The number of luxury cars available in the United States dipped in the late 90s and early 2000s, as American automakers forgot exactly what luxury is. Their approach ended up making cars dull and beige, the kinds of vehicles your grandparents would drive. And as time ticks on, "luxury" American brands seem to think bigger is always better: Cars like the Enclave and the Navigator, SUVs with dismal fuel economy that handle like a skyscraper, are taking up a lot of real-estate on the roads.
Simply put, size isn't everything. American luxury isn't about cargo space and high ride heights, It's all about comfort, which some SUVs do have, and subtle, smooth, and responsive handling, which most SUVs do not. The interior has to be a calm, quiet, civilized place to be for all, while also being exciting, eye-catching, and unique. Needless to say, the new Escala concept from the Cadillac division of General Motors certainly hits those marks.
Let's take a look at the Cadillac Escala concept, and see if it's up to the task of bringing American luxury back to the world stage.
It Sports A Luxurious Look
The concept was revealed back in 2016 at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance auto show, which Cadillac recognized as an excellent venue for debuting luxury cars. In 2011, Cadillac presented the Ciel 4 door convertible, followed by the Elmiraj coupe in 2013. However, those two cars never made it out of the concept stage (like many other concepts), whereas the Escala is planned for production in December 2021.
Many hours were spent designing the front of this car, and the hard work certainly paid off. The razor-thin headlights appear subtle, yet striking. They're aligned not just vertically, but horizontally, which is a styling cue that hadn't been used on a Caddy since 2004 with the Seville. The grille is sized and shaped exactly like the Cadillac crest, except larger. And speaking of larger, the car itself acts as a longer version of the CT6, and the word Escala is Spanish for "scale." Though while the car is scaled up, it still maintains to classic proportions that make the Escala stand more like a coupe.
If you're a fan of that front end, then you'll be happy to hear that Johan de Nysschen, the president of Cadillac worldwide, claimed the Escala is "a statement of intent for the next iteration of the Cadillac design language." Simply put, the slim, aggressive front end shown on this concept will soon be applied to other Cadillac models.
Excitement In The Engine Bay
Truth be told, looks aren't everything, even though the Escala has plenty of styles to stir someone's anticipation. But as BMWs and Mercedes climb higher and higher in horsepower figures, with some being geared towards track use, Cadillac stayed in their simple sedan bubble. Most Cadillacs sit in the ballpark range of 300 horsepower and were focused on being cheaper luxury options. But not the Escala.
It's been confirmed that under the hood will reside a behemoth, 4.2L twin-turbocharged V8 engine that'll bang out around 500 horsepower. To put it in perspective, the CT6 tops out at 404. And with all that power, will come enormous responsibility, so the engine will be placed on Cadillac's top of the line Omega Platform. This ensures that the car will have 50/50 weight distribution, save weight by using lighter materials, and focus on dynamic, agile handling. On top of all that, it'll be fitted with a 10-speed automatic that'll send the power straight to the rear wheels.
But if all that power makes you think Cadillac has gone wild, or are overcompensating for something, fear not. While the engine is a beast, it's been tamed to make it possible for simple, comfortable, and economical driving experiences. Cadillac fitted their Active Fuel Management cylinder deactivation system, which stops the car from using 4 of the 8 cylinders when the need arises (highways, low speed cruising, etc).
Futuristic In The Front, Bougie In The Back
But the real crème de la crème of this car isn't the bold styling or the burly engine. It's the interior, filled with hand-stitched cloth and wood accents. And all the technology packed inside proves the designers carefully considered all the ways the Escala is a luxury car, without simply churning out your grandma's beige-mobile.
While most cars stick with one "interior theme," sport themed, luxury themed, and so on, the Escala is fitted with two. Johan explained that the Escala was meant to be “a car you desperately want to drive, and also one in which you want to be driven. So rather than a single design, this interior consists of two themes."
The front seats are oriented more towards the driver, the one in charge of taming the twin-turbo engine, while the back focuses more on the passenger, whose sole job is to be comfortable, relaxed, and entertained. We'll start with the front:
Fitted with a curved OED display, every knob, button, and the screen is geared towards the driver... literally. It's jam-packed with technology for the driver to see exactly what the car is up to, from your typical speedometer to lane assist technologies and cameras. Also implemented are experimental voice and gesture controls, all aimed to make the driver's job easier.
Every bit of tech is sewn into the car as well, with each screen wrapped in hand-stitched leather, and molded-in typical Cadillac fashion. And that handcrafted look spreads into the backseat and is cranked up to 11. The tailored, grey fabrics (a slightly mute, but welcome choice) are present on every door trim and seat back you can find.
But the experimental technology isn't just for the driver: the rear passengers have access to two retractable touch screen displays in the seatbacks for controlling the music (that's right, now the rear passengers get to select road trip tunes), and another touch screen for controlling the seats and the dual climate air conditioning.
The Escala is less of a luxury car and more of a limo, the difference being that the Escala won't handle like a limo. The driver will be tempted to push the car to its limits, they'll want to thrash it around, while the rear passengers relax in complete comfort. Make no mistake, the Escala will likely be priced for people who can afford limos to take them from place to place, but we still can't help but hope all these features survive to the production model, which is set for release in late 2021.