Cadillac Whacks XLR In Favor Of CTS Coupe
Raising Cadillac’s Visibility One Roadster At A Time
It hasn’t been much of a seller for Cadillac, but the XLR roadster has done something few other Cadillac models have done in recent years: raised the brand’s visibility in a positive way.
But, the XLR isn’t going to be around much longer and, according to GM sources, the 2009 model year will be the last one for the luxed up Corvette sister.
Instead of the XLR, GM says that they will go ahead with plans to bring in the CTS coupe (pictured), a car that made its worldwide debut as a concept vehicle in Detroit at the 2008 NAIAS. That coupe wowed everyone in attendance and quickly became the odds on favorite addition to the expanding CTS product line.
The Expanding CTS Line
Well, expand the CTS line indeed — a new wagon will be joining the fleet this Spring and the CTS-V, a sedan on steroids, will likely make a reappearance in the near future. The coupe was scheduled to show up this summer, but the latest word from GM is that it’ll be moved back a full year.
Granted, if GM had the funds available now to pull it off, your local Cadillac showroom would be displaying the CTS coupe alongside the sedan, wagon and V-Series at the soonest possible moment. Unfortunately, GM is still fighting for its very survival.
Very Few Units Produced Year In And Year Out
The XLR’s history is a brief one, having been rolled out for the 2004 model year. Sales have always been modest — between 3200-3700 units were sold for the first three years before sales began to plunge in 2007. A very nice car, the XLR embodies what Cadillac can do when it takes the Corvette and makes it pretty.
Powered by a 4.6L Northstar V8, the optional supercharged 4.4 is the “V Series” wundercar, a veritable sportscar under the hood. Alas, money hasn’t been poured into the model since its inception and in its sixth model year, the XLR remains unchanged.
STS and DTS Replacement
In related business, Cadillac is pressing forward with bringing out an all new SRX this summer, the second generation of its crossover. GM is still mum on their replacement plans for the STS and DTS, but we’re likely to see one model replace them both.
Don’t count on it being rear wheel powered — GM has killed that program off. We’ll see what GM comes up with, hopefully it isn’t something slapped together from the corporate parts bin!
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