That's pure conjecture. Money alone does not create a sales success, or even a good car. There's tons of examples of this, the most obvious one being $6 billion for Ford to develop the Contour world car. GM is spending less than that on the entire revamped Cadillac lineup.

I think Caddy still competes with Lincoln with their DeVille, Seville, and Escalade. But they're clearly becoming more internationally focused with the CTS, XLR, and SRX, cars for which Lincoln has basically no answer for.

 

I haven't driven an Escalade or Navigator, but a co worker has a Navi and I checked out an Escalade with my son at the LA show.

Though I like Cadillac's in your face styling & superior engine, If someone is looking for purely a luxury SUV, I'll say the Navigator is nicer than the Escalade. Navagator is designed from the ground up as an SUV, with IRS and what I still think is the best interior on a "big 3" vehicle. Escalade is basically a retrimmed Tahoe, which is built on a live axle frame very close in appearence to a pickup truck. Navigators fatal flaw is that Ford not only made it look boring, it also looks like the old Navigator. When you look at the life span of designs, Ford basically ran the same design for 2 cycles, making the still brand new Lincoln look like it did years ago....and it still has a few more years before it get's a facelift!

As for the LS, it just came out in 1999 as a 2000 model, so to call it old hat isn't very honest (it's only 3 seasons old!). I like the LS's style, but that car's problem is that it's simply overpriced. I rented a V8 LS last Labor day weekend, and it was an exceptional car. Fast, stable, great handling. It could easily take on any other car it's size, especially Infinity's & Lexus' small RWD cars. It was easily a great $30-35,000 car.

Is it a great $42-45,000 car? Noway! That's why sales are declining. By pricing it along side a BMW, if I was going to burn $45K on a car, and the choice was an LS or a BMW, guess what I'd pick? It was selling well as the 1st modern RWD car (it's newer than the Corvette by 2 1/2 years), but now CTS is out with edge and momentum in it's favor (and 2 big movies don't hurt), and it's getting the attention.

IMHO, Ford's stupidity is frittering a perfectly good car away.

 

GM will augment XLR sales with more power as they start to fall. That finally just clicked in my head as to why they're only putting ~300 hp in it to start. They'll sell every one they can make the first year regardless of how much power its making.

 

The Navigator and the Escalade are both very cool SUV's (the bling bling expensive SUV craze isnt my thing but..) and ive sat in both and the Lincoln does have a better interior but IMO i think the Escalade comes off much better on the exterior with the whole "art and science" thing.

Anyway, they're both def. good SUV's but one reason i think the Escalade whoops the Navi is street credit. how many Escalades do you see in music videos or hear about in music songs (esp rap!)? and how many pro athletes have an Escalade in their stable of cars? hell watch MTV Cribs and you'll see AT LEAST one or two Escalades in a celeb's garage, most of the time on some HUGE rims. they're considered classy and upper class and badass all at the same time and are very desirable. Not saying the Nav isnt, it just doesnt have the type of exposure the Escalade gets.

just my .02.

 

The Escalade and Navi are both excellent Suv's, but other than powertrain, what else does the Escalade have that makes it better? I was surprised to read Quions post on the Escalade having a live axle. With it being a luxury brand, wouldn't ride quality and suspension refinement be a priority and a reason to go IRS?

Having said that, i think Cadillac has stepped over Lincoln in its quest to become a legitimate BMW and Mercedes competition. That task is far from easy, and Cadillac still has ways to go, but i believe they're headed in the right direction.

 

Well, you got to realize that the Escalade is and was newer/fresher. When the Navigator first came out, it did what you just described. Case in point, the new H2; it's now more popular than both the Escalade and the Navi. I've yet to see one on 24's though .

 

Well then, you obviously don't live near Atlanta.................Go down to Buckhead and those things are a dime a dozen.

Another thing about the live axle, has anyone ridden in both and can tell a difference in ride quality or this kind of like telling the difference in smoothness between a pushrod LS1 and a DOHC 4.6, where there is no real difference?

 

Actually, I'm kind of curious about that myself.

 

I have ridden in both myself.One case in point,My wife had a 99 mustang it had a solid axle.It had "ok" ride quality,BUT then I got my Cobra and there is a night and day difference.One big plus to IRS is you dont have the full axle hangin in air waiting to see what a bump will make the axle do.Is it going to go up twist and so on.Going over a bumpy road the live axle will start to hop and "clunk" and I know camaro guys know about the clunking of a solid axle.Mustang guys do too.Where a IRS equiped vehicle wont bind up as easily and each wheel is "more likely" to stay planted depending on just how big the bump/crater/hole is.
Ive driven 2002 Explorers,Took a couple of rides in a 03 Navi.
And it isnt like comparing a LS1 to a 4.6DOHC's smoothness...

 

Atlanta is probably bling-bling capital of the south.

I haven't driver either, but I think we know what the general consensus is between the live axle and IRS comparo. You'd think the later would provide a smoother ride. My GT has a live axle, and bumps as well as axle movements are definitely noticeable. I'd say on most smooth streets, the live axle is sufficient, but come potholes and bumpy roads, the IRS would be better suited.

 

The difference in ride and handling between an IRS and live rear axle...is probably similar to the difference between an IFS and a solid front axle.

BTW, anyone here old enough to remember when hot rodders used to replace the IFS of their cars with a solid front axle from a car many decades older because it was "better for drag racing"?

 

We're debating which SUV is better....how sad.

 

Not alot of Camaro news. Gotta fill the day somehow.