2025 Cadillac Escalade IQ: The Stunning Electric Return of the Ultimate Luxury SUV
There is hardly a better expression of excess and opulence than the Cadillac Escalade. One could even argue that this 'full-size' SUV needs a new category all of its own. With a history that dates back to 1999, the Escalade has been around the block a few times, but never strayed away from being one of the biggest production cars you can buy. The fifth generation of this behemoth was introduced in 2020, and its next big innovation hit the scene in 2023 as the Escalade IQ, the first electric Escalade ever.
Prices start at $129,990 for the base Luxury 1 model and go as high as $150,490 for the Sport 2 with no options. Even if you don't tick any of the boxes, though, the Escalade IQ gives you so much bang for your buck that you likely won't wish you added on more.
Let's start with some numbers to give you an idea of how impressive Cadillac's engineering is here. The Escalade IQ is a nearly 9,000-lb beast, just under 3,000 lbs heavier than the Hummer H2, with a length of 224.3 inches (18.69 ft). Unlike the H2, however, that mass does nothing to detract from its sheer performance. In 'Velocity Max' mode, the Escalade IQ boasts 750 hp, 785 lb.-ft. of torque and a 0 to 60 mph time of 4.7 seconds. Drive modes include Tour, Sport, Tow/Haul, Snow/Ice, Off-Road, Terrain, and a customizable "My Mode." They all do what the name says, but "Sport" is likely the one to pair with Velocity Max mode as it tightens steering response, and makes the suspension and engine calibration more responsive. Don't expect Miata-like handling, but it does help with curvy roads.
Its 24-module Ultium battery sports a capacity of over 200 kWh and a range of 460 miles on a full charge. On a 350 kW DC fast charger, it can add over 100 miles in 10 minutes. Hell, it can even tow up to 8,000 lbs if you really want your own convoy on the interstate. All-wheel drive is, of course, a standard feature.
Cargo space? Up to 119.1 cu. ft. behind the first row, 69.1 cu. ft. behind the second row, or 23.6 cu. ft. behind the third row. It even has a frunk, which Cadillac calls the 'eTrunk' that can accommodate up to 12.2 cu. ft. of cargo. As for how comfy the seven passengers will be, front legroom sits at 45.2 inches, second row legroom at 41.3 inches, and third row legroom at 32.3 inches. It can get a bit cramped for taller folks in the very back, but it's not the worst either.
If a regular second row is just not opulent enough, you can also opt for the $9,495 Executive Second Row package, which extends your legroom to 45 inches, includes a snazzy tray table, your own entertainment system, and 14-way power heated and ventilated seats with lumbar massage.
If you want to ensure that your third-row passengers don't feel excluded, the Escalade IQL adds four more inches of legroom (36.7 inches vs. 32.3 inches) to the third row and an additional inch of headroom (38.2 inches vs. 37.2 inches).
The interior is as luxurious as you'd expect from something of this tax bracket, and feels distinctly on the cutting-edge of technology. Front occupants benefit from a 55' curved pillar-to-pillar touchscreen in crystal clear 8K resolution for the driver and 4K resolution for the passenger. That same passenger can enjoy plenty of infotainment on long journeys, ranging from YouTube to Hulu, to any HDMI-connected source. Rest assured, though, the screen polarizes itself when the car is in motion so the driver won't be distracted by your content. Audio for the passenger screen can only be streamed to headphones, as well.
Other audio is blasted through either an AKG 19-speaker audio system for Luxury 1 and Sport 1 models or an AKG 36-speaker audio system on Luxury 2 and Sport 2 models. Even at loud volumes, the AKG system delivers crisp, clean sound with no distortion. It's damn impressive, and both the 19-speaker and 36-speaker models effortlessly fill the cabin with music. It's a personal, mobile concert hall!
Unfortunately, Cadillac has not learned from customer complaints and continues to hide certain key functions like HVAC behind a touchscreen. Yes, they are displayed on the center console screen, but the age-old annoyance of having to take your eyes off the road to adjust your temperature or fan speed continues to apply here.
While on the topic of the all-too-heavy focus on touchscreens, I have to mention the strange split screen ratios. When I use Google Maps navigation, I like to have my infotainment screen split between that and Spotify so I know what I'm listening to. Rather than have the windows evenly split, like on many other systems, the Escalade IQ instead decides to make both windows uneven squares, thus wasting space on the massive screen and forcing you to look at a smaller map than would have been possible.
