Rarer than an albino squirrel, the slow-selling Cadillac ELR was apparently shuffled into the afterlife three months ago.
Cadillac confirmed to Automotive News that the Chevrolet Volt-based luxury coupe ended production at GM’s Hamtramck facility earlier this year, with remaining units now dwindling from dealer lots.
Tell this news to any random person on the street, and you’ll very likely hear back, “What’s a Cadillac ELR?”
Despite a drop in price and a bump in power last year, the ELR never took off with the buying public, saddled initially with a sticker price double that of its Volt cousin. It’s been known for some time that a second generation wasn’t planned, but until now, no one checked to see whether it was still rolling off the assembly line.
Probably because — much like the buying public — everyone had forgotten about the ELR altogether.
Cadillac frames the ELR saga as an experiment in electrification — a dabbling in futuristic technology that will pave the way for innovative products in the future.
“Cadillac remains committed to delivering new technology, including advanced propulsion,” the automaker told Automotive News.
In the ELR’s heyday, if you can call it that, U.S. dealers were lucky to see 100 people a month wander by who were willing to slap nearly 80 grand down on a edgier-looking Volt.
Though its production life was very short (it only appeared in December 2013), anyone who secretly lusted after the model is in luck. As you light an electric birthday cake candle in memory of the ELR tonight, just know that 2016 models are already listing in the mid-$30,000 range on wholesale dealer auction sites.
[Image: General Motors]
I’m thinking these will make a solid bargain commuter as they’re forgotten.
The only problem is trim availability, which will be quite poor.
Not to mention servicing. I wonder how many Cadillac dealers will actually be able to fully service one of these. I wouldn’t doubt many can on paper but drive one in and they’ll ship you off to somewhere else.
Isn’t it just entirely Volt underpinnings? Might be better off to take it to the pleeb Chevy dealer.
It’s a Volt in drag. Mr. Goodwrench at your local Chevy dealer can service it.
I’m really sorry to hear this. I got one and absolutely love it. So does everyone I know that owns one. This was a great car that was slammed into extinction by everyone that didn’t have one. Too bad.
Let’s celebrate by taking August off.
Instead of just building a 4-door sedan based on our Volt PHEV…
A CTS EV or an XTS EV or an SRX/XT5 EV…that would have been a spacious, practical, logical challenger to the Tesla Model S…with a much more luxurious interior…
LETS BE STUPID and build an $82,000 coupe that looks so much like our regular $45,000 coupe NO ONE EVEN NOTICES IT.
Then lets make a commercial using a white alpha-male businessman/CEO..which modern day liberalism has trained everyone to hate.
Then we’ll have our CT6 hybrids built in China and shipped over …since China is world renowned for poor quality… and American consumers don’t need jobs.
That commercial was the only notable thing about the ELR’s existence.
Directly after the commercial was made, it came under attck as “snobbish” by your typical Sander’s supporters and liberals who’ve been forcefed hatred towards White alpha male businessmen (i.e. Donald Trump – whose very existence is seen as an affront to liberals/globalists/ feminists the world over).
As for the car…only STUPIDITY would have conjured up a 2-door coupe when Cadillac’s big sellers are 4-door sedans.
The CTS-V Coupe made more sense than the ELR.
Cadillac is STUPID. And they make bad deals.
Go ahead, SHORT BUS, show us your sources linking Sanders supporters with attacks on the Cadillac commercial.
#moreTrumpLies
Your pathetic COMMUNIST CANDIDATE IS GOING DOWN.
Hillary is going to be handed the nomination and Trump is going to DEMOLISH HER.
Tell me I’m lyin!!!
BTSR, you’re one for two. Hillary is indeed getting the nomination, and probably around 330 electoral votes along with it.
Those who think Trump will win need to list the states he’s going to win. It’s really hard to do so.
