Kaylon Centers After Lincoln outsold Cadillac for the first time in about 50 years with the Navigator the year before Cadillac had no choice but to rebadge a GMC Yukon Denali.
IF CADDY ONLY KNEW WHAT PILE OFF GARBAGE IT WAS PRODUCING OH WAIT I MEAN THE PEOPLE WHO BOUGHT INTO BUYING THAT PILE OFF JUNK AND STILL DO CADDY KNOWS WHAT JUNK ITS SELLING 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
If it ain't broke, Don't "fix" it. Change just for the sake of change isn't progress. I'd much rather have this gauge package than the damned 3D videogame inspired crap we have now.
@@nicholasalonzi8268 and more expensive and they also can't be replaced just by buying a used one. Why would I want to pay more for something that does the same?
@@thefuzzypickle8277 thank you.. i drive a 5.3 2014 silverado lt. got like a 4 inch screen. its base and its fine. i just need aux or Bluetooth and im fine. what i really care for is power and room. not a 10 inch touch screen with hot cold seats. give me a 6.2 with straight pipes im happy
I have the 99 denali , still solid and runs great not any rust anywhere and i live in canada , oil sprayed since new and has over 280 thow klms and still better then todays crap gmcs and chev trucks , my brothers 2020 Silverado has allready had to have rear end replaced and tranny serviced from slipping , 40 grand for shit quality ha ha ha .
+kirbyswarp Yes this was a good era for GM and Ford vehicles. I have sat in these seats and they are still much more comfortable than any new truck. The leather used is the same used on the regular line up of Cadillac's cars like the Deville, Seville and Eldorado. If I had to pick, I would without a doubt pick this body style but in the GMC Yukon version. Im a big Cadillac and Lincoln person but I still am not fan of the Escalades or Navigators. For trucks, I will stay with Chevrolet, GMC, Ford and Dodge.
nutsackmania No, but close. These are crazy comfortable. I climbed into a one in the junkyard and sat there for a minute surprised how comfortable they were.
I used to work at a used car lot as a teen. My boss had a friend that wrote car review articles for the local papers so he would get new cars from the manufacturers for a week or so to review. I remember when he showed up with one of these. A coworker and I mocked it mercilessly. Going so far as drawing a Chevy Bowtie in the dust on the tailgate. 18 years later it's their best selling vehicle by a mile.
Or you could have written the letters GMC in the dust on the tailgate! The Escalade was an identical twin of the GMC Yukon Denali, but the regular Yukon at the time was identical to the Chevy Tahoe.
I remember when this bad boy came out I was 10yrs old and my dad use to leave the fire dept. and come pick me up from school in his new shinny pearl white cadi, it's crazy 22yrs later he just hit 137k miles
we need a 2002 escalade review the second gen escalade was a giant leap forward with its lq9 6.0 engine and all wheel drive and more true cadillac styling is what the first gen was missing . i did truly enjoy this video with that being said . great work
Funny how you literally could have just bought a 1999 GMC Denali for $10k less than this brand new, drove it to the Cadillac dealership, bought an Escalade grille & badges/nameplates/emblems from the parts department for a few hundred bucks, and then you'd have the same truck for a ton less money and fool everyone! Lol. Anyone who bought one of these instead of the cheaper & identical GMC Denali version was an absolute fool. At least the Expedition/Navigator didn't look alike (from the outside).
Justin Garcia Yeah I exaggerated a little on the price disparity between the two lol. Even $1 more for the Escalade was a rip-off though, as you got absolutely zero additional content for the extra money over a Denali. But those were the days when it was easier to con buyers. Now-a-days even consumers with beer money have champagne taste, which is why we now have have sub-compact cars with leather, GPS, and the same amount of techy gadgets that you could get in a Mercedes just 10 years ago.
These first generation Escalades are so rare in my area. I didn't even know there was a first gen before the second gen until I saw one parked at my local laundromat lol
Same here where I live. Honestly I've known about them for sometime now, but when I first found out that the 2002 model year was the the second gen I was shook lol. I only knew about the 1999 Denali, because a friend of mine had a maroon red Denali and I loved it. I've been trying so hard to find one, but they're super rare to find, unless you want one that is beat up to crap. I will never understand how or why people mistreated these "Luxury" SUVS so badly. If i had one brand new in those times, I swear I would have babied it lol.
Eric Haley Yes I have noticed that on the 07 up Silverados. The thing is my 1999 Silverado had rear disc brakes. I wondered why they went backwards in their technology. I guess it is to save money but I would think disc would be easier on the assembly line.
Eric Haley since most brake power comes from the front they use discs in front and got away with drums in threat because they last longer and cost less to manufacture and replace
I Had A 2000 Escalade In Pewter Metallic I Can't Lie I Loved That Truck It Had 297,000 Miles When I Sold It & It Ran Like A Champ Only Complaint I Had Was That It Didn't Have A Sunroof The A/C & Heat Worked Great Everything Worked Extremely Well & It Had The Best Factory BOSE Premium Sound System That I Ever Heard In A Vehicle
My god I can't get over all the negative comments! These trucks were owsome! They drove like a dream ,had plenty of room compared to anything out there! These trucks were perfect for most parts of our nation with seasonal change in weather! Every father felt safe with there wife and kids in one of these tanks! Not to mention the dependability the power the comfort and there still on the road today boasting over 200,000 miles on them! I had the 4 door bronco , Durango , two Jeep Grand Cherokee s two excursions and nothing came close to these Escalade s!
