As reported elsewhere on the ‘Net, Cadillac Division executives have apparently given their blessing to the development of a new flagship model. Actual work began on the project while former GM head, Ed Whitacre, was still there according to the Detroit Free Press.

Cadillac currently has two new cars in development – the XTS and the ATS – both of which have well established market intentions. The XTS will replace the full sized  STS and DTS models, while the ATS will slide in under the current CTS and is intended as a low end BMW fighter.

The flagship model will top the lineup, possibly reaching Corvette ZR1 price levels. That’s in today’s dollars, of course, which brings the question of when this Uber-Caddy may be available. The consensus appears to lie in the 2015 to 2017 time frame. Even with a year’s head start, Cadillac is likely to take whatever time is needed to get this model exactly right.

While the car may well take some styling cues from the dramatic Cadillac Sixteen show car that was first shown in 2003, but don’t bet the house on a engine with more cylinders than Cadillac currently sells.

Such a flagship model will certainly have to deliver a high level of performance, so it will be interesting to see the direction that GM takes here.

Of more concern is the platform on which the car will be built. While GM’s fortunes have recovered significantly from the market crash, past indecision on long term platform commitments leave it unclear what options the Cadillac design team may have available to them.

Beyond this, its all still a numbers game. Through the end of May, Cadillac delivered a little over 65K  units, up from 53K for the same period in 2010. Of that, the DTS accounted for just under 8K cars in five months. What sustainable level of sales could the flagship Caddy be expected to achieve and, more importantly, can it be profitable at that level?

While luxury cars certainly generate more profit per sale, it is a fair question to ask. The answer is far from clear given the numbers above, but there is time to sort it all out. Too bad about the Sixteen, though.