You should still listen to AM radio. Because if you did, you’d catch the latest conversation with Detroit News auto critic Henry Payne and Bob Lutz, a man who needs no introduction). On the 100th recording of Car Radio with Henry Payne on 910 AM Superstation, Lutz dropped a couple of behind-the-scenes nuggets that GM enthusiasts would love. Among them was the mention of a mid-engined Cadillac supercar program that was in the works just before the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
You can imagine why the inconvenient timing of things may have affected this product from turning up.
Here were the details that Lutz was willing to share with Payne and the listeners: GM was working on a mid-engine Corvette program back in 2007 that would have debuted around the 2011 or 2012 model year, following the conclusion of the C6 life cycle. This program also had a Cadillac derivative, which would have been powered by a supercharged Northstar engine – a DOHC V8 that pre-dated the 4.2L LTA “Blackwing” V8 engine in the Cadillac CT6-V by several years, and the current 5.5L LT6 DOHC V8 in the C8 Corvette Z06 by even longer.
Image via Cadillac.
Presumably, the engine powering this mid-engine Cadillac supercar would have been based on the LC3 – a 4.4L supercharged DOHC V8 that was exclusively found in the Cadillac XLR-V and STS-V from the 2006-2009 model years. In the more powerful XLR-V, the engine was good for 469 hp and 429 lb-ft of torque. Effectively, this mid-engine Cadillac supercar would have been the production version of the iconic Cien Concept, which featured a longitudinally mounted 60-degree, 7.5L V12 producing 750 hp.
Between the two mid-engine supercars, the differences in characteristics had the Cadillac aiming to be “more gentlemanly and more refined,” according to Maximum Bob, while the Corvette was going to be “a little bit noisier, a little bit harsher to drive.” The older mid-engine Corvette design would have also looked more curvaceous than today’s car, similar to a “McLaren or Ferrari,” said Lutz.
In all, the original mid-engine Corvette and mid-engine Cadillac program from 2007 carried a $900 million budget, according to Lutz. That’s over $1.27 billion in today’s inflated dollars. Instead the development commencing, GM ran out of money, the bailouts happened, bankruptcy happened, and the supercar program was sent to the junkyard. In its place was the C7 Corvette program) as we know it, described as a “placeholder” program, and carried a reduced budget of just $270 million USD. Finally, we arrive to the C8 Corvette we know today, but with no Cadillac equivalent to speak of.
Oh, what could have been. At least the world got some mid-engine, DOHC V8 Cadillac race cars. Right?
You can re-listen to the entire 100th episode of Car Radio with Henry Payne on Spotify. The show focuses almost entirely on the C8 Corvette E-Ray. Along with Bob Lutz, the episode features an interviews and conversations with C8 Corvette Executive Chief Engineer Tadge Juechter, former Corvette Racing director Doug Fehan, Corvette Registry Director Jake Drennan, and yours truly.
