Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac
Upon his arrival in America, La Mothe adopted his title after the town of Cadillac, Gironde in southwestern France. The city of Detroit became the world center of automobile production in the 20th century. William H. Murphy and Henry M. Leland founded the Cadillac auto company and paid homage to him by using his name for their company and his armorial bearings as its logo in 1902. Various places bear his name in America, in particular Cadillac Mountain in Maine and the town of Cadillac, Michigan.
Cadillac Le Mans
The Cadillac Le Mans was a concept car designed by Harley Earl and developed by Cadillac. It was named for the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in France, in which Cadillac competed in 1950. Displayed at the 1953 General Motors Motorama in New York City, the design was a low-profile ( to the windshield frame), two-seat, fiberglass-bodied roadster. This concept showcased Cadillac's first wrap-around windshield. It was powered by a version of Cadillac's V8 engine, a power output not realized in production Cadillacs until 1955. The overall length of the Le Mans was . Though four prototypes were built, the model never went into production.