@@dariog36th thats what ive been telling the haters for years lol. good to see another person that realized it was the first and last "working" Cadillac Escalade.
From back when GM made some of the best vehicles ever sold. So sad to see what they make today. These vehicles were thirsty but they'd give you largely trouble-free 300k miles in complete comfort.
This was the laziest Escalade ever made, good thing it was the first. Comparing this Caddy to the Caddilacs of today, you can see just how far they've come. This is a humble start to a fantastic journey of super luxury!
The tech has always been there. The low compression lack of flow heads and exhaust is where we been since the gas crisis and pollution standards. With the new tech we can up the compression and with the better breathing and exhaust the hp and tq is back up. With much more lightweight products and materials these cars are putting much better hp per pound numbers and on 87 octane pump gas in many cases.
@@randyrowe3097 There was a gas crisis then? I remember 73 and 79. The "gas crisis" was effectively forgotten by 1986, let alone more than 10 years later.
Drift Taxi from an Escalade standpoint yes Cadillac has come a long way. From a car standpoint they’ve taken many steps backwards. They build nothing today that was as nice as the Seville or el dorado was for its time. Even the DeVille was a caddy loyalist favorite. Now they build this ATS and CTS garbage no one buys. So saying Cadillac has “come a long way” I would argue is completely wrong due to the share of the luxury market they occupy when compared to the late 90s
Take a cheap pickup truck, make it into a wagon, then throw some cheap leather and plastic chrome at it, and call it a premium luxury vehicle!!! To this day, I still can't believe so many people are dumb enough to pay nearly six figures for a tarted up pickup, but to each their own I suppose.
Keye T And more often than not, they're LESS practical than the cars they're based on. See the Honda HRV versus the Fit, the Mazda CX-3 versus the 3 hatch and so on....
I remember the 2nd gen Escalade (especially the extended esv) having all the cool features that most elementary school kids wouldn't think twice about now
I like this version of the Escalade. I'm not much into SUVs but I'd take one of these in a heartbeat. The 2002 era one is okay, but after that i'd sooner just take the cash instead of the car. But then again, same goes for any other car since 2002 LOL.
it worked. they still outsell Lincoln drastically in SUV sales. freaking love my 99 escalade cant bring myself to get rid of the most reliable comfortable and good looking SUV iv ever owned
My 05 Silverado has those same gauges. They used that for probably 12-13 years. The 5.7 is a great engine, my Dad had a 1995 GMC pickup he racked up close to 350,000 miles before selling it. I hear the truck is still going strong
This model year of the Escalade and the Denali are so rare and hard to find. And if you do find one they were treated so bad. Ripped leather seats, broken dashes, rusted exterior and etc. I've been looking for one in decent shape, but have yet to find one.
I was able to get one 5 years ago clean body no rust, but the seats was beat. And at the time only had 66k miles. I ended ordering seats from Katskinz. Mines still running no issues just hit 87k miles.
I remember being one of the first people in my clique to ride in one of these Cadillac Escalades right after a first came out. The headliner had already started to droop and I was taken back by the cheap plastic interior. When you pay such a premium price you would think that the Plastics would be of a higher quality than you get in something like a Pontiac Sunfire or some other plastic piece of shit from GM. The Escalade I wrote in was brand new but already suffered from squeaks and rattles and a leaky rear side window. Judging by their latest reliability survey in consumer reports this behemoth has an improved much quality-wise over the years. The fact that these line every buy here pay here lot also shows its poor resale value as well.
So obviously a rebadged Chevy truck in this first gen.. They got better as disgusing it as time went on, at least on the outside! They were still rather pedestrian on the inside until this last gen, the OLED instrumentation really sets the latest gen apart on the inside as well, FINALLY!!!
I always thought it was funny that they tried to soften the square edges on the earlier Cadillac. Then 2002 came along and they tried to square off the soft lines
Hi Motorweek, it's really great seeing these old reviews from a UK point of view. I was wondering if you had reviews of rarer cars such as Eagle Medallion/Premier, Rover Sterling, Peugeot 405, Alfa 164, Range Rover (first gen), Saab 9000 and Citroen XM (I believe you reviewed a grey import model)?
GM badge engineering was still in its heyday when the Escalade came out. I'm sure there were meaningful improvements over the Yukon and Tahoe but GM used those same plasticy HVAC controls in the 1998 Bonneville that I had.
Wow ! $46,000 dollars ! And 19 years later They sell for around $2000 to $3500 a little more if you put big wheels on it. And you are selling in the right market .
this may be a rebadged Tahoe/Yukon and the Navigator is a rebadged Expedition.. both with extra chrome, leather, 'wood' and some upgrades.. nothing special or luxurious by todays standards.
