2008 Cadillac Escalade EXT Exterior Review [ 2007 ]
Based on analysis of 25 Escalade-EXT reviews and test drives.
Exterior - What the Auto Press Says
The 2008 Cadillac Escalade EXT's suitably stylish design gets a high exterior ranking for blending both the rugged qualities of a pickup and the sleek but aggressive lines of a large SUV. The Detroit News says the Escalade is striking and looks "more like a dual-purpose vehicle, as opposed to just a pickup." The Convert-a-Cab feature, which allows the cargo bed to extend into the rear seating area, draws particular praise.
For the most part, the EXT looks pretty much like previous generations. "Those who liked the previous Escalade EXT should love this one, beginning with its styling," says Kelley Blue Book. "Slightly larger and heavier due to added structure and features, it appears somewhat smaller thanks to its more sleek and crisp new body." A reviewer for the Dallas Morning News also noticed that the EXT looks deceptively small: "This is a good-looking vehicle that appears smaller than it is -- until some midget like me stands next to it or tries to step, stretch or even jump into it." The reviewer for the Washington Times, however, says: "Everything about EXT is big … It's not designed for wallflowers or people in the witness protection program. Its flashy exterior and mind-numbing proportions are guaranteed to evoke a reaction wherever it goes." And Forbes describes the EXT as "a large, rectangular and imposing-looking vehicle."
One of the standout features of the Escalade EXT, according to reviewers, is the Convert-a-Cab system, which allows the cargo bed, which is normally only 5 feet, 4 inches in length and 5 feet, 7 inches wide, to extend into the rear seating area. With the back seats folded flat and the midgate, which separates the bed from the interior, removed, the cargo bed has a length of just more than 8 feet, which Newsday notes is "the magic number for accommodating framing lumber and other building materials that come in 8-foot lengths." This system, borrowed from the Chevrolet Avalanche, is unique to these two vehicles. Kelley Blue Book feels that removing the midgate makes the EXT into "a surprisingly capable pickup." The EXT comes with a tonneau cover to protect the contents of the bed. Cars.com jokes: "With a covered bed in the back, you could carry horse manure and still look stylish. And since that cover is watertight, you would probably still smell stylish, too." A few reviewers question whether buyers who purchase a vehicle as classy as the EXT will really be doing that kind of hauling. "[Y]ou'd probably stand a better chance of seeing J. Lo schlepping her own suitcase than an EXT transporting a load of fertilizer," says the Washington Times.
