Cadillac News: Cadillac Answers The "How Can We Get You Into An ELR" Question

[William Maley]

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When Cadillac announced the pricing for the new ELR would start around $75,995 without any incentives added on, a lot people wondered how Cadillac was going move these off dealers. Well, the luxury brand has two different ways of tacking that.

The first is for those who decide to purchase an ELR outright. If you happen to be an 'early' buyer, General Motors will throw in a 240-volt home fast charger with professional instillation free of charge. GM doesn't say how long this offer will last in the press release unfortunately.

The second are for those who plan to lease. Cadillac is planning to offer a 39-month lease for $699 a month for the ELR. There are some caveats for this offer though. The fine print says to qualify for this lease you either have to be a current owner or lessees of any 1999 or newer GM vehicles and then be ready to pony up $5,999 for a down payment. Now the lease is a "ultra-low-mileage" one which means that you can only travel 10,000 miles a year. Go above that and you'll get hit with a $0.25 surcharge for each mile.

Source: Cadillac, Autoblog Green

William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected]or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster.

Press Release is on Page 2

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Cadillac Enhances ELR Buying Experience

• Early adopters to receive complimentary home charger and installation
  

DETROIT – Cadillac is offering a complimentary 240-volt home charging station and installation to early buyers of the all-new 2014 ELR electrified luxury coupe.

"The ELR's blend of leading technology with provocative design and fun-to-drive performance is set to bring new buyers to Cadillac and to electrification itself," said Uwe Ellinghaus, chief marketing officer, Global Cadillac. "Professional installation of the fastest home-charging unit is a natural way to mark the introduction of ELR to the luxury market."

Cadillac is offering the ELR on an ultra-low-mileage, 39-month lease for qualified lessees at $699 per month with $5,999 due at signing after all offers.

The Cadillac ELR offers a convergence of luxury, electrification and sporty driving in a premium coupe with dynamic design and an award-winning range-extended electric powertrain capable of 340 miles of total range.

As with all Cadillac models, the ELR comes standard with Cadillac Shield, a comprehensive suite of owner benefits including Remote Vehicle Diagnostics, a Premium Care Maintenance program and 24/7 roadside assistance. ELR also comes with an extended battery and propulsion warranty of eight years or 100,000 miles, whichever comes first, and a four-year or 50,000-mile, whichever comes first, bumper-to-bumper limited warranty.

Specially trained and certified dealers nationwide sell and service the 2014 ELR. Backing up the dealership experience, prospective customers and buyers of the ELR can take advantage of their own ELR Concierge Representative. Trained in white-glove customer care, the Concierge Representative is an additional point of contact for information on battery care, home charging, service scheduling, news and updates by calling 1-855-INFO-ELR (1-855-463-6357).

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[Drew Dowdell]

insane pricing.... at least Elon guarantees the resale value.

[Z-06]

Drop it down to $55,000. It is one GM car that does not justify its price.

[regfootball]

i agree with Z06. mid fifties is a good place for this car to be.

thing is, at 70k, they can make the same profit on fewer units.

[ocnblu]

reg, you mean, like 1?

[regfootball]

Lol

[regfootball]

You have to admit, it is a looker with a sweet interior. And it is a coupe!

[G. David Felt]

So if we own more than one GM auto that is a 99 or newer does that mean we get additional discount on the down payment?

[dwightlooi]

You can't. The is no justification that a more luxuriously appointed Volt is going to fetch $36K more over the already over priced Volt.

Remember, the Volt was supposed to be a $30K Hybrid that came in $10K over the original price target. Without subsidies, a $40K Volt does not make any economic sense simply because the $20K premium over other comparably equipped Deltas (eg. Cruze) is enough to buy 188,500 miles worth of gasoline @ $3.50/gallon. The Volt is neither fast nor particularly long legged on battery power (40 miles). The ELR is no much better except perhaps for looking a little sleeker and having a nicer interior. $35K for that and a Caddy badge!?!! No fly a kite! If I am interested in saving money fuel expenses I won't buy a Volt much less an ELR. If I am a Global Warming koolaid drinker or I want green creds with my liberal friends, $76K is pretty darn close to the Tesla Model S and that has a lot more cool factor, green factor and it is actually fast!

Really, a $76K Delta? At the very minimum they should have put a 270hp LTG engine in there and give it twice the battery capacity. Perhaps not even then.

[ZL-1]

You can't. The is no justification that a more luxuriously appointed Volt is going to fetch $36K more over the already over priced Volt.

