Cadillac Converj Catch-Up

Lots of excitement about the updated rumor that GM has green-lighted the Cadillac Converj concept for production.  Let’s review some Converj info:

Cadillac Converj Concept Introduction at 2009 NAIAS

(Photo by John F. Martin for General Motors) (United States)

The Converj is a 4-seat, Cadillac Coupe with the Voltec powertrain similar to the upcoming Chevrolet Volt.  In the Converj the powertrain and battery capacity may be adjusted for Cadillac performance.

In production the Converj will likely be called something else, such as the ETS, for Extended-range Touring Sedan? in keeping with the current Cadillac naming convention.  This would also play to loyal Cadillac fans, who fondly recall the Eldorado ETC as a performance coupe.

General Motors Vice Chairman Bob Lutz introduced the Cadillac Converj electric luxury coupe concept at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan Sunday, January 11, 2009. The four-passenger vehicle will provide up to 40 miles of gas-and-emissions-free electric driving with extended-range capability of hundreds of miles.  The Converj will be an extended range electric vehicle, which means that it is primarily an electric car, driven by batteries.  For longer ranges, it also has a gas engine that can be used to drive the electric motor when the battery is low.

Bob Lutz said the Converj concept has production substance. “It’s a logical extension of our plan to reinvent the automobile,” he said. “It clearly shows what a Cadillac electric vehicle could look like, and clearly indicates that global luxury customers can have a car that has both strong design and electric propulsion with a total range of hundreds of anxiety-free miles”.

2009 Cadillac Converj Concept Computer Generated Image

This computer-generated image shows the internal power storage unit in the Cadillac Converj.  One of the features of the new Voltec power train is that it is so compact it leaves the rest of the vehicle design almost unlimited.

New GM Facility in Brownstown Township

Denise Gray, Director, Global Battery Systems Engineering, right, and Bill Wallace, Engineering Group Manager – Voltec Batteries, arrive at the new GM Subsystem Manufacturing facility in Brownstown Township Thursday, August 13, 2009. The facility will be the first high-volume automotive lithium-ion battery manufacturing site in the U.S. General Motors will invest $43 million in the site to produce battery packs for the Cadillac Converj, Chevrolet Volt and other extended range electric vehicles. Production will begin in the fourth quarter of 2010 to support the launch of the Chevrolet Volt. (Photo: Jeffrey Sauger/General Motors).

The Converj is probably a few years away from production.  The sooner the better I say!

Also see: Previous Converj coverage here at Caddyinfo.