The Rise and Fall of Cadillac
凱迪拉克的崛起與衰落
Owning a Cadillac in America was once the ultimate status symbol, synonymous with success and achievement. The company dominated the market, outselling all luxury automakers in the US for decades. Just 40 years ago, nearly one-third of all luxury cars sold in the US were Cadillacs. Now, less than 7% of luxury cars purchased by Americans are Cadillacs, and the company is struggling to keep up with competitors it once outsold. So, what happened?
在美國擁有一輛凱迪拉克曾是終極社會地位的象徵，是成功和成就的代名詞。凱迪拉克公司佔領美國市場數十年，其銷售量一直超過所有美國豪華汽車製造商。就在40年前，在美國銷售的所有豪華車中，近三分之一是凱迪拉克，而如今，美國人購買的豪華車中只有不到7％是凱迪拉克，凱迪拉克公司正在努力追上曾經超過的競爭對手。所以究竟發生了什麼？
圖：凱迪拉克在美國豪華車市場所佔份額
Cadillac got its start in 1902. It was actually formed from what was left of the Henry Ford Company after the departure of Henry Ford following disputes with his investors. Engineer Henry M. Leland was brought on to appraise the company’s factory in order to sell it but instead saw potential. Leland chose to reorganize the company as Cadillac Automobile Company, naming it after French explorer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, the founder of Detroit, which was America’s automotive hub as well as the home of the company.
凱迪拉克公司的歷史可以追溯到1902年，它是在亨利·福特與其投資者發生糾紛離開亨利·福特公司後組建起來的。工程師亨利·利蘭（Henry M. Leland）受邀對公司的工廠進行評估，以便出售該工廠，但利蘭看到了該公司的潛力。利蘭選擇將公司改組為凱迪拉克汽車公司，以底特律的創始人法國探險家安東尼·門斯·凱迪拉克（Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac）為公司命名。底特律是美國的汽車樞紐，也是該公司的所在地。
圖：第一輛凱迪拉克汽車
At face value, Cadillac’s cars seemed almost identical to those the company produced under Ford. But they quickly distinguished themselves and gained a reputation for being better made and more reliable.
從表面上看，凱迪拉克的汽車與福特生產的汽車幾乎相同，但是他們很快就脫穎而出，並因做得更好、更可靠而贏得了聲譽。
In 1909, the company was purchased by up-and-coming conglomerate General Motors and officially named its most prestigious division.
1909年，新興的綜合企業通用汽車公司收購了凱迪拉克，並正式成為其最負盛名的品牌。
圖：1909年通用汽車公司旗下品牌
Over the next few decades, Cadillac set huge milestones in the auto industry, including the first passenger car with a fully enclosed cabin. Perhaps most impressive was the development of the first electronic self-starter. Up to that point, starting a car required the awkward and strenuous task of cranking up the engine. With some help from inventor Charles Kettering, Cadillac simplified it to just the push of a button. Breakthroughs like this inspired the company to adopt its iconic slogan: “Cadillac: Standard of the World.”
在接下來的幾十年中，凱迪拉克在汽車工業中取得了一座座里程碑，包括第一款封閉式車身汽車，也許最令人印象深刻的是開發了第一個電子點火系統。在那時，啟動汽車引擎既笨拙又費力，在發明家查爾斯·凱特靈（Charles Kettering）的幫助下，凱迪拉克將其簡化為僅需按一下按鈕。這些突破啟發凱迪拉克提出了其標誌性口號：“凱迪拉克：追求世界標準”。
圖：凱特靈與其發明的電子點火系統
Fast-forward to 1927. Cadillac established the concept of a luxury car with its LaSalle convertible coupe. Before the LaSalle, cars were strictly created based on their engineering needs. With this new car, it was the first time a company called in a designer rather than an engineer for the job. Designed by car stylist Harley Earl to be lavish and eye-catching, the LaSalle became a trendsetting automobile that once again highlighted Cadillac’s high standards for car-making.
