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Dark Days In Detroit: The Worst Cadillac Models Of All Time

Vukasin Herbez February 21, 2023

Once known as the standard of the auto world, Cadillac is a long-respected car company. Established in 1902, the company has been on the market for 120 years. That alone is a great success. During this period, Cadillac produced several well-built luxury cars, defining the segment in the American market. For most of the 20th century, Cadillac was the no. 1 luxury car brand in the world. But recently, its luck has changed.

Imported luxury brands, recessions, and customer tastes all forced Cadillac to change its approach and philosophy. We’ve already chronicled the best Cadillacs ever made, and indeed there are many. So we had to look at the other side of the coin with the worst cars Cadillac has ever made. Some were good but failed to sell. But most were below this brand’s standards and customers’ expectations. Check them out right here.

Cadillac BLS

The first car on the list is an example of this approach. The idea behind the Cadillac BLS was sound. It was a compact, luxury sedan in the mold of the Mercedes C-Class or BMW 3-Series. The BLS was built in SAAB’s factory in Sweden and sold in Europe. Presenting Cadillac in a new light, it was a good plan on paper, but its realization was tragic (via The Autopian).

In order to cut costs, GM used SAAB 93 underpinnings. They weren’t the best parts, but they were cheap. They also saved on interior materials and unique drivetrain or engine options. The result was a dull vehicle that had the same driving characteristics as the SAAB 93 or Opel Vectra. The market’s reaction could have been much more favorable. The BLS spent only a few years on the market and the last examples left the factory in 2009.

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Cadillac Calais

The Calais was introduced in 1965 as an entry-level Cadillac model. The company realized they needed a more affordable car in their lineup than the more pricey DeVille. So the Calais became the most affordable way to own a new Cadillac (via Hemmings).

During its 11 years in production, the Calais was decent but needed its own personality. The easiest way to distinguish the Calais from the rest of the model range was that it had less chrome trim and no convertible version. The only real difference was the equipment level. Calais buyers got fewer convenience options in general. Production of the Calais stopped in 1976. In 1977, its place was taken by the Seville as a new, entry-level Cadillac model. Even though Cadillac produced many Calais over the years, today, they are still forgotten by mainstream enthusiasts.

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Cadillac Cimarron

Today, almost all luxury brands have downsized their lineup of models, offering more affordable and compact versions of their big sedans. But back in the early ’80s, this move was something still unheard of and hard to understand. In those days, Cadillac had somewhat of an identity crisis and sought for a way to reinvent itself and fight foreign competitors (via Motor Trend).

After lengthy meetings with product development managers, the decision was to introduce a small Cadillac at a lower price to attract more customers. The problem was that Cadillac didn’t have a small platform. So they turned to Chevrolet and borrowed the Cavalier chassis along with a four-cylinder engine. Although Cadillac dressed the Cavalier with unique trim, new colors, and a new name, it wasn’t enough. Sales were poor. Cadillac was soon under fire from brand loyalists for ruining its image. Cimarron was a laughingstock all over the industry and remained one of the worst examples of downsizing until this day. We believe this model should remain forgotten.

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Models With The L62 V8-6-4 Engine

In the early ’80s, fuel efficiency and cost savings were the most sought-after imperatives in the car game. Manufacturers were experimenting with various engine and drivetrain options. Cadillac decided to install a fancy electronic cylinder deactivation system on their gasoline V8s. The idea was similar to today’s modern systems found in many models with big engines. When cruising around town, the car would use only four cylinders. The rest will be deactivated electronically, stopping the fuel delivery and shutting down the spark plugs (via Consumer Guide).

When the driver needed more power, two more cylinders would be activated, making the engine a V6. When the throttle is pushed to the end, all eight would fire up and deliver full power. Everything worked well on paper and customers were interested. As soon as the first examples left the factory and got to customers, problems started. Simply put, the electronic system was unreliable. Engines tended to get stuck in one mode, often as four cylinders. After a few years on the market, Cadillac discontinued this option. It took a long time to recover from the hit to its reputation.

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Cadillac Catera

The 1990s were tough times for Cadillac. Foreign competition dominated the market and Cadillac products looked outdated and slow. Something had to be done. Cadillac decided to downsize and attack the BMW 5 series with a smaller and more modern-looking car. But such a car didn’t exist in the USA, so Cadillac turned to GM’s European division Opel for assistance (via Car and Driver).