Hints: 1) There are LOTS of Latinos in Florida. 2) At least a third of Virginia’s Republicans are DC types who detest Trump with the heat of a thousand suns. 3) To win Pennsylvania Trump would need to improve on Romney’s showing among whites there by *20 points*. Michigan is similar but not quite as extreme. 4) There are LOTS of Latinos in Colorado, and Western white Republicans don’t like Trump much either. 5) Ohio alone won’t get him a win, or even get close.
Winning angry white dudes (and one black dude in Queens) by record margins may make angry white dudes feel good, but it doesn’t even get close to an Electoral College win.
Ohio -would- vote for Trump, bleh.
I just did tell you that you’re lying. But mostly you’re just a terrible judge of reality.
VoGo
Nothing is going to give me more pleasure than watching these PATHETIC sanders welfare communists tear the DNC apart when it becomes apparent that Hillary will get the nomination and she will SNUB Sanders for a position as VP.
The low-information welfare-votes are going to do half the work.
Then any number of terrorist attacks or economic downturns will help SEAL THE DEAL.
You’ve ALREADY LOST.
To be perfectly honest, I can sleep well whether Hillary or Trump win SO LONG AS THAT COMMUNIST IS ANNIHILATED.
I can’t help it – I’m a product of the 80’s.
DAL
#1 Don’t assume that everyone you mentioned can actually vote.
#1b Don’t assume that all of these people WILL vote. Many of them don’t – and won’t when Hillary takes the nomination.
#2 The “popular vote” is kept in check by the electoral college.
Bush won in 2000. Need I say more?
#3 I’m anticipating a great wave this year. It’s going to come as a surprise to many. But something in my bones tells me Trumps got this.
And not just the fact that he blew threw 16 other candidates like a wildfire – saying things that would have ended anyone elses campaign.
The good news about the democrats winning in the fall is that you will be able to afford to get a real college education, BTSR, which will enable you to comprehend the difference between a socialist and a communist.
VOGO
The ultimate goal of Socialism is Communism – Lenin
Yes I know the difference.
Difference or not – that commy is gonna BURN.
Another Trump supporter turning his back on education and knowledge. Ivanka was right.
I hate – like damn – to get involved in political ramblings here, but I must mention one.
“There are LOTS of Latinos in Florida.”
Indeed there are.
But 29% are Cuban in background and 20% are Puerto Ricans – the 15% that are Mexican might not like Trump for his comments (or they might not care, since they were aimed at *Illegals*), but why should a Cuban or Puerto Rican care about it?
(Disclosure: I can’t stand Trump, Clinton, OR Sanders; no dog in this fight, except “Hispanic Is Not Really A Group”.
Cubans ain’t Mexicans – both groups will tell you that pretty firmly.)
Polls in Florida have shown Trump with the same low ratings among Latinos of all sorts there that he has everywhere else. In any case, Puerto Ricans already vote heavily Democratic and Cubans, historically Republican-leaning, have increasingly been moving in that direction.
BTSR, if you had read beyond the first sentence of my post you would have discovered that what I’m saying is that it’s going to be really, really hard for Trump to win the electoral college. He’s got a structural disadvantage in all but a couple of the competitive states.
Thanks for the info, Sigivald.
However, I’d think that Latinos from pretty much anywhere might be more than a little miffed at Trump.
Hillary Clinton is a “Communist candidate”…
God bless ya, BTSR, you’re amusing.
dal20402, spot on takedown of the short bus, but you left out the Gary whatshisname Libertarian party effect. Trump can’t get odds in Vegas. No chance.
With the underrated Neal McDonough.
Why do we have to put up with posts like this. Dear Verticalscope, please give us the ability to ignore people in the comment section.
Ya I get it, scroll on by, but when they are 50% of the comments in the section, it is really hard to scroll on by.
I’m not calling for a ban, would just be nice to ignore 2 or 3 people that post here and just not see their comments at all. I’m sure a few people feel that way about me, and others about others, and everyone is happy.
