Vehicle Overview
This slow-selling luxury coupe adds features for its standard OnStar satellite-based communication system but is otherwise a carryover. The front-drive Eldorado formerly was a two-door companion to the Seville sedan, but when the Seville was redesigned for 1998, the Eldo continued in the old design. General Motors has not said how much longer it will build the Eldorado or whether the model name (used by Cadillac since 1953) will transfer to another model, such as a roadster that will be based on the Evoq concept cars design.
OnStar, which includes emergency services and routing assistance, adds two premium services later in the model year. One is personal calling, which allows hands-free, voice-activated calls from the car without an additional cellular phone contract. The other is virtual advisor, which provides Internet-based information such as news, sports scores, stock quotes and weather reports, also through voice activation.
Exterior
The Eldorado maintains a traditional formal look and wide rear roof pillars, which hamper the drivers visibility. The Eldorado Touring Coupe (ETC) distinguishes itself from the base Eldorado with a monochromatic exterior treatment and seven-spoke aluminum wheels.
Interior
Four adults fit comfortably in the Eldorados opulent interior, but climbing into the rear seat requires limber bodies and the wide doors require a lot of room to fully open. The ETC gets a different dashboard than the base model with more conveniently placed controls and a more stylish look.
Under the Hood
Both models use Cadillacs 4.6-liter Northstar V-8 engine. In the base model, it produces 275 horsepower and the ETC produces 300 hp. Both can operate on regular unleaded gas, but premium is still recommended for best performance. The engines team with a four-speed automatic transmission.
The extra 25 hp in the ETC doesnt produce a huge difference in acceleration. You might notice more of a difference from the ETCs larger tires and firmer suspension, which create a stiffer ride.