This likely has to do with GM's decision to forgo Android Auto and Apple CarPlay and instead opt to have Google service built-in. Other than that annoyance, the infotainment system itself is snappy and smooth, with a pleasing minimalistic aesthetic that fits right in.
Three of the Escalade IQ's best party tricks are the standard GM Super Cruise, Night Vision for better forward visibility in the dark, and 4-wheel steer with 'Arrival Mode,' which will have you driving at an angle up to the curb at social functions to make sure you're noticed by the populace.
Let's talk a bit about that technology. Super Cruise works well, and is a great way to relieve some of the stress in a daily commute as long as it knows what road you're on. Cadillac has also instilled all of the standard safety features we've come to expect from new cars, including Blind Zone Steering Assist, Automatic Emergency Braking, and HD Surround Vision. Even the rearview mirror is connected to the rear camera, ensuring that you can always see a clear image of what's behind you without a headrest or the car's sheer length getting in the way. The Turn Signal Activating Camera is also neat, and definitely helps with blind spots.
The Escalade IQ also features self-park, a feature that uses its many cameras to find a parking spot and maneuver itself without the need for any driver input. At least in theory. In practice, we found it to be a different story.
We had brought the Escalade to a beachside parking lot by Half Moon Bay, where only four or five cars were parked, leaving the rest of the parking spaces empty. The Escalade did not want to park in any of the dozen empty spaces, instead choosing one right next to a Dodge Ram that had also parked away from everyone else. After a few more minutes of looking like CIA agents rounding the parking lot in our black Escalade, we realized that yes, the system needed another parked car to use as a reference. Even when it did manage to park itself, it not only did so painstakingly slow, but it got so close to the Ram that if I wore an Apple Watch, it would have given me a heart rate warning.
When I turned off Escalade IQ's self-driving brain and used my own hands and feet, it was an impressive experience, to say the least. Putting your foot down and getting slammed into your seat by an SUV that's the equivalent of two Hummers is something I don't think I'll ever quite recover from. Don't forget, however, that the Escalade was never meant to be a car you drive, it's a car you get driven in.
The real enjoyment of the Escalade comes from being chauffeured in it. Sure, the driver has a lot of power on tap to play with, but the focus here was not on driving engagement. Rather, it was on making sure that whoever is sitting in any other seat forgets about the outside world and is pampered to their heart's content with massaging heated seats and enough infotainment for any road trip.
The interior finishes depend on the trim, and it would be nice if Cadillac offered more options and levels of customization. The Luxury 1 and Sport 1 are limited to grayscale leather seats paired with equally dark accents.
The Luxury 2 and Sport 2 get more interesting, adding a darker tan looking leather dubbed 'Camelia' with black accents or a dark blue dubbed 'Harbor Blue' with the same black accents. Imagine how stunning it would be to step into an interior fully finished in burgundy, deep green, or even a lighter shade of blue. Even the wood trim, of which there is plenty and is unequivocally gorgeous, is only offered in black. I think a more natural, open-pore shade of wood would look right at home in an Escalade and brighten the cabin at the same time.
A lot of the exterior colors are attractive, with Deep Space Metallic (dark blue-ish gray), Black Cherry Tint (sexy burgundy), and Midnight Steel Frost (silvery blue) taking top points. Flare Metallic (silver), Black Raven (black) and Summit White (white) are also available. A wider range of exterior colors would also be welcome and I feel they would really make the Escalade pop. Perhaps a deep green yet again or a tan matching the interior's 'Camelia' leather would further enhance its on-road presence while maintaining the VIP SUV aesthetic. The roof can also be finished in black if a two-tone look is what you're going after.
At the end of the day, the Cadillac Escalade IQ does what it was always intended to do. It's a plush, high-tech monster that caters to the elite who want nothing to do with the outside world when they're on the road. And that's fine. These kinds of things do sell like hotcakes. Cadillac reported that its Escalade sales were up 3.5% in 2024, and the model has remained the #1 selling car in its segment since 2014.
For the past 26 years, the Cadillac Escalade has been the quintessential luxury SUV for executives, rappers, and anyone with equally deep pockets. The electrified IQ continues that legacy without breaking a sweat, while adding eye-popping power into the equation. If a plush mansion on wheels that could gap some performance cars is what you had on your 2025 bingo card, the Cadillac Escalade IQ delivers on all of that, and then some.
