Editing Cadillac (section)

===Notable events: 1906–1912===

The Cadillac Automobile Company merged with Leland & Faulconer Manufacturing, forming The Cadillac Motor Company in 1905.<ref name=Wagner>"Cadillac: A Century of Excellence" by Rob Leicester Wagner ({{ISBN|978-1-58663-168-0}})</ref> From its earliest years, Cadillac aimed for [[precision engineering]] and stylish luxury finishes, causing its cars to be ranked amongst the finest in the United States. Cadillac was the first volume manufacturer of a fully enclosed car, in 1906. Cadillac participated in the 1908 interchangeability test in the United Kingdom, and was awarded the [[Dewar Trophy]] for the most important advancement of the year in the automobile industry.

On July 29, 1909,<ref name=hist1/> Cadillac was purchased by the [[General Motors]] (GM) [[conglomerate (company)|conglomerate]].<ref>{{cite web|title=1909, Cadillac Enters the Fold|url=http://history.gmheritagecenter.com/wiki/index.php/1909,_Cadillac_Enters_the_Fold|work=Generations of GM History|publisher=GM Heritage Center|access-date=July 26, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131231001500/http://history.gmheritagecenter.com/wiki/index.php/1909,_Cadillac_Enters_the_Fold|archive-date=December 31, 2013}}</ref> Cadillac became General Motors' prestige division, devoted to the production of large luxury vehicles. The Cadillac line was also GM's default marque for "commercial chassis" institutional vehicles, such as [[limousine]]s, ambulances, [[hearses]] and funeral home [[flower car]]s, the last three of which were custom-built by [[Aftermarket (automotive)|aftermarket]] manufacturers. It became positioned at the top of GM's vehicle hierarchy, above [[Buick]], [[Oldsmobile]], [[Oakland Motor Car Company|Oakland]], and later, [[Chevrolet]].

In 1912, Cadillac was the first automobile manufacturer to incorporate an electrical system enabling [[electric starter|starting]], [[Ignition system|ignition]], and lighting.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://gearheads.org/history-of-cadillac/|title=The Continual Innovation and History of Cadillac|last=Nazario|date=May 17, 2012|publisher=GearHeads|access-date=June 14, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131230233929/http://gearheads.org/history-of-cadillac/|archive-date=December 30, 2013}}</ref><ref name="pm">{{cite news|url=http://www.popularmechanics.com/automotive/reader_rides/1267556.html |title=100 Years of Cadillac History |last=Laam |first=Michael |date=January 2002 |work=Popular Mechanics  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100127094353/http://www.popularmechanics.com/automotive/reader_rides/1267556.html |archive-date=January 27, 2010 }}</ref>