The Cadillac ELR is the more expensive luxury coupe version of the Chevy Volt formerly known as the Cadillac Converj, now officially green-lit for production with its lame three-letter name and not-so-lame sharp-edged design.
We've known this was coming since forever, but the confirmation just came down from GM. The company says it's too early in the development to discuss "performance, price and timing" but the details make it sounds exactly like a Chevy Volt.
The Cadillac ELR will feature 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. When the battery's energy is low, the ELR seamlessly switches to extended-range mode to enable driving for hundreds of additional miles.
So, um, it's a Chevy Volt with a grille the size of Montana.
The ELR being a long-door coupe makes perfect sense, since the rear seats in the Volt aren't fantastic for full-sized adults as it is. From the Converj concept pics and the single rendering from GM it looks like we may finally found out what kind of range you can get from 19-inch wheels on an electric car.
We eagerly await an ELR-V version with an extra electric motor in the trunk.