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Motor 1
5 hours ago
- Motor 1
Why Carbon-Ceramic Brakes Are Expensive. And Why They Might Be Worth It
A couple of years ago, a Brembo engineer told me something that stuck: If you buy a car with carbon-ceramic brakes, you'll likely never need to replace the rotors. I'd heard the benefits of carbon-ceramic brakes talked up before, but this particularly bold claim seemed wild, an answer to the ultimate question: Are these fancy brakes worth their huge price tag? On the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing, the carbon-ceramics are a $9,000 option; BMW charges $8,500; Porsche charges more than $9,000. Carbon-ceramic brakes are routinely among the priciest options for cars that already have a lot of big-ticket extras. Is there any world in which they're worth it? Welcome to The Rabbit Hole, a bi-weekly column where Senior Editor Chris Perkins explores his latest obsession with automotive technology. He speaks to the best in the business to understand how cars work and what the future of the automobile looks like. Photo by: Brembo Cast iron is a wonderful material for making brake discs. It's relatively cheap, easy to cast and machine into shape, and crucially, it has higher thermal conductivity than, say, steel. To perhaps state the obvious here, brakes convert a car's kinetic energy (forward motion) into heat via friction between the pad and rotor when the two come together. So a brake disc's thermal properties are of key importance. "[Cast-iron discs] have a better ability of absorbing the heat," explains Emanuele Bruletti, senior engineering manager for Brembo North America. "They can absorb it at a lower rate [than other common materials], and therefore, they can help in taking some of that away from the pads." It's the same reason cast iron makes for a great skillet, but if you cook with one, you know just how heavy it is. Weight is a car's enemy. So too is the increased demand on braking systems as cars evolve. This story was available to our newsletter subscribers before it hit the website. Want early access? Sign up below. back Sign up For more information, read our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use . "What has been driving the size increase in braking systems in the last few years is basically the performance envelope increasing," Bruletti explains. Cars are simply more powerful and heavier. Tires also play a role. Bruletti says that modern developments in tires have allowed for far greater deceleration rates, further increasing the demand on a braking system. That increased demand translates to more heat. Upping the size of your cast-iron rotor helps deal with all that heat better and improves the brake's ability to effectively slow a car. For obvious reasons, though, you can only make rotors so big, both for packaging and weight. Brake rotors are unsprung, which means their mass has a disproportionately high effect on ride and handling relative to a car's sprung masses. They're also rotating masses, which have a big effect on a vehicle's ability to accelerate, brake, and turn. "If you can shave weight off your car and more importantly, unsprung weight and evenly more importantly unsprung rotating weight, which is what a rotor is, [there are] huge gains to be had in performance," says James Walker Jr., a racer, engineer, and author on a book about braking systems. Chasing lightness, Dunlop developed the first carbon-fiber reinforced carbon brakes for the Concorde in the 1960s, and by the 1980s, these became common in Formula 1. However, these carbon-carbon brakes, still in use at the top levels of motorsport, are entirely unsuitable for road use, as they don't work well at cold temperatures. They're also extremely expensive and time-consuming to make, even now. A carbon-reinforced silicon-carbide matrix brings some of the weight-saving benefits of carbon-carbon brakes, but in a package that actually works at cold temperatures. And while still expensive and time-consuming to make, a carbon-ceramic brake disc is a lot easier and cheaper to manufacture than a carbon-carbon disc. We're talking a production time of around a couple days vs four months here. (That said, Brembo can make a cast-iron disc in about two hours.) Photo by: Porsche Photo by: Ferrari German company SGL Carbon introduced carbon-ceramic brakes in a road car, with the 2001 Porsche 911 GT2. Brembo's first carbon-ceramic brakes arrived a year later, with the Ferrari Enzo. In 2009, SGL and Brembo formed a joint venture for the development and manufacture of carbon-ceramic brakes, and today, it's one of, if not the largest, suppliers of brakes of this type. Bruletti says the carbon-ceramic matrix it uses has about a third the density of its cast iron. In terms of actual weight savings, you see all sorts of numbers thrown out. A good example is the brake discs in the previous-generation M3 and M4. In a technical document, BMW quotes a 30.6-pound