In 2021, the Cadillac Escalade had its best sales year since 2007, according to a recent media presentation attended by GM Authority.
Overall, the Cadillac Escalade saw a 70 percent year-over-year increase in global sales during 2021 compared to the 2020 calendar year. That statistic takes into account worldwide sales combined, which is a particularly impressive boast considering the complications brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and other issues negatively impacting vehicle inventory globally.
For comparison, Cadillac Escalade sales in the U.S. alone were up 65 percent year-over-year in 2021, with 40,505 units sold in total, up from 24,547 units in 2020. It far outperformed its competition, as the next-best performer in the full-size luxury SUV segment, the Lincoln Navigator, saw an increase of just 2 percent to 15,631 units last year, while the other segment competitors saw a significant decrease in sales due to a low-supply scenario at the dealer level.
Sales Numbers - Full-Size Luxury SUVs - 2021 – USA
| MODEL | YTD 21 / YTD 20 | YTD 21 | YTD 20 | YTD 21 SHARE | YTD 20 SHARE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CADILLAC ESCALADE | +65.01% | 40,505 | 24,547 | 54% | 41% |
| LINCOLN NAVIGATOR | +2.48% | 15,631 | 15,252 | 21% | 25% |
| INFINITI QX80 | -22.03% | 12,572 | 16,125 | 17% | 27% |
| JEEP GRAND WAGONEER | * | 2,675 | 0 | 4% | 0% |
| LEXUS LX | -21.03% | 3,563 | 4,512 | 5% | 7% |
| TOTAL | +24.01% | 74,946 | 60,436 |
In total, Cadillac registered 374,000 global vehicle sales in 2021. That’s just 16,000 units shy of the luxury marque’s record year – back in 1979, 390,000 individual Caddys were sold worldwide. The 2022 calendar marks Cadillac’s 120th anniversary, and these sales figures prove that GM’s premier luxury brand is still a force to be reckoned with over a century after its inception.
The 2021 Cadillac Escalade represented the first model year of the iconic luxury SUV’s fifth generation. The Escalade received a complete overhaul, bolstering interest and ultimately making it one of the hottest vehicles on the market, consistently outselling its competition in the full-size luxury SUV bracket. The fifth-gen Escalade has also been praised for its host of cutting-edge technologies, winning the Wards 10 Best UX Award and the 2021 J.D. Power 2021 U.S. Multimedia Satisfaction study.
As a reminder, the fifth-generation Cadillac Escalade is offered with a choice of two different engines. The naturally aspirated 6.2L V8 L87 gasoline engine is good for 420 horsepower and 460 pound-feet of torque. The second option is the 3.0L I6 LM2 turbodiesel Duramax, rated at 277 horsepower and 460 pound-feet of torque. Both engine options bolt to the GM 10-speed automatic transmission, and production takes place at the GM Arlington plant in Arlington, Texas.
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Comments
Vehicle of choice for the urban street set. Gangbangers, Pimps, Drug Dealers, Bookmakers, Porno producers, etc.
Vehicle has swagger, authority and comfort. Black color versions reek of Bad Ass.
Bad Ass sells. The Marlboro Man is dead. Tattoos, beards, ball caps, beanies, black t shirts, are in.
Huge winner for GM. A+. Big cash cow for GM. Should make a presidential version to replace the Cadillac Beast.
I’m just a wife, a mom and a nana and I can’t wait to get my diesel Escalade that I ordered back in 2021!! I was told back in December I have a year and a half to go before I see my Escalade 🤦🏾♀️🤦🏾♀️!
Anna: You are wise and ordered the right ride. Good call on ordering your new Escalade with a diesel engine.
As a Mom this will provide you and your kids with the optimum safe and comfortable ride versus a cross over unibody. Enjoy your diesel Escalade when you finally get it. Worth the wait.
Thanks David!!
From the article:
“ In total, Cadillac registered 374,000 global vehicle sales in 2021. That’s just 16,000 units shy of the luxury marque’s record year – back in 1979, 390,000 individual Caddys were sold worldwide.”
This statement is misleading. It creates the impression of success.
In 1979, Cadillac produced and sold 383,138 vehicles. Of those nearly 100 percent were sold in the US. For 2021, Cadillac sold 118,310 in the United States, that’s a decline of 69 percent. Meanwhile US population has increased by about 45 percent since 1979 so theoretically Cadillac should be selling over 550,000 vehicles in the US today just to be as successful in their home market as they were in 1979.
Today Cadillac has massively expanded into China but even with the sales from both nations, they cannot match what they once sold in America alone.
Given full context, these numbers do not represent success but rather a massive failure and an indictment of gm management over the last 40 years. Cadillac’s worldwide sales should be approaching 3/4 of a million units with the addition of China and without the total collapse of US sales.
Ci2Eye: Excellent comment, research and argument.
However the entire current vehicle consumer profile and demographics has radically changed in the last decade. The current generation of car purchasers consider and associate the Cadillac nameplate with their grandparents and senior overweight, gray hair, retired adults. The Cadillac name does not have a lean athletic, hip connotation like BMW and Tesla.
Product image and gain and loss is always changing. The current generation considers the previous generation to be lethargic, digitally inept, and slovenly.
Cadillac’s heyday was in the period where this generation ruled. Hence the negative image of the Cadillac nameplate.
The current skinny jean and tattoo crowd went nuts over the design of Tesla’s pickup. This crowd between the ages of 18 through 45 is your target car buying segment. Hence their consideration of the Cadillac nameplate as meh.
I would change the script logo of Cadillac and rename the line CAD, with a new logo similar to CAT.
Caterpillar has done away with their total spell out and has created a reimage with their logo with an upward arrow and power red side marking.
Dodge Trucks, did the same with RAM, and they are now rocking.
Take the script Cadillac name and bold the lettering to CAD. That French explorer in Michigan died years ago.