the standard for the entire American car industry. The development and introduction of high power and low noise engines - V8, V16, and V12 - helped make Cadillac a ‘worldwide standard’.
By the way, the company released its first SUV - a charismatic Cadillac Escalade - only in 1998. And only after it became clear that the company had nothing to offer customers to replace the main competitor of the Cadillac – Lincoln Navigator. Before that, after 95 years, Cadillac had never produced SUVs. And today’s Escalade has no rival…
More than 100 years Cadillac remains the symbol and standard of automobile luxury in the USA!
