The DeVille name goes all the way back to 1949, when it was a trim package for the Cadillac Series 62 luxury coupe. The DeVille became a series in its own right in 1959, and was comprised of a Sedan de Ville, a Coupe de Ville, and in 1964, a de Ville Convertible (which ran until 1970).
The Coupe de Ville was discontinued in 1993, leaving only the Sedan de Ville. For the 1994 model year, the Sedan de Ville’s name was shortened to simply “DeVille”. In 2006, the DeVille became known as the DTS (DeVille Touring Sedan), which had previously been a trim package of the DeVille lineup in 1985.
For much of its lifetime, the flagship car of America’s flagship automotive brand, the Cadillac DeVille/DTS was an interesting dichotomy. For some, it represented the pinnacle of American automotive achievement, for others it represented everything wrong with the American automotive industry.
The very epitome of American luxury, the de Ville Cadillacs were large, powerful, and extremely comfortable. Further, General Motors would frequently use Cadillac to introduce new automotive innovations. The first electric starter in an automobile was found in a Cadillac. The first automatic transmission in an automobile was found in a Cadillac. The first production use of LED tail lamps, as well as the first application of night vision to an automobile, was on a Cadillac.
However, in the same breath, it could also be said Cadillacs handled poorly, lacked steering feel, used far too much fuel, and were much too large for their own good.
While the nine generations of DeVille models go all the way back to the 1940’s, this Buyer’s Guide will cover the two most recent generations of DeVille models built from 2000-2005 and DTS models built from 2006 to the model’s demise in 2011.