1987 CADILLAC Allante 4.1L V8 4AT FWD (170 HP)

Vehicle Overview

General Motors tried to win a bigger market share with some help from the renowned European designer Pininfarina, who penned the Allante for Cadillac.

Cadillac tried to change its design language in the mid-’80s, and for that, it looked around for a design team able to do that. Pininfarina was already famous thanks to many vehicles designed by it, mostly Ferrari and some convertibles. The first product was the Cadillac Allante, which was supposed to compete with the Mercedes-Benz SL or the Jaguar XJS. But the result was far from what GM expected.

With the bodyworks made by Pininfarina in Italy and shipped back to Detroit for final assembly, the production costs were huge. It was an unusual recipe and, obviously, didn’t work that well since only 21,000 units were made during the seven-year production time. But Pininfarina did its part and made one of the best-looking premium roadsters from the market. Its wedged shape bodywork featured a short and flat grille at the front, with rectangular headlights and a plastic bumper. Its two-door design with a short rear deck and squared, horizontal taillights were considered revolutionary for those times and, especially, for Cadillac.

The interior featured two bucket seats separated by a center console, and there was no bench in the rear. Cadillac insisted on completely concealing the rag-top between the cabin and the trunk area, but it couldn’t be done. Part of it was still exposed but protected with a tonneau cover.

Despite all these efforts, the car was not only expensive but not as sporty as expected. Its V8s provided a mere 170 horses in the beginning. That figure went up to almost 300, but it was still too expensive for what it offered. Both Mercedes-Benz and Jaguar had more to say than the Cadillac. Moreover, the Allante was front-wheel drive.