I never was a big fan with the Escalades or Navigators when they first came out. I always believed that both Lincoln and Cadillac should never have entered this market. GM already had Chevrolet and the more upscale truck line GMC and Ford already had a nice line up of trucks with various trim packages Like others have said, the Escalade is nothing more than a rebadged Tahoe or Yukon and the Navigator a rebadged Expedition. But I must say it is nice to see some of the older Escalades and Navigators as they too have become a rare sight. I see tons of them for a faction of how expensive they use to be. I may have to consider one eventually having come down in price from when they first came out new.
Have you even stepped into a new escalade? They dont even compare to the yukons and tahoes. The escalades build quality is pushing german and british quality
+Frank Magana I have and they are very nice and very well built trucks. I remember when they first came out back in 99 and it took me a while to get use to as I am the more traditional Cadillac owner. I am very glad that they are doing better than all the foreign competition as that's the way it should be. Cadillac should always remain number 1 and Lincoln runner up. And if I wanted to go all out and buy the very best money can buy, I would buy the Escalade or Navigator hands down over anything else. I didn't realize how much they have come down in price. I have seen a few very nice examples of the first generation Escalade that are very cheap as for some reason I still thought they were still up there. I never would have thought of it when they first came out but I just might consider buying one to put in my Cadillac collection. They have become a rare sight now to see a nice example Escalade. But overall I was always very impressed with the built quality and body style of these trucks.
+Upeedina Lamb No its automatic climate control but just with manuel controls. The digital climate control was an option. That is perfectly acceptable.
I’m not a Cadillac fan, but I’ve drove a 96 sedan deville for a few years and a 03 Astro, and a 03 suburban; so to me this interior looks as cheap as you can get for a caddie. There were waaaayyyy to many cheap GM dials and gauges from the lower end lineup. The only similarities between the 96 I drove and the Astro was the turn signal stalk. Sorry GM,
ToxicRocket the Yukon Denali had a nicer interior imo. It had the Denali logo stitched on the door panels and two tone leather. this escalade had fake wood trim unlike Lexus who uses real wood from Yamaha pianos, so wood on this just makes it look cheap.
They made them better back then. Later models don’t last nearly as long, you could put 200k miles on it without an engine or transmission tear down. The later models you’re lucky to get 150k without it falling apart. First gen Escalades were really the only reliable thing Cadillac had going back in the day because the Northstar V8 cars were junk.
The last two gens of escalades are great in perperformance and luxury interior but the exteriors are horrible. The gmc Yukon denali look more flashy and luxurious then the Cadillac. Which Escalade was known and famous for being big powerful flashy and luxurious. Not sporty or dull looking. If you want offroad capabilites or affordability you buy a Tahoe or yukon, you want luxury you buy a denali yukon you want extreme luxury and flashy true Cadillac style you buy an Escalade. Really sad with Cadillacs changing since 2008. I love the V sports but making every second car model a European styled performance luxury car like the original seville takes away from Cadillac and makes it more a bmw. Though its nice to see the Cadillac Ct6 come out first big car in awhile but still is closer to a seville than a deville or fleetwood
If there's anything GM can't be faulted with, it's in the comfortable riding characteristics of their cars. They'd have to be building a single purpose racing machine for them to come up with a harsh riding suspension system.
Probably the most shameless example of badge engineering GM ever did. And of course Motorweek was gushing with praise about it, like they did for every car.
This was the epitome of rebadging. the only thing the escalade had over the Denali was a woodgrain steering wheel, leather shift knob, and perforated leather seats, the Denali had solid two-tone leather seats. Other than that it was the same wheels, same grill, same body panels, same entertainment system, same everything.
@@daveromanyshyn1170 The Navigator was too far for GM to catch in just 1 year. The Navigator had a 3rd row seat, GPS navigation, and a whole bunch of other bells and whistles. I guess GM just figured Cadillac is the standard of luxury so lets just slap a Cadillac badge on our most luxurious SUV and hope people buy it. Really all they had to do was focus and add more luxury features to the Denali like digital climate controls and things like that.
it was the only working mans working Escalade... still is. you didnt mind using it for SUV things if you didnt mind the price, not so with pretty much any of the following offerings of it.
+John Doe on top of that, they recycle the parts. You can find all sorts of parts in a 15 year old toyota in a new toyota today. Imagine GM using mirror switches, door switches, buttons from a 2003 GMC Yukon in todays Yukons. And then under all the door panels, dashboard, and hoods, theyre also using old parts. Every brand does it to a certain extent, for example, imma use the yukon again, they carry the SAME EXACT PEDALS as they did since the late 90's. But toyota is just over the top
Cadillac grills, Cadillac bills, check out the oil my Cadillac spills
Luda
earnedmystripes lol
Should probably get that oil leak checked
Sounds more like a Northstar. Hehehe. 😂
Oil leaking from dem headlamps
If Caddy only knew how important the Escalade would become.
roger lewis the Escalade is basically paying for Cadillac to keep its lights on because so many dumb people insist on buying it
Cadillac knew, they wouldn't have entered the SUV market otherwise.
