Ford Could Build a Prettier, Cheaper, Better Cadillac ELR

Ford has been playing with the idea of a front wheel drive Fusion-based coupe for a while now- something like a modern-day Ford Probe, but different enough from theFord Mustangs and Chevy Camaros of the world to attract a different buyer altogether. A wealthier buyer. A buyer who wears suits, talks smack about the moon landing, and is all about Blanche DeVereaux, let’s say. I’m talking, of course, about Cadillac ELR buyers.

Let’s assume, for a moment, that Cadillac is 100% right about there being a Cadillac ELR-sized gap in the premium plug-in hybrid coupe market. We’d have to, then, blame the ELR’s slow sales on the fact that GM totally and completely missed the boat with the Cadillac ELR in terms of the car’s styling (awful, in my opinion) and nearly $80,000 price tag (laughable, in pretty much everyone’s opinion). If you assumed both of those things, then you’d have to say that a company capable of producing a premium-grande personal luxury coupe (as the old Lincoln MK coupes and Cadillac Eldorados used to be called) for under $50K in pre-rebate money would clean house.

Enter: Ford.

Ford already has the hot-selling Fusion sedan, which is making serious inroads against more expensive product by offering a premium interior, Aston Martin-inspired styling, and competent driving dynamics. Ford has also shown us what a coupe version of the Ford Fusion would look like, with the Evos concept seen here. Now, all you have to do is imagine a world where Ford didn’t build a production Evos on the back of an Ecoboost/go-fast Fusion, but on the same plug-in hybrid hardware seen in the Ford Fusion Energi.

Best of all, the 2014 Ford Fusion Energi starts at $34,525.

It seems to me like that $45K price tag could be realistic enough for a low-volume Ford Fusion Evos coupe, and- if it looks anything at all like the Evos Concept- that should be both “premium” enough, and “green” enough for Ford’s marketing people to drive it right up Cadillac’s smug tailpipe.

What do you guys think? Could a Fusion coupe out-Volt the Cadillac ELR? Watch the video, below, look up the Ford Fusion Energi, and read Jack Baruth’s article on Ford’s up-market moves, then tell us what you think of a Ford Fusion coupe’s chances against the ELR in the comments section at the bottom of the page. Enjoy!

Sources | Images: The Truth About Cars, Ford.