# $250,000 Cadillac made entirely of aluminum, with 1,000-horsepower, V-16 **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 5, 2003, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812 "2003-01-05T20:57:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2003, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/21 "2003-01-07T03:53:21Z")
> [@](#): > > What is your $ cutoff point between a nice new car and pretnetious/disgusting? Well, I guess I’d say the Lexus dollar range isn’t too bad, but I’d never personally never spend that much money on a car. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2003, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/22 "2003-01-07T04:21:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by lieu \* > \*\*Who’d of thought they could make a bunch of beer cans any prettier? \*\* This Bud’s for you! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Feynn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecb155/32.png) [@Feynn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Feynn)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2003, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/23 "2003-01-07T05:13:40Z")
All I can think of is who the hell needs 1000 hp in a luxury sedan? ---
**Author:** ![Tony\_Montana](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/278dde/32.png) [@Tony\_Montana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tony_Montana)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2003, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/24 "2003-01-07T05:42:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lissa \* > Lexus dollar range isn’t too bad, but I’d never personally never spend that much money on a car. Gimme a 1979 pinto anyday,gets me from A to B… I can think of better ways to spend my money than to buy a overpriced toyota… ---
**Author:** ![Badtz\_Maru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e36b37/32.png) [@Badtz\_Maru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Badtz_Maru)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2003, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/25 "2003-01-07T06:26:03Z")
The way I see it, money is relative. If I made several million dollars a year, I would buy this car. Not because I want to show off, but because I think it’s neat as hell and would love to have one, and if I made several million a year dropping a quarter million on a car would be no worse than me buying a used Saturn for $4000 earlier this year. The money will do my fellow man more good being spent on something than sitting in a bank account gathering interest. ---
**Author:** ![Tony\_Montana](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/278dde/32.png) [@Tony\_Montana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tony_Montana)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2003, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/26 "2003-01-07T06:59:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Badtz Maru \* > \*\*The way I see it, money is relative. > ] Yeah thats what I was tring to come across as saying. Only you put it much better… ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2003, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/27 "2003-01-07T07:31:39Z")
Drive-by-wire? Video cameras instead of mirrors? How will this thing be street-legal? By virtue of its “light” construction mitigating the damage it might do in the event of a catastrophic electronics failure? Oh, right… It costs a quarter-of-a-million dollars. Of course it’ll be legal. That being said, it sure does look purdy. I wonder how much a natural-gas conversion kit would add to the cost? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2003, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/28 "2003-01-08T01:13:28Z")
> [@](#): > > If I made several million dollars a year, I would buy this car. Not because I want to show off, but because I think it’s neat as hell and would love to have one, and if I made several million a year dropping a quarter million on a car would be no worse than me buying a used Saturn for $4000 earlier this year. If I were as rich as Bill Gates, I still couldn’t justify buying that car. I guess what I don’t understand is what’s “neat” about it. It may have all sorts of doo-dads, but a lot of them seem useless to me. Do you really need 700 HP to get around town? What’s so inconvienient about using actual mirrors instead of cameras? Why have doors that open to 90 degrees, when I doubt this car would ever be used for, say, hauling big pieces of furniture. > [@](#): > > The money will do my fellow man more good being spent on something than sitting in a bank account gathering interest. And there are at least a thousand ways the money could better benefit your fellow man than buying a over-priced status symbol. ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2003, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/29 "2003-01-08T03:27:49Z")
> [@](#): > > There’s no reason on God’s Green Earth to own such an expensive automobile, other than to “impress.” Yup. Why is “impress” such a bad reason? ---
**Author:** ![Tony\_Montana](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/278dde/32.png) [@Tony\_Montana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tony_Montana)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2003, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/30 "2003-01-08T05:35:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lissa \* > And there are at least a thousand ways the money could better benefit your fellow man than buying a over-priced status symbol. ] HMM… Buying an over-priced status symbol,benefiting fellow man… I’d prolly do both (call me a wingnut)… But I wouldn’t buy that monstrosity, I’d get a Ferrari… ---
**Author:** ![vasyachkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/c5a1d2/32.png) [@vasyachkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vasyachkin)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2003, 8:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/31 "2003-01-08T08:20:35Z")
its a marketing scam. nobody will build this crap. at least nobody will buy it. why would you want a sedan, where you could sit your wife and kids and then go 220 mph and kill them all ? ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2003, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/32 "2003-01-08T08:46:26Z")