DonovanBlakeXO I'll take the LX 😎
Kaylon Centers After Lincoln outsold Cadillac for the first time in about 50 years with the Navigator the year before Cadillac had no choice but to rebadge a GMC Yukon Denali.
IF CADDY ONLY KNEW WHAT PILE OFF GARBAGE IT WAS PRODUCING OH WAIT I MEAN THE PEOPLE WHO BOUGHT INTO BUYING THAT PILE OFF JUNK AND STILL DO CADDY KNOWS WHAT JUNK ITS SELLING 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Those gauges were in every GM vehicle over the last 20 years. My 05 Silverado looks identical
Robert Smith praise kek
If it ain't broke, Don't "fix" it. Change just for the sake of change isn't progress. I'd much rather have this gauge package than the damned 3D videogame inspired crap we have now.
James Slick That might be due to the nostalgia but digital dashes are more functional
@@nicholasalonzi8268 and more expensive and they also can't be replaced just by buying a used one. Why would I want to pay more for something that does the same?
@@thefuzzypickle8277 thank you.. i drive a 5.3 2014 silverado lt. got like a 4 inch screen. its base and its fine. i just need aux or Bluetooth and im fine. what i really care for is power and room. not a 10 inch touch screen with hot cold seats. give me a 6.2 with straight pipes im happy
Those 99 escalades last a long time. I have a 99 Tahoe still kicking
Same here. I love my rig!
The only issue I ever had with my 99 Tahoe was fuel pumps, I changed 3 in the five years I owned her.
Your Tahoe is cheaper to fix than the Escalade as wel
I have the 99 denali , still solid and runs great not any rust anywhere and i live in canada , oil sprayed since new and has over 280 thow klms and still better then todays crap gmcs and chev trucks , my brothers 2020 Silverado has allready had to have rear end replaced and tranny serviced from slipping , 40 grand for shit quality ha ha ha .
God bless the Vortec motors
God I miss the 90s.
+BKofficer23 Same here.
Those seats are some of the best seats I've ever sat in. I'm not even joking.
+kirbyswarp Yes this was a good era for GM and Ford vehicles. I have sat in these seats and they are still much more comfortable than any new truck. The leather used is the same used on the regular line up of Cadillac's cars like the Deville, Seville and Eldorado. If I had to pick, I would without a doubt pick this body style but in the GMC Yukon version. Im a big Cadillac and Lincoln person but I still am not fan of the Escalades or Navigators. For trucks, I will stay with Chevrolet, GMC, Ford and Dodge.
+kirbyswarp I will agree with you on this. Better than 9000 Aero seats, though?
nutsackmania What do you mean 9000 aero seats? I don't know what those are.
AMCNorthstar 93 The best seats ever made.
nutsackmania No, but close. These are crazy comfortable. I climbed into a one in the junkyard and sat there for a minute surprised how comfortable they were.
I used to work at a used car lot as a teen. My boss had a friend that wrote car review articles for the local papers so he would get new cars from the manufacturers for a week or so to review. I remember when he showed up with one of these. A coworker and I mocked it mercilessly. Going so far as drawing a Chevy Bowtie in the dust on the tailgate. 18 years later it's their best selling vehicle by a mile.
Or you could have written the letters GMC in the dust on the tailgate! The Escalade was an identical twin of the GMC Yukon Denali, but the regular Yukon at the time was identical to the Chevy Tahoe.
And Cadillac was never the same again after the Escalade; which from ANY generation is as big as Texas, where it’s built.
I remember when this bad boy came out I was 10yrs old and my dad use to leave the fire dept. and come pick me up from school in his new shinny pearl white cadi, it's crazy 22yrs later he just hit 137k miles
Today Cadillac is mostly known for the full luxury suv, the Escalade
Probably cause its the only Cadillac with a proper name.
"Only minor changes are necessary to bring it up to Cadillac spec"
John sure was being generous with this shameless badge engineered Tahoe.
He may have been paid/told to be nice. This vehicle was a joke.
@@kavalere Basically a Denali with a different badge and higher price tag
This was the era that almost killed Cadillac
Rebadged chevys
Sweet Tahoe dude.
That 46K price would be 67K today. The current one is 73K.
No no no. I sell Chevrolets. I can load up a Tahoe to the $76k mark. Escalades can top $90k
They're just the starting prices.
earnedmystripes that's true, I bought a '17 escalade platinum and the sticker price was $97,560 and after taxes it when up to $103,000
The quality has improved bar reliability
Stefan Unson The Escalade goes up to $100k now.
looks like a subrurban with caddy grile
+Wade McKenney That is what it is and always has been
That's all Escalade's are...Why people are willing to pay a 20K up charge for an Escalade over a Taho / Suburban is beyond me.