weight for the car's standard front rotors and 17.1 pounds for the carbon-ceramics. So nearly half. The proportional weight savings for the carbon-ceramic rear rotors on the old M3 and M4 are similar, and that's despite the fact that BMW's carbon discs were slightly larger than their cast-iron counterparts. So great! But, we also need to talk about what carbon-ceramic brakes don't do. As Walker explains, a brake system is, essentially, a series of hydraulic levers that turn the relatively light force the driver applies to the brake pedal into a huge force at the road that slows the car down. In a road car, a 20 to 30 pound pedal input can translate to 1G of deceleration. This is called gain. Here, carbon-ceramic brakes don't have an advantage. "There's nothing that's done with a carbon-ceramic system compared to a cast-iron system that increases the mechanical output of the brake system," Walker explains. "So there's no real advantage to them in that space. The only reason people say, 'Oh, they feel better, they stop better,' is not because it's carbon ceramic, it's because [the automaker has] tuned that carbon-ceramic system to have a higher gain." Taking things a step further, Walker also points out that the braking system is only as good as the tire you have attached to it. Imagine you could have two identical cars, on the same model tires, the only difference being that one has cast-iron brakes, the other has a carbon-ceramic brake package. The brakes don't change the level of grip the tire is capable of. On the flipside, and to Bruletti's earlier point, the tire has a profound effect on the energy that goes into the braking system. Photo by: Ferrari As we've established, a carbon-ceramic disc is materially very different from a cast-iron disc. Carbon-ceramic has a much lower level of thermal conductivity than iron, but also far less mass and heat capacity. Which is a good and bad thing. Good because the brake disc can withstand the higher temperatures that today's faster/heavier/grippier vehicles generate in extreme braking events, courtesy of that ceramic chemistry. Brembo says carbon-ceramic discs can comfortably operate between 1,000 and 1,400 degrees Fahrenheit and can even withstand temperatures beyond 1,800 degrees. That's why carbon-ceramic brakes are frequently praised for their resistance to fade on track. But since the lighter and less-dense carbon-ceramic rotors gain and lose temperature quickly, that leads to huge thermal stresses on the rest of the braking components as they heat and cool in rapid succession. A cast-iron rotor better contains its heat, which keeps everything else cool. "You need to find a way of dissipating that heat away from the pads in some other way, and this is where it becomes very important to provide the necessary cooling at the brake system," Bruletti says. Photo by: Porsche Photo by: Porsche Beyond carefully designed cooling from both external components and internal rotor ducting, the fact that carbon-ceramic rotors aren't made from a homogenous material also has implications . The length, diameter, and orientation of the individual carbon fibers all have an effect on the material's thermal capacity. Adding additional layers and coatings also improves thermal capacity, which is why Brembo and SGL offer CCB brakes with additional ceramic friction layers on both sides, and CCW brakes, which use five carbon-ceramic layers. These options allow automakers to size down components, further saving weight, but their manufacturing processes are more time-consuming and thus, expensive. That's helpful because generally, carbon-ceramic rotors are larger than their cast-iron equivalents, in cars where both are optional. This is a direct result of the heat a carbon-ceramic rotor reflects into the pad during large braking events. 'In order to guarantee a stability of the friction material, you need to go larger with the pad,' Bruletti explains. And when you make the pad larger, you make the caliper larger, and the rotor larger. It's all cyclical. Yet, there's also a virtuous cycle here. Reducing unsprung, rotational mass means there's less weight to control. In theory, an automaker can use the weight reduction from carbon-ceramic brakes to employ smaller tires, lower spring and damper rates, smaller anti-roll bars, and so on. Photo by: McLaren All because of the outsize effect that a brake rotor's weight has on the rest of the car. That's a big part of why Ferrari and McLaren only use carbon-ceramic brakes, beyond the simple need for a brake system that can handle the huge stresses these fast cars generate. And now, we get to the original claim, the thing that started me down this path. Does a carbon-ceramic rotor last the life of the car? Yes. In some cases. 'The wear of the components really depends on usage, how you use them,' Bruletti says. 