Times may change, but perception is always reality. Take Cadillac. Helped by a steady parade of distinctive new models, General Motors' flagship brand has lately transformed its image from old-fogey stale to cutting-edge cool, to the great benefit of sales. And it began with a truck--Cadillac's first. A big reason Caddys have real status again is the imposing Escalade SUV, still the bling ride of choice for celebrity bad-boys and those who hope to be one. Want to be the "sickest" thing on the street? Drive a "'Slade," dude.

But potent, pricey sports cars leave their own big impressions, which is why Cadillac has the XLR. Introduced for 2004, this suave Mercedes-Benz SL-fighter is based on nothing less than the respected Chevrolet Corvette. And not yesterday's 'Vette, either, but the latest C6 generation. In fact, Team Corvette created Cadillac's newest two-seater before working on the C6, which benefited from their experience. Yet the XLR the looks nothing like a Corvette or the SL, has a pure Cadillac heart, and is plenty fast--even faster in new-for-'06 V-Series trim. Just as important, it carries historic freight as the flagship for the new Cadillac breed that's now wiping at least 30 years of tarnish off the wreath-and-crest badge.

The Cadillac Evoq concept car was first shown at the 1999 Detroit Auto Show. It marked a new direction for Cadillac styling.

The XLR is basically the for-sale version of the 1999 Evoq concept, the first public hint that Cadillacs future would not be like Cadillacs past. At the time the Evoq broke cover, Cadillac was some two years into a $4 billion extreme makeover dubbed "Art & Science." The man behind it was the determined John Smith, then division general manager. Smith wanted Cadillac to reclaim luxury-sales leadership from BMW, Lexus, and Mercedes-Benz by again being a "Standard of the World," but on entirely new terms. To do that, he felt, Cadillac must return to the bold innovation of its glory days in the 1940s, '50s, and '60s, but with modern, not retro, design and engineering.

Cadillac was overdue for change. The division had been on a sales slide for some 20 years, peddling stuffy cars that appealed mainly to buyers "between 60 and death," as one wag put it. Still, cost-conscious GM brass were reluctant to OK a proposed all-new lineup switched from front-wheel drive back to traditional rear-drive and requiring new plants and other hugely expensive measures.

Then design chief Wayne Cherry (since retired) showed them the first of the new models, the CTS sports sedan. Some execs were uncomfortable with the edgy, Stealth-fighter styling he proposed as Cadillac's new look--especially when it made some consumers uncomfortable in early clinics. But Cherry and Smith kept pushing, and eventually both the CTS and its avant-garde design theme were endorsed by then-CEO Jack Smith, president Rick Wagoner (GM's current CEO), even the much-maligned Ron Zarella, then head of GM's North American Automotive Operations. They were daring much, but had little to lose. Staying the course and imitating rivals were not options. Cadillac had to be different. Once management gave its blessing, Cherry raided corporate styling staffs for a second design team, headed by Kip Wasenko, to create the Evoq as a preview of things to come.

Cadillac finally made its long-awaited entry into the Lexus SC/Mercedes-Benz SL market in 2004 with the two-seat XLR. It derives the sharp creases in its composite-material bodywork from Caddy's 1999 Evoq show car. A folding hardtop that can be swallowed into the rear deck is among the key standard features provided on the $76,000+ car.

The CTS bowed first because, as Cadillac's new entry-level car (replacing the unloved Catera for 2003), it would be a fast sales and profit booster--or so management hoped. But there was little doubt that the glamorous Evoq was headed for the showroom, and Cadillac confirmed it in August 2000--appropriately at the ritzy Pebble Beach Concours classic-car show. The XLR name and 2004-model timing were announced several months later. The formal unveiling came at the Detroit Auto Show in January 2002. That September, Cadillac announced the first 99 XLRs would be Neiman-Marcus specials painted "ultraviolet" with coordinating two-tone interior. Predictably, perhaps, they sold within hours. Regular production began in spring of '03 at the Bowling Green, Kentucky, Corvette plant.

Though CTS and XLR designers exchanged ideas, as Wasenko later told Automotive News, the Cadillac was always seen as a close cousin of the C6 Corvette and not a cut-down variation of the CTS. This made great good sense. The 'Vette was still GM's most exciting car, and Cadillac's underwhelming Allante two-seater was still fresh in the memory of many executives. Among them was the celebrated Bob Lutz, whose 2001 arrival as GM "product czar" came just a few months before XLR styling had to be locked in. No fan of "Art & Science," Lutz ordered that the design be made a bit softer and less "Evoq-ative." As it happened, Wasenko had an alternative in the drawer that satisfied Lutz. Even so, the XLR is no less striking than its concept forebear. Only when the two are side-by-side are the differences apparent.

The XLR is not just a C6 in a Cadillac suit, though there are many similarities. For example, both have front-mounted V8s, rear-mounted transmissions, and composite-paneled bodies (fiberglass is so twentieth century). Also shared is a strong "backbone" chassis with hydroformed steel siderails, aluminum windshield frame, a magnesium reinforcing bar behind the dashboard, and aluminum "sandwich" floors with balsa-wood cores. Suspensions employ four-wheel short/long-arm geometry with a bridging transverse leaf spring at each end, plus GM's trick Magnetic Ride Control shock absorbers, first seen on 50th Anniversary 2003 Corvettes. Brakes are identical ABS-backed four-wheel discs measuring an ample 12.8 inches front, 12 inches aft. Rack-and-pinion steering with GM's Magnasteer assist is also common, though the XLR steering is geared slightly "slower" (17.2:1 vs. 16.1:1). Both cars come with run-flat tires on alloy wheels, but where the C6 wears Goodyear Eagle EMTs on 18-inch front rims and 19-inch rears, the XLR has Michelin ZPs on slightly slimmer 18-inchers all around.