Nathan McDonald The same reason why people pay $20k more for an Infiniti QX over a Nissan Armada.
because it's $20K nicer. duh.
bigger engine, leather interior. not sure if yukon has the same engine as the escalade tho but the tahoe/suburban has the smaller v8
You guys don't have a review on the 1998 Navigator?
we need a 2002 escalade review the second gen escalade was a giant leap forward with its lq9 6.0 engine and all wheel drive and more true cadillac styling is what the first gen was missing . i did truly enjoy this video with that being said . great work
Funny how you literally could have just bought a 1999 GMC Denali for $10k less than this brand new, drove it to the Cadillac dealership, bought an Escalade grille & badges/nameplates/emblems from the parts department for a few hundred bucks, and then you'd have the same truck for a ton less money and fool everyone! Lol. Anyone who bought one of these instead of the cheaper & identical GMC Denali version was an absolute fool. At least the Expedition/Navigator didn't look alike (from the outside).
+SuchANiceGirl22 The Escalade was actually $3,000 more than the Yukon Denali but I see what you mean.
Justin Garcia Yeah I exaggerated a little on the price disparity between the two lol. Even $1 more for the Escalade was a rip-off though, as you got absolutely zero additional content for the extra money over a Denali. But those were the days when it was easier to con buyers. Now-a-days even consumers with beer money have champagne taste, which is why we now have have sub-compact cars with leather, GPS, and the same amount of techy gadgets that you could get in a Mercedes just 10 years ago.
Cadillac service is better then a GMC dealer in general. Also the leather was nicer and the zebrano wood trim! ; )
bigggmustang73 then just take the gmc to a caddy dealer lol its the same thing
The price difference today between an escalade and a Denali is actually around close to 20k. Same exact vehicle with same exact options.
16 inch rims on an Escalade 😂😂😂
I know man I thought they were at least put 17 inch rims on it. Hahaha 🤣 👍🏽
Those fat side walls made the ride better
i just bought one with 22s definitely butting 16s back on
These first generation Escalades are so rare in my area. I didn't even know there was a first gen before the second gen until I saw one parked at my local laundromat lol
What area are you in?
Same here where I live. Honestly I've known about them for sometime now, but when I first found out that the 2002 model year was the the second gen I was shook lol. I only knew about the 1999 Denali, because a friend of mine had a maroon red Denali and I loved it. I've been trying so hard to find one, but they're super rare to find, unless you want one that is beat up to crap. I will never understand how or why people mistreated these "Luxury" SUVS so badly. If i had one brand new in those times, I swear I would have babied it lol.
my dad owned a 2012 silverado pickup with rear drum brakes.i still couldn't understand why GM still kept that antiquated technology around so long.
Eric Haley Yes I have noticed that on the 07 up Silverados. The thing is my 1999 Silverado had rear disc brakes. I wondered why they went backwards in their technology. I guess it is to save money but I would think disc would be easier on the assembly line.
Eric Haley umm drum brakes lost way longer than disk
Eric Haley since most brake power comes from the front they use discs in front and got away with drums in threat because they last longer and cost less to manufacture and replace
Like the Tacoma.
Most likely you got a base striped down version
I Had A 2000 Escalade In Pewter Metallic I Can't Lie I Loved That Truck It Had 297,000 Miles When I Sold It & It Ran Like A Champ Only Complaint I Had Was That It Didn't Have A Sunroof The A/C & Heat Worked Great Everything Worked Extremely Well & It Had The Best Factory BOSE Premium Sound System That I Ever Heard In A Vehicle
Great video motor week!! Very cool seeing that old caddi in brand new condition!!
My god I can't get over all the negative comments! These trucks were owsome! They drove like a dream ,had plenty of room compared to anything out there! These trucks were perfect for most parts of our nation with seasonal change in weather! Every father felt safe with there wife and kids in one of these tanks! Not to mention the dependability the power the comfort and there still on the road today boasting over 200,000 miles on them! I had the 4 door bronco , Durango , two Jeep Grand Cherokee s two excursions and nothing came close to these Escalade s!
William Henry not to mention it was a 3/4 ton truck. People overlook that it was work Truck as well as a play truck.
@@dariog36th thats what ive been telling the haters for years lol. good to see another person that realized it was the first and last "working" Cadillac Escalade.
From back when GM made some of the best vehicles ever sold. So sad to see what they make today. These vehicles were thirsty but they'd give you largely trouble-free 300k miles in complete comfort.
I put Lamborghini doors on the Escalade
Low pros so it looks like I'm ridin on blades
Great work, imbecile 🙄
My favorite Escalade of them all.
I think I have this on VHS somewhere....
my favorite suv of all time
Whatever John Davis is taking I want it cause it looks like this guy never ages. LoL 😁
Baby foreskin
This was the laziest Escalade ever made, good thing it was the first. Comparing this Caddy to the Caddilacs of today, you can see just how far they've come. This is a humble start to a fantastic journey of super luxury!
lmmfao true
The tech has always been there. The low compression lack of flow heads and exhaust is where we been since the gas crisis and pollution standards. With the new tech we can up the compression and with the better breathing and exhaust the hp and tq is back up. With much more lightweight products and materials these cars are putting much better hp per pound numbers and on 87 octane pump gas in many cases.
