The Cadillac DeVille served as the luxury marque's remaining full-sized offering after the 1996 discontinuation of the rear-wheel-drive Fleetwood. The DeVille is representative of the traditional American luxury car experience, with a relatively soft and isolating ride, soft handling and a large displacement engine that places emphasis on low-end torque. Cadillac offered The DeVille in a base configuration, a luxury-oriented Deville High Luxury Sedan" trim and a performance-oriented "DeVille Touring Sedan" trim.
The DeVille is available only with the 4.6-liter Northstar 8-cylinder engine. In the base and DHS trims, the Northstar engine puts out 275 horsepower at 5600 rpm and 300 pound-feet of torque at 4000 rpm. The Northstar engine in the DTS receives a 15 horsepower boost, but... View more it also loses 15 pound-feet of torque. The extra horsepower gives the DTS a very slight edge in performance over the base and DTS trims. All trims have a 4-speed automatic transmission with overdrive and deliver 18 mpg in city driving and 26 mpg in highway driving. The DeVille seats 6, with the exception of the 5-seat DTS, which has a center console with two front bucket seats.
The Cadillac DeVille enjoyed over 47 years in production. The name first appeared on the 1949 Coupe de Ville, as a trim level for the Series 62 coupe. Over the decades, the DeVille evolved from a trim level to a luxurious model in its own right. In 1985, the automaker put the DeVille onto a front-wheel drive platform that proved to be somewhat unpopular, due to its smaller size and engine choices. Improvements saw the DeVille grow in size, with an increase in power and more polished styling. The last generation DeVille shared its K body style with the performance-oriented Seville.
Safety amenities include 4-wheel disc brakes with ABS, OnStar service, driver- and passenger-side air bags, stability control, traction control and daytime running lights. Options include an 8-speaker Bose premium stereo system, 10-way power adjustable driver and passenger seats with adjustable lumbar support, front and rear heated seats, a navigation system and power moonroof. Some DeVilles produced early in 2005 were equipped with the once-optional Night Vision infrared heads-up display system. Night Vision was ultimately dropped from the DeVille later that year.
Luxury doesn't come cheap, and neither did the DeVille. The base retail price of the DeVille in 2005 was near $46,000, and over $51,000 for the DeVille DTS. The DeVille competed with a wide variety of luxury vehicles, including the Lexus LS 430, BMW 7-Series, Lincoln Town Car and Jaguar XJ Series. The DeVille was less expensive than most of these vehicles, which made it a good buy for those who were in the market for a traditional American luxury vehicle. View less