In those days, Opel had an executive mid-size sedan called the Omega. It had a modern design, rear-wheel drive, and a selection of optional extras. Somebody at Cadillac thought it would be a good idea to import Omegas from Germany and sell them as Cadillac Cateras on the American market. The plan just might have worked except for one thing. Omega couldn’t fight Mercedes and BMW because it wasn’t that good of a car. Importing it to the United States didn’t make it better either. Unfortunately for Cadillac, that’s precisely what buyers thought and despite the good initial sales, the Catera sank. It was soon discontinued in 2001 and everyone forgot about it.

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Cadillac ELR

The ELR should have been a success. Instead, it turned out to be a failure and a forgotten model. And it’s only two years old. GM’s premium plug-in hybrid was eagerly expected. But as soon as it was sent to dealerships, the market seemed to ignore it. Despite the cool looks and premium appointments, the ELR had an underachieving drivetrain, which involves a 1.4-liter engine, an electric motor, and a pack of lithium-ion batteries (via Edmunds).

The power output was somewhat satisfying at 217 HP, but the electric-only range was disappointing at just 37 miles. In the end, the base price of $76,000 seemed to be far too much for what the car offered. All of that resulted in less than 3000 cars sold, an embarrassingly low figure. Cadillac discontinued the model after just two years on the market.

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Cadillac Fleetwood Castilian Estate

The ’70s were all about excess. And which company was better to present automotive opulence and extravagance than the mighty Cadillac? Back in the day, Cadillac was on top. It had the biggest engine on offer – the 500 CID (8.2-litre V8). Their cars were almost 20 feet long, and the luxury inside was second to none. But despite offering sedans, coupes, and convertibles, Cadillac needed something more – a station wagon. Cadillac marketing guys thought that it would be cool to offer a super luxury long roof based on their biggest and most expensive model, the Fleetwood. And cash in on the extravagant body style and unusual combination. However, the regular production of such a model was abandoned since the tooling and establishing a separate production line was not financially viable (via Hemmings).

So Cadillac turned to an outside contractor, a company named Coach Works LTD out of Chatsworth, California. The finished product was called the Castilian. It was a massive station wagon built on Cadillac’s biggest platform and equipped with their biggest 500 CID V8 engine. Those limited-production models were available through Cadillac dealers but were actually made by Coach Works LTD and then delivered to the customers. All Castilians had full optional equipment, the finest leather, and an automatic sunroof. Unfortunately, the cost of this conversion was almost $10,000, which brought the price of the Castilian close to $20,000, a lot of money for 1976. That is ultimately why it was a flop.

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Cadillac Allante

The ’80s weren’t a particularly successful period for Cadillac. Throughout most of the decade, Cadillac tried to reinvent itself and introduce cars that would fight European competitors. In most cases, ’80s Cadillac models weren’t especially interesting and everyone forgot about them. Still, there is one very interesting car that could be a future collectible. That’s the elegant Cadillac Allante from 1987 (via Retro Motor).

The Allante was a competitor of the Mercedes SL convertible. It was a two-seat luxury convertible with Italian styling by Pininfarina, a Northstar V8 engine, and front-wheel drive. Even the production process was specific as the actual fabrication was done in Italy in the Pininfarina factory. Then cars were shipped to the US by jet, which affected the cost of the final product. The Allante stayed in production until 1993, and just over 21,000 left the factory in Italy and Detroit. The car proved too expensive to produce and the factory allegedly lost money on every example they made.

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Cadillac Escalade (1999)

Cadillac jumped onto the luxury SUV bandwagon relatively late in 1999 with the first-generation Escalade, which was nothing more than a rebadged Suburban. Pretty soon, Caddy was one of the most dominant models in the market. However, even though the later Escalade models sold well and created their own market segment, the first generation could have been better (via Edmunds).

It was nothing more than a Suburban with a Cadillac steering wheel, different front fascia, and details. Cadillac was in a hurry to offer something to match the Mercedes ML and Range Rover. They needed more time to develop their own model fully. So they took what Chevrolet had to offer and put it on the market with a fresh name and only a little more substance.