@@randyrowe3097 There was a gas crisis then? I remember 73 and 79. The "gas crisis" was effectively forgotten by 1986, let alone more than 10 years later.
Drift Taxi from an Escalade standpoint yes Cadillac has come a long way. From a car standpoint they’ve taken many steps backwards. They build nothing today that was as nice as the Seville or el dorado was for its time. Even the DeVille was a caddy loyalist favorite. Now they build this ATS and CTS garbage no one buys. So saying Cadillac has “come a long way” I would argue is completely wrong due to the share of the luxury market they occupy when compared to the late 90s
@@jamesslick4790 and then the recetion came, nearly killed all of the automakers in the world, in 2009, or so, if I recall. Incentives anyone?
These and the seats of the 90s Lexus ES300 are god tier
Tomahawk Studios I had a 97 ES 300, best seats I've ever sat in, and I have been in the likes and Mercedes SUVs, VW phaton, infiniti Q50 and more
Best seats have to go to the rear seats on a 91 deville. I went for a ride in one and almost fell asleep in 5 minutes
Take a cheap pickup truck, make it into a wagon, then throw some cheap leather and plastic chrome at it, and call it a premium luxury vehicle!!! To this day, I still can't believe so many people are dumb enough to pay nearly six figures for a tarted up pickup, but to each their own I suppose.
bliglum That's how I feel about these new economy SUVs, they get a hatchback a lift it 2 inches , Called it in an suv and charge 4 K more
Keye T And more often than not, they're LESS practical than the cars they're based on. See the Honda HRV versus the Fit, the Mazda CX-3 versus the 3 hatch and so on....
deloreanman14 The Toyota CHR is the worst, it doesn't even offer AWD,,, I have more room than that in my Avalon, and 2011 camry
This costs today's equivalent of $70K, and people bought them!
tubemember21 the new 1 is more than that in TODAYS MONEY !! lol
I had a 97 GMC Yukon. the only thing this Escalade has that my Yukon didn't have was the Bose audio
Nic Jennings that bose audio will rock your world. For some reason the bose system in this generation escalade out performs the new ones.
I pulled the seats out of a wrecked Escalade for my '72 Chevy C20 pickup restomod. Amazingly comfortable seats.
GM cheaped out with the brakes
+blackericdenice They were in the beginning stages of improvements to be made over its production run.
AMCNorthstar 93 No shit. Now tell me why the 2002 6.0 in the Escalade made 345hp 45hp more than the regular pick up 6.0.
***** Computer tuning.....they needed to make some differences between the truck lines
Gm cheaped out on everything. Just made a new grill for the caddi
My 99 Tahoes brakes work just fine.
I remember the 2nd gen Escalade (especially the extended esv) having all the cool features that most elementary school kids wouldn't think twice about now
Literally nobody that buys this car needs that engine
I like this version of the Escalade. I'm not much into SUVs but I'd take one of these in a heartbeat. The 2002 era one is okay, but after that i'd sooner just take the cash instead of the car. But then again, same goes for any other car since 2002 LOL.
Nothing more than a Denali, with Caddy emblems. A desperate attempt from GM as Ford (Via the Lincoln Navigator) beat them to the punch
And it worked for them in a major way
it worked. they still outsell Lincoln drastically in SUV sales. freaking love my 99 escalade cant bring myself to get rid of the most reliable comfortable and good looking SUV iv ever owned
You seem to underestimate the humans desire to appear richer than they are
Don’t get me wrong I like the Escalade, but even the Grand Cherokee of the same time had dual climate control and was a bit more luxurious.
My 05 Silverado has those same gauges. They used that for probably 12-13 years. The 5.7 is a great engine, my Dad had a 1995 GMC pickup he racked up close to 350,000 miles before selling it. I hear the truck is still going strong
Your Silverado did not have the same gauges
Of all the crazy exotic luxury cars the villains demanded in "Gone in 60 Seconds" they wanted one of these as well lol
😂😂
This model year of the Escalade and the Denali are so rare and hard to find. And if you do find one they were treated so bad. Ripped leather seats, broken dashes, rusted exterior and etc. I've been looking for one in decent shape, but have yet to find one.
I was able to get one 5 years ago clean body no rust, but the seats was beat. And at the time only had 66k miles. I ended ordering seats from Katskinz. Mines still running no issues just hit 87k miles.
A rebadged Tahoe with a bit better interior I mean just fake wood trim and slap a caddy badge on it and charge 15k more than the Tahoe, genius!
Classic. Body engine everything. Pioneer
I remember being one of the first people in my clique to ride in one of these Cadillac Escalades right after a first came out. The headliner had already started to droop and I was taken back by the cheap plastic interior. When you pay such a premium price you would think that the Plastics would be of a higher quality than you get in something like a Pontiac Sunfire or some other plastic piece of shit from GM. The Escalade I wrote in was brand new but already suffered from squeaks and rattles and a leaky rear side window. Judging by their latest reliability survey in consumer reports this behemoth has an improved much quality-wise over the years. The fact that these line every buy here pay here lot also shows its poor resale value as well.
