Nope. It`s not smaller. Or cheaper. Or lighter. It`s just better.

Nope. It’s not smaller.
Or cheaper. Or lighter.
It’s just better.
F
By MALCOLM GUNN
W W W. W H E E L B A S E M E D I A . C O M
or those who enjoy
living — and driving
— large, Cadillac
offers the ultimate
juggernaut.
The new Texas-built Escalade
and extended-length Escalade
ESV continue under the sport
utility vehicle umbrella, yet
they remain more like luxury
staterooms or penthouses on
wheels.
In the Escalade’s case, first
class combines maximum
comfort and performance,
along with rugged all-road
capability that it shares with
General Motors’ less expensive
Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban and
GMC Yukon relatives. You might
never attempt bounding down
swampy logging trails or snowobliterated nether regions in
one of Cadillac’s spoil-you-sillymobiles, but it’s comforting to
know you can.
The 2015 Escalade’s regal
bearing carries over from previous editions (the brand was
launched for the 1999 model
year and updated for 2002 and
2007), as does its prodigious size
and heft. Compared to the regular-length Escalade, the ESV
remains 20 inches longer overall
and provides a 14-inch advantage between the front and rear
wheels. The added dimensions
translate into a considerable
gain in cargo space with both
rear seats folded or with the
standard third-row seat in place.
Although their silhouettes
haven’t changed much, the new
What you should know
The 6.2-liter engine is basically the same thing you’ll
find under the hood of the
new Corvette. With direct
fuel injection, it makes way
more torque than the previous 6.2 while improving fuel
economy
sheetmetal and massive grilles
actually make both Escalades
look smaller somehow. Whether
it’s the thinner “light-blade”
quintuple LED headlamps that
slant into the fenders, the vertical taillights or the angular
window glass (or a combination
of all three), the illusion of a
trimmer, slimmer wagon is remarkable.
Equally remarkable is a redesigned interior that’s coated in
fine leather and authentic wood
trim and constitutes a major
improvement over previous
Escalades. The front and midrow seats (either twin buckets
or a single bench) are better
bolstered than before and the
third-row now folds flat into the
floor, which reduces cargo room
slightly, but is a much neater
solution and significantly reduces the problem of rear-seat
theft that has plagued owners of
older full-size General Motors
utility models.
Keeping the Escalade duo
The interior is a nice step up from before, with all sorts of
great shapes, leather and real wood trim . . . but that gearshift lever sticking out. Not so much.
Type
Engine (hp)
Transmissions
Market position
Points
Safety
2015 Cadillac Escalade
Four-door, rear- /four-wheel-drive full-size sport utility vehicle
6.2-liter OHV V8 (420)
Six-speed automatic with manual-shift controls
Despite a growing trend to smaller passenger-car-based wagons, there
remains a viable market for full-size, body-on-frame sport utility vehicles
that have plenty of power, comfort and towing/hauling performance
☛ Sharp styling make this the best-looking model yet. ☛ Redesigned interior hits the mark for luxury-class accommodations. ☛ Amazing acceleration
for its weight and engine. ☛ Fuel-economy is improved, but a gas-electric
hybrid option would help more. ☛ New anti-theft devices important options
for this burglary/theft magnet.
Front airbags; side-impact airbags; side-curtain airbags; front-seat center
airbag; anti-lock brakes; traction control; stability control.
MPG (city/hwy): 15/21 (RWD)
Base price (incl. destination): $72,700
BY COMPARISON
Lincoln Navigator
Base price: $60,000 (est.)
Upcoming regular- and extended-length models will
use turbo-V6 power.
Lexus LX 570
Base price: $83,000
Attractive, fully loaded
wagon impresses, but
watch the gas gauge.
running strong is a 6.2-liter V8
that generates 420 horsepower
and 460 pound-feet of torque.
It’s connected to a six-speed
automatic transmission.
Displacement is identical to that
of the previous Escalade, except
it was rated at 403 horses and
417 pound-feet of torque.
The 6.2, which is based on the
new Corvette V8 engine, means
that both Escalades can dash to
60 mph from a standing start in
less than six seconds. Fuel efficiency has increased slightly
to 15 mpg in the city and by
about 16 percent to 21 mpg highway for rear-wheel-drive units
(previously 14/18). Direct fuel
injection is one reason both the
power and fuel efficiency are up.
Also helping is a program that
deactivates half the eight cylinders while the Caddy is heading
downhill or cruising along flat
surfaces.
Towing capacity remains
unchanged in the 8,000-pound
range for all models, which
beats competitors such as the
Mercedes-Benz GL-class, Lexus
LX 570 and the Land Rover
Range Rover.
A new optional four-wheeldrive system can be left in fully
Infiniti QX80
Base price: $62,500
Well-priced luxury rig can
two and haul with the best
of the bunch.
automatic mode, or in manually
selected “4 HI” that provides
added traction in mud and snow.
At a base price of $72,700,
the Escalade obviously arrives
well turned out with tri-zone climate control, heated and cooled
front seats, heated second-row
seats, power-folding third-row
seat, navigation system and a
16-speaker Bose-brand audio
package. To deter thieves, every
Escalade comes with glassbreakage sensors, motion detectors and an inclination sensor
that sounds an alarm should
anyone attempt to winch the
vehicle onto a flatbed tow truck.
As well, buyers can add special
shields in the driver’s door to
prevent the use of a “slim jim”
tool to pop open the door lock.
These features are in addition
to a “Driver Awareness” option
package that comes with a variety of electronic anti-collision
warnings and aids.
Of course you could spend
a lot less money on a similarly
sized alternative from Chevrolet
or GMC, but for anyone with the
means and the inclination, the
luxury-laden Escalade is simply
too big to miss, in more ways
than one.
Not everyone is going small
these days as there’s still a
large audience for full-size
luxo wagons that can seat
many people and tow alot.