2004 Cadillac XLR Preview
Remember the Pininfarina designed, Italian built Cadillac Allanté? Why didn't it succeed? Maybe it was because it inconveniently sat only two people. But wait a minute. Two seat roadsters had already started to make a comeback during the 1987 to 1993 roadster's tenure, that couldn't be the reason. It was beautifully styled, so that can't be the reason. The first cause of failure was that the Allanté didn't ignite a passion in traditional roadster enthusiasts, mostly due to a lethargic 200-hp V8 driven through the front wheels - very unsporting. Next it plagued owners with poor build quality. Finally, its reliability was suspect, including ABS brake problems, electrical system gremlins and a manually operated cloth convertible top glitches. The second, and last, generation car was much improved with a 295-hp Northstar V8 and restyled interior, but unfortunately this was too little too late.