There some real thread dominators here lately. I am getting to the point where I open comments on any writing here, and pretty much surprised when the first commentary is not one of a few select commenters here.
“since China is world renowned for poor quality”
China can make world-class products *if you’re willing to pay for them* – it also makes cheap crap if you want to pay cheap crap prices.
See, well, everything Apple makes, which snark from fools aside is of top-notch *build quality*.
(The real problem here was making it an EV, not a sane hybrid.)
…BTSR, man, ever you’re down in san antonio, look me up and i’ll buy you a drink: i don’t agree with you at all, but i think i’d enjoy your company…
I’ll say this – it’s easily the most attractive Cadillac in decades. Not saying much, I know.
Idk I’m rather fond of the CTS wagon… And to be honest the CTS coupe with the ridiculous rear end is somehow appealing to my eyes.. Hey at least it was different.
Every time I see a shiny, black CTS Coupe (with that big “rump”) I say to myself “That looks so BADASS”.
And then I type it here, and it seems all Freudian somehow.
…i agree: mid-twenties and i’d be tempted were the art-and-science aesthetic to my tastes; it’s a pretty car!..
…mightn’t be *my* thing, but i respect cadillac styling for doing its *own* thing…
One can only tart a kinda-electric Ecotec heart so much. Apparently not north of $70k much; which puts this poor thing in Tesla territory competing for trendy eco-conscious buyers. Now I feel sorry for this car.
This is definitely one of the Cadillac models they should park in ‘Melody & Uwe’s SoHo Haus of Coffee.’
If Cadillac continues to have sales declines like last month (down almost THIRTY percent!), Uwe, Melody and Millennial Marketing Masturbators of the Soho Gang will be lucky to get barista jobs at “The House of Cadillac” they have birthed with their brilliant marketing strategy.
“This is definitely one of the Cadillac models they should park in ‘Melody & Uwe’s SoHo Haus of Coffee.’”
If she has never had the chance to drive one, your absolutely correct. If I didn’t have 3 kids to cart around I’d probably have scooped up a used ELR over my Volt. But the Volt does have the “Cadillac” paint so there’s that!…LOL
This is the type of worthless product that Total Recall Motors would build – in order to try to get economies of scale for their Vaporvolt system, they build an outrageously dumb product at an outrageous price. It is truly mind boggling how a company that can’t sell a CTS Coupe in volumes to justify production continuation could expect to sell an even more expensive (and useless) product like the electric doorstop.
But then again, this is the company that continues to squander our tax dollars on stupid idea after stupid idea.
VaporVolt System? I hadn’t heard about that one. Is it a plug-in electric that runs on the stuff that they sell in those vaping shops when the battery dies?
He forgot to update his talking points after the Volt went into series production five years ago.
http://www.goodcarbadcar.net/2011/01/chevrolet-volt-sales-figures.html
Almost 16k Volts sold last year.
Not a giant winner, but you can’t call that “vapor”.
(Now, I agree Cadillac makes lots of stupid decisions over and over – and I’m bearish on GM in general.
But the Volt ain’t vapor, and GM isn’t getting *ongoing* tax dollar infusions, is it?
Let’s try and stick to reality – there’s plenty of rope to hang GM with in the real world.)
I have my criticisms of the Volt, but I’d buy one over a Prius in a heartbeat.
OMG YES! My household has a Prius and a Volt in it. I have driven tens of thousands of miles in both. Prius feels like a tin can. The Volt feels like an imitation Audi A4. The difference cannot be overstated.
Laser, your posts are superb…
Define total recall motors: would that be Honda? seems like most of their stuff made in the last 10 years has been recalled. I mean to say, Every. Single. One. Perhaps BMW thy are stacking up quite nicely in the back of dealer lots with ‘no sale’ stickers as well.
How many miles have you logged in a Volt and a Prius. I would enjoy a write up from you with your experience.
