Cadillac De Ville (6th gen) 1985-1993

[B]Switching to front wheel drive (1985-1993)[/B]

For the 1985 model year, the de Ville switched to GM's new FWD C-body platform. A Fleetwood sedan variant was added to the mix at the start of production and shared the new front-wheel-drive platform and most dimensions with the de Villes (the "Fleetwood Brougham" nomenclature remained on the rear-wheel-drive chassis through model year 1992). Production of the new C-body commenced December 1983 at the Orion Assembly Plant in Orion Township, Michigan. A Fleetwood coupe version of the new FWD C-body joined the lineup later in the production run. The front cover of the brochure advertised the new cars as the "Cadillac of Tomorrow". These new models were smaller externally yet kept almost identical interior dimensions as their predecessors. This change also brought nearly the entire Cadillac line of cars to front-wheel drive, leaving only the Fleetwood Brougham as the rear-wheel-drive holdout. Cadillac's HT-4100 V8 remained the only engine, mounted transversely and coupled with a 440-T4 automatic.

Of GM's front-drive C and H bodies, Cadillac was the only line to offer a V8 engine. Other GM vehicles were equipped with a Buick-derived 3.0 or 3.8 V6 engine, or - for 1985 only - Oldsmobile's 4.3L V6 diesel powerplant.

The 1985 de Ville was still available in sedan or coupe form. The d'Elegance package - an optional interior dress-up package featuring assist handles and button-tufted seating among other niceties - was no longer available on de Ville, but now offered solely on the Fleetwood sedan. Thanks to an extended model year (starting April 1984), sales of the downsized 1985 de Ville and Fleetwood models reached nearly 200,000 units.

For 1986, few changes marked the new de Ville's second year in production. An anti-lock braking system, developed by Teves, became available. The electrochromic inside rear-view mirror,A factory-installed cellular telephone joined the option list at an astonishing $2,850. The standard space-saver spare tire now sat horizontally in the trunk, doing away with the small covered storage cubby in the spare tire well from last year. The optional aluminum wheels had new flush-fitting center caps (last year's design featured exposed capped lugs), and bumper rub strips changed from black to gray. Borrowed from the front-wheel-drive Fleetwood line, the narrow lower body side molding from the 1985 de Ville was replaced with a considerably wider one, and the trim surround from the rear window gave the formal appearance of a smaller window opening. Inside, a more tailored look was applied to the seat trim. Coupe de Ville's popular cabriolet option, featuring a padded vinyl covering over the rear half of the roof, was priced at $698. Along with the exterior changes made to 1986 de Villes, adding the Cabriolet option made it difficult to distinguish a 1986 Coupe de Ville from the 1986 Fleetwood Coupe. Pricing for the Coupe de Ville was $19,669, with Sedan de Ville at $19,990. The transverse-mounted Cadillac 4.1-liter V-8 continued from the previous year, but with 5 more horsepower.

The 1986 Cadillac had: Type: 90-degree, overhead valve V-8. Aluminum block and cast iron heads. Displacement: 249 cu in (4.1 liters) Bore & stroke: 3.47 x 3.31 in Compression ratio: 8.5:1 Brake horsepower: 135 hp (101 kW) at 4200 rpm Torque: 200 lbf·ft (270 N·m) at 2200 rpm Five main bearings Hydraulic valve lifters TBI VIN Code: 8

Introduced in 1986, Cadillac's Touring Sedan and Touring Coupe were based on the standard De Ville but included extras such as a subtle rear deck lid spoiler, body-color tail lamp bezels, front air dam with fog lamps, rear seat headrests, leather upholstery, and a performance enhancement package among other features. The package was available for $2,880. In addition, the Touring Coupe had removable decorative louvers on the rear edge of the side opera windows.

1987 saw a new front-end design including revised cornering lamps in front and one-piece composite headlamps flanked a trapezoid-shaped grille with a bold egg-crate texture. Elongated fender caps were in back - upping the overall length by an inch and a half, but much more dramatic in appearance with new wrap-around tail lamps. This new 3-sided tail lamp style was inspired by a design used on the 1977 de Ville. Unlike the new one-piece headlamps, the changes to the rear-end in 1987 had little to do with engineering, but rather, feedback from Cadillac's customer base who felt the 1985-86 car looked too short. Although the 1987 revamp was still quite similar to the 1986 model (so much in fact that it still used the previous year's deck lid), the design was more in-tune with the look that traditional Cadillac buyers were used to.

