1997 Cadillac DeVille Owner's Manual - Page 6

Few automobiles are fortunate enough to have the rich heritage that is Cadillac. The name Cadillac is appropriately that of Antoine de La Mothe Cadillac, the French military commander who founded the city of Detroit in 1701. What better name for the oldest automobile manufacturer in Detroit. Henry M. Leland, knownas the master of precision, initiated his precisionmanufacturing techniques at the founding of Cadillac in 1902.His exacting standards prompted the motto by which Cadillac has been guided over the years - "Craftsmanship A Creed -Accuracy A Law." The introduction of the first four cylinderengine in 1905 led the industry and enabled Cadillacs to travel at speeds up to 50 mph. For attention to quality and innovation, the Royal Automobile Club of England awarded the prestigious Dewar Trophy to Cadillac twice ...first in 1908 for achieving perfect interchangeability of parts and again for introducing the electric self starter, electric lighting and ignition system on 1912 models. Cadillac isthe only American manufacturer to win this honor and the only manufacturer in the world to win it twice. As commonplace as standardized parts are today, in 1908 parts werestill individually handfitted both in production and service. V