'Tree Huggers Don't Buy Luxury Cars,' Says Cadillac Exec On Electric Cars

So what IS a "tree hugger," anyway?

According to a Cadillac executive quoted in The Detroit News a week ago, it's someone who never buys luxury cars.

That phrase leaped out at us from an otherwise pro forma article in which General Motors executives said the company's sales hadn't been affected by the ongoing ignition-key safety recall.

Uwe Ellinghaus, Cadllac's marketing chief, was discussing sales of the Cadillac luxury brand, and its plans for future plug-in cars.

He argued that those vehicles would have to provide "added value for the price" while maintaining the performance and luxury expected of the brand.

But, Ellinghaus said, “These are not cars for tree-huggers, as tree-huggers do not buy new luxury cars."

OK, then.

We might riposte that it appears 25,000 or so U.S. luxury-car buyers have opted for the Tesla Model S in almost two years.

RELATED: Wait, Tesla Owners And Fans Don't Care So Much About Green?

While it's true that many Tesla owners index lower on environmental interest than buyers of other plug-in electric cars, we'd suggest there are likely far more photovoltaic solar panels to be seen on their homes than on the homes of Cadillac buyers as a whole.