Electric doorstop, that’s funny. Yes, the ELR was a bit over he top. But as Redliner has noted, the Volt is a fantastic car for what it is. Does exactly what was advertised and if that fits your scheduled distance/commute is an excellent choice to avoid the gas pump.
I long thought the Volt (car) was the proving ground. Sooner or later I believe you will see the name turn into an option package. You can buy a Camaro Volt, or Equinox Volt so and so forth.
If they had put the ATS powertrain in this, it would have sold quite well, cause it is an attractive car.
I disagree. I think it looks like a frumpier version of the CTS Coupe. I sort of understand why GM might have thought it could recoup its losses on the Voltec powertrain by making a Cadillac version, but the car completely lacked all manner of ceremony, prestige and utility.
Beautiful outside, possibly the best Cadillac interior in 40 years, was a sheep in wolves clothing, didn’t provide anything more than incrementally better performance than the Chevy Volt, mismarketed, grossly over priced, doomed to failure out of the gate.
This has one big thing in common with the CR-Z, this SCREAMS for a pure ICE implementation. This with the EcoTec 2.0 T4 set to 300HP and priced around $50Kish to start would have been a nice niche vehicle with a solid customer base.
The CR-Z begs, pleads, screams, for the SI treatment.
If they wanted something that somewhat approximated a halo car, then they should have made it a roadster. In its current form, the car could be best described as invisible.
The article doesn’t say how many were built, but only 2,334 were sold in 2014 and 2015. Assuming ~100 in dealer stock, and none sold this year, then it’s a little more than half the number of Lincoln Blackwoods (4,872).
I’ve seen exactly two of these – one at the Dallas Auto Show, in 2014, and one on the road.
I have never seen one in the wild, but the east side of Puget Sound is home to the Model S.
If ~3000 were built, I feel comfortable hazarding a guess that ~2000 of those are within 200 miles of Detroit.
Two doors, too expensive, too bad!
As usual, GM got it bass ackwards. The technology should have debuted in the pricier Cadillac, then trickled down to Chevrolet. It’s odd Detroit forgot this tactic they themselves pioneered yet Tesla has used it well.
“As usual, GM got it bass ackwards. The technology should have debuted in the pricier Cadillac, then trickled down to Chevrolet. ”
Agree, but remember the Volt concept started out as something to leap-frog the Prius which is where it got its Chevy roots. I suspect it ended up being a lot more expensive to build then they had originally planned but by that time it was too late. The Volt is what the Cimarron should have been. A small, high tech car that is rewarding, not punishing to drive.
Beautiful looking car. But damn, the engineering is really unimpressive.
For $35000 my son should get his grand back from Elon and buy one. But, as he continues to show me – he isn’t me, and bless him for it. That is a damn decent price for the content which begs the question of why it was priced so high in the first place?
I don’t think I have ever seen one of these on the road, and in the NY metro area the price is not the problem; plenty of expensive cars around here.
I looked one over [1st gen] at a dealer, and I thought it was a nicely made car except for what passes for the tiny trunk lid that was more like the top to a hard pack of cigarettes. More appropriate for loading pizzas than luggage.
“ELR’s combination of leading technology with stunningly attractive design is unlike any other coupe in the luxury segment,” said Cadillac President Johan de Nysschen. “The upgraded ELR offers enhanced driving performance for buyers seeking uncompromising luxury and exquisite craftsmanship with electrification technology. It is unique in the luxury category, in that it completely eliminates conventional concerns over driving range, which has been the Achilles’ heel of other competitors in the luxury segment.”
Hey Johan, BMW called. They asked how the i8 tastes, then they laughed and hung up.
I think BMW sold what, 100 of them last month?
Shame…I love the looks of this car, particularly in person. But it’s a good case on how NOT to market a small luxury car.
I’ll save Cadillac in 1000 words or less.
Here goes.
Discontinue everything they make currently besides the Escalade.
