Orlando Sentinel's view
We have a pair of sciatic nerves, one for each leg. They are the body’s longest, largest nerves. When something goes wrong, usually when the sciatic nerve is pinched by a herniated disc in the back, pain can result.
I mention this because my first hour in the 2007 Cadillac Escalade was spent lying on my back, head on the third-row seats, feet on the second-row seats, looking up at the Escalade’s roof. The sciatic nerve in my left leg, for some reason, became pinched, and pain resulted. So my wife drove me to the urgent-care clinic — 30 minutes there, 30 minutes back — in the Escalade, while I was lying in an oddly twisted position that reduced the pain from “excruciating” to “slightly less excruciating.” Sitting up was pretty much impossible.
So I had an hour to review the roof of the all-new Escalade, and I was impressed. Nice cream-colored vinyl, well-applied, with thoughtfully integrated air-conditioning vents and interior lights. The grab handles atop the rear doors were dampened, so when you pulled them down, they floated, rather than snapped, back in place. The Bose stereo sounded good even from this unusual vantage point; I wondered if Bose sound engineers lay flat in a sciaticalike position when they were tuning the speaker mix.
“How’s it handle?” I asked my wife.
“Um, fine,” she said. There wasn’t much opportunity for detailed suspension analysis, because to get to the urgent-care clinic, you take a right turn out of our driveway, then, a half-hour later, a left turn into the clinic. Both turns, it seemed, were handled with dignity and aplomb.
Several days later, thanks to an appealing mix of muscle relaxers, I was able to drive the Escalade on my own. This test vehicle is the regular-length Escalade, the first of three models released. The Escalade ESV, 21 inches longer than this model, and the Escalade EXT, which has a small pickup-truck bed, are just beginning to reach dealers. All Escalades right now are all-wheel drive, with rear-drive models due in August.
This regular Escalade is comparable to a Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon, or Yukon Denali, to be more specific. Direct competition is the Lincoln Navigator and the upcoming Chrysler Aspen, as well as import-branded challengers such as the Range Rover, Infiniti QX56 and Lexus LX470.
In the past, the Escalade hasn’t been that different mechanically from the Chevrolet and GMC models, but that changes for 2007, when the Escalade gets a new 6.2-liter, 403-horsepower V-8, with a six-speed automatic transmission. The Denali gets that engine, too, but with a bit less horsepower. GM points out that the new Escalade’s 6.2-liter V-8 gets better mileage than last year’s 6.0-liter, 345-horsepower V-8. Indeed, mileage skyrockets to a Sierra Club-pleasing 13 miles per gallon city, 19 mpg highway for the 2007 model, up from 13 mpg city, 17 mpg last year.
Also worth noting: At $3 a gallon, it will cost $78 to fill up your 2007 Escalade, whereas last year, it cost $93! Cadillac has accomplished this cost savings by reducing the size of the gas tank from 31 gallons to 26 gallons.
Enough making fun. This is a smooth, powerful V-8, and the six-speed automatic transmission is nicely matched to the engine. Even with a hefty weigh-in of 5,818 pounds, maybe 250 pounds more than last year, the 2007 Escalade has plenty of power.
The Escalade is bigger than last year, but not much. Length is 202.5 inches, compared with 198.9 inches in 2006. Width and height are about the same.
Inside, as with all Escalades since they were introduced in 1999, there’s a ranch-worth of leather. Trim is opulent but not quite ostentatious.
Base price on the Escalade is $56,405, and if you want to wait on the rear-wheel-drive model, it will start at $53,850. But as nice as an Escalade is, with standard features that include a power tailgate, side-curtain air bags and adjustable pedals, General Motors still gives you plenty of opportunities to add equipment, such as a $2,495 “information package” that gets you a DVD-based navigation system and a rear-view color camera. A power moon roof adds $995. For $1,295, you can add a rear-seat entertainment system, with a DVD player, twin screens and two wireless headphones. Chromed 18-inch wheels are $795, but you’ll probably want the 22-inch wheels and tires, an extra $2,995.
Want diamond-white paint? That will be $995. Click off every option, and you’re at $67,155, not bad for what many consider the ultimate bling-thing SUV. After all, if it’s good enough for Tony Soprano and Bernie Mac, then it’s good enough for you, right?
And I can vouch for the roof.
Sentinel Automotive Editor Steven Cole Smithcan be reached at scsmith@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5699.
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