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End Of The Line For Cadillac XLR

The unfortunate thing about a financial down-turn is that a lot of desirable, high-end metal gets abruptly cancelled. Thankfully the Cadillac XLR isn’t particularly desirable, but its production run is due to come to an end all the same.
Sales of Cadil


The unfortunate thing about a financial down-turn is that a lot of desirable, high-end metal gets abruptly cancelled. Thankfully the Cadillac XLR isn’t particularly desirable, but its production run is due to come to an end all the same.

Sales of Cadillac’s flagship model fell nearly 28 percent in 2008 compared to the previous year. With only 1250 XLRs finding new homes for the year, and with GM relying on tax-payer loans to stay afloat, the decision was made to remove the niche XLR from the production schedule.

Unfortunately, 40 XLR production-line workers at GM’s Bowling Green, Kentucky, plant will loose their jobs after the March 1 shutdown. A further 154 workers responsible for the Corvette, built at the same plant, will also be laid off.

The XLR was introduced in 2003 as a competitor for the Mercedes SL. The car shares its platform with the Chevrolet Corvette but the hard-top convertible XLR features a choice of either a 238kw 4.6 litre V8, or a 330 kW supercharged 4.4 litre V8 for the high performance XLR-V.

Plant manager Paul Graham told the Bowling Green Daily News, “Obviously, it’s difficult when a plant loses a product. We want to continue to grow our volume as much as we can. So it’s been difficult. Everyone in the plant wants to do what we can to build great vehicles. No one’s feeling good about it.”

[World Car Fans]

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