Make a modern day Fleetwood. Akin to an American S-Class, but at half the cost and a tenth of the maintenance items. Remember , customer myopia means a failed German transmission is perceived less seriously then a crooked American branded rear view mirror.
Make an Eldorado. Personal luxury coupe with old school American style. Like a BMW 6 series, but without the BMW baggage like crap customer service and seven figure part costs. Create a niche track model for the four guys in America wiling to buy a high end car with a stick shift.
That’s it
Three vehicles. Why? Because Cadillac is not BMW. It’s not Lexus. It’s not Mercedes.
It never will be either.
Because if you want those cars, would you spend your hard earned money on an American Xerox of a BMW, or the real thing? No matter how cool the Xerox version is, it’s not the real thing. Best if Cadilac quits pretending to be something it’s not.
Time for it to return to its roots. Big, old fashioned American luxury. Let someone else copy the 3 series.
Call me when the sales numbers roll in, and address the intellectual property check to LS1Fan.
Because there’s such an unfilled niche in the market for an Eldorado.
RE: Eldorado
Mercedes will happily sell you a luxurious RWD/AWD coupe in many different sizes, with better build quality than any Eldorado since 1970.
Yeah, but do any of them sell?
Unless it’s a 3-series (or 2, or 4, or whatever they call it these days), no one buys it.
Exactly, they don’t really sell. That’s why Cadillac doesn’t need to bother making one with its (considerably more limited) resources.
“Because there’s such an unfilled niche in the market for an Eldorado.”
Marketing 101, it’s called the product life cycle curve.
The cynic in me says Cadillac should follow in Lincoln’s footsteps and resign themselves to being a near-luxury player whose true competition isn’t Mercedes, BMW or even Lexus, but Acura and Infiniti. That means an end to the ATS (because chasing the 3 Series is no longer in the cards) and an immediate $10k reduction in the CT6’s MSRP. Oh, and a broader focus on CUVs. The SRX/XT5 could have used a few stablemates.
That also means the XTS takes a more prominent role in Cadillac’s lineup. Drop the MSRP to $35k and position it as a comfortable yet affordable cruiser that offers traditional American ride and room.
Keep the Escalade as it is. Don’t fix what ain’t broke.
In the meantime, no more BMW/Audi chasing. No more Benz aspirations. No more pretentious pop-up cafes or ploys to win Ad Age awards. No more going above your station in life, only to embarrass yourself trying to be someone you’re not in front of people who know who you really are. Lincoln ate a big helping of humble pie and stuck to selling slightly snazzier Fords with softer aesthetics until they managed to get their chit together and bring out the Continental.
Perhaps in another decade or so, Cadillac can finally build a new Fleetwood and go toe-to-toe with the Genesis G90 and Kia K900. Maybe.
Or maybe the brand will go under and customers will just have to content themselves with driving whatever Buick gets cooked up in China or stick to an LTZ-trimmed Impala, Silverado or Tahoe.
I leased a 2014 ELR, turned that in and bought a 2016 version, because the car is in fact magnificent. True, as a pricey coupe it was always destined to be a niche car — even a niche within a niche in the mid 2000-teens. But it had the design and presence to be a statement car if Cadillac had positioned and marketed it properly. They didn’t. That deficiency is an extension of their inability thus far to properly position and explain the Volt in simple terms the broad market can grok, and their confusion for how to articulate Cadillac’s raison d’etre in today’s marketplace. The truth of the matter is that the current cars themselves are self-explanatory. But the marketing doesn’t get enough people to try them
Combine two marketing dysfunctions and ELR was left to be comprehended only by the motivated, including people who buy for design almost as much as anything else. Like Volt, whose drivers/owners nearly universally love the car, ELR satisfies its users exceptionally.