There is a justification if the Volt is sold at a heavy loss...

[dwightlooi]

To be totally honest, I was and am very luke warm about the Volt. It was supposed to be revolutionary, it is anything but. Sure it is a plug-in but it didn't have enough electric range to cover daily driving for many people without kicking on the ICE -- you need about 60~80 miles for that. As a hybrid it's efficiency is bottom of the barrel. As a matter of fact, it's not any better than a Cruze on it's ICE.

I see the ELR as a missed opportunity. Instead of restyling and poshing up the Volt, GM could have aimed higher and bring out an alternative to the parallel/plug-in formula to challenge the Prius at it's own game and win. It's really not that hard to beat the Prius in the MPG game -- especially when you have a $76K budget to play with. Heck, you can easily do it with $50K.

This formula is guaranteed to both out-run and out-mile the Prius:-

• New "modified" version of the new Opel 1.6L CDTi Turbodiesel engine as the ICE
• The engine "modification" adds 2-stage cam switching VVL which enables the engine to shut down ALL cylinders when triggered
• New "modified" version of the 6T45 6-speed automatic and call it the Electramatic 6E45
• The transmission "modification" replaces the torque converter with an electric motor (40hp@1000~4000 rpm, 210lb-ft@0~1000 rpm)
• Battery consists of two of the Volt's nine modules with 32 cells each and a total capacity of 3.6 kWH, or which 3.0 kWH is actually used
• Without a torque converter, the engine cannot and does not ever idle; power from standstill is always electric.
• Once under 600 rpm or when pure electric propulsion is prescribed, all valves on the ICE close and the engine freewheels.
• When decelerating, the ICE again shuts off all valves allow for full regenerative braking from the motor-generator
• Once underway, power is electric or diesel or both with the total not exceeding amounting to 176bhp@4000 rpm/232 lb-ft@1000rpm
• The battery (when fully charged) as enough juice for 8 miles of pure electric driving.
• As the engine doesn't ever idle, the A/C compressor is electrically driven

[dwightlooi]

You can't. The is no justification that a more luxuriously appointed Volt is going to fetch $36K more over the already over priced Volt.

There is a justification if the Volt is sold at a heavy loss...

Then own up to it, stop selling it and call the "green" experiment a misstep. @ $76K you better have a 60kWh battery, a 160~200 mile range and do 0-60 in under 6 secs -- because that's what a Tesla Model S will do (Tesla's internal range estimates albeit being a little optimistic). That, or perhaps a 30kWh batter an 80~100 mile range, an on-board ICE generator in series and a big enough electric motor for under 7 secs to 60 performance. Because that is what's gonna fetch $76K.

[ZL-1]

You can't. The is no justification that a more luxuriously appointed Volt is going to fetch $36K more over the already over priced Volt.

There is a justification if the Volt is sold at a heavy loss...

Then own up to it, stop selling it and call the "green" experiment a misstep.

Or try and have it (and the ELR as well) as an greenimage booster for a company known for full-size SUVs... Which is the role the Volt+ELR play IMHO... They're PR machines first and foremost.

[dwightlooi]

You can't. The is no justification that a more luxuriously appointed Volt is going to fetch $36K more over the already over priced Volt.

There is a justification if the Volt is sold at a heavy loss...

Then own up to it, stop selling it and call the "green" experiment a misstep.

Or try and have it (and the ELR as well) as an greenimage booster for a company known for full-size SUVs... Which is the role the Volt+ELR play IMHO... They're PR machines first and foremost.

Just do a pure electric then! Drop the ICE, power split device, secondary motor, etc. Quadruple the battery capacity. Should get you a 64 kWh car with a range exceeding the Tesla Model S's "160~200 miles"... probably about ~240 miles or more or less one full tank of gas -- simply based on the merit that this is a lighter and smaller car. Lithium batteries are about $600/kWh, so 64 kWh should be about $38,400. That's definitely within budget even when you don't count the cost savings from dropping the ICE and power-split transmission. There is also plenty of room under the hood for the additional batteries with the ICE and tranny gone. Probably 1/4 the entire battery can go there, another 1/4 in the tunnel and the remaining under the rear seats and where the gas tank was.

[smk4565]

I agree with all these statements, the ELR isn't worth the price. What makes the ELR $30,000 better than an ATS coupe? And at $75-80k we are at a loaded Corvette or Jaguar F-type or Porsche Cayman, etc, some serious sports cars. And if you want to be green go buy an electric car.