Dimensions are naturally similar, but again not identical. The XLR stands 177.7 inches long, 72.3 inches wide, and 50.4 inches high on a 105.7-inch wheelbase, making it a bit longer and taller but slightly narrower than C6. At 3647 pounds, it weighs a bit less than an SL500 but about 450 pounds more than a C6 convertible, though that's partly owed to the SL-style disappearing hardtop and other luxury-class equipage.

Though it shares a platform with the new-for-2005 Chevrolet Corvette, the XLR relies on Cadillac power. A broad, styled cover rests over its 4.6-liter dohc Northstar V8. The engine develops 320 bhp and 310 pound-feet of torque.

Apart from looks and intended audience, it's the powertrain that most separates the Caddy and 'Vette. The C6, of course, boasts Chevy's new 6.0-liter LS2 overhead-valve V8 with a stout 400 bhp. The XLR predictably uses Cadillac's own dual-cam 4.6-liter Northstar V8--only it's the reengineered "Gen II" version developed for rear- and all-wheel-drive models vs. the original Northstar's strictly front-drive applications (which included the last Allantes of 1993). Cadillac claims Gen II components are 80 percent new, and we believe it. Highlights include continuously variable camshaft timing for both intake and exhaust valves, new cylinder heads with freer-flow ports and higher compression (10.5:1), stiffer block and crank, low-friction polymer-coated pistons, manifolds redesigned for quieter running, and "by-wire" electronic throttle control. The result of all this is 320 bhp at a zingy 6400 rpm and 310 pound-feet of torque at 4400. Another distinction is the XLR's mandatory five-speed automatic transmission with manual shift gate vs. Corvette's four-speed automatic or six-speed manual.

But forget the specs and comparisons. The proof is always in the driving, and most road tests judge the XLR one "Xcellent Luxury Roadster." Indeed, critics seem to like most everything about it, from the smooth, quiet acceleration--0-60 mph takes no more than the factory-claimed 5.9 seconds--to satisfying backroad agility, controlled but comfortable ride and, yes, terrific build quality. Cadillac worked extra hard on that last one, setting up a separate XLR assembly operation that shares only the Bowling Green paint shop and chassis-welding area with Corvette.

The XLR's geometric styling theme continues inside on the instrument panel. Light-color wood trim panels bring a natural touch to an otherwise decidedly man-made cockpit environment.

Only two bones of contention have emerged. Magnasteer still leaves something to be desired for precision and feedback, and some deem the run-flat Michelin tires a bit narrow and soft-sidewalled for best handling. Then again, the XLR has ample cornering grip, and there's standard Stabilitrak antiskid/traction control to help save your neck should you overdo it. A Mercedes SL500 has more cornering power, but is slower in a straight line--and costs some $11,000 more. The Lexus SC 430, another two-seat hideaway hardtop, undercuts the XLR by a like amount, but falls short in acceleration and dynamic ability. Styling, too, in the opinion of most.

At $76,000 to start, the XLR returns Cadillac to the upper reaches of the luxury class for the first time since the ill-fated Allante. It's not intended for everyone--image-building flagships never are--but at least it comes with most every techno-toy one might want. There's power everything, of course, plus a navigation system, GM's helpful OnStar service, and "smart" cruise control designed to maintain a safe following distance. Also included is Cadillac's Keyless Access system with engine-start button (and no external keylocks), heated/cooled seats and, for 2006, XM Satellite Radio, previously the sole option.

For those not satisfied with the XLR's 320-hp Northstar V8, engineers cooked up a supercharged model for 2006.

But the big news for '06 is the long-expected XLR-V, the latest in the growing line of high-performance Cadillacs that began with the potent CTS-V. Aimed at those for whom enough is never enough, the V-Series XLR packs a new 4.4-liter Northstar that is supercharged to an impressive 443 hp (at 6400 rpm) and 414 lb-ft of torque (at 3900). Equally new is a mandatory six-speed automatic transmission, Cadillac's first, with the most sophisticated electronic controls in GM history. Also to handle the added muscle is a host of chassis upgrades, including larger brakes (up to 13.4 inches fore, 13.0 aft), a thicker front stabilizer bar, a new rear stabilizer, recalibrated Magnetic Ride Control, new 19 x 8.5-inch wheels, and chunky unequal-size Pirelli run-flat tires (P235/45s in front, P255/40s in back).

Styling changes give subtle clues to the hot-rod hardware within. Besides the new 10-spoke wheels, the XLR-V gets a special bulged hood (needed to clear the supercharger), a quartet of polished stainless-steel exhaust tips, and signature V-series visual cues like wire-mesh grille inserts and appropriate badges. The already lavish interior becomes even more so with the addition of suede fabric inserts on the seats, ebony leather on the dash and door tops, and aluminum accents set off by genuine dark-hue Zingana wood on the doors, console, and center stack.

Seats with supple leather upholstery and built-in heating and cooling capability pamper two fortunate passengers.

V-Series or regular, the XLR is the sort of world-class car that many thought Cadillac couldn't build anymore. One critic notes that if Elvis Presley were around today, he'd probably drive an XLR. Sounds real to us. Talk about changing perceptions!