Escalade featured in the latter seasons of the show.
The vehicle belonged to mobster Tony Soprano, and it became an important part of his criminal enterprise—a safe space where he could conduct business and a weapon he used to chase down rivals!
left a big impression on viewers, and it sold for a huge sum following the death of actor James Gandolfini (who played Tony in the show). Read on to learn more about the iconic Cadillac, and discover what happened to one of TV's
“The Sopranos” first hit our screens in 1999, and the main character Tony Soprano drove several vehicles during the show’s run.
For the first four seasons, he owned a 1999 Chevrolet Suburban LT 4x4, but he upgraded to an Escalade upon becoming mob boss. Tony’s first Escalade was a black model, but he totaled it in episode 5.05 when swerving to avoid a raccoon! It was replaced with the white Escalade ESV, which Tony kept until the show’s end in 2007.
The ESV model Escalade arrived in the U.S. in 2002. At the top end, these powerful cars boasted 6.0-liter Vortec V8 engines and 345 brake horsepower. The perfect match for a hulking tough guy like Tony Soprano!
Not much is known about the Escalade from the time “The Sopranos” finished in 2007, to the car appearing at auction in 2015. It clocked an additional 9,000 miles in the intervening years (109,000 in 2015, versus 100,000 in 2007), which suggests it wasn’t completely ignored but wasn’t being used as a daily driver either.
James Gandolfini sadly died in 2013, but before he passed away he signed the car in three places, which drove up its value. With renewed interest in his memorabilia, the white Caddy sold for a hefty $120,000—over 20 times the reserve.
While this is a lot of money, it’s not that surprising considering “The Sopranos” is widely considered to be the best TV show of all time, and this is a full-size luxury SUV!
The winning bidder chose to remain anonymous, but considering they chose to pay so much we can assume they are fans of the show, and that the car is in good hands.
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