The past few months have been ripe with rumors regarding Cadillac’s next flagship automobile. The on-again, off-again saga of whether GM’s luxury arm plans a big, bold, and powerful halo car to take command of the brand seems to have finally been settled by confirmation from CEO Dan Akerson himself.

Following closely on this confirmation, Cadillac rolled out a surprise concept car today at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in Monterey, California. The Cadillac Elmiraj Concept is a big, unapologetic coupe with a 500 horsepower twin-turbo V8 under the hood. It’s a home run all the way.

While Cadillac reps insist that the Elmiraj is merely another display of the future of the Art & Science design language, it looks ready to hit dealerships and the road. This stunningly-gorgeous coupe harkens back to Cadillac’s golden years, when the brand sold land yachts rolling on big rims, powered by monster engines the size of a dingy.

Speaking of engines, the Elmiraj debuted with a 4.5 liter twin-turbo V8 good for 500 horsepower and 500 pound-feet of torque. No word of if this engine is based on the 6.2 liter LT1 in the new Corvette, though it is just as likely a one-off unit. Like the car itself, the engine isn’t necessarily slated for production… but it should be. This is the second concept in a row (the Cadillac Ciel, which debuted at Pebble Beach two years ago, being the first) that really needs to be integrated into the Cadillac lineup.

With sleek-but-powerful lines, seating for four in an opulent camel-leather interior finished with fallen Brazilian rosewood accents, and a rear-seat “valet” system for easy entrance and exit, the Elmiraj is the GT coupe the Cadillac brand has been missing. Is this GM’s efforts to test the waters and see how a big Caddy coupe would be received by the buying public? Because if so, let us just say it once more; home-freakin’-run.