Cadillac Voyage: America’s Best Land Yacht?

That is type of a foolish query. The nice American land yacht is a dream. It’s a worthwhile dream to have, but it surely’s not one thing that has a tangible realization. Take the 1988 Cadillac Voyage for instance.

The issue with the Cadillac Voyage is that it, effectively, isn’t. It’s not a automotive. Effectively, it’s an idea automotive. It previewed what Cadillacs would appear to be within the ‘90s, with such glittering high-tech options as four-wheel discs, four-wheel unbiased suspension, all-wheel drive and ABS! It had a five-speed automated transmission. Wow!

The later two-door model of this idea, the Cadillac Solitaire, rocked a Lotus-designed V12, however the Voyage was nonetheless V8-powered. The inside was a mixture of restrained strains and overstuffed seats. That’s to say, it was every little thing you needed from the previous period, and every little thing you needed from the brand new. It even had GPS!

However the Voyage didn’t go into manufacturing. Not precisely, as Cadillac noted in its brief history of the car:

This luxurious sedan had all-new computer-controlled all-wheel know-how hidden beneath its streamlined physique; the entrance axle was routinely engaged when rear-wheel slippage was detected. The Voyage was geared up with ABS, an electronically managed five-speed automated gearbox and a voice-activated phone system. Its orthopedically-designed seats included greater than 20 pneumatic and mechanical changes, three reminiscence positions plus cushion therapeutic massage. The Seville CTS adopted a variety of the Voyage’s styling cues when launched in 1991.

The Seville CTS is an beneathappreciated design, but it surely’s removed from a realization of basic model combined with trendy facilities taken to a world-beating stage. It’s only a automotive.

However the extra I give it some thought, the extra satisfied I’m that there is no such thing as a excellent American land yacht. The expectations are too excessive! There’s no approach {that a} automotive could be comfy sufficient, luxurious sufficient, fashionable sufficient.

The dreaming is what’s vital.

However I’m in all probability improper. I’ve by no means even pushed a Continental Mark II. What do you assume was the best land yacht America ever produced?