Cadillac started a month before the Monterey Classic Car Week festivities unveiling its Celestiq “Show Car” along with a plan to hand-build a couple hundred examples with pricing that rivals ultra-luxury players including Bentley.
Limited production and EV models debut around the
2022 Pebble Beach Concours
Automotive marketing executives have rediscovered the lure of scarcity. Offer just a few cars and buyers will pay princely sums to acquire one. That’s not news for niche automakers like Pagani and Koenigsegg who handcraft a handful of cars that sell for tall-six and low-seven figure sums. But now a few major automakers have decided that building a limited, very expensive model can add prestige to the brand and be profitable.
Of course Bentley quickly replied to Cadillac, unveiling its Mulliner Batur, offering just 18 coach-built coupes to patrons willing to part with $2-million to be truly exclusive. Director of Design Andreas Mindt suggests that future Bentley EVs will reflect this new design language, but these few cars are powered by turbocharged 6.0-liter, 740HP W-12 petrol engines.
Lincoln has long embraced Pebble Beach as a venue to showcase new vehicles and this year it unveiled the L100, a stunning electric coupe concept with a novel solution for gracious entry and exit. The rear-hinged doors open wide along with the large glass roof to allow occupants to step in. Look for a few L100 design cues to appear on Lincoln’s upcoming EV offerings.
Genesis, Hyundai’s new luxury brand, is quickly adding new models as its vehicles focus the design language. The electric Speedium Coupe, first shown in the company’s Genesis House in New York, impressed visitors at the Pebble Beach Concept Lawn with its classic form. It’s rewarding to see stylish coupes emerging in a landscape filled with SUVs.
Acura will launch its first pure electric vehicle in 2024 and resurrect the ZDX model name for the utility vehicle. The luxury automaker brought its Precision EV Concept to Monterey for a preview of the future design direction.
Polestar began as Volvo’s model name for performance and is now the company’s EV brand. Meet the Polestar 6, a 884 HP roadster that was hot enough to book orders for its limited L A Concept edition at $200,000 each.
The honored star of Pebble Beach was wonderfully traditional,
a 1932 Duesenberg Model J with Figoni Torpedo coachwork. That’s classic!