GM never managed to refute the grossly incorrect assumption that the ELR was nothing more than a tarted up Volt at twice the price. The 2014 had the Voltec drive system, tuned differently, and from there the handling, braking, style and interior differences over Volt are VAST, to the point that other than the motivating controls, it’s not the same car at all.
The watts link in the rear, the self-adjusting shocks, the Hi-Per front suspension, 20″ rubber, the widened structure and lengthened wheelbase alone dramatically moved the car into luxury competence not even closely matched by Volt. Now I know this because I also own a 2013 fully equipped Volt. Even with if there had been no power improvements over Volt, the experience of driving an ELR would have been worth the neighborhood of the money asked. The interior is one of the best in any mass-producer-sourced vehicle, and it will age well. GM also used thicker glass, more sound insulation and sound system counter-acoustics to create an even quieter, more serene experience for ELR than Volt, even when the gasoline generator is running.
But you have to love a coupe to want to own it. I drive mostly coupes, and other two door types (sports cars, muscle cars, convertibles) throughout my driving life. It suits me.
Good as the 2014 ELR was, the many tweaks to the 2016, plus the Sport option, yielded much more satisfying vehicle with a price reduction. The retuned shocks, summer tires, power bump, and revised configuration of Sport mode to selectively combine current output from the generator and the battery (without the replacement function of Hold) resulted in a car that can be driven much more aggressively when you want, and while it measures as a 6.5secs 0-60 car, it’s practical 0-40 and 30-80 acceleration behaviors are much more impressive. In fact, few cars other than a boaty Tesla can match it, the gas engines being too slow to spin up. And then there are the larger, more effective Brembo brakes that are part of the sport option, which add to driver confidence considerably.
I live in Los Angeles, where there are more Lambos, and maybe even Veyrons than ELRs. The standard German troika is common as Accords, so scarcely noticeable. Porsches on the West Side seem almost as present as Explorers. Corvettes are confetti. Cadillacs overall are quite visible and present here. The ATS, CTS are successful in Los Angeles. I expect the CT6 will be as well. But like the XLR-V I owned for eight years, this ELR gets thumbs-up, queries and complements just about every day. And like the XLR-V, the valet attendants park it out front with the Ferraris. Anyone who doesn’t like the car isn’t speaking up, many who love its style do. And people who get in it are bowled over by the interior. They almost never know what the car is. They sure don’t confuse it with a Volt.
I leased my 2014, but bought my 2016 because I expect to put 6-10 years in it. My 2013 Volt shows zero loss of charge capacity in 3-1/2 years, and has needed no service other than a software update. My 2014 ELR had a perfect record for service — only an oil change and tire rotation. I expect similar from the ’16. The battery is a Volt 17.1 kwh version from the last year first gen Volt, as is the 1.4L gas generator and the transmission. The front suspension is from Buick. I’m not concerned about repairability in the span of time I care about. It may even stay as a long term vehicle, if nothing equally dramatic comes along.
Why didn’t I buy a Tesla twice? I drove it multiple times. Eh. First, it’s a big-ass four door. Not for me, at least not as a primary vehicle. Last one of those I had was a 2004 Mercury Marauder (which was in its way great fun). Second, while the Tesla’s power delivery is impressive, its suspension isn’t. It drives like an old Buick. The suspension is not up to the powertrain’s output and delivery. Third, if you drive it fast, range falls fast. It has more range than I need for daily driving and not enough for the long trips I care about. Sure, there are supercharger stations along some interstates, but if I have to go to Phoenix I’ll fly. What I care about is driving up US 395 to Mono Lake and beyond, or off the beaten track around Lake Powell into the Four Corners region. It’s going to be awhile until Superchargers are *everywhere.* And one more thing — a 17″ screen is not a great UI for driving.
I love that Tesla exists and that it builds cars (and soon batteries) here. It just isn’t ready for me, and anyway they have some work to do on their QC and service levels. Plus, have you seen the lines in SoCal at the main corridor Supercharger stations?
