Caddy ELR - a Volt in wolf's clothing?
The next step in Cadillac's self-proclaimed "historic renaissance"
(Did we miss something? Ed)
will be a production version of the Converj coupe concept, powered by technology pinched from the Chevy Volt.
That means "an electric propulsion system made up of a T-shaped lithium ion battery, an electric drive unit, and a four-cylinder engine-generator. It uses electricity as its primary source to drive the car without using gasoline or producing tailpipe emissions," the company says. "When the battery's energy is low, the ELR seamlessly switches to extended-range mode to enable driving for hundreds of additional miles."
Unusually the press release doesn't mention saving the planet, so we're not quite sure what the point is... Oh, hang on:
If flares can come back, why not fins..?
"The concept generated instant enthusiasm," says Don Butler, VP of Cadillac Marketing. "Like other milestone Cadillac models of the past, the ELR will offer something not otherwise present - the combination of electric propulsion with striking design and the fun of luxury coupe driving."
Cadillac says it selected the name ELR to indicate the car's electric propulsion technology, in keeping with the brand's 3-letter international model naming convention. Yawn. Somehow none of the above sounds much like the road to 'El Dorado'... (Geddit?)
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