Cadillac Cimarron - Development

Development

Cadillac's first foray into smaller cars, the 1975 Seville, was intended to answer the sales threat from Mercedes-Benz luxury cars. The Seville was a relative success, but the political and economic climate of the 1980s suggested a need for something smaller. A crucial factor was the advent of CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) requirements from the U.S. federal government, which severely penalized automakers if their fleet average fuel economy dropped below the minimum. Another was the success of imported compacts such as the BMW 3 Series, Saab 900, Volvo 240 and Audi 4000.

Since 1976, GM had been developing the J-body, an economy car platform shared across all passenger car divisions. Each had the same 101.2 in (2,570 mm) wheelbase, MacPherson strut front suspension and torsion beam rear suspension, and engines. The basic body/frame structure used a unibody with a front subframe that carried the lower front suspension, engine, and transmission. Although Cadillac had intended to introduce the Cimarron later in the 1980s, it was rushed into production early at the insistence of Cadillac dealers. The result was a small, slow car whose "econobox" roots were obvious. Technologically, the Cimarron was far behind the luxury imports with which it was meant to compete.

Pete Estes, GM's president at the time, warned Ed Kennard, Cadillac's general manager:

The name was selected from a list of seven finalists, including J9000 (after the Pontiac), Carmel, Cascade, Caville (similar to Seville and DeVille), Envoy (later revived by sister brand GMC for the GMC Envoy), and Series 62, with a preference for an initial "c". Cimarron topped the list in favorable reaction, though ironically, it evoked economy, while Caville suggested the opposite.