Steve
06-03-2007, 12:52 AM
From Wikipedia
The Cadillac Escalade is a full-size (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Full-size) luxury (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luxury_SUV) sport utility vehicle (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sport_utility_vehicle) sold by the General Motors (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Motors) luxury (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luxury_car) brand, Cadillac (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac). It was the division's first major entry into the popular SUV market. The Escalade was introduced for the 1999 model year in response to German (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germany) and Japanese (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan) competitors and to Ford's (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Motor_Company) 1998 release of the Lincoln Navigator (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln_Navigator). The Escalade project went into production only 10 months after it was approved. The standard Escalade is built in Arlington, Texas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arlington%2C_Texas).
The Escalade was originally based on the GMC Yukon Denali (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GMC_Yukon_Denali), but was redesigned for the 2002 model year to make its appearance fall more in line with Cadillac's new design theme. The Escalade was not the first Chevrolet (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet)-based Cadillac: the first generation Seville (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_Seville) and the 1980s Cimarron (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_Cimarron) were based on entry-level Chevrolet vehicles (the Nova (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Nova) and Cavalier (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Cavalier), respectively).
As of today, the Escalade and Escalade EXT (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_Escalade_EXT) pickup are, together with the Cadillac BLS (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_BLS), the only Cadillac vehicles made outside of the United States (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States) since the demise of the German (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germany)-built Cadillac Catera (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_Catera) in 2001. Both the Escalade ESV (a luxurious Chevrolet Suburban) and Escalade EXT were made in Silao (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silao), Mexico (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexico) before the 2006 redesign; the new Escalade ESV is sourced from Arlington, Texas.
Major competitors include the Mercedes-Benz GL-Class (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes-Benz_GL-Class), Lexus LX (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexus_LX) series, Infiniti QX56 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infiniti_QX56), and the Lincoln Navigator (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln_Navigator)
The Cadillac Escalade is a full-size (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Full-size) luxury (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luxury_SUV) sport utility vehicle (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sport_utility_vehicle) sold by the General Motors (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Motors) luxury (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luxury_car) brand, Cadillac (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac). It was the division's first major entry into the popular SUV market. The Escalade was introduced for the 1999 model year in response to German (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germany) and Japanese (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan) competitors and to Ford's (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Motor_Company) 1998 release of the Lincoln Navigator (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln_Navigator). The Escalade project went into production only 10 months after it was approved. The standard Escalade is built in Arlington, Texas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arlington%2C_Texas).
The Escalade was originally based on the GMC Yukon Denali (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GMC_Yukon_Denali), but was redesigned for the 2002 model year to make its appearance fall more in line with Cadillac's new design theme. The Escalade was not the first Chevrolet (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet)-based Cadillac: the first generation Seville (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_Seville) and the 1980s Cimarron (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_Cimarron) were based on entry-level Chevrolet vehicles (the Nova (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Nova) and Cavalier (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Cavalier), respectively).
As of today, the Escalade and Escalade EXT (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_Escalade_EXT) pickup are, together with the Cadillac BLS (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_BLS), the only Cadillac vehicles made outside of the United States (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States) since the demise of the German (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germany)-built Cadillac Catera (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_Catera) in 2001. Both the Escalade ESV (a luxurious Chevrolet Suburban) and Escalade EXT were made in Silao (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silao), Mexico (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexico) before the 2006 redesign; the new Escalade ESV is sourced from Arlington, Texas.
Major competitors include the Mercedes-Benz GL-Class (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes-Benz_GL-Class), Lexus LX (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexus_LX) series, Infiniti QX56 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infiniti_QX56), and the Lincoln Navigator (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln_Navigator)