Car reviews

The Cadillac XLR touched down in the UK in 2005 like an alien spacecraft thanks to its rarity and otherworldly looks. Like a Martian invasion, the XLR was the vanguard of Cadillac’s revitalised sales push into Europe, with the two-seater roadster paving the way for Caddy’s saloons with toned-down versions of the XLR’s edgy styling. Aimed squarely (no pun intended) at the Mercedes SL, the boxily-shaped XLR uses the Corvette C6 as a base but with Caddy’s Northstar 4.6-litre V8 taking care of power duties via five-speed automatic. Much like the Merc, the XLR has a folding metal roof that disappears under the boot lid, though the Cadillac’s uses up almost every last cubic centimetre of luggage space when dropped. The XLR tempts with its near endless list of standard equipment, but the very few brave enough to buy this left-hand drive-only roadster new in the UK face a depreciation curve that more closely resembles a cliff face.