Is the Cadillac XLR the Worst Modern Corvette Ever Made?

Despite sharing the same platform as a Corvette, the Cadillac XLR is less reliable and dramatically more expensive to maintain.

Let me begin this op-ed by saying I’m a huge Cadillac fan. I grew up with grand uncles and grandfathers owning ’70s, ’80s, and 2000s Caddys. And I currently own my grandfather’s last new car, the fantastic 2013 Cadillac ATS-4 3.6. I love the swooping fins of the classics and the sharp angular lines of the last twenty or so years. And I think the Cadillac XLR is an absolutely gorgeous roadster. Again, it was at the forefront of Cadillac’s modern angular designs, and the idea of a classy Corvette is super cool.

But Cadillac can’t seem to get out of their own way.

From restricting an amazing engine like the Blackwing to the doomed CT6 to the disaster that is the CUE touchscreen radio/nav/HVAC to the 32V DOHC Northstar V8 head bolt/gasket issues, Cadillac seems to take all of the simplicity and reliability out of being a GM brand.

Case in point. I recently wrote an article for the Corvette Forum front page chronicling forum vendor and C6 Z06 specialist, American Heritage Performance. While I was in that shop, they were repairing a stunning, metallic red Cadillac XLR and it had all the usual issues. Leaks and hard-to-reach, expensive replacement parts. I still remember AHP owner, Kohle Heimlich, looking up at this gorgeous-but-flawed roadster and saying, “if only GM had used an LS, they’d still be making these.”

Then I stumbled upon the (above) YouTube video featuring mechanic David Long, aka “The Car Wizard.” Long owns and operates the Omega Auto Clinic in Newton Kansas. In it, Long chronicles the problems with his customer’s Cadillac XLR. Between a leaking radiator, seeping oil pan, and some fuel-tank regulator issues, it would cost Long’s customer $3,500 to do all of the repairs, which is double what similar issues would cost for most vehicles, and more expensive than what it would cost to fix up an LS1 or LS2 powered Corvette.

Which brings me to the point of this post. Despite its gorgeous lines and Corvette underpinnings, Cadillac’s XLR lacks two of the key components that make Corvette ownership what it is: reliability and affordability. The jury’s still out on how expensive it will be to maintain a mid-engine C8, but generally speaking, C5, C6, C7 ownership is relatively simple and comparatively affordable. LS engines aren’t crazy exotic, rare motors. Radiators and other bits are plentiful and readily available. And Corvettes are more simple to work on than the Euro competition.

To be clear, I don’t mean to get all negative while writing some kind of a hate-post. My intention is more to drive a discussion over HERE on the forums about how the XLR fares versus the same-era Corvette (an overlap between the C5 and C6). It seems to me that Cadillac had an amazing idea and could have kept the costs reasonable, but manged to over-engineer everything because they thought the Northstar engine was superior to the LS architecture. I can’t verbalize Cadillac’s intentions, but it seems such a shame that Cadillac wasn’t able to develop and grow their roadster Corvette. Imagine what the world would look like today with LT4-powered Cadillac roasters (not just the CTS-V) or a mid-engine Cadillac? It seems like such a loss to one of GM’s most important brands.

What do you think, dear reader? Is the XLR the worst modern Corvette or do you have another model you’d pick? Let us know HERE in the forums and–

Photos: General Motors