The ELR looks good other than the front overhang, but I feel like they wasted the sheet metal on a glorified Volt, when it could have been used on an Alpha chassis with a turbo 4 or a V6. Cadillac could have had a real sports car to compete with the Audi TT, the SLK, Alfa Romeo 4c and cars like that. Imagine ELR looks with a 320 HP V6 and rear drive for $55k.

[G. David Felt]

Do not count Cadillac out of using this car in more ways than one. I could see it show up with a real engine still.

[dwightlooi]

Do not count Cadillac out of using this car in more ways than one. I could see it show up with a real engine still.

It's a Delta! Look, drop the Voltec drive train, stick the 272hp 2.0T (LTG) engine in there and sell it for $40K.

Or, do something revolutionary with it -- like a Diesel-Electric Hybrid that beats the Prius and sell it for $50K.

Whatever it is, do something other than trying to sell it as a $76K Volt with a Caddy crest and leather upholstery.

[Drew Dowdell]

Well, to be fair... the ELR interior is far and away above the Volt's. Not $30,000 away... but calling it a Volt with leather is a bit too reductionist. It does have one of the best interiors in a Cadillac today, rivaled only by the high end CTS.

[yougojay]

COMPLETELY insane pricing.

I swear this company is going back to its old ways

that screwed them up in the first place. Good luck

selling this vehicle.

[smk4565]

The Cimarron had a better interior and better suspension than the Cavalier also. Doesn't mean it was worth the price or a good idea to build it.

[dwightlooi]

Here's another joke within the release... except it's not funny and potentially a big money loser.

GM is leasing these things for $699/month for 39 months. A Lease is basically based on the depreciation of the car + a little profit for the dealer. $699 for 39 months means that they are assuming that the depreciation of the ELR is going to be less than $27,261 over 3 year and 3 months. Are they freaking insane? I mean who wants a 3~4 year old ELR for $50K? That's a 64% value retention -- right up there with the residual value kings like a Lexus ES or Toyota Camry. According to Edmunds, a Volt 2011 Volt only kept 52% of it's as new value. And, they believe that a $76K ELR will retain 64%. They'll be lucky if it keeps 40% of it's value. Remember there are no subsidies in the used plug-in market.

BTW, anyone looking at the ELR will also be looking at the BMW i3 -- another plug-in with a range extending piston engine. That goes for $45K (before incentives and subsidies). GM is expecting a 3~4 year old ELR to resell for MORE THAN THE BRAND NEW BMW i3!?!! I don't know what they are smoking, but it must be pretty darn strong stuff!

[Robert Hall]

I assume styling is big part of the equation, though..GM is thinking they can charge a premium for the dramatic styling. The i3 is a hideous econobox in comparison....

[Drew Dowdell]

The Cimarron had a better interior and better suspension than the Cavalier also. Doesn't mean it was worth the price or a good idea to build it.

I believe I said that it wasn't worth a $30k price increase in my post..... but the ELR is also NOT a "Volt with Leather"

[ocnblu]

what is it?

[Drew Dowdell]

... nicer and better materials than the interior that comes on the $55k plus CTS.

[G. David Felt]

Yet you have morons who over pay for Bavarian garbage. I am amazed as I saw my first 1 series bmw and what a joke.

I like the ELR, great style and very nice interior, but it should be a $50K version. I hope they do lease/sell them all but I suspect we will see them sitting on the lots and then cleared out and like the last 2 door sports car I liked from caddy based on the corvette, it will go away. GM does need to get more realistic with their products.

[smk4565]

... nicer and better materials than the interior that comes on the $55k plus CTS.

How much nicer than the CTS? I sat in a CTS luxury and a V-sport at the auto show and while it is better than previous Cadillacs, I think it is on par with the Infiniti Q50 and is not up to A6 or E-class level. One odd thing about the CTS is the back seat bottom cushion is really short and ends then a carpeted section sticks out past that, it wreaks of poor design and cheap construction. The doors on the CTS also have the same handles as the Malibu and they sound like a Malibu when closed. A Cadillac should not have the same door handle as a $20k Chevy.

The other question is if they have nicer and better materials than what are in the CTS, why didn't the CTS get those materials, because it could use them, why waste them on a car that won't sell.

[ocnblu]

Haha, I just read where only 56% of Cadillac dealers have gone to the expense and trouble to sign up to sell the ELR. What a pathetic joke.

