Cadillac is General Motors’s luxury division. Currently based in Warren, Michigan, the Cadillac Automobile Company was founded in 1902 from the remnants of the Henry Ford Company (after Henry Ford left). General Motors bought the brand in 1909.
Cadillac established itself as America’s premier automotive manufacturer during the first half of the 20th century, with a particular emphasis on engine technology. It was so successful that the company became a byword for grandeur, which we still use today: the Cadillac of “___.”
However, poor business decisions in the 1980s and increased luxury market competition from abroad tarnished Cadillac’s reputation and left it somewhat behind its luxury rivals.
Cadillac has undergone successive reinventions and nomenclature changes, focusing on performance and crossovers.
Since then, Cadillac has undergone successive reinventions and nomenclature changes, focusing on performance in the 2000s and crossovers in the 2010s.
The 2020s will see Cadillac spearhead GM’s hard push into electric vehicles. What that will mean — for a brand still dominated by V8 performance and combustion crossovers — remains unclear, however, we already have our first clues in the form of today’s current Cadillac models.