時間快進到1927年，凱迪拉克通過其LaSalle敞篷小轎車確立了豪華車的概念。在LaSalle誕生之前，公司嚴格根據汽車的工程需求來製造汽車。而這款新車，是公司第一次聘請設計師而不是工程師來設計完成的。 LaSalle由轎車款式設計師Harley Earl設計，既豪華又引人注目，它成為引領潮流的汽車，再次彰顯了凱迪拉克在汽車製造方面的高標準。
圖：凱迪拉克1927年推出的LaSalle車型
Cadillac’s success and technical progress continued through the 1930s. But then World War II hit, and the entire car industry slowed production in order to produce tanks and aircraft engines. But that didn’t stop the car brand. Cadillac introduced designs that came to both define the car industry and embody the prosperity of the “fabulous ‘50s” and 1960s. While the company received recognition for its continued engineering developments, it was Cadillac’s iconic tail fins that became a staple feature of all luxury automobiles. Not to mention its cars’ enormous dimensions and Dagmar bumpers, nicknamed after the voluptuous TV star. At the height of its popularity, Cadillac was selling over five times that of rival Lincoln, and in 1968, managed to sell over 200,000 vehicles for the year.
凱迪拉克的成功和技術進步一直持續到上世紀30年代，但隨後第二次世界大戰爆發，許多公司轉向生產坦克和航空發動機，整個汽車行業的產量縮減。 但這並沒有阻止凱迪拉克品牌的發展。凱迪拉克推出的設計不僅定義了汽車行業，還體現了“神話般的'50年代”和60年代的繁榮。公司因其不斷的工程開發而獲得認可，其標誌性尾鰭成為所有豪華汽車中的主要特色，還有大尺寸車身和以性感的電視明星妲歌瑪·拉桑德（Dagmar Lassander）而得名的彈頭式保險槓（Dagmar bumpers）。
在其鼎盛時期，凱迪拉克的銷量是其競爭對手林肯的五倍多，並且在1968年成功售出了20萬輛汽車。
圖：1959款凱迪拉克Eldorado
But Cadillac was more than just America’s most stylish and
top-selling premium car brand. Through General Motors’ aggressive marketing, driving a Cadillac became a status symbol in America to everyone from celebrities and professional athletes to presidents.凱迪拉克不僅僅是美國最時尚、最暢銷的高檔汽車品牌，通過通用汽車的積極營銷，在美國駕駛凱迪拉克成為地位的象徵，從名人、職業運動員到總統，無一例外。
At the start of the 1970s, Cadillac remained the dominating force in the luxury car market, as the idea that “bigger is better” still rang true with buyers. However, as the economy declined and a widespread oil crisis spread, owning giant, gas-guzzling sedans became far less convenient and far more expensive. But more than anything, the rise of imported cars gave Cadillac some serious competition, and the brand started to lose ground as the standard of excellence in America.
上世紀70年代初，由於“越大越好”的想法在購車者中仍然存在，凱迪拉克依舊是豪華車市場上的主導力量。但是，隨著經濟下滑和石油危機廣泛蔓延，車身龐大、耗油量大的轎車變得越來越不方便實惠。最重要的是，進口汽車的興起給凱迪拉克帶來了激烈的競爭，凱迪拉克開始失去其作為美國卓越標準的地位。
Although the 1980s started well enough for Cadillac, with sales continuing to increase, the company responded poorly to this rise of imports. To compete with all the new compact foreign automobiles, the company began downsizing its entire lineup to create a team of smaller, fuel-efficient cars. But its cars quickly became indistinguishable, not only from each other, but from General Motors’ other brands as well.
雖然80年代初，持續增長的銷售量對於凱迪拉克來說差強人意，但是面對進口汽車的增長，該公司的應對卻不盡人意。
為了與所有外國的新型緊湊型汽車競爭，凱迪拉克開始削減汽車陣容，打造一個由小型、省油的汽車組成的陣容。但是它的汽車很快變得難以區分，不僅是其幾款車型之間，而且與通用汽車的其他品牌也是如此。
圖：雪佛蘭與凱迪拉克
And as the company hastily pushed out these smaller cars to try and match the influx of luxury imports, Cadillac encountered a number of failures, the prime example being the Cimarron, the smallest car Cadillac had ever produced to that point. It sold so poorly that it was axed from their lineup by 1988, just six years after its launch.
由於凱迪拉克趕忙推出幾款小型汽車，試圖與大量進口的豪華車競爭，結果遭受了許多失敗。最鮮明的例子是西馬龍牌汽車，這是凱迪拉克迄今為止生產過的最小的汽車。其銷量太過糟糕，以至於在推出後僅六年就於1988年被裁退。
圖：西馬龍在美國的年銷量
Consumers recognized the decline in quality of Cadillac’s cars, and it reflected in the company’s sales. Cadillac’s share of the US luxury car market dropped from 31% in 1980 to just 22% in 1990. As Cadillac fell, its competitor Lincoln reaped the benefits. Lincoln’s share doubled during the course of the decade to 20%. And in 1998, for the first time in 59 years, Lincoln outsold Cadillac.