'If we assume that the usage, the cycles will be the same, yes, it is fair to say that in normal driving and non-track usage, just everyday driving, a carbon ceramic rotor will last in my opinion almost the entire life of your vehicle.' It's not just the guy from Brembo saying that too. Walker agrees that in normal street use, a carbon-ceramic rotor will last a very long time. Obviously you'll need to replace pads, but the rotors could have incredible longevity. But add track use into the mix, and the calculus becomes very different. With lots of heavy braking events, the carbon fibers in a carbon-ceramic rotor will eventually burn out. They'll lose thermal capacity. At road speeds, this won't happen much, if at all, but depending on what sort of car you drive on track, what sort of tracks you go to, and how you drive it, the carbon fibers can burn out very quickly. Photo by: BMW Let's say you're running your new, 5,300-pound BMW M5 at Road America, where you'll regularly blow past 150 mph on the track's long straights. Let's also say you're one of the last of the late brakers, pushing your brake zones as deep into the corner as you dare, hitting the pedal as hard as you can. If you've got carbon brakes on, you shouldn't expect those rotors to last very long at all. But say you've got a Porsche 911 GT3, which weighs in around 3,330 pounds, and you're at Lime Rock Park, which has only one heavy braking zone. And let's also say that you're a bit more measured. Rather than braking hard and late, you brake a little lighter, a little earlier. In that case, you can reasonably expect a more life out of your carbon-ceramic rotors. That difference, though, is why Porsche still offers cast-iron rotors on its GT cars, even the mighty GT3 RS. It knows that some customers will use up their brakes tracking their cars often, and in that instance, it makes sense to go for cast-iron discs, which are much cheaper to replace. Some other things to consider: With usage, a carbon-ceramic rotor doesn't lose thickness like a cast-iron rotor, but when those carbon fibers burn out, they do decrease in weight. This means a carbon-ceramic rotor won't develop cracks or warp like a cast-iron rotor would on track, so there's another point in favor. It's also why the hats on many carbon-ceramic rotors list a minimum weight. Once the rotor goes below that weight, it's time for a replacement. So, there isn't a simple answer to whether carbon-ceramic brakes are 'worth it.' But given what we all now know, their high upfront cost can be offset by rotor longevity, and the myriad other benefits the technology brings. It becomes a question of you, the customer. How are you going to use your car, and what do you value at the end of the day? More Deep Dives Brake Dust Is a Problem. Brembo Has a Solution Why BMW's B58 Is a True Successor to the Toyota 2JZ Share this Story Facebook X LinkedIn Flipboard Reddit WhatsApp E-Mail Got a tip for us? Email: tips@ Join the conversation ( )
Miami Herald
6 hours ago
- Miami Herald
Auto review: 2025 Lincoln Navigator is definitive American luxury
While the 2025 Lincoln Navigator' sales trails the top-selling Cadillac Escalade, it was the 1998 Lincoln Navigator that revived the idea of a full-size, body-on-frame luxury SUV, a segment pioneered by the 1966 Jeep Super Wagoneer. And for 2025, the Lincoln Navigator continues to live large in a way that recalls the Lincoln Town Car. Oops. There, I said it. The phrase that makes Lincoln executives' eyes roll. And yet, the 2025 Lincoln Navigator fulfills much the same role. Both are unapologetically sizable, body-on-frame luxury vehicles with a healthy dose of chrome flashiness and outsized extravagance. And the Navigator, like the Town Car, benefits from being comfortable in its own skin. It's above hip and trendy, reveling in a knowing American opulence. Yet this is not just some retro ride. It boasts a 48-inch dashtop screen as big as the bank account it takes to buy the rig. The screen contains everything you'd expect, including an instrument cluster, infotainment system and a passenger-side screen filled with options. It's placed up high, so it's unmissable while driving. But it's controlled by a secondary, center-mounted touchscreen located low on the instrument panel. So changing functions requires looking away from the road, something the large screen was meant to address. Adjusting mirrors or a tilt steering wheel requires accessing on-screen buttons rather than physical controls, which some may find frustrating. And information density is sparse on the right side of the screen, considering how much real estate it inhabits. But you can play video and gaming apps to either side of the large display when the vehicle is parked. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 5G Wi-Fi hotspot, Amazon Alexa, Google Maps and a 28-speaker Revel Ultima 3-D audio system come standard. And there are more than a dozen USB-C ports, so staying connected is easy. 