Only moments after A123 announced its bankruptcy filing, GM has revealed plans to invest $35 million to fast track a revamp for the Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly plant to ready production for the upcoming Cadillac ELR extended-range electric car by late 2013.
As the Cadillac ELR is essentially a premium luxury two-door electric coupe based on the Chevy Volt platform, the Detroit-Hamtramck facility will be outfitted to assemble both vehicles at the same time. What's more, the Cadillac will also feature a T-formation lithium-ion battery pack that is assembled in GM's Brownstown, Michigan, facility. Finally, the ELR will also adopt Volt's dedicated four-cylinder engine used to power the generator once the electric battery is depleted.
Says GM North America president Mark Reuss, "The ELR will be in a class by itself. People will instantly recognize it as a caddillac by its distinctive, signature look, and true-to-concept exterior design."
Based on leaked spy images circulating the internet, the production ELR will stay loyal to the original designs found on the 2009 Cadillac Converj concept car. Intended to look like a mini Cadillac CTS coupe, the aggressively raked greenhouse forms a distinctively Cadillac sharp angular crease as it meets the short rear deck. Inside, expect to see a center console that features Cadillac's latest CUE touch-screen infotainment system as well as a digital gauge cluster displaying power usage and battery capacity combined with an analog speedometer. Finally, the new Cadillac will naturally offer more upscale leather trims in the interior to give it the obligatory touch of high-luxury.
Production of the 2014 Cadillac ELR is expected to begin some time in late 2013. Stay tuned as we track the official public debut of the Cadillac ELR early next year.