消費者意識到了凱迪拉克汽車質量的下降，這反映在該公司的銷量中：凱迪拉克在美國豪華車市場的份額從1980年的31％下降到1990年的22％。隨著凱迪拉克的衰落，其競爭對手林肯從中受益。在這十年間，林肯的市場份額翻了一番，達到20％。 1998年，林肯59年來首次超過凱迪拉克。
By the 1990s, Cadillac lost any appeal it had with the younger market. The running joke became that all Cadillac owners were somewhere between 60 and death. America’s luxury car market was now heavily dominated by Mercedes, with Toyota’s newly introduced Lexus brand close behind, followed by BMW, whose sales were quickly rising.
到90年代，凱迪拉克失去了對年輕市場的吸引力，人們戲稱凱迪拉克的車主都是“老古董”了。梅賽德斯目前在美國的豪華車市場佔據主導地位，豐田推出的雷克薩斯品牌緊隨其後，其次是銷量迅速增長的寶馬。
圖：日本豐田公司雷克薩斯車型
But in 1999, the introduction of what would become one of Cadillac’s most iconic vehicles would prevent a total collapse and help revamp the brand. The 1999 Escalade was Cadillac’s answer to the full-size SUV boom and its response to the success of Lincoln’s Navigator. The Escalade not only performed well sales-wise; it became a pop-culture icon in itself, making its way into movies and music videos, as well as becoming a popular choice among celebrity car buyers.
但是在1999年，凱迪拉克推出了其最具標誌性的汽車之一，拯救了本將崩潰的公司，並幫助公司重塑品牌。 1999年推出的凱雷德（Escalade）是凱迪拉克對全尺寸SUV熱潮的回應，也是對林肯領航員（Navigator）成功的回應。凱雷德不僅在銷售方面表現良好；它自身也成為一種流行文化，打入電影和音樂視頻市場，併成為名人購車者的熱門選擇。
圖：凱迪拉克凱雷德
Things were starting to look up. Cadillac saw a bump in sales, a rise in popularity with the youth market thanks to the Escalade, and somehow survived General Motors’ 2009 bankruptcy that saw multiple brands dissolve.
情況開始好轉。由於凱雷德的成功，凱迪拉克的銷量有所增長，在年輕市場中的知名度也有所提高，並且在通用汽車於2009年破產導致多個品牌解散時得以倖免。
Unfortunately, the 21st century has not been completely kind to the once glorious name of Cadillac. While Cadillac’s array of modern sport sedans and performance models has been well received by reviewers and the media, the numbers say otherwise. In 2018, the brand saw its US luxury car market share dip to a lowly 7%, selling only 154,702 cars that year, which put it behind even Acura. And its sales among American buyers only continue to plummet.
不幸的是，對“凱迪拉克”這個曾經無限榮耀的名字，21世紀並不那麼友善。凱迪拉克的一系列現代運動型轎車和車型性都能受到評論家和媒體的好評，但銷售數字卻與情況相反。2018年，該品牌在美國豪華車市場的份額下降至7％，當年僅售出154,702輛汽車，甚至落後於日本本田公司的謳歌，而且銷售量在美國買家中還在繼續暴跌。
But why? How does a company that continues to churn out high-quality cars with top-level technology, like its self-driving Super Cruise system, continue to dip in sales? Well, Cadillac took a long time to join the crossover SUV craze, something that now makes up 60% of luxury car sales in the US.
這是為什麼？為什麼一家不斷採用頂級技術生產高品質汽車的公司（如其輔助駕駛的超級巡航系統）銷量持續走低？好吧，也許是因為凱迪拉克花了很長時間加入跨界SUV的熱潮，而如今，SUV佔據美國豪華車銷量的60％。
But despite its problems in the US, the company may have found its answers in the global market, particularly in China.
但是，儘管在美國遇到困境，該公司仍可能在全球市場上發現轉機，尤其是在中國。
Between 2016 and 2017, Cadillac sales in China exploded by over 50%, leading Cadillac to record its second-highest global sales mark in the company’s 115-year history. The company already has plans to expand its network of dealers to 500 in China by 2025.
2016到2017年間，凱迪拉克在中國的銷售額激增了50％以上，使凱迪拉克在其115年的歷史上創下了全球第二高的銷售記錄。該公司已經計劃到2025年將其在中國的經銷商擴展到500家。
圖：2019年10月凱迪拉克CT5北京凱迪拉克中心呈現
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