2001 Cadillac DeVille DHS

When I was barely old enough to drive, my father bought my mother a Cadillac that was roughly the size of Luxembourg. It was a Fleetwood Brougham gently used by a local doctor. My mother was only five feet tall, so she looked like a cruise ship captain propped behind the wheel, with a sea of silver hood spread before her. Even with its many electric seat adjustments, she required the boost of a pillow to clear the view.

But my mother loved that Cadillac. She loved everything about it, from its silky brocade-upholstered interior to its fingertip-light power steering. It was luxury unrestrained.

I was reminded of that when I spent a recent week with a brand new Cadillac DeVille. Although this sedan has evolved light years from the days of Mom’s gargantuan cruiser, much of what she cherished about her Cadillac remains intact.

The Good News
Because I grew up with the crested emblem representing the last word in fine automobiles (well before any of the imports had a major presence here), a Cadillac DeVille still reeks of riches to me. Not software fortunes, mind you, but old money.

From its oversized presence to its buttery leather seats, preponderance of gadgetry, deep ride and throaty V8, the DeVille exudes pure American Fat Cat. It coddles and comforts in thick style like no other car.

But dwelling strictly on Cadillac’s traditional strengths, we miss the larger picture. Even recognizing that the DeVille holds the record as America’s best-selling luxury nameplate doesn’t tell the whole story, since its demographics reveal a ton of loyalty and equal parts gray hair.

The fact is, the current DeVille’s technological sophistication, state-of-the-art engineering and Northstar muscle give it credentials to compete impressively in today’s crowded luxury class. History, loyalty and demographics aside, this DeVille deserves to be evaluated on its own innovations. It’s a remarkable car.

The DHS (DeVille High Luxury Sedan) I tested lands in the middle of DeVille’s three models, on one side the base model and on the other, the sport-tuned DTS (touring sedan). The DHS carries the Northstar twin cam V8 producing 275 horses and 300 foot pounds of torque. There’s never any hesitation here, whether it’s a full-throttle merging into traffic or passing at stride. This is a great powertrain.

I am still struck, as with my mother’s Cadillac, how you don’t so much drive this DeVille as guide it. Despite grand improvements to chassis stiffness and handling response, this sedan still pampers drivers with a feeling of remote control. Yet when you need to crack the whip in tight places, it willingly responds. Cadillac has done a credible job of removing much of the big car stigma from this big car.

The Bad News
The new DeVille, redesigned in 2000, is not the prettiest sedan I’ve seen. Although I initially approved of its style evolution, I have since found myself staring at them in traffic thinking they look like something caught in a vice. Too flat in the front and back. The design lacks motion, fluidity, something.

That said, I love how once you get into the DeVille’s ballroom interior, you don’t sense the girth around you. The hood falls away quickly, and the size feels quite manageable.

In an effort to show off their cutting edge technology and lower their demographics from “pre-boomers,” as Cadillac calls them, to boomers, Cadillac has overdone it in places.

Specifically, the radio system is now incorporated into the navigation area, so that you either touch the screen to adjust it or rely on controls on the steering wheel.

Reducing a very complex system to a few comments here, suffice to say that the setup makes things far more complicated than need be. Simple tasks like finding the time and lowering the volume require significant training. On more than one occasion, I tried desperately to turn down the volume, only to find I had instead reduced the temperature to Antartic winter. Our breath was freezing on the inside of the windshield while Brittany Spears blared forth unconcerned.

Gas Mileage
EPA rated at 17 mpg city/27 highway

Price
Manufacturer’s base, $46, 267;
Price as tested, $51,272

Is it worth it?
There is no denying the level of extraordinary luxury and performance the Cadillac DeVille offers today. So no one should be stunned at what you have to pay for it. But, of course, we are.

Physically, I love this DHS. It is a feat of 21st Century automotive ingenuity, a sheer delight to drive.

Mentally, however, I still resist the notion that I belong in this car. It is, after all, my mother’s car and I’m not ready yet to see myself on her seat cushion.

Beth Stein is a life-long car buff and free-lance journalist living in Nashville. She has reviewed new vehicles in print for 12 years as a weekly columnist for Nashville’s daily newspapers and on television for Road Test Magazine and Motor Trend Television. Currently, her reviews appear nationally on Car And Driver Television.