The Cadillac Escalade is a full-size luxury SUV manufactured by General Motors and marketed by their luxury division Cadillac. It was the luxury brand's first major entry into the SUV market. The Escalade was introduced for the 1999 model year in response to an influx of new luxury SUVs in the late 1990s such as the Mercedes-Benz M-Class, Range Rover, Lexus LX, and (especially) Ford's 1998 debut of the Lincoln Navigator.
Cadillac Motor Car Division, or simply Cadillac, is the luxury
vehicle division of the American automobile manufacturer
General Motors (GM). Its major markets are the United States,
Canada and China; Cadillac models are distributed in 34
additional markets worldwide. Historically, Cadillac automobiles
were at the top of the luxury field within the United States,
but have been outsold by European luxury brands including BMW
and Mercedes since the 2000s.