Take a walk around the '07 Cadillac Escalade and it's basically the same size as its predecessor. But the platform is completely new. Along with the 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon, this new Cadillac Escalade rides on a fully boxed frame with hydroformed rails in the front and rear. According to David Schiavone, product manager for the Cadillac Escalade, bending rigidity has improved 35 percent, and torsional rigidity is up 49 percent.
Overall length measures 202.5 inches, an increase of 3.5 inches over last year, while wheelbase, width and height are the same. Compared to the Lincoln Navigator and Infiniti QX56, the Escalade is about 5 inches shorter nose to tail, with a 5-inch-shorter wheelbase. To improve handling and smooth out the ride, engineers widened the Caddy's front track 3 inches (now 68 inches) for 2007, while the rear track is up 1 inch (67 inches).
In place of the old truck's independent torsion-bar front suspension, the '07 Cadillac Escalade gets a more sophisticated coil-over-shock design with a larger 36mm stabilizer bar. In back, there's still a five-link solid axle setup, though the rear stabilizer bar measures 28mm to last year's 32mm. All suspension mounts are stiffer this year, Schiavone tells us, and the adaptive Road Sensing Suspension remains standard fare. Rack and pinion steering is new, and it should be a significant improvement over the 2006 model's sloppy, recirculating-ball setup.
Braking has never been a strong point for the Cadillac Escalade, so engineers addressed that as well, fitting the '07 model with an all-new brake system that includes larger rotors and stiffer front calipers. The ABS is more sophisticated this year, but we would have liked to see Cadillac add Electronic Brakeforce Distribution and BrakeAssist as well.
Eighteen-inch wheels are standard, with the 22s, which come wrapped in Bridgestone performance tires (285/45R22), available as an option. Cadillac didn't originally plan to offer wheels that large, but customers wanted them. If you've read about the danger of dubs, rest assured that Cadillac has you covered on the safety front. "We designed the 22s to mate with the ride and handling of the vehicle," Sipes says.
Sirloin Under the Hood
Three hundred forty-five horsepower doesn't astound like it used to, so engineers bored out the Cadillac Escalade's 6.0-liter V8, turning it into a 6.2-liter that pumps out 403 hp at 5,700 rpm and 417 lb-ft of torque at 4,400 rpm. That gives the Caddy an easy 100-hp edge over the Navigator and allows it to take back the torque crown from the QX56 (390 lb-ft). Additionally, unlike the outgoing 6.0-liter, the 6.2-liter has an aluminum block.
More impressive than its big horsepower number is the fact that this pushrod engine uses variable valve timing on both its intake and exhaust valves to improve acceleration and efficiency — it's the first mass-produced OHV engine to incorporate this feature. Starting in 2008, Cadillac will equip the Escalade with cylinder-deactivation technology (GM's Displacement on Demand) as well, which should further improve fuel mileage.
Without DoD, Sipes says the '07 model should do 2 mpg better on its highway estimate than the 2006 model, which is rated at 17 mpg highway and 13 mpg city. If true, this is impressive considering the new truck weighs 250 pounds more than its predecessor and delivers 58 more horsepower.
Much of the credit for the improved fuel usage has to go to the new six-speed automatic transmission. With the wider gear spread, engineers were able to use a shorter first-gear ratio to give the Cadillac Escalade more off-the-line kick, while lowering the final-drive ratio from 3.73 to 3.42 to improve fuel economy. The new transmission also offers a manual-shift mode.
Look into the cabin of the 2006 Cadillac Escalade and there's leather and wood, but it's obviously tacked onto a 10-year-old pickup skeleton. In contrast, the 2007 version looks like a genuine luxury vehicle. The two-tone dash has graceful lines that easily accommodate a large navigation screen and generous walnut inlays. Soft-touch surfaces are everywhere, as they should be in this class, and they have attractive European-style grain patterns. The steering wheel is no longer an eyesore, and it frames a set of white-and-blue electroluminescent gauges. A Bose 5.1 Surround Sound audio system is standard.
Although almost all of the Cadillac Escalade's competition now use console-mounted shifters, Cadillac has stuck with the tried and true column-mounted lever.
Depending on your passenger-hauling needs, the 2007 Cadillac Escalade can be equipped to accommodate six, seven or eight. Heated front seats are standard, but you'll spend a little extra to cool your backside and heat the steering wheel.
The Cadillac Escalade has never been a safety leader, but that could change in 2007. Cadillac's StabiliTrak stability control system is standard, and as on the Navigator, it now incorporates a rollover avoidance feature that measures the vehicle's pitch angle and activates the system if necessary.
Rear park assist is included on every Cadillac Escalade, but if you order a navigation system, you get a handy rear backup camera as in the QX56 and LX 470. Standard remote start lets you make a quick getaway when you need to, and the system even automatically begins heating or cooling the interior.
Finally, the '07 Cadillac Escalade spreads some goodwill, as it's designed to do less damage to smaller vehicles in frontal and offset collisions, thanks to collapsible brackets on its front frame rails.
If you're not blinded by all the chrome and horsepower, the 2007 Cadillac Escalade is available with virtually every safety and luxury feature you could want. That doesn't exactly make it a sensible purchase, but full-size luxury SUVs have never been for sensible people anyway. And according to Jeff Kuhlman, the director of Cadillac Communications, "You can expect prices of the Cadillac Escalade to be in the neighborhood they are today."
