Copyright 2005
Cadillac Escalade :
Overview:
For more than a decade, Cadillac has been trying to morph its image as the car of choice for older Americans into one that will appeal to younger affluent drivers. So far, little has worked. It has had some spectacular misfires, such as the ill-advised Allante and Catera, and in the meantime has watched helplessly while imports from Germany and even Japan have replaced it as the sine qua non of automotive luxury (Limousine) and performance.
So, it makes sense that Cadillac would have ventured down the road taken so successfully by many of its German and Japanese competitors (as well the route of its biggest domestic rival, Lincoln) by building a sport utility vehicle of its own. When it introduced the Escalade in 1999, the rollout emerged with the usual pyrotechnics that accompany any new model release, but sales fizzled. Customers didn't buy it--literally.
The problem was not one of image as much as of quality, however. Luxury marques like Mercedes-Benz and BMW have successfully introduced SUVs. The Escalade, on the other hand, proved to be little more than a rebadged Chevy Tahoe with a more powerful engine and a bigger price tag. Drivers felt, rightly, that this was one more lame attempt by General Motors to cobble a new model together from its spare-parts bins.
Soon, the execs at Cadillac had their backs against the wall. They couldn't risk another Catera. Something had to be done to save the Escalade. So the company took a one-year hiatus as the engineers and designers went back to the drawing board.
The new Escalade hit the market as a 2002 model, even though it actually hit dealers in the first half of 2001 (as has become usual in the car world). Its bold, distinctive grille, which is the first to display the new version of Cadillac's famous heraldic logo, promises that maybe, at long last, the Escalade could be the success it so badly needs
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