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Car Of The Day: March 2, 2010; Majorette '87 Cadillac Allanté
Topic Started: Mar 1 2010, 11:15 PM (613 Views)
NoirGuru
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The All Original Gentleman
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Today's car of the day is Majorette's 1987 Cadillac Allanté.

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Wikipedia
 
The Allanté was Cadillac's first venture into the ultra-luxury roadster market. The vehicle was sold from 1987 through 1993, with roughly 21,000 models built over its 7-year model run. Allanté's production was planned at 6,000 units per year, however, sales figures show Cadillac only built about half as many.


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For more information and pictures of the real car please visit:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_Allant%C3%A9

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This one is a childhood survivor of mine again, but with no special memories. The colour always turned me off. It was often the "parking lot car" or the "car that got pulled over". Because of how often it wasn't driven in my sets, the flashing is still fresh around the wheels.

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Wikipedia
 
Development and production

Originally designed under the code name "Callisto", the Allanté was intended to restore Cadillac to its position as a premium luxury automobile builder. Allanté's direct competitor was the very successful Mercedes-Benz SL, and to a smaller degree, the Jaguar XJS. Allanté's 4.1 liter V8 was shared with other Cadillacs across the line, but when specified to the Allanté, several changes were made. Unlike Buick's Reatta, which shared powertrain and underpinnings from the Riviera and the Oldsmobile Toronado, Cadillac borrowed very little from the Eldorado and Seville for Allanté.

The body of the Allanté was designed and built in Italy by Pininfarina (of Ferrari fame). The completed bodies were shipped 3,300 miles from Italy in specially-equipped Boeing 747s, 56 at a time, to Cadillac's Detroit/Hamtramck Assembly plant. The bodies were then mated to the chassis. This led to a few interesting nicknames, such as "The Flying Italian Cadillac" and "The world's longest assembly line."

The Allanté was initially priced at US$54,700, far above the price of any other contemporary Cadillac. Today's Cadillac XLR, also a convertible roadster, at roughly $70,000 is similarly priced. The high performance Cadillac XLR-V at $100,000 has regained the cachet of being the most expensive Cadillac product, when adjusting for inflation.

The car's front-wheel drive (FWD) powertrain was unique in its class, and brought the car in for serious criticism. FWD is rare among high-priced sports and touring cars, as the configuration's frequent tendency toward understeer under heavy cornering, torque steer under heavy acceleration, and a poor front-rear weight balance is not desirable. The Mercedes 560SL — along with the rest of the Allanté's competitors — was rear-wheel drive. Many car magazines and auto enthusiasts argued that no sports car, let alone one at the Allanté's price, should have been FWD. Early reviews cited Pininfarina and not Cadillac as the source of this decision, saying they felt it would make the car more versatile. Additionally, poor power-to-weight ratio in the early years also made the car perform sedately. This led the target market to conclude that by offering an underpowered car at over $50,000 with no engine upgrade option, Cadillac was not serious in competing in the performance roadster market. This initial impression gave the Allanté an image ("all show, no go") from which it was never able to recover.

Specifications

The 1987 Allanté, with its removable aluminum hardtop and the industry's first power retractable AM/FM/Cellular Telephone antenna, debuted with a multi-port fuel injected version of Cadillac's aluminum 4.1 L HT-4100 V8, along with roller valve lifters, high-flow cylinder heads, and a tuned intake manifold. The new roadster also showcased an independent strut-based suspension system front and rear. Bosch ABS III four-wheel disc brakes were also standard. Unique to Allanté was a complex lamp-out module that substituted a burned-out bulb in the exterior lighting system with an adjacent lamp until the problem is corrected. The Delco-GM/Bose Symphony Sound System - a $905 option on other Cadillacs - was standard on Allanté. The only option was the available cellular telephone, installed in a lockable center console.


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ivantt
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New casting? Quick! Take it apart!
Looks like this casting was done by Lego. :rolleyes:
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craftymore
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Support your local demo derby.

This model shows why GM was not very competitive in the world market. Overpriced and under performing don't impress people in other parts of the world, let alone the US. Hardly a world class car. See GM's thinking on the Cadillac Cimarron for other examples of faulty thinking from the 1980s.
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Swifty
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The Mustang II is a Mustang too!
I always preferred the Matchbox version of the casting- this one has Fairmont taillights!
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Scooter
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I like this one too. someone is on a roll this week
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james_autos
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Minivan
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I always preferred the Matchbox version of the casting


Same here. I always thought this one looked a bit off.
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diegomg
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Fullsize
As you guys I also prefer the Matchbox model, the only thing that`s better in the majorette version is the interior detail.

I have them both. :thumbup:

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:wave:
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NoirGuru
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The All Original Gentleman
diegomg
Mar 2 2010, 12:18 PM
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That is a gorgeous green!
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James
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Mr.Bowtie
I think I have one in red, it looks better then the light green.

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Scooter
Fullsize
I got a matchbox version in pink that has been in 1 wreck. but i dont see pink mb versions very often
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Snowowl
Minivan
I have several MBs and Majorettes. Here is the shot of the Pink one by MB.

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Tone
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Rocket 88
ivantt
Mar 2 2010, 12:09 AM
Looks like this casting was done by Lego. :rolleyes:
Lego actually had some very nice looking scale model cars and trucks in the 50s and 60s - plastic with metal wheels.
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Tone
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Rocket 88
When I think of the Allante I think of Kelly Bundy on Married With Children and her aspirations to be a model. She introduced "THE NEW ALLANTE!" and fought with Tia Carrere from Wayne's World.
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Swifty
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The Mustang II is a Mustang too!
Tone
Mar 2 2010, 10:49 PM
When I think of the Allante I think of Kelly Bundy on Married With Children and her aspirations to be a model. She introduced "THE NEW ALLANTE!" and fought with Tia Carrere from Wayne's World.
I used to love that show but must've missed that episode!
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Sak
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Ezekiel 25:17
Compared to the Matchbox version, this one's comically bad.
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