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Its horizontal taillights are a modern update on classic Lincoln lighting. The rear gets a split tailgate, the top part flipping up and the bottom portion dropping down, a la Range Rover. And at night, the large Lincoln star illuminates up front, ensuring everyone knows that you're piloting a truly extravagant mobile family room. But regardless of how much you spend, there's only one powertrain, whether you opt for the standard Navigator or the stretched Navigator L. Carried over from the previous model along with its platform, a twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V-6 and 10-speed automatic transmission generate 440 horsepower and 510 pound-feet of torque. It's EPA-rated at 17 mpg, and premium fuel is required. All-wheel-drive and an adaptive suspension with continuously controlled damping are standard. Towing is rated at 8,700 pounds with the optional heavy-duty tow package. Also available are trailer hitch assist and pro trailer backup assist, which make trailering so much easier. Despite measuring 210 inches long and tipping the scales at more than three tons, the 2025 Lincoln Navigator manages to drive smaller than you might suppose. OK, there's no hiding its avoirdupois while cornering, although there's less wallowing than you'd expect, thanks to the suspension. There are foreign competitors that offer sportier handling in similar dimensions, but it's like trying to get an elephant to moonwalk. That's why the 2025 Lincoln Navigator remains something special. It doesn't try to. It proves powerfully quick, but remains incredibly quiet, comfortable and controllable. It has an easy self-assurance. The 2025 Lincoln Navigator doesn't try to be something that it isn't. And in an age when it seems you can't trust anyone or anything, It's good to be able to trust your Lincoln. That's true luxury. 2025 Lincoln Navigator Base price: $102,190-$119,190 (including destination charge) Engine: 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged V6 Horsepower/Torque: 440/510 pound-feet EPA rating (combined city/highway): 17 mpg Fuel required: Premium unleaded Length/Width/Height: 210/80/78 inches Ground clearance: 8.9 inches Payload: 1,696 pounds Cargo capacity: 22-107 cubic feet Towing capacity: 8,700 pounds Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.
Motor Trend
9 hours ago
- Motor Trend
King of the Hill: 1968 Cadillac Eldorado vs. 1969 Lincoln Continental Mark III
[This story first appeared in the July/August 2006 issue of MotorTrend Classic] At the end of the 1960s, the luxury-car market was booming to the tune of about $2.5 billion and Detroit owned it. Audis, BMWs, and Mercedes-Benzes were well-built drivers' cars, but these bland-looking boxes were too small, Spartan, and harsh-riding to suit well-heeled Yanks, and Jaguar was busy earning a reputation for quality lapses. So great was the demand for luxury offerings—especially personal-luxury coupes and close-coupled sedans that lesser divisions of the Big Three were fielding flagships of their own: the Buick Riviera, the Olds Toronado, and even the once sporty Ford Thunderbird was becoming a limo. Cadillac and Lincoln clearly needed new blood to assert dominion over these pretenders to the throne. Cadillac decided to go cutting-edge techno with its offering, capitalizing on more than a decade's worth of research and development in front-drive technology. GM, Chrysler, and Ford all toyed with front-drive in the 1930s, with little to show for it. But by 1958, Cadillac had a running front drive prototype with a longitudinal engine. In 1959, Cadillac launched a program to create a spiritual successor for the opulent Eldorado Brougham, with front drive and the possibility of V-12 or V-16 power (see sidebar). Accommodating such a long engine required longitudinal engine placement, rather than the transverse arrangement Olds was developing for its compact front-driver at the time. Then in 1963, GM group vice president Ed Cole ordered Cadillac and Olds to consolidate their front-drive development and share the Buick Riviera's E-body architecture. The Olds Toronado arrived for 1966; the Cadillac trailed by a year while a new assembly line was built. Lincoln's Continental Mark III wasn't built as a hasty reaction to the Eldorado, but rather it was a Lee Iacocca brainstorm to leverage existing Thunderbird architecture and fill excess capacity in the Wixom, Michigan, plant where it was built, thereby cashing in on the personal luxo-coupe craze. The perimeter frame shares its 117.2-inch wheelbase with the four-door 'Bird, but the body is six inches longer. The passenger compartment rides farther aft on the chassis, making room for the regal six-foot prow that provides such a strong visual link with the proportions of the Mark II and the original Continental. Working with a conventional 460-cubic-inch V-8 and rear-drive architecture afforded Lincoln more time and resources to devote to refining its flagship. Extensive chassis reinforcements, rubber isolation of all engine and suspension mounting points, and 150 pounds of sound-deadening materials made the Mark III one of the quietest and smoothest riding cars available when it launched in April 1968. Now Cadillac and Lincoln each had new flagships, both of which decisively overshadowed the lesser-marque pretenders. In July 1970, Motor Trend arranged a meeting of the Cars That Would Be King. 