As a proud Luxembourg-American, I've been traveling regularly to my ancestral land and checking out the automotive scene in the Grand Duchy. When staying in the Gare district of Luxembourg City last week, I kept passing by an unexpected sight on my way to the train station: a ludicrously massive 2015 Cadillac Escalade parked among the little Dacias and Citroëns in a neighborhood of cramped 18th-century streets.
Yes, perhaps the least practical motor vehicle for such a setting. Luxembourg City is an extremely wealthy place, crawling with high-rolling bankers and top European Union muckety-mucks, but even a Mercedes S-Class would feel cramped on its streets.
It's a car town for sure. The very first motor vehicle sold in the Grand Duchy, an 1895 Benz Velo (with license plate number 1), now resides at the country's National Museum of Art and History.
Yes, the country's Minister of Finance just peeled off 200,000 euro from his fat bankroll and bought this piece of automotive history for the museum. As one does.
With a Smart ForTwo for scale, we can see why a 'Sclade might not be the most practical daily driver in Luxembourg City. There's no way to keep this truck's flank from protruding into the traffic lane.
Unfortunately for the Cadillac's owner, d'Flicken take a dim view of gigantic American trucks blocking traffic, and they plastered its windshield with parking tickets.
Judging from the quantity of these stickers I saw around the city, I'd say plenty of Luxembourgers are not fans of SUVs on their streets.
Perhaps a Ligier JS50, which can be registered as a moped in much of the EU, makes more sense. Here's one I found on the very same block as the Escalade.
Ligier, a French manufacturer best-known for its Formula 1 cars, sells the JS50 for just 13,999 euro.
This one has plenty of personalization touches.
Amazingly, I saw another Escalade during my stay in Luxembourg City. This one was attempting to navigate the ancient cobblestone streets of the Grund. It makes a statement!
