The 2008 Cadillac XLR had an extremely unique and eye-catching design that would have made everybody turn their heads.
The luxury roadster had a retractable hard top and with was offered in three trim levels: base, Platinum Edition and Alpine White Edition.

The base XLR was very well equipped with lots of luxury features such as adaptive xenon headlights, 8-way power and heated seats with leather upholstery, a heated steering wheel and a premium Bose audio system. A navigation system, as well as keyless ignition, head-up display and adaptive cruise control were included.

The XLR Platinum added different alloys, wood and metallic inserts for the interior, dedicated exterior paint colors and the specific Platinum badging.

As expected, the Alpine White Edition had a unique color and also featured a chrome grille and chrome wheels.

The XLR was driven by a 4.-6liter V8 engine that developed 320 hp and 310 pound-feet of torque. With such a powerful engine came an efficient braking system.

Safety wise, the XLR came with antilock disc brakes, stability control, side airbags and rear parking sensors.

The luxurious interior was filled with the latest technology available. The cabin featured a nice combination of wood and aluminum trims that made it very attractive.

The trunk offered a decent load area.

Based on the Chevrolet Corvette C6, the Cadillac XLR was a controversial car: you either loved it or hated it.
Why?

Presenting the XLR as a sports car, Cadillac seemed to have over-promised. The XLR was not fast enough to compete with other sports cars alternatives on the market.

For those looking for a unique sexy styling, the 2-door roadster was a promising choice. And after all, it was still a Cadillac.

Power came from two different V8 engines: a 4.6-liter naturally aspirated units that developed 320 hp and a more powerful 4.4-liter supercharged powerplant with 443 hp.

Extremely well equipped for the time, the XLR came with heated and cooled seats, remote keyless access, a navigation system, 18-inch alloy wheels, a 7-inch screen and a DVD player as standard. Not many cars on the market offered these features as standard, not even years later.

One of the reasons why the XLR was considered too slow was the aluminum retractable hardtop that added a lot of weight, the XLR being heavier than the Corvette it was based on.

While Cadillac expected to sell between 5,000 and 7,000 units per year, they only managed to sell around half of the estimated vehicles, even with the refreshed 2009 model.

AMG to Mercedes, M to BMW and V-series to Cadillac.
Makes sense? The V-series were high-performance versions of the already released Cadillac models.

The XLR-V was fitted with a 4.4-liter V8 Northstar engine borrowed from GM, the powerplant being mated with a 6-speed automatic transmission.

Hiding 443 hp under the hood, the XLR-V took around 4.7 seconds in the sprint to 100 kmh. The Northstar unit boasted incredible torque even at lower speeds, which the the powerful XLR-V very fun to drive.

The chassis was upgraded from the base model with a solid front anti-roll bar and a rear anti-roll bar that wasn’t present on the XLR. Thus, the ride was enhanced with the XLR-V becoming more stable at higher speeds.

The supercharged version XLR-V ran on with 19-inch wheels and Pirelli run-flats.

Standard equipment included a navigation system, dual-zone climate control, power seats, keyless go and French-stitiched leather coverings inside the cabin.

The two seater did not offer much space for luggages with the top down, and neither the cargo area was very generous. Using the XLR-V to go on a trip might have required to keep the top up in order to save up some space.

Although a sporty car, it had great comfort, great power and great style and offered good value for the money.