First Cadillac BLS

[HarleyEarl]

The first Cadillac BLS rolled of the assembly line in Trollhattan, Sweden on February 06/06:

[Newbiewar]

The first Cadillac BLS rolled of the assembly line in Trollhattan, Sweden on February 06/06:

i thought those were already selling like hotcakes...

well i guess i'm wrong hope they start to sell better

[pow]

Nice... aren't those Saab wheels, though?

[ocnblu]

Well that's embarrassing. First one off the line and it's got the wrong wheels on it.

[Bimmer325]

That's a shame.

[balthazar]

>>"...hope they start to sell better

"<<

How can they improve their sales when they have not even reached a dealer's lot yet????

[4gm]

Has the production BLS been changed slightly from the concept? I didn't like the concept but like this pic of the BLS. It could be the angle of the picture that makes it look good. I need to see more production pictures.

[Northstar]

Are we sure that they're Saab wheels? The wheels have 14 spokes, but it's really just 7 split in half to make 14 (and Caddies normally have 7 spokes). If you go to Cadillac Europe (cadillaceurope.com) and go to the BLS page, it has similar wheels (though not exactly the same) so I think it's possible those could be the right wheels.

[ocnblu]

Well, I was just kidding. I have no idear if they're right or wrong.

[pow]

Are we sure that they're Saab wheels? The wheels have 14 spokes, but it's really just 7 split in half to make 14 (and Caddies normally have 7 spokes). If you go to Cadillac Europe (cadillaceurope.com) and go to the BLS page, it has similar wheels (though not exactly the same) so I think it's possible those could be the right wheels.

I'm not sure, but they don't like very Cadillac to me. Maybe that's the 1.9 liter, cloth-upholstered diesel version.

[pow]

>>"...hope they start to sell better

"<<

How can they improve their sales when they have not even reached a dealer's lot yet????

Pre-orders, like with the 9-3 SportCombi and Solstice?

[Cadillacfan]

The 1st European Cadillac made in Europe built. Things are a changing and the company has finally gone international. Brings a tear to the eye.

[PurdueGuy]

>>"...hope they start to sell better

"<<

How can they improve their sales when they have not even reached a dealer's lot yet????

how can they NOT improve sales? lol

[CSpec]

I sort of wish Cadillac didn't bother with this car. It's obviously a rushed attempt and has way too much 9-3 in it. Europeans already have a negative image of Cadillac, and I bet this will only make it worse. The Epsilon II version should be a much better effort, but I can't help thinking that they should have just waited for that one.

[balthazar]

Pre-orders, like with the 9-3 SportCombi and Solstice?

This is truely getting ridiculous.

What percentage of first-year owners pre-order vs. buy after 'opening day'? Is this percentage consistant model-to-model, make-to-make, year-to-year, country-to-country? How often is it reported? When did the BLS become available for pre-order? What percentage of pre-orders get canceled?

Enough twiddledicking around: we will see how well the car is selling 6 months after it officially goes on sale.

The 1st European Cadillac made in Europe built.  Things are a changing and the company has finally gone international.  Brings a tear to the eye.

Yes, but what is the emotion behind that tear? There's no joy in the news for me, I can tell you that.

[HarleyEarl]

I am not happy about this 'new' Cadillac push internationally. The brand will get watered down. Cadillac is so American iconic. It is a sad day when a 'Cadillac' is made on the same assembly line as a Saab. Who would've thought?! Really, it is historically the end of something very special.

[Sixty8panther]

Gross.

Massive front overhang is disgusting. Only about 13" too much. The only car that should have a front overhang substantially longer than rear is a mid-engined car like a Lotus Elise of Ferrari 360.

I think this car sucks, and I think Cadillac is making a big mistake (Cimarr0n II) by releasing this FWD, un-american H2O-ed down SAAB rebadge. Why they can not sell the CTS in Europe make Z-E-R-O sense to me.

This is probably some assanine reason to not $hit-can SAAB... therefore they will drag the Caddy name through the mud in the process.

Edited February 9, 2006 by Sixty8panther

[ToniCipriani]

Gross.

Massive front overhang is disgusting. Only about 13" too much. The only car that should have a front overhang substantially longer than rear is a mid-engined car like a Lotus Elise of Ferrari 360.

I think this car sucks, and I think Cadillac is making a big mistake (Cimarr0n II) by releasing this FWD, un-american H2O-ed down SAAB rebadge. Why they can not sell the CTS in Europe make Z-E-R-O sense to me.

This is probably some assanine reason to not $hit-can SAAB... therefore they will drag the Caddy name through the mud in the process. 

Isn't it sold alongside with the CTS?

[ZL-1]

Isn't it sold alongside with the CTS?

It will be sold alongside the CTS. The BLS will be in dealers this spring, I believe.

[Sixty8panther]

All the more reason why it should not even exist. What is the purpose of this car? Honestly it's probably some scheme to get more use out of the SAAB plant.

Who in their right mind would buy this thing over a CTS? How much cheaper can it be? Perhaps the pansies who are too intimidated by a RWD Mercedes, BMW or Cadillac but do not like SAAB styling?

This car's existance makes me depressed. It's only about half a notch norht of a Cimarr*n any way you cut it!

[balthazar]

>>"Who in their right mind would buy this thing over a CTS?"<<

Who? Why the tens of thousand of car shoppers who scamper around the dealer lots like rabid squirrels, tape measures in hand. European 'trees' cannot accept a 'nut' more than 188" long. Cars are taxed in europe based on overall length, don'tcha know.

