2019 CADILLAC ESCALADE

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Luxury With Attitude

When it comes to power, prestige, and performance, there is simply no matching the 2019 Cadillac Escalade. It can tow up to 8,300 pounds, has room for up to eight passengers, and sports a wide array of advanced safety and technology features. If you're looking for a little attitude with your luxury, you'll want to read on. 

Performance

The 2019 Cadillac Escalade boasts a 6.2-liter V8 engine that serves up 420 horsepower and 460 pound-feet of torque. It’s mated to a smooth-shifting eight-speed automatic transmission that drives the rear wheels. While most owners will be pleased with the capability of the standard rear-wheel drive configuration, the Escalade is also available with all-wheel drive.

While power output is extraordinary, the 2019 Escalade provides discerning customers with advanced technology designed to deliver maximum efficiency in spite of the vehicle’s commanding frame. Variable Valve Timing, direct injection, and Active Fuel Management ensure the Escalade’s power plant achieves impressive fuel economy numbers of 17 mpg combined (14 city/23 highway) with rear-wheel drive, while the four-wheel-drive model is rated at 17 mpg combined (14 city/21 highway).*

The 2019 Escalade may not possess the dexterity of a ballerina, but it still manages to pirouette around hard corners with confidence and grace. Still, what it lacks in agility it more than makes up for in pure confidence. Its brawny V8 provides smooth acceleration that makes pressing on the gas pedal a true pleasure and climbing quickly to highway speeds an elementary endeavor.

If that wasn’t impressive enough, the cabin maintains library levels of quietness, even when the engine is called upon with great haste—allowing for whisper-level conversations.

Features

The 2019 Cadillac Escalade starts at $75,195 and comfortably seats seven passengers,** or it can fit as many as eight with the standard second-row captain’s chairs replaced by an optional second-row bench seat.

The Escalade is practically overflowing with standard features. Highlights for 2019 include a new automated parking system and a teen driver monitoring system that offers parental control over certain vehicle settings. Other standard features include stunning 20-inch chrome wheels, automatic LED headlights, and front and rear parking sensors. A hands-free power liftgate makes storing bags, groceries, or any other type of cargo a breeze.

Inside is a luxuriously appointed cabin with a heated steering wheel, tri-zone automatic climate control, power-adjustable pedals, leather upholstery, and heated and ventilated eight-way power front seats with four-way lumbar adjustment and driver memory functions.

Cadillac vehicles have always incorporated the latest premium technologies, and the 2019 Escalade is no different. Standard electronics features include an enhanced Cadillac User Experience (CUE) infotainment system with eight-inch touchscreen and Apple CarPlay™ and Android Auto™ integration, a rearview camera, a customizable instrument panel, navigation, real-time traffic alerts, and a Bose® 16-speaker audio system.

Buyers wishing to enhance their Escalade further can do so by selecting from either the Luxury, Premium Luxury, or Platinum trims. The Luxury trim adds 22-inch wheels, a sunroof, power-folding second-row seats, a head-up display (HUD) integrated into the windshield, and a new Rear Camera Mirror that improves field of vision by an estimated 300 percent through the use of streaming video to remove visual obstructions such as passengers and headrests.

Also included in the Luxury trim are a number of enhanced safety technologies, including blind-spot monitoring, lane-departure warning, rear cross-traffic alert, forward collision alert, and a safety alert driver seat that sends pulses through the seat cushion on the left or right or both simultaneously, alerting you of potential hazards as well as the direction they’re coming from.

Premium Luxury trim models add even more features, including adaptive cruise control, and automatic safety belt tightening and a rear-seat entertainment system that's sure to prove a hit with passengers.

Finally, the Platinum trim includes all the Escalade Premium Luxury features plus 22-inch premium painted wheels with chrome inserts, integrated center console cooler, premium Nappa semi-Aniline leather seating surfaces for the front two rows, suede-covered microfiber headliner and door pillar trim, and much more.

Design

The 2019 Escalade combines science and art in a breathtaking union of metal and magnificence. Up front, the Escalade benefits from full-LED headlights and, of course, a bold chrome-laded grille that quite simply demands attention. Large vertical pillars give the Escalade an even more upright stance, although the smart creases and slightly sloped roofline provide a modest amount of curvature to what is otherwise a very angular design. Around back, we find another set of full-LED lights, this time bracketing the taillights and providing even more cohesion to the Escalade’s dramatic suit of metal and alloy.

Inside, the Escalade provides warmth, comfort, and safety. Cut-and-sewn upholstery is but one of many examples of attention to detail Cadillac has given to its full-size SUV. Naturally, there is an abundance of premium materials, and an attractively designed interior brings the Escalade in line with the rest of the Cadillac lineup.

Likewise, the Escalade provides a generous amount of space for passengers. Second-row seating can easily accommodate full-grown adults, while the third-row acquits itself well, too. Overall, you'll find 15.2 cubic feet of storage behind the third row and 94.2 cubic feet available with the second and third rows stowed.

Safety

Standard safety features on all 2019 Cadillac Escalade models include antilock disc brakes, traction and stability control, a rearview camera, front and rear parking sensors, front-seat side airbags, side curtain airbags, and an airbag located between the front seats that aids in side-impact crashes. Also standard is OnStar®, which includes automatic crash notification, on-demand roadside assistance, remote door unlocking, stolen vehicle assistance, and turn-by-turn navigation.

As previously mentioned, the 2019 Escalade can be outfitted even further with a number of advanced safety technologies and driver’s aids, including blind-spot monitoring, lane-departure warning, rear cross-traffic alert, forward collision alert, and a safety alert driver seat.

Verdict

The 2019 Cadillac Escalade is a shining example of what happens when you incorporate brains and brawn. It’s a sharply styled, imposing specimen that does it all. It features an impressive array of technologies designed to entertain and indulge—all without sacrificing the required power, efficiency, and utility modern luxury SUV drivers rightly demand.

Other full-size SUVs all require some degree of sacrifice, but the 2019 Escalade is more than happy to indulge your every desire. And that’s the way it should be.

For more information, or to schedule a test drive, contact us online or visit MotorWorld | MileOne Autogroup at 150 MotorWorld Drive, Wilkes-Barre, PA 18702.

* EPA estimates. Your mileage will vary depending on driving habits and conditions. Use for comparison purposes only.

** The Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price excludes destination freight charge, tax, title, license, dealer fees and optional equipment. Click here to see all Cadillac vehicles’ destination freight charges.

Image Credit: Cadillac