Cadillac Calais

Thanks to a tunnel under the English Channel, it is now possible to travel by train from England to France. In a practical bit of engineering, the tunnel crosses the English Channel at its narrowest point. Thus, its French terminus is at Calais, which was a beach resort town for many years before the Chunnel was built; in fact, it is so close to England that, on clear days, you can sea the famous cliffs of Dover from Calais. Admittedly, Chunnel may be a silly name, but Calais is not, and thus, Cadillac chose Calais as the namesake for a practical yet classy sedan that was in production between 1965 and 1976.

Features of the Cadillac Calais

The Cadillac Calais, which is represented in the model years from 1965 through 1976, looks very much of its time. It is a contemporary of the Golden Age of the Motown sound, and like the music that represented the soundtrack to its hometown in those days, it is elegant, accessible, and aspirational. Gone are the pointy dagmar bumpers and outsized tailfins of the 1950s Cadillac models; if you belong to Generation X, then the Cadillac Calais is shaped very much like the car your dad drove during the family road trips of your childhood. If, however, you came of age during the 90s, when compact, energy efficient cars came into vogue, then it will register with you just how big the Calais actually is. Even the two-door Cadillac Calais Coupe cuts an imposing silhouette by today’s standards.

Fancy Trim Options for the Cadillac Calais

At no point in its relatively brief history was the Cadillac Calais the most luxurious Cadillac on the market, but it always offered enough creature comforts to be a status symbol, especially because of its dizzying array of trim options. By the end of its reign, eleven colors of leather interior were available, to say nothing of the plaid and velour interiors that customers could choose instead. In 1976, the Calais came with a whopping 21 options for the exterior color. Of these 21 colors, six were Firemist colors, and 13 were available only in 1976.

At various points in its history, the Calais found different ways to eschew the ordinary glove compartment. It sometimes had a rectangular storage panel that opened with a hinged door and other times a compartment that could even be locked. It also had an early version of airbags for the driver and front passenger in 1974. Some models of Calais had ash trays, as many cars did in the 70s, but what made the Calais special is that, unlike cars today, it had a designated garbage receptacle.

Competitors for the Calais

Cadillac designed and redesigned the Calais to be an affordable alternative to various other luxury cars. Early in its history it was the frugal man’s Cadillac DeVille. Its 1969 redesign consciously imitated the Cadillac Eldorado Seville. Even though it was a popular car during its decade on the market, it clearly belonged to a specific time instead of being one of Cadillac’s perennial models.