The standard, or Base Model for the Cadillac XLR was introduced for the 2004 model year. This series of luxury sports cars were offered in a folding hardtop convertible body style, and were powered by a naturally aspirated 4.6L 'Northstar' V8 engine. This powerplant generated an output of 320hp and 310 lb ft of torque, which was sent to the rear wheels via a 5 speed automatic transmission. A total of 14,464 examples of the Base Model Cadillac XLR were by the time production ended in 2009.