Stick With A Winning Formula: 1974 Cadillac Fleetwood vs 2005 Cadillac Escalade

Good morning! As you may have heard, Cadillac is joining Formula 1, which is not something I had on my bingo card for this year. Yes, I know GM’s luxury brand has gone racing before, but F1? Really? Well, I guess if an energy drink company can do it, how hard can it be? Anyway, to celebrate, we’re looking at a pair of cheap examples of what Cadillac traditionally does best.

Yesterday was all about Audi, and I confess that I was surprised by the outcome. It was another very close vote, but the modern-art TT grabbed a narrow win. Is the 2.7 twin turbo really that scary? Or was it the salvage title? I heard some rumblings about both.

For me, again, it comes down to what I already have. The S4’s role is already filled by my Chrysler 300, which is just as fast and a lot lower maintenance. The TT is tacky-looking as it sits, but it’s a fun little sports coupe under all that, and I know how to remove a wrap, which, the closer I look at it, the more convinced I am that that’s what it is. And there must be a TT somewhere in a junkyard that can donate a new front bumper and headlights, right?

Now then: Certain automotive marques evoke a certain image in your mind. Say “Jaguar,” and most folks will picture an E-Type or an XJ sedan – at least, up until a few days ago. Now they’re more likely to picture bright clothes and stupid hairdos. Okay, bad example. One thing I can say for certain, however, is that when someone says “Cadillac,” absolutely no one pictures a Cimarron or a Catera, or its LeMans race cars. No, the a priori Cadillac likely to appear in most people’s minds is either a very large sedan, or an Escalade. So we’re going to look at one of each.

1974 Cadillac Fleetwood Talisman – $3,950

Engine/drivetrain: 472 cubic inch overhead valve V8, three-speed automatic, RWD

Location: Detroit, MI

Odometer reading: 83,000 miles

Operational status: Runs well, but just taken out of storage

There are big Cadillacs, and then there are big Cadillacs. We tend to think of the big-finned ’59 Caddy as the largest there ever was, but this 1974 model actually clocks in at more than eight inches longer, due in part to the new five-mile-per-hour bumper requirements. The big corporate downsizing was still years away, and nobody who could afford a new Caddy gave a damn about the gas crunch.

Good thing, too, because this big car has an equally big engine: a 472 cubic inch version of Cadillac’s cast-iron V8, backed by a smooth and strong Turbo 400 automatic. Fuel economy, as you might expect, is expressed as a single digit. But if you really want something effortless, there is no substitute for a big-ass V8. This one has been in storage for a long time and has only recently been awakened. It runs fine but has a noisy lifter (or something) that needs attention. And, of course, there’s all the other stuff that you need to do to a car that has been slumbering.

This particular Fleetwood (technically I believe the full name is Fleetwood Brougham Sixty Special) features the Talisman package, a super-plush interior with overstuffed cushions covered in velour, front and rear center consoles with fold-out writing desks, and footrests for the rear seat passengers. In a time of plush interiors, this was the grandest of them all. It’s in very good condition, and it looks mighty inviting. Hopefully it doesn’t smell like smoke inside, but for a ’70s Caddy, that’s a big ask.

It’s a good twenty-footer outside, with shiny paint, but there is a little telltale bubbling here and there, most worryingly along the bottom edge of the vinyl top. Why oh why did automakers insist on subjecting damn near every car to those horrible things for so many years? All they do is trap water and make rust.

2005 Cadillac Escalade ESV – $2,999

Engine/drivetrain: 6.0-liter overhead valve V8, four-speed automatic, AWD

Location: Zion, IL

Odometer reading: 190,000 miles

Operational status: Runs and drives well

Times change, and fashions change with them, and by the 2000s the traditional luxury sedan had been replaced by the luxury SUV, just as more pedestrian family sedans and wagons had been replaced by Explorers and 4Runners and the like. Cadillac still sold plenty of DeVille sedans, but its true flagship was the Escalade, based on GM’s full-size SUV platform. The first Escalade was basically just a GMC Yukon with some fancy clothes, but as time went by, Cadillac’s version became more and more distinct and special.

This second-generation Escalade ESV is based on the GMT800 platform, in its long-wheelbase form, the same as the Chevy Suburban and GMC Yukon XL. But the Escalade has a little something special under the hood: a high-output 6.0 liter LS-based V8, putting 345 horsepower to all four wheels all the time. GMT800s in general have a reputation for racking up the miles; this one has 190,000 miles on its odometer, and is almost certainly good for a great deal more. It’s being sold by a dealer, so we don’t get a lot of information about it, but its reputation precedes it.

It shows a little bit of wear and tear inside, but it’s not bad at all. Being a Cadillac, of course, it is completely loaded with power stuff and convenience gadgets, but again, it’s for sale at a dealer, so there’s no telling how much of it still works. My best advice is to push every button you can get your fingers on during the test drive, just so there are no surprises later.

Unfortunately, this Escalade has lived its life in the Chicago suburbs, and it shows: it has rust-through all along the bottom of both sides. I’ve seen worse; anyone who has lived in the Midwest has, but it’s not great. You can fix it, but it’s a $3,000 Escalade; you’re probably better off just enjoying it as-is until the rust becomes structural.

Cadillac is no longer “The Standard Of The World,” and hasn’t been for some time. But there’s no denying that cheap old Cadillacs make for some really nice used cars – as long as you stick to what the brand is good at. These were both flagships in their day, and they’re still pretty damn nice, except for some rust. So what’ll it be: a Caddy sedan from the end of its glory days, or an SUV from the start of the new era?

(Image credits: sellers)