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[LIST][*][URL="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46658"]Cadillac Series 62 De Ville 1949-1958[/URL][*][URL="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46656"]Cadillac De Ville (1ste gen) 1959-1960[/URL][*][URL="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46657"]Cadillac De Ville (2nd gen) 1961–1964[/URL][*][URL="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46655"]Cadillac De Ville (3rd gen) 1965–1970[/URL][*][URL="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46654"]Cadillac De Ville (4th gen) 1971–1976[/URL][*][URL="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46653"]Cadillac De Ville (5th gen) 1977-1984[/URL][*][COLOR="Red"]Cadillac De Ville (6th gen) 1985-1993[/COLOR][*][URL="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46651"]Cadillac De Ville (7th gen) 1994-1999[/URL][*][URL="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46650"]Cadillac De Ville (8th gen) 2000-2005[/URL][/LIST]

Pricing for 1987 included Coupe de Ville at $21,316, and Sedan de Ville at $21,659. Fleetwood d'Elegance at $26,104, and the new Fleetwood Sixty-Special was available for $34,850. The Touring option, priced at $2,880 over De Ville's base cost, also included aluminum wheels mounted on 15-inch Goodyear Eagle GT tires. At the end of the 1988 model year, Cadillac discontinued the slow-selling de Ville-based Touring Coupe and Sedan, although the 4-door would return in 1992.

For 1988, Cadillac kept cosmetic changes to a minimum in anticipation of the redesigned de Ville and Fleetwood models to come the following year. To mitigate the nearly $2,000 price jump this year, several previously optional items were made standard equipment including tilt steering column, telescopic steering wheel, power trunk release, split-bench front seating, cruise control, and variable delay windshield wipers. Under the hood was a new 155 hp 4.5 L V8 and heavy-duty battery. Pricing rose to $23,049 for Coupe de Ville, and $23,404 for Sedan de Ville.

Cadillac's main competition in this time frame continued to be Lincoln, which, alongside their successful Town Car, was now fielding an all-new front-wheel-drive Continental (based on the Ford Taurus). The Continental went into production with a six-cylinder engine so as to be considered a larger front-wheel-drive alternative to the Acura Legend that appeared in 1986, with a front-wheel-drive platform and a V6 engine.

1989 introduced an extensive exterior redesign which included a longer 113.8-inch wheelbase for sedans. The 155 hp (116 kW) 4.5-liter powerplant (introduced just a year earlier), dashboard, and the front doors (on both the coupe and sedan) were about the only items that carried over — even the luggage compartment was over 2 cubic feet (0.057 m3) larger than last year. The Coupe de Ville and Fleetwood coupe retained the previous year's interior, wheelbase, and doors—all cleverly hidden between the new front and rear styling. A give-away to the previous design is the rear shelf package on the 2-door models. While the parcel shelf on the four-door models received a 'Mercedes-Benz inspired' storage compartment with lid, rear seat headrest panel, and a long 3-bulb horizontal brake lamp, the 2-door models still had the narrow carpeted parcel shelf and pedestal brake lamp from the previous year. Of special note were the composite (plastic) front fenders that resisted parking-lot dings and dents, and weighed less than their steel counterparts. Previously optional equipment that was made standard for 1989 included electrically powered outside mirrors and the AM/FM/cassette player stereo. New options introduced this year included a driver's side airbag, the Bose compact disc player, an electrically heated windshield, and a set of four reversible carpeted floor mats.

For 1990, de Ville and Fleetwood lost their telescopic steering column, but retained the tilt feature in exchange for an airbag mounted onto the newly standard leather-trimmed steering wheel. Engine output was up an additional 25 horsepower (19 kW) from sequential multi-port fuel injection. 1990 models also received GM's PASS Key theft-deterrent system which used a coded electronic pellet embedded into the ignition key. Other new features for 1990 included a non-illuminated vanity mirror on the driver's visor (a passenger side visor mirror had been standard equipment for decades now), door edge guards (previously optional), "clam shell" front center armrest with storage, and manual seat-back recliners for driver and passenger. While Lincoln's Continental did not fare well against De Ville, a new sales threat—aimed directly at Cadillac—came from the 1990 debut of Toyota's Lexus LS400 and the Infiniti Q45 from Nissan. Additionally, the Acura Legend—Honda's high-end label—had been gaining momentum in the luxury market since its 1986 introduction.