'If you've got the American Dream, if your goal is to move all the way up from your Biscayne station wagon, then the Lincoln Continental Mark III and the Cadillac Eldorado are the end of Status Street. Top of the Heap. King of the Hill. But which one?' Hence was born a six-year serial road test. That first comparison consisted of just four columns of type on three pages, little of which was devoted to deep analysis of the cars' acceleration, braking, and handling, save for a few zingers like this: 'Now any clown who wants to take one of these cars to a road course and see what kind of violent under or oversteer he can force out of these immense, overly dampened, mushily sprung dinosaurs must be a little ding-a-ling.' That said, the Eldorado's variable-ratio steering proved more responsive, while each car's front-disc/rear-drum brakes performed equally well, with lots of fade. (Rudimentary rear-anti-lock systems on both cars were panned by many reviewers as ineffective.) In an unimaginable drag race, the 500-cubic-inch 1970 Eldorado edged the Mark III out by 0.4 second to 60 mph. (Eldo pink-slip racers note: Our testers brake-torqued a launch in second gear to prevent hellacious wheelspin.) Our comparison dwelled more on the luxury aspects of the two cars, finding the Eldorado's seats to be roomier but more fatiguing on long hauls, its gauges and switches easier to read and use, but less opulent looking, and its ride crisper and less luxurious. We crowned the Mark III King of the Hill owing to its superior plushness and luxury. That original comparison test generated bags of impassioned reader comment, so when Cadillac reskinned the Eldo for 1971, we reprised our King of the Hill comparo. The new styling didn't strike us as an improvement, and in most critical measures the cars shook out similarly. The fit, finish, and build quality of the Lincoln outshone the Cadillac's, and 'the Mark III still comes off like the family that has lived gracefully for years with its money, while the Eldo feels like 'nouveau riche,' trying so hard to tell the world it's wealthy.' Long live King Lincoln! Not. For 1972, the Mark III was replaced by the larger, even cushier Mark IV, and we devised an elaborate tech-heavy four-part analysis. Part one involved a week of in-town driving and an 800-mile road trip, during which the Eldorado offered laudable straight-line stability in contrast with the Mark IV's squirmy yaw on the freeway. Less fatiguing seats cinched the Eldo's lead in this segment. Next we examined resale value (advantage Lincoln), repair records (tie), interior space (Eldo best in front, Mark best in back) and noise levels (tie), and called the round a draw. Part III involved instrumented performance testing, which the Eldorado won decisively. Part IV was a staff straw-poll on styling, which the Lincoln swept almost unanimously. But having won two of the four categories, the Cadillac succeeded in seizing the King's crown from Lincoln. Both cars were largely carried over in 1973 so we devoted the pages to a State-of-the-Luxury-Car-Union address, noting that while the strong-performing Cadillac retained its crown, the posh and stylish Lincoln was winning the sales war. Maybe we were losing interest, but our 1974 installment in the drama was so mired in a painful knights-of-the-round-table thematic device that details are difficult to mine, but while the Eldorado got better gas mileage, the Mark IV was now faster, and it still rode smoother, and so it won back the crown. Our final installment was renamed 'The King's Ransom Road Test' and was expanded to include a Chrysler Imperial coupe. The story also included a parallel test of the top sedans from BMW, Jaguar, and Mercedes-Benz. On the domestic side, the Mark IV was deemed quietest, the Eldorado the quickest, and the Imperial the best in handling and braking. The official winner? 'None of the above.' Our editors had caught a whiff of the svelte new Euro-firm Cadillac Seville, and, even though it wasn't tested, we predicted it would be the new King of Both Hills. How have the original contenders for the crown stood the test of time? To answer the question, Sandy Edelstein and Scott King bought one of each, both built with the rare vinyl-top delete options, and let us take them for a spin. The cars are in exceptional condition, and each has a unique character. The Cadillac's sharp-edged design is by far the most interesting to new-millennium eyes, while the Continental Mark III—especially in steel-topped guise—harks faithfully to the fabulous Mark II. Both cars accelerate effortlessly, with little audible report from the engine room. Neither