Skip to main content

Cadillac's ELR coupe isn't long for this world

2016 Cadillac ELR
Image used with permission by copyright holder
It seemed like a good idea at the time. Take a Chevrolet Volt, turn it into a stylish luxury coupe, slap some Cadillac badges on it, and charge a premium to rich, eco-conscious customers. But the Cadillac ELR turned into a major sales disappointment.

General Motors is preparing to roll out the second-generation Volt nationwide, but the ELR’s journey is nearing its end. Cadillac chief Johan de Nysschen has discussed killing the coupe before, and he confirmed those plans to Automotive News (subscription required) in a recent interview.

“I plan to continue admiring it as one of the most beautiful cars on four wheels,” de Nysschen said, “but we don’t plan any further investment.” While the ELR definitely won’t live to see a second generation, it may stick around a little longer, as de Nysschen said Cadillac will keep it on the market as long as people want to buy it.

That may not be very long, though. Cadillac sold just 1,024 ELRs last year, and now that the much-improved (and much cheaper) 2016 Volt is out, there’s less point in buying the coupe. ELR sales have been kept down by a high base price; the car started around $75,000 when it went on sale in late 2013, or around twice the price of a Volt at the time.

So for the 2016 model year, Cadillac cut the base price to $65,995, and made some improvements. Total output of the extended-range electric powertrain was increased from 207 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque to 233 horsepower and 373 pound-feet. Cadillac also retuned the suspension and electric power steering for a sportier feel, and added an optional Performance Pack with grippier summer tires, upgraded brakes, and other hardware.

But it was too little, too late apparently. In addition to being a sales dud, the ELR runs afoul of boss de Nysschen’s plans to further differentiate Cadillac from the rest of GM and build it into a brand more directly comparable to the German establishment. An extended-range electric car based on the old Volt may just not fit into those plans. Cadillac’s green strategy will now shift to plug-in hybrids like the upcoming CT6 plug-in.

Editors' Recommendations

Stephen Edelstein
Stephen is a freelance automotive journalist covering all things cars. He likes anything with four wheels, from classic cars…
Nvidia’s rumored RTX 30-series refresh isn’t what you think
Nvidia RTX 2060 Super and RTX 2070 Super review

A new rumor suggests Nvidia is working on three new graphics cards that will release next month. The company is reportedly preparing a 12GB RTX 3080 variant, a 16GB RTX 3070 Ti variant, and a 12GB RTX 2060 variant, all of which will allegedly arrive on shelves between December and January.

The leak comes from @hongxing2020 on Twitter. Although it's likely that Nvidia is gearing up to launch new GPU variants, the cards in the latest rumor may not be new desktop graphics cards. They'll probably target mobile configurations instead.

Read more
The Roku-YouTube-YouTube TV impasse isn’t over yet
YouTube TV on Roku.

It's been several months since Roku and YouTube TV reached a cease-fire in their dispute over ... well, over a few things. But it now looks like the war is heating back up.

To recap, Roku in April 2021 first announced that negotiations that would extend YouTube TV's availability on the Roku platform had broken down. In doing so, it said that "Roku cannot accept Google’s unfair terms as we believe they could harm our users." Exactly what those disputed terms are has been a little ambiguous. Roku has said it has to do with search results. Google calls any allegations baseless.

Read more
No, there isn’t a Free Fury vs. Wilder 3 live stream in the U.S.
Fury vs Wilder 3 weigh in and face to face picture.

In the penultimate trilogy, Tyson Fury and Deonte Wilder will step into the ring and matchup for the third time since 2018 in a short while. Everyone is curious where this fight will go, not just because the fight itself is exciting, but also because of what comes after. Who will hold the world heavyweight championship after the dust settles? This is heavyweight history in the making, and time is running out to fire up the Fury vs Wilder 3 live stream and watch the action unfold live.

Needless to say, you definitely don't want to miss this event, but there's a hitch. If you're looking for free broadcast for the fight in the United States, you're not going to find one. You have to pay because it's a pay-per-view event. If you want to watch Fury vs. Wilder 3, the best way is to sign up for ESPN+ or tune in there if you already have an active subscription. You can also check it out on Fox Sports PPV if that's more your speed -- though we much prefer the ESPN+ streaming service.

Read more