GM design chief told media Cadillac could build a mega-fast, multi-million-dollar exotic, but didn’t confirm it would
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- GM design boss says Cadillac would like to build a hypercar but wouldn’t confirm either way whether it will make one.
- Mike Simcoe, Vice President of Global Design for GM, was speaking to Australian media when he made the comments.
- Hypercar would be logical extension of Cadillac’s currently troubled F1 program.
Cadillac’s transformation, or midlife crisis, took another twist this week when GM’s design boss told journalists that the firm would love to slap its massive crest grille on a real-deal hypercar.
Speaking from Detroit to Australian journalists, Melbourne-born Senior VP of GM Global Design, Michael Simcoe, didn’t exactly confirm that Cadillac was working on a rival to the AMG One and Aston Martin Valkyrie, but definitely left the door open.
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“Could we build a hypercar? Yes. Would we like to build one? Yes,” said Simcoe, before going on to temper expectations a little.
“Are we building one? That would be giving too much away,” Simcoe added, according to Australian website Car Sales. The Aussie designer said that a Cadillac hypercar could be powered either by a combustion motor or electricity, even though the brand has vowed to go EV-only by 2030.
The idea of Cadillac – or parent company GM – building a hypercar is rather less outrageous today than it would have been five years ago. The automaker, who created the stunning Cien concept in 2002, has reinvented itself as an aspirational brand that appeals to younger buyers through its strong designs and modern electric platforms, and last year announced it was teaming up with Andretti to enter F1.
Many brands already competing in F1, including Aston Martin, Mercedes and Ferrari, build hypercars to help connect their motorsport and car production worlds, so it’s logical that Cadillac execs have talked about making a crazy-fast street car that could sell for millions of dollars and generate a ton of exposure for the brand.
But talk is one thing and action, another. Cadillac first has to sort its F1 program out before it can think about spending millions on a vanity project. The team’s attempt to join the grand prix circus for 2025 was rejected by F1 and it’s now hoping to hit the track in 2026.
At the same event, Simcoe also described SUVs as “a necessary evil,” according to Car Expert, but said that Cadillac would still offer sedans because “for those who can afford it… there’s always a second car that isn’t an SUV.”
Note: The renderings in this story are not related to nor endorsed by Cadillac.
