2002 Cadillac Escalade Review

Find your car!

provided by

Review:

GM Utes: Defining A Niche by Paul A. Eisenstein (2/3/2001)
2002 Cadillac Escalade by Sue Mead (11/27/2000)
2002 Cadillac Escalade by Paul A. Eisenstein (10/30/2000)
Talk about the '02 Escalade in the TCC Message Boards!


The 2002 Cadillac Escalade SUV is clearly distinctive, stylistically and functionally, from the Chevy Tahoe/GMC Yukon upon which it is based. This addresses the problem of the previous Escalade, which was almost indistinguishable from the GMC Yukon Denali, GM's other high-end, full-size SUV.

However, the problem with the '02 Escalade is that it may be, er, "distinctive" in the same way the Pontiac Aztek -- one of GM's most colossal missteps of the past 25 years -- turned out to be. Both vehicles are wild exercises in styling license, bold departures from anything humdrum or conventional. You either like the brooding, toothy look of the new Escalade, outsized grille, blocky styling and all, or you find it monstrous. There is no in-between.

I personally prefer the Yukon Denali; it has classy, clean lines, and a much less overwrought front-end theme. GM still has "issues" with cross-brand, in-house competition. It frankly seems silly to have a high-end SUV (the Denali) as well as a premium-luxury SUV fighting for sales internally before focusing on the real competition -- models such as the $44,115-$47,865 Lincoln Navigator, $61,855 Lexus LX470, $68,000 Land Rover 4.6 HSE, $44,845 Mercedes ML 430, and so on.