Photo: wb.artist20/Instagram
Ever since the C8 Corvette came out, people have been dreaming up sports cars that could benefit from a mid-engined makeover. But for some reason, Cadillac is never mentioned, even though the luxury brand could copy Chevy's homework.
Many say this is a bad idea, arguing that it's been tried before and would only divert resources from the C8 project, weakening it. But we don't see that kind of thinking when Audi takes the Golf R powertrain for its S3 sedan or when the R8 and Lamborghini Huracan share development.
Encouraging further conversation, we're bringing to your attention a Cadillac mid-engined flagship that's been rendered by wb.artist20. This unnamed creation looks more luxurious than its C8 underpinnings, thanks to the longer overhangs and CT4-like headlights.
Obviously, making a new luxury-performance flagship isn't as easy as slapping on some new features. The perception of the model hinges on a good combination of looks, novelty, and performance. Shoehorning the twin-turbo 4.2-liter V8 in place of the C8's naturally-aspirated unit would be an option. This produces 550 horsepower and 625 pound-feet (850 Newton-meters) of torque in the CT6-V sports sedan.
But we're more in favor of the Z06's powertrain, rumored to be an aspirated 5.5-liter flat-plane twin-cam V8 that spins to 9,000 rpm. You've got to beat the Italian exotics at their own game.
So what's with this being a bad idea? Well, in the 2000s, Cadillac had something called the XLR. It looked like a Mercedes SL-Class and was essentially a C5 Corvette, but slower. In place of the LS, it came with a Northstar 4.6-liter V8 that made 320 horsepower. It was even built at the Corvette plant.
Even as the XLR's failure was happening, Cadillac had an even more ambitious idea. In 2002, the company unveiled a concept for a real supercar killer. Called the Cien - Spanish for 100 - this had a truly exotic body wrapping around all-aluminum, DOHC, four-valve V12 making 750 horsepower.
Encouraging further conversation, we're bringing to your attention a Cadillac mid-engined flagship that's been rendered by wb.artist20. This unnamed creation looks more luxurious than its C8 underpinnings, thanks to the longer overhangs and CT4-like headlights.
Obviously, making a new luxury-performance flagship isn't as easy as slapping on some new features. The perception of the model hinges on a good combination of looks, novelty, and performance. Shoehorning the twin-turbo 4.2-liter V8 in place of the C8's naturally-aspirated unit would be an option. This produces 550 horsepower and 625 pound-feet (850 Newton-meters) of torque in the CT6-V sports sedan.
But we're more in favor of the Z06's powertrain, rumored to be an aspirated 5.5-liter flat-plane twin-cam V8 that spins to 9,000 rpm. You've got to beat the Italian exotics at their own game.
So what's with this being a bad idea? Well, in the 2000s, Cadillac had something called the XLR. It looked like a Mercedes SL-Class and was essentially a C5 Corvette, but slower. In place of the LS, it came with a Northstar 4.6-liter V8 that made 320 horsepower. It was even built at the Corvette plant.
Even as the XLR's failure was happening, Cadillac had an even more ambitious idea. In 2002, the company unveiled a concept for a real supercar killer. Called the Cien - Spanish for 100 - this had a truly exotic body wrapping around all-aluminum, DOHC, four-valve V12 making 750 horsepower.
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