The 190" CTS CANNOT POSSIBLY 'compete' with cars up to 8 inches shorter in length- all cars in 'competition' with each other have to fall within a specific 4" range of overall dimension- you know that! There's a progressive scale: the shorter the car, the better it is. Some european 3-series owners have been known to remove both front & rear bumpers to get an even more competitive car!

[z28luvr01]

Now I'm not sure that this has changed or not, but we were told that the BLS was not for America, at least not this generation. The powertrain options and size are more akin to the tastes of Europeans, many of whom view the CTS as an oversized barge of a car. Personally I think they did a fantastic job differentiating it from a 9-3. It's no less distant from the 9-3 than the G6 is from the Malibu.

If it takes off, perhaps a next generation BLS will be made on the global RWD platform.

[Cadillacfan]

Yes, but what is the emotion behind that tear? There's no joy in the news for me, I can tell you that.

While I'm not happy that this vehicle isn't RWD, I find that this is GM's first real effort to globalize the brand overseas. I'm just happy they got their foot in the door to get people to at least look at the upcoming epsilon II model that will appear by the end of decade.

[Newbiewar]

those are the right wheels...

goto

www.Cadillac-bls.com

and watch the movie...

nice looking car, how much would this vehicle cost?

isnt this the first Luxuary sedan?

and how big is it compared to the CTS or STS?

wow this thing must be pretty cheap to offer optional leather... how do you call it a luxuary sedan if it doesnt come standard with leather?

and 4 engine choices? with the best one being a 2.8 turbo v6 putting out 255 hp?

i like the desiel idea though... give us dsl here in the USA, not as a cadillac though, dsl reminds me of dirt for some reason...

Edited February 9, 2006 by Newbiewar

[Snate]

wow this thing must be pretty cheap to offer optional leather... how do you call it a luxuary sedan if it doesnt come standard with leather?

and 4 engine choices? with the best one being a 2.8 turbo v6 putting out 255 hp?

Things are completely different in Europe.

[Croc]

As far as I've heard, if this is brought to America it would have rear-biased AWD. So...how is that a problem?

[Cory Wolfe]

>>"Who in their right mind would buy this thing over a CTS?"<<

Who? Why the tens of thousand of car shoppers who scamper around the dealer lots like rabid squirrels, tape measures in hand. European 'trees' cannot accept a 'nut' more than 188" long. Cars are taxed in europe based on overall length, don'tcha know.

The 190" CTS CANNOT POSSIBLY 'compete' with cars up to 8 inches shorter in length- all cars in 'competition' with each other have to fall within a specific 4" range of overall dimension- you know that! There's a progressive scale: the shorter the car, the better it is. Some european 3-series owners have been known to remove both front & rear bumpers to get an even more competitive car!

I think that's a good way to live. America should adopt Europe's way of taxing to truly eliminate large cars. Oh... what a dream!

[Sixty8panther]

As far as I've heard, if this is brought to America it would have rear-biased AWD.  So...how is that a problem?

I doubt that a transverse engined car will send more power to the rear than front.

Balthazar: Some european 3-series owners have been known to remove both front & rear bumpers to get an even more competitive car!

Don't forget the BMW 318tii

Z28Luvr01: The powertrain options and size are more akin to the tastes of Europeans, many of whom view the CTS as an oversized barge of a car.

Wow... that's a pretty pathetic existance. I come from Slovakia and to me the CTS is just big enough for me to not feel claustraphobic. Another reason why I'll never move back to Europe. To me a Crown Vic Interceptor is midsize. My '68 Camaro is downright tiny compared to most family cars of that era.

Edited February 9, 2006 by Sixty8panther

[z28luvr01]

I doubt that a transverse engined car will send more power to the rear than front.

Careful...the SH-AWD in the RL does it. I believe it sends up to 70% of the power to the rear tires.

[turbo200]

It's a necessity in Europe to have a smaller car than the CTS, that's why they needed it. And apparently it's proved easier to get the diesels in there quicker too. Do the CTS and STS sell with diesels? If not, they need them.

No thank you from America. It's nicely differentiated and should sell to thier mind-bogglingly low expectations, even higher than them. Though I wish they could have done something RWD, unique, and first built it as a Cadillac, so there wouldn't be all this talk of based off a Saab. It should be a thoroughly competent choice, but no thank you, do not bring it to America unless it's RWD and thoroughly executed. MEaning, wait to the next generation. And if that happens, I guess CTS pricing would go up, huh?

Is CTS getting bigger? Cspec mentioned it once...

[HarleyEarl]

At first I thought the BLS was a good idea, even maybe for America. But the more I think of it, why is Cadillac trying to be all things, to all people? Just because VW, Mercedes & others have lost their way, why emulate them? I want Cadillac to be Cadillac in the truest sense of the word.

Keep Cadillac bold, brash and American. A Saab Cadillac, I cringe at the thought.

Edited February 9, 2006 by HarleyEarl

[HarleyEarl]

(an aside, when I posted the above, a sentence was in my post that I didn't put there.....has anyone else had this happen?!)

[nferr]

I doubt that a transverse engined car will send more power to the rear than front.

Doesn't the Jaguar X-Type send 60% of the power to the rear? I drive one and it doesn't feel like a FWD car at all.