So obviously a rebadged Chevy truck in this first gen.. They got better as disgusing it as time went on, at least on the outside!
They were still rather pedestrian on the inside until this last gen, the OLED instrumentation really sets the latest gen apart on the inside as well, FINALLY!!!
Looks better than the new ones.
These are perfect for dropping them with 4/6 kit 20 Yukon wheels and adding 4 15s in the back and just cruise 😎 slapping away 🔈
🤦♂️🤦♂️
The Navigator was better because it had a third row of seats and it was larger.
I always thought it was funny that they tried to soften the square edges on the earlier Cadillac. Then 2002 came along and they tried to square off the soft lines
When the Escalade was a real SUV and not some baller mobile
Haters gonna hate, ballers gonna ball. It's life.
Rappers and celebrities have loved on Escalades since its inception!!
Hi Motorweek, it's really great seeing these old reviews from a UK point of view. I was wondering if you had reviews of rarer cars such as Eagle Medallion/Premier, Rover Sterling, Peugeot 405, Alfa 164, Range Rover (first gen), Saab 9000 and Citroen XM (I believe you reviewed a grey import model)?
Dodge Monaco or Eagle Premier video is available
Can you upload the 1998 Lincoln Navigator review???
This is the Escalade that I want. It is the only off-road capable Escalade. I could go just about anywhere on or off-road.
Wow what a great looking suv
It started from the bottom and now it's here 😂
I'll take "Cars I wish they still made brand new" for $500, Alex.
I still see these around
When the heavyweights came in to battle eachother out! Awe yes...I miss those good years!
I really love this vehicle!
Did you know the GMC Yukon Denali was a completely identical twin?
Cadillac is the Lancia of the USA.
A brand name that was first misused and than left to die.
How bout a review of the 91 ford escort gt!? =D ok thanks guys!
Dude, my first car! Loved it. Those front seat belts on the tracks!! haha
GM badge engineering was still in its heyday when the Escalade came out. I'm sure there were meaningful improvements over the Yukon and Tahoe but GM used those same plasticy HVAC controls in the 1998 Bonneville that I had.
You would think they would use the same digital heater controls that they had 6 years earlier in the Fleetwood.
They should have used different tail lights. It looks exactly like a Suburban from the rear.
Cadillac rushed it to get aboard with SUV's, and to have something up against the Navigator. So they used the Tahoe/Yukon body.
Wow ! $46,000 dollars ! And 19 years later They sell for around $2000 to $3500 a little more if you put big wheels on it. And you are selling in the right market .
great high quality plastics in the interior. A GM legacy.
this may be a rebadged Tahoe/Yukon and the Navigator is a rebadged Expedition.. both with extra chrome, leather, 'wood' and some upgrades.. nothing special or luxurious by todays standards.
Do you guys have a video of the 2000 limited Tahoe
They used to have one of the concept which was the Tahoe SS.
I never was a big fan with the Escalades or Navigators when they first came out. I always believed that both Lincoln and Cadillac should never have entered this market. GM already had Chevrolet and the more upscale truck line GMC and Ford already had a nice line up of trucks with various trim packages Like others have said, the Escalade is nothing more than a rebadged Tahoe or Yukon and the Navigator a rebadged Expedition. But I must say it is nice to see some of the older Escalades and Navigators as they too have become a rare sight. I see tons of them for a faction of how expensive they use to be. I may have to consider one eventually having come down in price from when they first came out new.
Dude, do you have any idea what you are talking about...the escalade is pretty much what has kept cadillac going, same with lincoln with its Navigator
Have you even stepped into a new escalade? They dont even compare to the yukons and tahoes. The escalades build quality is pushing german and british quality
+Frank Magana I have and they are very nice and very well built trucks. I remember when they first came out back in 99 and it took me a while to get use to as I am the more traditional Cadillac owner. I am very glad that they are doing better than all the foreign competition as that's the way it should be. Cadillac should always remain number 1 and Lincoln runner up. And if I wanted to go all out and buy the very best money can buy, I would buy the Escalade or Navigator hands down over anything else. I didn't realize how much they have come down in price. I have seen a few very nice examples of the first generation Escalade that are very cheap as for some reason I still thought they were still up there. I never would have thought of it when they first came out but I just might consider buying one to put in my Cadillac collection. They have become a rare sight now to see a nice example Escalade. But overall I was always very impressed with the built quality and body style of these trucks.
It's nothing more than a Chevrolet Tahoe with Cadillac badging.
Lambs noticed the manual climate control. For 1999 that's unacceptable in a luxury vehicle in 1999
+Upeedina Lamb No its automatic climate control but just with manuel controls. The digital climate control was an option. That is perfectly acceptable.
AMCNorthstar 93 I have never seen a first generation escalade with digital climate controls. If it was an option nobody got it then.
Well as long as the ac works its fine.
Jonathan's world That has nothing to do with anything....
Upeedina Lamb Why would anyone want automatic climate control?
Does MotorWeek have a review of the Hummer H2, and H3?
