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Geneva Motor Show 2002 Cadillac: 100 Years of Automotive Luxury and State-of-the-Art Technology
A Cadillac, however, has more to it than inner values - the elegant, unmistakable form vocabulary reflecting the discriminating esthetic tastes of the owner has always been a traditional virtue. In 1927 the LaSalle was the first commercially available American car created by a stylist - Harley Earl. When head designer, Earl later invented the spectacular tail fin style inspired by aircraft design. In 1948 the Sixty Special became the first model to incorporate the feature. For almost two decades Cadillac styling was defined by the fins, the all-time height record being set by the '59 models with fins towering up 97 cm. Equally impressive were the massive front bumper horns from the 1950s, known commonly as "Dagmars" after a voluptuous TV star of that era. The beginning of Cadillac's second century now kicks off with the bold accented contours and distinctive design of the new CTS. It is the first production model to reinterpret the features of futuristic Cadillac concept vehicles like the Evoq, Imaj and Vizón. So far over 11 million Cadillac models sold in the USA Cadillac has been part of GM since 1909. The one millionth Cadillac, a Coupé de Ville, came off the Detroit production line on November 25, 1949. The economic boom in the USA then saw a rapid surge in Cadillac sales. While the first million took 47 years, just nine years passed until the second production million. In the meantime the brand has sold more than 11 million cars (1910 - 2000) in the USA only. Cadillac automobiles are currently assembled at plants in Lansing, Michigan; Arlington, Texas; and Detroit, Michigan. Highest quality is the brand credo since inception "Craftsmanship is a vocation, precision is a law" was the motto of Henry Martyn Leland (1843 - 1932). Having designed the single-cylinder later fitted in the Model A, in 1902 the talented precision machinist persuaded the directors of the "Detroit Automobile Company" to found Cadillac. After originally joining the company as chief constructor, Henry Martyn Leland eventually headed the company from December 1904 through 1922 with the assistance of his son Wilfred. Absolute precision manufacturing was one of Cadillac's outstanding strengths from the outset. Standardized spare parts that could be fitted without reworking were extremely rare in the automotive industry at the time. This generally meant customers with a defective piston had to buy an entire new engine - whereas cylinders or pistons in a Cadillac could be changed individually, quickly and cheaply. Henry M. Leland had developed the principle of limit gauging for checking low manufacturing tolerances. Each piston was inserted into two differently-sized cylinders; it was supposed to fit into the larger one, and not into the other. The pistons that failed this go-not-go test were melted back down. In 1907 Cadillac also acquired so-called "Jo-block" gauges from Johansson of Sweden, which were used to check the accuracy of the other gauges. This production concept rapidly paid off. At a competition organized by the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) of Great Britain in February 1908, Cadillac gave an awesome demonstration of the benefits of its standardized, interchangeable parts. Three of the eight brand-new Cadillac models were initially selected by the jury. After covering a few laps of the Brooklands racetrack, they were disassembled by mechanics into a total of 721 separate parts. RAC jury members then scrambled these components in a garage and left them again in three piles each comprising 721 pieces. Some components such as the oil pump, gearwheels or pistons were replaced from spare parts stocks. The mechanics managed to reassemble the three Cadillacs within two days - without reworking or overgrinding a single part. After just a few turns of the crankshaft, the three vehicles started with ease before a 500-mile run in Brooklands. In February 1909 Cadillac became the first American carmaker to win the Dewar Trophy for this extraordinary technical achievement. The accolade, the automotive industry's equivalent of the Novel Prize, takes its name from British politician Sir Thomas Dewar. Soon after winning the Dewar Trophy, Cadillac adopted the famous "Standard of the World" slogan. Today, of course, Cadillac cars continue to meet the highest standards of quality. One example is the Grand River factory in Lansing, Michigan - the first new General Motors assembly plant in the USA since 1986. General Motors invested around 560 million dollars (645 millions euro) in the state-of-the-art factory, which brings together the production expertise of a global company. The brand-new assembly lines were inaugurated at the end of 2001 with the production of the new Cadillac CTS, to be followed in 2003 by the new Cadillac SRX. The Wreath and Crest emblem over the decades Detroit's founder, Antonie de la Mothe Cadillac, and other descendants of the Count of Toulouse are immortalized not just by the name but also by the "Wreath and Crest" emblem, now updated over 30 times. The first logo, copyrighted on August 18, 1906, comprised an ornate coronet representing French royalty surrounded by a wreath of tulip-shaped leaves. The picture was completed with swan-like birds called "merlettes," taken from the de la Mothe Cadillac coat of arms. In 1908 the emblem was given a facelift - the coronet being removed for the first time. The logo was lent a pair of wings in the Thirties - to complement the car's new, streamlined design. 1947 saw the introduction of the new, so-called "V and Crest" emblem in reference to the powerful V-engines. The emblem last underwent major modifications in August 1999. Inspired by the works of Dutch artist and designer Piet Mondrian (1872 - 1944), today's emblem features clear, geometric forms. Technical innovation and milestones in the Cadillac model heritage
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