Cadillac

Cadillac - the Queen of the Road

The name evokes images of high quality luxury cars. A car brand that has been always associated with superior make, precision car technology and innovation. It has become ingrained in our vocabulary that everything of high quality has been tagged "the Cadillac" of sorts.

As a high quality car manufacturer, Cadillac assures that every vehicle that comes out of its assembly line fits to be called a Cadillac. Ever since the introduction of the very first Cadillac in 1902, the company had made its mark on luxury cars and sport utility vehicles.

The first Cadillac was first manufactured by the Cadillac Motor Company, a company formed by former employees of the Henry Ford Company. The 10 hp Cadillac rolled out of the factory floor on October 1902, marking the birth of one of America's top car manufacturers. The first model was shown at the New York Auto Show, where it impressed thousands and meriting 2000 orders. It defined Cadillac's position as a reliable and precise manufacturer; the Cadillac was better made than its nearest competitor. As a measure of its greatness, the Cadillac was awarded the 1908 Dewar Trophy; for the most important advancement of the year in the automotive industry, the interchangeability of its car parts.

In 1909, the Cadillac Motor Company was purchased by General Motors, and became its luxury car division. Cadillac not only made large luxury vehicles, it also made "commercial chassis" institutional vehicles such as ambulances, funeral home flower cars, hearses and limousines.

It was under General Motor's management that numerous firsts and technological advancements became standard features in Cadillacs. In 1911, the Cadillac became the first internal combustion engine automobile to feature an electric starter, as opposed to the competition's crank start. The first mass produced V8 engine became available in 1915; shatter-resistant glass in 1926; and the first fully synchronized transmission in 1928.

Pre-World War II Cadillacs were models for well-built, powerful, and mass-produced luxury cars. These were aimed primarily at the upper class market. In the 1930s, 12- and 16- cylinder engines became part of the Cadillac stable. These cars were fitted with custom-built bodies, and their engines were able to deliver a combination of high power, smooth driving and quietness.

After the War, Cadillac introduced the "finned" car concept. Inspired by the twin rudders of the Lockheed P-38, Cadillacs sported tailfins in 1948. It reached its highest point in 1959, when the Cadillac had the most recognizable tailfins in the automotive world.

Since then, the Cadillac became a symbol of innovativeness, of simple elegance and bold design. Today, the Cadillac's stable include the STS, XLR, XRX, CTS, EXT, ESV, the Escalade, the Deville and the V-series. All of them carry the proud lineage of quality and luxury packed with sophisticated Cadillac parts that only a Cadillac could muster.

Despite its strong, recognizable design heritage, the Cadillac has resisted any efforts to bring back its "old" or "retro" designs. However, the Cadillac has trailblazed on a new road, the design philosophy of "art and science" - a form Cadillac says "expresses bold, high-technology design and invokes the technology used to design it."

As a progenitor of bold ideas, the Cadillac has the world waiting for its next innovation.

By Fernando Asedillo.