In 1991, a 200 hp (150 kW) 4.9-liter V8 — the largest of this type — became the new standard powerplant. Also new was a grille of an inverted trapezoid design (almost upside-down from last years egg-crate keystone design), and revised bumper and body-side moldings. The new grille held the familiar shape of the Cadillac crest itself — a styling cue that continues on to this day. The grille was now attached to the forward edge of the hood, and lifted up along with the hood when raised (similar to Mercedes-Benz). The secondary hood release latch was at the bottom of the grille instead of its previous location above the passenger side headlight. In addition to the new engine and minor front-end restyling, several previously optional features became standard this year, including the anti-lock braking system, accent striping, automatic door locks, twilight sentinel headlamp control, electrochromic inside rear-view mirror, and electric rear window and side mirror defogger. New standard features included rear-seat air conditioning vents, central door unlocking from the driver's door and luggage compartment, sun visors with shaded slide-out extensions, rear window lock-out switch, brake / transmission interlock safety switch, and an oil life indicator through the fuel data center. Other new features included the available remote keyless entry system, and the optional illuminated mirrors now featured a slide switch that offered variable intensity lighting.

For 1992, the Touring Sedan returned after a several year absence. Still based on the Sedan de Ville, this full-size sport sedan featured fold-in flag style side mirrors, body-color exterior door handles, body-color wheel-well reveal moldings, larger tires on 16-inch wheels, and fast-ratio power steering. Inside, it was equipped much like the Fleetwood models, with eight-way driver and passenger power reclining seats, standard digital instrumentation, and genuine walnut trim, but Touring Sedan held its own distinctive leather seating in one color, "Beechwood" (a chamois-shade of beige), and individual headrests for the outboard rear seat passengers. The distinctive steering wheel design with molded hand grips was borrowed from the Cadillac Allante. Outside, Touring Sedan had an exclusive hand-cast cloisonne deck lid emblem in back, and up front: a grill-mounted wreath and crest instead of the usual De Ville stand-up hood ornament. The black-out trim on the front grille was used for Touring Sedan only in 1992, but was adopted for all De Ville models in 1993. On Touring Sedan, like other De Ville models, the "Symphony Sound" stereo with cassette was standard, while the optional Delco/Bose music system was available with cassette or single-slot CD player. Introduced for 1992, speed-sensitive suspension and traction control (both standard on Touring Sedan) were available at extra cost on de Ville.

1993 saw few changes, as a brand-new replacement was coming for 1994. The previously optional speed-sensitive suspension, "Computer Command Ride", introduced last year became standard equipment, and now included a new speed-sensitive steering system as well. Minor trim changes were made including black-out trim in the grille (used on the 1992 Touring Sedan), and removing the chrome strip from the glass divider on the sedan's rear doors. 1993 would be the last year for the Coupe de Ville, which now came standard with the previously optional 'Cabriolet' roof option (which covered the rear half of the roof in padded vinyl). Introduced as a prestige trim level of the Series 62 for the 1949 model year, Coupe de Ville's full-size 2-door body style had been declining in sales for several years, and as a result, the 1994 design went into production solely as a 4-door.

[SIZE="1"]Source: wikipedia.org[/SIZE]

[B]The final Coupe de Villes (1990–1993)[/B]

Cadillac built 17,507 Coupe de Villes and 2,429 Fleetwood coupes in 1990. The optional Cabriolet roof (standard on Fleetwood) appeared on 3,988 Coupe de Villes, while the available Phaeton roof was found on an additional 4,453 cars. The Phaeton roof, re-creating the look of a convertible top, was included in the Spring Edition package (with 4,413 built), which also included perforated leather seat inserts among other items. The most popular color for 1990 was Cotillion White, with 5,292 manufactured, while the least chosen color was Medium Dark Gray, which found its way onto 193 cars that year. While all these two-door models wore the standard white-wall Michelin tires, this would be the last year for plain wheel covers on Coupe de Ville (found on 2,788 cars this year), as next year would feature a standard styled aluminum wheel (similar to the Fleetwood coupe). 479 two-door models were produced for export that year: 383 to Canada, 81 to Japan, and another 15 to Saudi Arabia. The 1990 Coupe de Ville was priced at $26,960, and the Fleetwood coupe at $32,400.

