Future Cadillac Allante.
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There is no sign of Cadillac working on a smaller 2-seater convertible based on the Ultium platform. And nothing called “Allante” on the horizon either. And yet…
The original Cadillac Allante came out back in 1986 and was built until 1993. It was created to compete against the Mercedes SL which was very popular at the time. (Years later, in 2003, Cadillac tried again to compete with the SL with their Cadillac XLR)
The Cadillac Allante was a very complicated and expensive car to build since the body of the car was actually built by Pininfarina in Italy and shipped by plane to Detroit for assembly. It sounds like the craziest and least efficient way to build a car and it probably was.
This made the Allante much more expensive than it should have been with a price of $55,000, or around $150,000 today. The Allante was revised and improved over the years, and it finally got the new Northstar engine in its last year of production.
The new Ultium EV platform is scalable to many different sizes, from the upcoming small 2026 Chevrolet Bolt to the GMC Hummer or Chevrolet Silverado EV. A new 2-seater based on a small version of that platform could easily be built. All in-house unlike the Allante.
Cadillac just showed their new Sollei convertible concept a few days ago. While I love the idea of a new Cadillac convertible, the new concept is just a 2 door version of the odd-looking Cadillac Celestiq, and I think the Sollei ends up looking missproportioned and lacks the personality a convertible should have. it would also cost over $350,000 if ever produced.
I think the illustration above shows something smaller, a lot cheaper with more personality. With a bit of retro flair.
The current Mercedes AMG SL starts at around $112,000 these days. And the soon-to-be-gone gorgeous Jaguar F-Type starts at around $79,000. You would think GM could come up with something a bit cheaper with the Ultium platform. It could even be practical with a large front truck. Something not all Ultium-based cars offer but some already do like the Cadillac Escalade IQ.
Dreams are free…
Interested but with a gas engine.
I like your idea Vince. I remember the Allante when I was younger thinking it was one of the most crazy business ideas ever. A body built in Italy? A mid-80’s GM motor/chassis? Sounds like desperation to me. I wonder how they have aged…