[G. David Felt]

... nicer and better materials than the interior that comes on the $55k plus CTS.

How much nicer than the CTS? I sat in a CTS luxury and a V-sport at the auto show and while it is better than previous Cadillacs, I think it is on par with the Infiniti Q50 and is not up to A6 or E-class level. One odd thing about the CTS is the back seat bottom cushion is really short and ends then a carpeted section sticks out past that, it wreaks of poor design and cheap construction. The doors on the CTS also have the same handles as the Malibu and they sound like a Malibu when closed. A Cadillac should not have the same door handle as a $20k Chevy.

The other question is if they have nicer and better materials than what are in the CTS, why didn't the CTS get those materials, because it could use them, why waste them on a car that won't sell.

I have to totally disagree with you as the CTS is every bit as competitive to the A6 or E class and way better than a Q50. You have drank way to much marketing juice to be able to really see the improvements. Than again you seem to rarely if ever knock your Bavarian auto's unlike you do to American auto's.

[Drew Dowdell]

The cts is ABOVE the e-class interior in materials.

[balthazar]

Haha, I just read where only 56% of Cadillac dealers have gone to the expense and trouble to sign up to sell the ELR. What a pathetic joke.

No doubt the limited production is playing a role in that stat.

[Z-06]

Haha, I just read where only 56% of Cadillac dealers have gone to the expense and trouble to sign up to sell the ELR. What a pathetic joke.

And not all Chevrolet dealers got ZR-1 either.

Rollout of Volt was restricted to limited 4 states. Price is an issue for ELR, but the car is a good concept.

[dwightlooi]

Sad thing is that the ELR is a beautiful car... a good designed wasted on a product that will never sell. Swap the Voltec drive-train for a simple 2.0T and selling the ELR for $40K will see plenty of ELRs on the road.

[Drew Dowdell]

I saw 2 on the road today in NJ

[ocnblu]

Oh wow, so 42 have sold so far, total, and you saw two? What luck!

[G. David Felt]

Just got called by my cadillac dealer who is having a special 2015 party at Wine World where people can check out the new ELR, CTS and Escalade and do test drives. I am going so will take pics and give my input on the drive.

[smk4565]

Oh wow, so 42 have sold so far, total, and you saw two? What luck!

Haha, classic.

Only GM could take a good looking concept car, then put a horrible powertrain in it and price it out of reach, and then put it on sale and think they could sell it. The ELR is going to make the Allante look successful.

[smk4565]

The cts is ABOVE the e-class interior in materials.

I wouldn't trade my E550 for a CTS, I think the build quality in my car trumps anything Cadillac has. My car for example has 3 anchor points to latch the hood, the CTS has 1. The CTS is improved, and probably the best Cadillac has ever done, but there is too much shiny black trim on the dash, a touch screen that will get full of fingerprints and the leather feels similar to what is in a Buick. The CTS interior is better than the disaster that is the Lexus GS, but it isn't best in class.

I don't like Audis, and the CTS materials may be as good as the A6, but the A6 has some good build quality and tight panel gaps. I do have to give credit to the A6 on fit and finish.

[G. David Felt]

Wow SMK you must have a Special Custom built E550 as I have yet to see what you say on them. The ones I have seen around here lose out every time to the CTS.

[Drew Dowdell]

Im comparing to the current EClass. Benz has been falling behind even themselves in interior quality.

And Cadillac provides a microfiber cloth, for the black panels.

[smk4565]

My E550 has premium 2 package and the designo package and I'd take it over a CTS. I think the current E-class has more features, but I like the interior layout of mine a bit more, and I like a traditional shifter, which Mercedes has gotten rid of. I think the build quality is still there, the new S-class is a level above every other brand, and the 2015 C-class looks like it will bring it too. The current CLS is really nice on the inside also and I like it more than the BMW Gran Coupe. I don't see Mercedes slipping on interiors, if anything they are getting better because they actually are putting some design into them rather than the utilitarian functionalism that the cars of the 80s and 90s had.

[balthazar]

They have to be getting better: mercedes wasn't even in the luxury class in the 1980s.

[Drew Dowdell]

HVAC controls that rattle like a used fisher price toy, cheap feeling plastic buttons (though the response of the buttons is nice), low rent gauges unless stepping up to super high end models, awkward layout of controls (direct quote from Albert during our week in a GL350 - "Sure it's a Mercedes, but why does it feel so clunky to use?!")