If they produce it, it’ll sell well for a car of this type. You think this thing is unique? The Maybach has something like 600 HP, costs $350,000, and looks like a gigantic Nissan Altima. Apparently, this is a booming segment of the car market - there are a lot of millionaires out there these days. Think Saudi Shiekhs, rap stars, sports professionals, and dot com millionaires (still lots of 'em around - the smart ones who got out before the bubble burst). The proportion of young millionaires is no doubt higher now than at any time in history. These guys can afford gigantic luxury cars, but they are young enough that the appreciate the power and even like to drive them themselves once in a while. I agree that it seems nuts, but then, if you looked at how the very rich live I think you’d find their car choices to be the least of their extravagences. These are people who have 80,000 flower budgets and throw half million dollar parties. Price is really no object when it comes to their transportation - they’re riding in a 20 million dollar Gulfstream, and they’re going to worry about blowing a couple hundred thousand on a car? Nah. ---
**Author:** ![shelbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3d9bf3/32.png) [@shelbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shelbo)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2003, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/33 "2003-01-08T20:58:31Z")
They ought to call it what it is: The Caddillac NBA. Put some 20 inch chrome rims on that bad boy, and Kobe will sell his Escalade. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2003, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/34 "2003-01-08T22:05:18Z")
**Lissa** : Why are you so peeved about it? So what if someone wants to buy this thing? We should celebrate the fact we live in such a country that people can afford to blow their money on such things; it’s a testimony to our ingenuity, or freedom, and the capitalist system. And BTW: All this talk about “Who _needs_ such a car” sounds rather Marxists to my ears… ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2003, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/35 "2003-01-09T02:47:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Crafter\_Man \* > \*\ ***Lissa** : Why are you so peeved about it? So what if someone wants to buy this thing? We should celebrate the fact we live in such a country that people can afford to blow their money on such things; it’s a testimony to our ingenuity, or freedom, and the capitalist system. > > And BTW: All this talk about “Who _needs_ such a car” sounds rather Marxists to my ears… \*\* In IMHO, people do not have to justify their opinions, and people should have the good grace not to criticise other people’s opinions. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2003, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/36 "2003-01-09T04:11:17Z")
Yep. Just like people shouldn’t have to justify their choice in automobiles. Or do we have to be tolerant of the intolerant? ---
**Author:** ![vasyachkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/c5a1d2/32.png) [@vasyachkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vasyachkin)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/37 "2003-01-10T01:38:48Z")
maybach will use the v-12 straight from the regular mercedes with the only difference being the turbocharging. now that costs next to nothing to do. in fact the turbocharger will be an inferior unit because it was decided that maximum performance was not needed. now to build an engine totally from scratch is another matter, its idiotic. anybody who wants performance will not buy a fucking sedan. he will buy ferrari enzo, porsche GT 1, mercedes SLR, lombarghini murcielago … ---
**Author:** ![Neurotik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/91b2a8/32.png) [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/38 "2003-01-10T04:38:28Z")
Frankly, I think the car is hideously ugly. It looks unbalanced with the long hood, the front is too slick, and those rims are just plain fugly. Gimme a nice Bentley over that any day. ---
**Author:** ![Oblong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/c0e974/32.png) [@Oblong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oblong)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/39 "2003-01-10T13:25:45Z")
There’s a reason why we have different cars. Many, if not most, use it as a form of expression as much as a transportation device. This is just an extension of that. If I were wealthy enough, I’d probably get one. Why live in big houses? Why have expensive shoes? We should all just live in the same style house, wear the same clothes, and drive the same vehicles because God forbid a few people spend money on things they really don’t need. ---
**Author:** ![Keweenaw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/da6949/32.png) [@Keweenaw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keweenaw)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2003, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812/40 "2003-01-15T18:15:53Z")
It’s not the V-16, but here is an example of [Cadillac Cool](http://whatisthematrix.warnerbros.com/rl_img/morpheus_&_sword.jpg) CTS [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/250-000-cadillac-made-entirely-of-aluminum-with-1-000-horsepower-v-16/146812.md?page=3)