What makes a perfect car? Every car is a set of compromises selected by the manufacturer for a target audience. The cars that seem the most true, or pure in their form, are cars that are consistently aimed toward one purpose. When a tool becomes only good for one purpose however, it also then has a limited market.
A sports car which is light at the expense of interior space, loud at the expense of weight savings from insulative materials, but has the best engine available at the time, seems focused. A family sedan with an efficient but less powerful engine and a higher MPG rating, lots of room and storage space, and extra cupholders has the right set of compromises for its intended audience.
What makes a perfect luxury car? A luxury car has fewer compromises. The luxury is when given a choice between being a live hyena or a dead lion, to get to be the live lion. Instead of choosing between a great dinner at a 5-star restaurant or a date with a Super-model, you get to have dinner at a 5-star restaurant with a Super-model, and she turns out to be very interesting to chat with.
Put another way, a luxury car compromises cash for capability.
A performance luxury Cadillac can offer a premium, high-strength light weight chassis like the Sigma II. It can offer efficient and powerful, high tech, smooth engines like the LLT high-premium direct-injected 3.6L V6. It can offer variable suspension electronics, traction control, stability control, and terrific exterior styling. A luxury car can include interior appointments sculpted from high-durability, hand-sewn textures and materials that exude elegance. A performance luxury car can offer the latest technology, and be a moving work of art at the same time. That is the luxury, art and science, albeit at a price.
When asked to recommend a model of a particular type of Cadillac, almost always the best recommendation I have is that the purchaser buy the newest one that the purchaser can afford. Cadillac improves the breed each year, with new performance, safety, and efficiency features. A performance luxury Cadillac is a car one can afford after one ‘arrives’. Generally, it is not a starter car. It can be a statement, but more often I find that it is a vehicle selected by Owners who have a certain appreciation of automobiles, and want an American performance luxury sedan.
Why do I drive a performance luxury sedan? Because I want more car, with fewer compromises.
