This past July, GM unveiled the Cadillac Sollei concept, an opulent convertible based on another ultra-luxury product – the Celestiq. With the Celestiq serving as the donor car for the one-off Sollei, the latter is essentially a two-door variation of the former, but with several distinctive design touches of its own, such as the soft convertible top.
The original Cadillac Sollei Concept
The inclusion of a soft top is a novel choice for Cadillac, with designers making the choice very consciously. As GM Design Chief Michael Simcoe explained to GM Authority Executive Editor, Alex Luft, the decision to use a soft top (as opposed to a hard top convertible setup) in the Sollei was driven by a desire to not be constrained by packaging: a folding hard top configuration would take up way too much space and dictate too much of the vehicle’s design.
It’s also worth noting that fitting the Cadillac Sollei with a soft top follows a recent trend seen in other ultra luxury makes, like Bentley and Rolls-Royce. Even the Mercedes-Benz SL, which featured a hard top for the past two generations, now comes exclusively with a soft-top. Be that as it may, we couldn’t help but wonder what the Sollei would look like with a fixed hard top roof, partly because we were curious to see such a vehicle, but also because most (if not all) convertibles are derived from coupes. To satisfy our curiosity, we rendered a hypothetical Sollei coupe.
We gave it a lot (A LOT!) of side glass, especially aft of the doors, emphasizing the car’s full-size proportions (the actual Sollei concept retains the Celestiq’s massive 217.7-inch long wheelbase). This, in turn, resulted in a rather traditional roofline and a three-box shape. We also made do without a B-pillar, enabling a very clean Day Light Opening (DLO) profile.
We think this variation capture the overall aesthetic of the original concept, while giving it a distinguished look in the vein of a classic Cadillac coupe with a dose several doses of traditional opulence, vastly different from the sporty, fast-back-like coupes on the market today.
Cadillac Sollei Concept with soft-top roof retracted (top) and extended (bottom)
What do you think? Does the Cadillac Sollei look better as a hard top coupe or do you prefer it as a soft top convertible? Vote in the poll and sound off in the comments section below. And don’t forget to subscribe to GM Authority for more Cadillac news, Cadillac concept news, GM EV news, and around-the-clock GM news coverage.
Comments
Now that’s a Cadillac!
That’s a Cadillac and a car I would buy. A boring SUV or a crossover, never.
You got $340K lying around?
What people don’t realize is that Cadillacs used to be the absolute top of the heap. The only reason regular people can afford them now is because of how far they’ve fallen .
The New Eldorado (I wish).
Hmmm, is the picture better or is the commentary better?
Agreed that is a most difficult choice.
That rendering is gorgeous.
Do not like much convertibles, so my preference is hard top with panorama glass roof
I really like that and the color is stunning. Please Cadillac, see these images and the interest they generate and please go back to making real (Cadillac) cars again! Go ahead and keep your stupid Escalade and XT4/XT6 as well as the Lyriq and Optiq. Just bring back some true luxury sedans and 2 doors with great names.
I’m waiting for the Pyrrhiq.
how about with white walls and flying goddess hood ornament ? someone ?
Can’t vote. Love ’em both!
I like both of them.
Why is there a choice? MAKE BOTH.
With a V12
Would make a great Coupe de Ville D’Elegance……..with the real short lived Blackwing v-8 of course.
Sollei is basically the Celestiq with 2 doors and no roof. AKA it already came from a sedan.
The render’s roof doesn’t flow at all. The Sollei as a hard top would have a similar roof line to that of the convertible, not a 1960s Cadillac greenhouse like the render.
What Engine? RWD or AWD? HP? Trans?
Not enough info! Power top?
What about the word “rendering” do you not understand?
I expected more information that is likely available.
Well, hummm, they could say AWD. 111 kwh, and then pick a horsepower 340-550 but it doesn’t matter really.
I’m at a loss to understand why this is of any importance at all, as to what looks to me like a 60’s MUSTANG rear window glued to the also imaginary Sollei, based on a very low produced real car, or the imaginary one, – a derivative of a $340,000 – $400,000 Celestiq vehicle which just won’t be seen around here.
IF GMA wants to wet dream stuff, it WOULD be a practical exercise to come up with a nice looking car in the $40,000 – $80,000 range – with more emphasis in keeping the price low enough to get a $7,500 tax credit.
In other words, 2wd, one electric motor, big battery so it can go someplace – especially since the long term trend of battery cost is a serious drop in price.
The 64 1/2 Mustang from FORD and the competition 1967 Camaro (my family had one with an MSRP of $2,430, (6 cylinder, 3 speed manual transmission, manual steering, no power brakes, windows, door locks, clock, air conditioning, etcetera – AM radio without presets was the only option) purchased when 2 years old for $1,200 since it had the unwanted manual 3 on – the – floor) were both VERY AFFORDABLE and each sold like hotcakes.
They were profitable for FORD and GM respectively since they weren’t loaded up with all kinds of gobbledygook that surprisingly, many people say they never use most of the ‘advanced features’.