My mpg relative to all miles driven on my 2014 was 125. MPG relative to all miles driven thus far on my 2016 ELR is “250+.” The car stops counting over 250. This is because a change of office locations gives me a charger on both ends and I avoid the 0.1 gal of gasoline I used to consume for a 42 mile round trip.
GM got it right on a practical battery size as a bridge to a more commonly-present chargers future. For most commuting a 40 (now 53 in the gen2 Volt) mile battery will have you doing ~85% or more of your driving on battery-stored electricity. Yup, you’re humping a a few hundred pounds of gas generating lump for range, with no practical limitations. But in a Tesla you are humping 600 or 700 lbs of extra battery capacity compared to a Volt, that you won’t routinely use, in order to get range that isn’t adequate for everything else, only some other long trips.
The ELR is more purely distinctive, has a much more satisfying interior than Tesla’s S or X and is in practical terms cheaper than the way most Tesla owners order Teslas. In fact if you check off the Tesla S option sheet to get all the equivalents to what ELR packs standard, the price tops $135,000.
It should have been relatively easy and affordable for GM to tweak the exterior and slip Voltec II in the ELR, for a coupe statement alongside the upcoming CT6 plug-in. There are plenty of reasons for a luxury marque to build a niche car or two. The real failure was in the marketing, of both Volt and ELR.
Phil
Nice write-up. I hope you enjoy your ELR for many years.
Nicely done. Thank you for the write up.
Interesting because you own both; to hear your observations on the driving experience between the Volt and the ELR.
Thank you Phil. This is the most interesting piece at TTAC this week. I’m adding “sell off priced” or used ELR to my “if replacement becomes necessary” test drive list.
I bought a Volt, because it (with rebates) is affordable, and it has a hatchback.
If money were no object, I wouldn’t be ashamed to be seen in an ELR – it’s a rare and pretty bird.
Do electric cars dream of electric junkyards?
I think I will trade in my Gen1 Volt for one of these. My Volt has proven to be very reliable, and this is a prettier, faster hVolt Volt with wider tires and more sound insulation.
Sure, it looks front wheel drive, and the 1.4 I-4 engine was end-of-life-cycle before it was ever installed in the Volt, but it will make a decent garage queen and stylish, exclusive runabout underpinned by inexpensive Volt parts. I’m not BTSR… I don’t need Hellcat power to shuttle myself and my +1 to the soiree.
Just how much faster is it than a Volt in “Sport” mode up to 50MPH? I’d love to see the two side by side. I Need 4 doors, but more sound insulation is something I’d welcome in my 2013 Volt.
It’s about 1.5 seconds faster than the Volt… 0-60 in the high 6s or low 7s. BTW, the Volt is not actually faster in sport mode, it just remaps the pedal so the first 50% of travel access 90% of the power.
Chevy Volt: 149 HP 273 lb-ft
Cadillac ELR: 233 HP 373 lb-ft
If this was available in the UK, I’d possibly have bought one. The Volt was on sale here (along with it’s Vauxhall Ampera badge twin) and the idea of an edgier, Cadillac version would have been appealing…
Shame that, I predicted the ELR was going to bite it and bite it, it did.
Typical GM product mismanagement. Smacks of pricing to suit the Cadillac badge rather than actual cost price plus some more to make a margin. I’ve only sat in an ELR at a motor show or two, but I reckon there’s a lot of shared parts with other Caddys, meaning there was probably room in the economies of scale to launch at a considerably lower price, which (you’d think) would’ve brought more success in the showroom, perhaps leading to a stay of execution.
You’d like to think live and learn, but GM appear incapable of following this simple adage.
The ELR is little.
Everyone knows Cadillacs shouldn’t be little. That’s a primal turnoff like a breastless woman, leaving one with the feeling “if only…”
The only Cadillacs that still sell are big.
I’d pay 30k for one of these IF I could get a V8-6-4 installed …just sayin .