In 1991 Cadillac manufactured 10,057 Coupe de Ville models, and an additional 597 Fleetwood coupes (of the 597 Fleetwood coupes, only 248 were equipped with the optional Custom Seating Package that included power back rest recliners for the front seats, and a 2-position Memory Seat function for the driver's seat). All of these cars were produced at GM's Orion Assembly plant in Michigan. The total for both models with optional leather upholstery was 9,799 (with Dark Auburn being the least chosen interior color - only 11 in leather and 2 in velour were ever made). The most popular exterior color for 1991 was Cotillion White, with 2,967 models; while the least chosen color was Medium Dark Gray, of which only 58 were manufactured. Of the 10,057 Coupe de Villes, 3,397 were Spring Edition models. The optional Cabriolet Roof with opera lamps (standard equipment on the Fleetwood coupe), which covered the rear-half of the roof in padded vinyl, was equipped on 1,729 Coupe de Villes, while an additional 3,952 carried the $1,095 Phaeton simulated convertible roof. The standard cassette stereo was found in nearly all models, while 1,122 opted for the Bose sound system at extra cost (752 with cassette, 370 with compact disc). Cadillac produced 164 of the 2-door models for export, including 126 to Canada, 23 to Japan, 5 to the Gulf States, 3 to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the remaining seven to Europe. Pricing was $30,205 for Coupe de Ville, and $34,675 for Fleetwood coupe.

For 1992, Cadillac manufactured 6,980 Coupe de Ville models, and an additional 291 Fleetwood coupes (of the 291 Fleetwood coupes, only 128 were equipped with the optional Custom Seating Package, a $425 option that included power back rest recliners for the front seats, and a two-position Memory Seat function for the driver's seat). All of these cars were produced at GM's Orion Assembly plant in Michigan. The most popular color for 1992 was Cotillion White, with 1,879 models; while the least chosen color was Mary Kay Pink, of which only one was manufactured. Of the 6,980 Coupe de Villes, 2,635 were Spring Edition models. The Cabriolet Roof with opera lamps (a $925 option, and standard equipment on the Fleetwood coupe) which covered the rear-half of the roof in padded vinyl, was equipped on 3,572 Coupe de Villes, while an additional 3,319 carried the $1,095 Phaeton convertible-look roof. Only 89 standard painted-roof Coupe de Villes were made for 1992. Cadillac produced 144 of the two-door models for export, including 129 to Canada, and 15 to Japan. Pricing was $31,740 for Coupe de Ville, and $36,360 for Fleetwood coupe.

With the discontinuation of the Fleetwood coupe at the end of the 1992 model year, the 1993 Coupe de Ville was Cadillac's last six-passenger two-door car. The previously optional speed-sensitive suspension, "Computer Command Ride", introduced last year became standard equipment, and now included a new speed-sensitive steering system as well. Minor trim changes included black-out trim in the grille (as seen on the 1992 Touring Sedan). GM built 4,711 Coupe de Villes this year. The previously optional Cabriolet roof became standard equipment this year, and appeared on 3,606 cars. The Phaeton roof, which re-created the dashing look of a convertible top (now just a $170 option since the Cabriolet roof was standard equipment), was found on 1,105 cars. There were no painted-roof Coupe de Villes this year. Again, the most popular color for 1993 was Cotillion White, with 1,147 manufactured, while the least chosen color was Dark Plum, which found its way onto 24 cars this year. The four wheel choices this year included the standard-design cast aluminum wheel on 2,012 cars, optional $235 lace-design squeeze-case aluminum wheel on 1,766 cars, optional $235 locking wire wheel disc on 749 cars, and the $1,195 chromed squeeze-case aluminum wheel on 184 cars. Only 18 Coupe de Villes were ordered with the no-charge option of blackwall Michelin radial tires, the other 4,693 models wore the standard-equipment white-wall version. 3,036 had mono-tone paint, while the others held a lower body accent color, with the breakdown as follows: Silver, 1,130; Dark Red, 275; Gunmetal Gray, 177; and Beige, 93. In total, 4,168 had the standard Symphony Sound system, while 543 were ordered with the optional Bose stereo (310 with cassette, 233 with compact disc). Nearly all Coupe de Villes had leather upholstery (the most popular color was Neutral, with 1,236 made), as only 239 velour interior models were manufactured this year (the least chosen cloth color was Taupe, with only 24 manufactured). No Coupe de Villes were produced for export this year, and only 523 of the 4,711 built included California emission equipment. The base price of the 1993 Coupe de Ville was $33,915.

The declining popularity of full-size coupés led to the discontinuation of the Coupe de Ville at the end of the 1993 model year. For 1994, the series comprised two four-door models: DeVille and DeVille Concours.

[SIZE=1]Source: wikipedia.org[/SIZE]

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