Hope Doug Demuro review THIS!
I’m not a Cadillac fan, but I’ve drove a 96 sedan deville for a few years and a 03 Astro, and a 03 suburban; so to me this interior looks as cheap as you can get for a caddie. There were waaaayyyy to many cheap GM dials and gauges from the lower end lineup. The only similarities between the 96 I drove and the Astro was the turn signal stalk. Sorry GM,
ToxicRocket the Yukon Denali had a nicer interior imo. It had the Denali logo stitched on the door panels and two tone leather. this escalade had fake wood trim unlike Lexus who uses real wood from Yamaha pianos, so wood on this just makes it look cheap.
My uncle used to have a 99' White Escalade and a 99' Black Denali back in my 10th Grade days
Both of the seats were nice
I like the split tailgate.
The ridiculousness of the giant luxury sport ute began here.
It took gm 15 years to make the esclade less like the yukon and tahoe/surbaban.
I can already hear the hip hop music playing in my head
I'd still buy one...
They made them better back then. Later models don’t last nearly as long, you could put 200k miles on it without an engine or transmission tear down. The later models you’re lucky to get 150k without it falling apart. First gen Escalades were really the only reliable thing Cadillac had going back in the day because the Northstar V8 cars were junk.
So would a Tahoe from the same year be faster?
if its 2 wheel drive then yes.
A 70,000 dollar Chevrolet
Chris Lemaster there's already a $70,000 Chevrolet it's just called Corvette
pontiacGXPfan Starts at 55K I think LOL
Remember GM rebadged cavaliers to caddy cimarons with gold caddy badges?what joke there!
Driven by every shtthead in the midwest! Ghetto AF when I look at it still! And for some odd reason always in that color combo too!
The last two gens of escalades are great in perperformance and luxury interior but the exteriors are horrible. The gmc Yukon denali look more flashy and luxurious then the Cadillac. Which Escalade was known and famous for being big powerful flashy and luxurious. Not sporty or dull looking. If you want offroad capabilites or affordability you buy a Tahoe or yukon, you want luxury you buy a denali yukon you want extreme luxury and flashy true Cadillac style you buy an Escalade. Really sad with Cadillacs changing since 2008. I love the V sports but making every second car model a European styled performance luxury car like the original seville takes away from Cadillac and makes it more a bmw. Though its nice to see the Cadillac Ct6 come out first big car in awhile but still is closer to a seville than a deville or fleetwood
If there's anything GM can't be faulted with, it's in the comfortable riding characteristics of their cars. They'd have to be building a single purpose racing machine for them to come up with a harsh riding suspension system.
Drum brakes on an Escalade? OMG LOL
I have to disagree because I owned a 2000 Eldorado wich was really not put together to well and just felt like junk and it was close to 50k
You can't go wrong with this
my 1999 cadillac escalade 300,000 still working perfectly
Probably the most shameless example of badge engineering GM ever did. And of course Motorweek was gushing with praise about it, like they did for every car.
This was the epitome of rebadging. the only thing the escalade had over the Denali was a woodgrain steering wheel, leather shift knob, and perforated leather seats, the Denali had solid two-tone leather seats. Other than that it was the same wheels, same grill, same body panels, same entertainment system, same everything.
@@dariog36th it was there oh s*** response to the unexpected success of the Navigator.
@@daveromanyshyn1170 The Navigator was too far for GM to catch in just 1 year. The Navigator had a 3rd row seat, GPS navigation, and a whole bunch of other bells and whistles. I guess GM just figured Cadillac is the standard of luxury so lets just slap a Cadillac badge on our most luxurious SUV and hope people buy it. Really all they had to do was focus and add more luxury features to the Denali like digital climate controls and things like that.
Pretty much the Tahoe with a Cadillac grill
I don't think it is garbage by any means. Just way over priced. The years after this would prove to be great for the Escalade. KISS
it was the only working mans working Escalade... still is. you didnt mind using it for SUV things if you didnt mind the price, not so with pretty much any of the following offerings of it.
DRUM BRAKES? SHAMEFUL.
+RyanAudi39 the tacoma still has drums in the back. They say its for "reliability" or at least thats what the toyota fanboys say
+John Doe on top of that, they recycle the parts. You can find all sorts of parts in a 15 year old toyota in a new toyota today. Imagine GM using mirror switches, door switches, buttons from a 2003 GMC Yukon in todays Yukons. And then under all the door panels, dashboard, and hoods, theyre also using old parts. Every brand does it to a certain extent, for example, imma use the yukon again, they carry the SAME EXACT PEDALS as they did since the late 90's. But toyota is just over the top
My 2010 ltz Silverado has drum brakes in the back its stupid
lmaooo
Frank Magana Well Toyota isn't claiming the Tacoma is a luxury SUV and asking around 70 K plus for it
I just hated that all the GM Triplets shared the same taillights at this time would’ve been cool but they got the message come 07+
has the same 350 v8 and 4l60E as in my 96 tahoe
0:34 Leland: GMC Yukon Denail
It’s just a Tahoe with caddy’s name slapped on it