offers even a modicum of steering feel or feedback, but the Cadillac responds to its helm more quickly and directly, and its brakes seem less vague and remote. The Eldorado's suspension filters out less of the road's rumbles and bumps, leaving a slightly crusty ride quality. By contrast, the Lincoln approximates a wheeled isolation tank as closely as any 1969 car ever did. It wafts over road imperfections without squeaking or rattling, though this may say more about its low mileage (34,000 to the Eldo's 86,000) than about its original assembly quality. The view down each car's immense hood certainly puts one in an imperial frame of mind. The Cadillac's bow is dominated by a coffin-shaped central bulge; the Mark's is bordered by chrome-topped fences. The Eldorado's minimalist interior furnishings, though dressed up with real wood accents, can't compare with the Lincoln's classy neo-Duesenberg cabin. After a day spent swapping back and forth between the cars, the descent from the high desert above Palm Springs in the Mark III with the A/C cranked and Old Blue-Eyes crooning through the ($245.30) StereoSonic AM/8-Track five-speaker Hi-Fi validated our original decision, so we hereby re-crown the Lincoln Continental Mark III, King of the (1969-1970) Hill. Would the edgy Eldorado have been crowned king with a V-12 or V-16 snuggled under that mile-long hood? Sure seems likely, and it almost happened. One idea was to marry two small-block V-8s to form a 530-cube V-16. This concept received little development, but GM engineering staff progressed through several generations of development and durability testing of a 500-cubic-inch 90-degree SOHC 24-valve V-12 with 30-degree offset crankshaft pins. Few details have ever been released about this so-called 'V-future' engine that was intended to proliferate throughout the Cadillac range, starting with the Eldorado. Early versions of the aluminum-block engine had iron cylinder liners, but later iterations employed an innovative die-casting of high-silicon aluminum intended to run without sleeves. On second thought, maybe it's just as well that this technology was tested on the Vega. 1969 Lincoln Continental Mark III: The IV-Door The Mark III was a runaway sales success, outselling the original Continental and Mark II combined before the end of 1968 and besting Eldorado sales by 20 percent. Might Lincoln have moved even more metal with a four-door? Maybe. An early prototype of a reskinned Thunderbird was shot down, but another true Mark III four-door is rumored to have been built, possibly for Henry Ford II. Little is known about that car, but word of its existence may have leaked out to Martin-Marietta boss Grover Hermann—he contacted Ford to request a four-door Mark of his own. Ford farmed the work out to Lehmann-Peterson and Moloney Coachworks, who charged $13,325 to stretch the body and frame 7.3 inches and custom-fit suicide doors, adding over 700 pounds. Current owner Phil G.D. Schaefer reports that the body remains as tight and quiet as a coupe's. Ask the Guys who Own Them Mortgage broker Sandy Edelstein and automotive product specialist Scott King collect coupes large (1958 Caddy) and small (Honda N600), none of which has a vinyl top. Why we like them: 'We both grew up around Cadillacs, and the cutting edge style of the first-gen front-drive Eldorado really imprinted on us. The Lincoln was irresistibly gorgeous, and with the ultra-rare steel top it seemed the perfect match for our Eldorado.' Why they're collectible: Each was the flagship, not only of its marque, but of its parent corporation. The Eldorado pushed the technological and styling envelopes, the Continental Mark III aimed to reprise the opulence and build quality of the 1956-1957 Mark II. Restoring/Maintaining: Production volumes were relatively high, and most parts are readily available from multiple sources. Beware: Rust attacks the rockers, trunk floor, and around the bottom of vinyl tops; check for filler in cars that have been repainted. Expect to pay: (Eldorado) Concours ready: $15,000; solid driver $7500; tired runner: $2500; (Continental Mark III) Concours ready: $15,750; solid driver $7500; tired runner: $4000 Join the Clubs: Cadillac & LaSalle club ( Lincoln & Continental Owners Club ( Our Take Then: So who is the King of the Hill? As long as there are Eldorado and Mark III owners around, cigar sales will continue to go up and no one will ever agree. The Eldorado has a lot of seemingly more advanced technical conveniences, but from a strictly plush, posh, luxury standpoint, the Mark III has the intimacy a car like this should offer.—Bill Sanders, MotorTrend , July 1970 Now: The Lincoln Continental and Cadillac Eldorado were built in a golden age before emissions and safety regs strangled engines and ham-strung car designers, yet after air-conditioning and disc brakes were popularized. So in many ways, no future car can hope to ever achieve the style and panache of these Kings of the Hill.
