As to the two Escolades selling in the high 60k range (which they do after discount) there are no cars from England, Germany or Japan that can touch the Cadillac’s fit, finish, or drivetrain refinement in the large passenger car segment- I looked (my opinion but one based on YEARS of driving high end Euro luxury vehicles). You have to drive an Escolade to appreciate what a world class road car it is. It’s like a Bentley with a commanding view of the road- almost like flying a low level airplane, smooth, powerful, quite, luxurious and SAFE.

Perhaps for some a 70k car is too much money to spend but for me it’s in line with what I’ve always spent on cars and this is the best high end road car I’ve ever owned.

I can appreciate many of your arguments. In terms of the difference in price between the two models, I’m only going by what Cadillac releases as the base price of each vehicle (Regular-$63,155,Hybrid-$74,085). Especially in the current market, there are obviously great deals to be had for those with the money, or financing to make it happen. In terms of fuel efficiency, it is always hard to put a price on a cleaner vehicle. How much is a 100% clean vehicle worth? In this case, how much is a40% cleaner vehicle worth? I’m sure there is a better balance. Just my opinion, but it isn’t worth $74,000. As far as cost of ownership goes, http://autos.aol.com/cars-Cadillac-Escalade-2009/cost-to-own, calculates the non-hybrid as costing $88,875 over the first five years. The Hybrid version as $90,433.

As a plug for an article posted by Suzanne today, I think the AWD GMC Yukon Denali Hybrid (with a price tag of $62030) offers a better alternative. I totally agree with you that Cadillac, and in fact many GM cars, do not get the credit they deserve. Most of that is just perception. Despite the fact that I regularly get slammed for allegedly not liking Cadillacs, I think they are mostly on the right track. Thanks for your comments.

Not to belabor the point, but the difference between the hybrid and non-hybrid Escalade is 4k not 10k (unless you have no clue how to negotiate). In fact when I did the math, purchasing my non-hybrid Escalade will cost me at least 2k more to drive over the next 5 years then the 4k more “expensive” hybrid version. This holds true based on driving 14k miles per year with gas averaging $3.50 per gallon over the next 5 years.

As to Cadillac being expensive, I don’t know about that. I have purchased nothing but Euro $$$ cars for the past 20 years- BMW, Mercedes and Range Rover. Comparatively speaking, my new Escalade is a bargain that gives up nothing in quality or “fun factor” that I can detect. As a side when I was in my 30′s, I would not have been caught dead in a GM product but now that I am half way through my 40′s, the current Cadillacs make perfect sense to me.

In these down economic times it felt good to buy American. Hopefully more people will vote American with their hard won and soon to taxed to death dollars.

Ted

The “point” is that from an economic standpoint, the 10 grand + of the hybrid makes the increases in fuel efficiency largely irrelevant. Actually my main point was that most are speculating that the Escalade Hybrid, as it was currently designed, would get axed. The first “point” was merely one explanation as to why. (improved mpg figures are not significant enough) I’m sure they will do better with the next attempt. We are all hoping for a rebound in the US automakers and I do believe Cadillac already turns out a quality product…..not that anyone can afford it.

Fact- My Escalade averages around 11 to 12 mpg in combined city hwy driving. The hybrid averages around 18 to 19 mpg and runs cleaner in terms of green house gas emissions. That you could discount a 40% increase in fuel economy as “virtually no incentive with gas milage…” only shows your bias. Were I to speculate, and I will, you probably favor strong protection for American Union workers while driving a foreign car. I’ll let others reach what conclusions they may regarding this all too common dichotomy.

As for myself, I have always driven German cars but given the current state of the US economy, and the absolutely stellar performance of GM’s large trucks like the Cadillac Escalade, I can’t imagine driving anything else- hybrid or gas. For those who need a large hauler and who have a green conscious then by all means test drive the hybrid and if you crave power, get the gas engine and send a message to Washington that the American consumer, and not politicians, should dictate what US car manufacturers build.

With Zero percent financing and the improvements in GM cars over the past 5 years, there has never been a better time to buy American.