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Cadillac Eldorado Sport Coupe

The tenth and last generation of the legendary Cadillac Eldorado was produced from 1992 to 2002. It marked the end of an era for one of the US industry’s most respected nameplates. The last Eldorado was a quality-built machine filled with luxury and power. But the market for such cars died, and so did this model. The Eldorado Sport Coupe featured a 4.6-liter V8 engine, sport-tuned suspension, a host of electronic systems, and discrete styling cues (via Kelly Blue Book).

Unfortunately, despite the promise of sharp handling and precision steering, Cadillac made another bland mix of unimaginative styling and a comfy ride. Yes, the car had 300 HP, but it didn’t drive as such. It was more appropriate for older people in Florida than the yuppies on Wall Street and couldn’t keep up with German or Japanese competitors.

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Cadillac Seville Diesel

In the late ’70s, American manufacturers were all about fuel efficiency and downsizing. The era of big cruisers and powerful gasoline engines of the ’60s was done. All the car companies tried to find a way to introduce new and innovative technologies (via Car and Driver).

Cadillac was at the forefront of this new trend with the introduction of the diesel engine in passenger cars. In those days, American buyers were pretty unaware that you could use diesel fuel for your vehicle. European customers already had a few diesel cars on the market, but this was new for the USA. Cadillac introduced the 5.7-liter V8 diesel engine as an option for the Seville line, and very soon, this model was subject to an enormous number of recalls and engine swaps. Simply put, the diesel V8 was very unreliable and slow. Although it was fuel efficient, nobody wanted to buy it.

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Cadillac ATS

The ATS is a great car. It has a modern design and quality and power, style, and appearance. So why is it such a sales flop? Well, it had nothing to do with the car itself but with marketing and the car class. The sedans are on their way out of focus, and SUVs take their place. After a few attempts, Cadillac finally succeeded in building a proper BMW 3-Series competitor. However, it was too little, too late (via Cadillac).

Even though the ATS is a reasonable proposition in its class, it could be more attractive to the modern buyer. Cadillac discontinued the model and closed its production lines. Sad news, but it shows the direction in which the industry is heading. Even the ATS-V, which was faster and more powerful than the BMW M3 and M4, struggled to find buyers and had some cheap details on the dashboard.

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Cadillac SRX

Cadillac’s dealers loved the SRX since it achieved solid sales numbers, but Cadillac fans hated it. Yes, it was a luxury SUV, and it was the right car for the moment to bring some buyers back to the brand. But it needed to be more reliable and have better driving dynamics. It was just a crossover SUV that didn’t improve the brand image (via Cadillac).

The first generation used STS as a basis and had V6 and V8 power as well as four-wheel drive. But it also had a strange design and resembled a lifted Cadillac STS wagon (if there ever was such a thing). The second generation was more aesthetically pleasing but was less reliable and had front-wheel-drive as standard.

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Cadillac DeVille (1985)

For decades, the DeVille series was the Cadillac’s primary model. Produced as a coupe, sedan, or convertible, it symbolized the Cadillac’s philosophy and feel. DeVilles were mighty, big, rear-wheel-drive sedans with massive V8 engines and comfortable interiors. The DeVille platform was unique to Cadillacs back in the day, and it didn’t share any of the technology or engines with the rest of the GM range (via Hemmings).

Then came 1985 and massive change to the whole of GM. No more big, gas-guzzling sedans, RWD platforms, and chrome fins. The new era had arrived and brought much smaller cars, with smaller engines and front-wheel-drive. All of the sudden, the DeVille was similar to the rest of the C-Body cars from GM. It had a transversally mounted V8 with fuel injection and 145 HP. A far cry from the power outputs that Cadillac used to have. The 1985 to 1993 generation was successful in terms of sales but will never be the high-water mark of this proud company.

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Cadillac El Mirage

Before we tell you about the rare and extravagant El Mirage pickup, we want to make sure you don’t confuse it with the beautiful 2013 Cadillac concept car called Elmiraj. Both names sound the same, but they are very different. The El Mirage was a massive half-Cadillac, half-truck built on the 1975-76 DeVille platform with a big truck bed behind the front seats (via Car and Driver).

The El Mirage was constructed and produced by the same company which built the Castilian Estate wagon. The El Mirage featured the same engine and drivetrain. The attractive design feature was a small golf bag door on the back for dedicated golfers who needed a Cadillac to go to the golf course. Of course, nobody wanted it. Because of this, less than 20 left the factory. It’s quite obvious why this car was a flop.

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