The Cadillac of pickup trucks
(Credit: CNET Networks)It's difficult to imagine what customer segment the designers at GM had in mind when they came up with the idea of the Cadillac Escalade EXT. The 2007 model that just arrived into the CNET Car Tech garage boasts a dazzling array of tech features: heated and cooled front seats, a factory-installed DVD player, DVD-based touch-screen navigation, as-standard XM Satellite radio playing through an eight-speaker Bose surround-sound audio system and...an 8-foot cargo bed.
(Credit: CNET Networks)With all-wheel drive and a monstrous 6.2-liter engine, the EXT could theoretically be used to haul around stacks of 50-gallon drums or to tow manual log splitters. For outdoorsy types, there's even the option of an "open-air driving experience" with the release of the midgate panel behind the rear seats.
But with a price tag of $60K, this is one pickup that's more likely to be found on Rodeo Drive than driving to a rodeo. We'll be rolling up our sleeves to bring a full review of the '07 Escalade EXT to CNET Car Tech shortly.
Please check out the GPS using POI (points of interest) and try to find a gas station, restaurant, etc. while the truck is moving. All you can look at is the first page until you stop the truck. Same with directions using turns, same with radio stations. If you are aware of an accident or construction ahead you cannot, ?avoid roads? unless the turns are on the 1st page.
I'm told this is a safety thing but my BMW doesn't restrict me and though you can't use POI to find, for example, the Charlotte airport, you can however, scroll the map using your finger then zooming in on Charlotte---I'm sure you get the point.
It would be more unsafe to pull over on a late snowy night to use POI to find a hotel than to use it while you were moving.
The Escalade forum mentions a company that sells a product (I believe Locksmith) for $150 that would override these restrictions but why should I pay to correct such a stupid design that GM should fix? Any help you can give by your review would be appreciated.