As evident by the recent photos of Cadillac ELR test mules wearing Chevy Volt skin, and most recently, a hiccup on the OnStar website (which has since been removed), the timetable for the plug-in Caddy coupe has begun to reveal itself. Currently, our best intel gives us the time frame of mid-late 2013 for the ELR’s launch as it plans to hit the market as a 2014 model. Following a North American launch, the ELR is expected to be sold in Europe and China as well.
When it does come to market, expect it to ride on a variant of GM’s Delta-II compact architecture, as a coupe, and a price tag rumored to be in the mid-high $50,000 range. A new, longer lasting battery than what we see in today’s Volt is expected to be powering the wheels, while a still-to-be-known engine will work to charge the batteries when they drain out. Meanwhile, BMW has been tirelessly promoting their upcoming i8 plug-in coupe — which is expected to feature a 0-60 acceleration force of 4.6 seconds from the 349 combined horsepower from its battery/engine combination. How the mysterious ELR will stack up to the German plug-in will be what to watch for when they both hit the market.
Comments
Manoli this has been on the direct caddy site for months saying it will be a 2014 car exact timing is being determined but expect a launch just about on time for a 2014 car sept, oct. time frame, performance will be the caddy signature for this car remember electric cars have instant torque and caddy will go for a greater acceleration rate as well as a sportier driving experience, this will not be a V version but will be much faster than the volt and with its low center of gravity will have very good driving charictoristics. The question is will there be a V version _ _ _ guess?
i doubt it will get a V badge, but a Platinum version like the XTS, and ‘Sclade is more than likely
jd looking at the information Cadillac disclosed of the ELR on its official website doesn’t really indicate the official launch time http://www.cadillac.com/elr-electric-car.html, unless I’m looking at the wrong place. Did they remove some information? A V model would definitely escalate the way people look at EVs when it comes to performance.
An ELR-V doesn’t fit here IMHO. Keep the V’s for the gasoline burning, tire smoking, hippie nightmare machines! 🙂
What if instead of a V series ELR they brought the XLR back as an electric, like the Tesla Roadster but larger and give it lambo doors or something with limited production and a real high price tag to make it a halo car (sort of like the new gullwing mercedes?) for the brand that still doesn’t have a flagship.
As we know the XLR is built in the Corvette factory…
And the Chevy Volt has the same wheel base as the Corvette…
Could there be an electric XLR someday ?
Yes please!
JD Is this car going to be Rear Wheel Drive or Front Wheel Drive ?
Andrew, you can’t contradict a GMer! JD works for das General!
They could make a V, go the route of the Tesla Roadster. VIA motors put a 400 hp electric motor into Silverados and Suburbans, but maybe independent electric motors for each wheel like the Audi e-tron would suit the ELR well while distinguishing it further from the Volt. What are the real BMW i8 numbers going to be near? I’ve seen some ridiculous prices written online, well into 6 figures in which case the ELR will easily do better. The grille still needs some work, the i8 concept looks pretty sick but idk how I feel about the clear doors.
While I do think the ELR is one sharp looking car, I think GM will inevitably shoot themselves in the foot with this. We’ve already seen they’ve not been able to meet sales goals with the Volt, and with the Prius Plug-In and i8 just around the corner I would fear that a beautiful vehicle like this is being brought to market way too early.
Does anyone remember when the Prius first came out, how popular it was? How Hollywood stars were doing anything to get to the top of the wait-list to get one? I think GM needs to go back to the drawing board and continually improve upon the Volt for at least another 5 years, and then build even more anticipation for an ELR. Then when it’s finally released, slow the production down so that there’s a wait-list. That way they’ll keep profitability AND consumer buzz high.
Toyota really has a great product on heir hands with the entire Prius family. Seen any Prius C’s on your local Toyota lot? No? That’s because they can’t keep up with the demand!! I think GM should let Chevy focus their attention fully on catching up to and eventually beating the Prius, while Cadillac should focus their attention to their luxury and V-series and beating the Germans at that game. IMHO, asking Cadillac to compete with BMW on every front is just setting them up for failure. BMW has the time and the resources to get into electric vehicles because they have nearly perfected the rest of their fleet.
If I was Dan Akerson my main priorities today would be that I’d want to beat the Germans in performance and the Japanese in fuel economy. Keep each brand in its “swim lane”. Cadillac doesn’t need to get into electrics quite yet, they need to focus on their luxury and performance. Giving anything else any attention or resources is a distracting you from those clearly defined goals and is thereby delaying your progress on becoming the best. Don’t become the “jack of all trades, master of none”…. let’s focus on bringing a real M3 fighter to market within Cadillac, and let’s make sure Chevy is working around the clock to make the Volt the undisputed champion! Five years from now, you’d have the best in electric cars and the best in lux and performance, THEN you bring an ELR to market.
/rant
Cadillac should ignore what BMW and other imports are “announcing” (a.k.a. vaporware) and go directly to production. The first luxury EREV must be a GM product, and it must not look at others, including the Fisker models, which are much more expensive. BMW is still trying to catch up (they “stole” the head Volt engineer last year), and I know they will never match or even compete directly with the ELR.
Go Cadillac! Go GM!
Here here. None of this “engineering by press release” nonsense.
Also, the Chris’s “swim lane” idea is too restrictive to growth. Why not have Cadillac in on the ground floor with electric luxury cars? Why let BMW beat them to the punch and then have Cadillac play catch up? There’ no need to match BMW pound for pound in the M vs. V fight because that is not the core of either BMW or Cadillac’s business.
Make luxury cars that appeal to the most buyers, even if they are garden variety CTS’s. A CTS-V appeals to lots of people, but not everyone buys one. Same deal with the ELR, the demand for electic luxury (or even hybrid luxury) is there and growing faster than the demand for performance luxury.
Don’t belive me? Count the RX h’s.
Cadillac needs to have it’s fingers in all the pies, just some of it’s fingers should be deeper than others, and sooner, not later.
I agree with you that they should focus on the core luxury business, and I thought my post got that across too, but I think the V vs. M fight is what captivates consumers. Most will not own either, but I believe that if the perception is that an ATS-V is comparable (or better) to an M3, then consumers will also associate an ATS4 being of better quality than an 328xi.
I’m not saying Caddy shouldn’t get in the electric game, but I think my post laid out a more conservative route to getting there. This is not just the development of another coupe, it takes MASSIVE resources. I feel as though those valuable resources should be put forth to their core business — working on an ELR is a distraction and takes away from that goal IMO. I also don’t believe that being first to market is that important… to your point, there are other luxury hybrids on the market and, as we both agree, focusing on the core business should be priority #1. Why not learn from BMW’s mistakes and let them spend on the R&D and market research?
wy they dont put a gas engine do you really need a caddy electric not….whit this style dont do a mistake…..gas engine….only…
ICE’s won’t be around in the future.
Get electric now, or play catch-up to electirc later.
If everything goes as per plans, the upcoming ELR luxury sedan from Cadillac Motors is expected to be released worldwide in 2013 as a brand new 2014 model year.