Filed under: Wagons/Estates, Euro, Cadillac
Cadillac BLS wagon revealed!
Click image for photo gallery
Cadillac's just released images and info on its newest European offering: the BLS wagon. Derived from the Saab 9-3, the BLS tries hard to distinguish itself as a Cadillac, with restyled headlamps, fascia and grille. In the back the tailgate gets a thin crease down the center, while the taillights adopt a similar Caddy-centric design.
Sales are supposed to begin this fall, with the BLS coming equipped with either a 2.0L turbo four, a 2.8L V6 or a 1.9L diesel, all pulled straight from the Saab lineup. Pricing is expected to be around £21,500, with DVD sat-nav, Bose sound and other optional equipment sending the price skyward.[Source: GM]
Gallery: Cadillac BLS Wagon
PRESS RELEASE:
Cadillac Extends European Portfolio with BLS Wagon
* Further commitment to grow Cadillac's presence in Europe
* Expressive design combined with elegance and versatility
* Three turbocharged gasoline engines and one direct-injection diesel engine
* Sales expected to start in the fourth quarter of 2007
DETROIT – Cadillac reinforced its commitment to grow its brand in Europe by announcing it will add the BLS Wagon to its portfolio later this year.
"The Cadillac BLS Wagon is an appealing addition to the Cadillac portfolio for customers preferring dramatically designed luxury vehicles that offer versatility and performance along with outstanding ride and handling characteristics," said Cadillac General Manager Jim Taylor. "This is the first Cadillac wagon in our 104-year history, and we think it will do well in many European markets where consumers desire a high degree of versatility and functionality in their performance luxury vehicles."
Cadillac signature style
Clear, clean, crisp and sharply defined contours are Cadillac design signatures. An international team of designers, under the leadership of Ed Welburn, GM vice president of Global Design, created a BLS Wagon with a striking wedge shape that is emphasized by the tapered lines of the side windows.
"The whole team was very excited to apply Cadillac's design language to a wagon for the first time," said Welburn. "The V-shaped chrome-plated grille, a Cadillac hallmark, is picked up
again by the shape of the rear window, and the body side character lines make it unmistakably a Cadillac."
The BLS Wagon also features jewel-like headlamps, fog lamps integrated into the body-colored bumper and a wide air intake below the grille. A narrow chrome strip runs along the side windows and the latest LED technology is used in the center high-mounted stop lamp, which is prominently positioned in the rear spoiler. Vertical taillamps, another Cadillac hallmark, play a prominent role in defining the elegant rear proportions of the BLS Wagon.
Luxurious, flexible interior and state-of-the-art infotainment systems
The BLS Wagon interior is highlighted by a three-spoke leather steering wheel and an analog clock in the center stack. The circular instruments have white numerals and red needles on a black background.
Flexibility and versatility define the rear seats and cargo area, which are designed to support a wide variety of luxury and leisure interests.
State-of-the-art infotainment systems include high-quality audio units from American sound specialist Bose, among others; a DVD navigation system with touch-screen operation; a Bluetooth-enabled cell phone system with a hands-free kit; and remote controls on the steering wheel.
Turbocharged diesel and turbocharged gasoline engines
The front-wheel-drive BLS Wagon is offered with a turbo-diesel and three turbocharged gasoline engines. The 1.9L four-cylinder diesel engine, with common-rail direct-injection technology, is fitted with a maintenance-free particulate filter and delivers 110 kW (150 hp) of power. The range of gasoline engines includes two 2.0L four-cylinder versions (129 kW / 175 hp and 154 kW / 210 hp), and a high-tech, 2.8L V-6 (188 kW / 255 hp) that features a twin-scroll turbocharger and variable phasing of the intake camshafts.
The BLS Wagon offers six-speed manual transmissions and five- or six-speed automatic transmissions, depending on engine. For BLS models equipped with an automatic transmission, a standard Sport Mode button allows the driver to select a sportier transmission shift pattern.
Comfort and driving dynamics
The chassis, which features MacPherson struts in front and a four-link rear axle, is designed to provide the agility customers expect from a luxury wagon. The chassis tuning ensures dynamic handling performance without compromising comfort and load capacity.
Available in Europe in the fourth quarter of 2007
The Cadillac BLS Wagon will be in European Cadillac showrooms in the fourth quarter of 2007.
"The BLS sedan created a significant amount of showroom traffic at Cadillac dealerships across Europe," said Taylor. "With the new BLS Wagon, we intend to build on this interest and appeal to customers who are looking for more flexibility to meet their individual lifestyles.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Avinash machado 5:30AM (3/12/2007)
So GM is now extending its Badge Engineering policies to Europe. Still it looks quite nice and hopefully will sell in brand conscious Europe.
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tatertot 6:31AM (3/12/2007)
Anyone who believes this wagon has any resemblance to the Saab9-3 has their head is a very uncomfortable position. Cadillac is doing the same thing Toyota does with Camry and Lexus, using their same platforms universally, nothing strange or sinister about that, it would be stupid not to do so. This has been going on since the industries begining, but now when GM does this, it's called rebadging. When Toyota does it, it's smart engineering sharing bodies and platforms. I'm about to suffocate in rice, I need some fresh air.
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Nick 6:36AM (3/12/2007)
I like the look. Too bad it's not rear drive- to be honest, I am not sure why GM is trying to establish Caddillac in Europe- why not just concentrate on Saab?
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Randal 7:11AM (3/12/2007)
#3 - I agree, it resembles a Saab in the most unfortunate of ways, that being FWD.
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Gerard 8:01AM (3/12/2007)
If you take a closer look to the picture and you compare it to this:
http://opel.asplzen.cz/opel-vectra/gal1-opel-vectra-caravan.jpg
You'll see it's a Opel Vectra Caravan, which at the same time it's a Saturn Aura. Sorry but GM is loosing it's North.
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M. 8:43AM (3/12/2007)
Still with the FIAT Diesel? Where is the new GM V6 Diesel that is based on the VM 630?
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jscro 8:54AM (3/12/2007)
"Anyone who believes this wagon has any resemblance to the Saab9-3 has their head is a very uncomfortable position."
You can see the Sportcombi's profile in this wagon pretty easily. It's not bad looking, it's just easy to pick out it's a badge engineering job.
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Nellydesign 9:02AM (3/12/2007)
Whaa Whaa!
Theres a huge difference between "badge engineering" and "platform sharing". This is the latter not the former and every company does it so shut it. I don't see anyone bitching about the Audi R8 because it shares a platform with the Gallardo. This looks like a nice car period. Estates are a big deal in europe and while we in the U.S. may scoff at a Caddy wagon, it should be a decent seller there.
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Michael Karesh 9:20AM (3/12/2007)
I wouldn't call this "badge engineering" since the exteriors do not share body panels and this car does look like a Cadillac.
The larger problem is that the platform being shared isn't quite up to competing in this segment. It's not a bad platform, but rear seat room is tight and the handling must compare with the best handling sedans and wagons available.
GM can't just concentrate on Saab since Saab has never been a luxury brand, and isn't about to become one without totally changing what the brand is about.
My review of the 9-3 Aero:
http://www.epinions.com/content_226092289668
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Doug 9:27AM (3/12/2007)
Nice job making the estate look different. Has some hints of 5-series. Not sure if it's a dead ringer for the Opel, but it does not look like the SportCombi to me. I think a lot of the "badge engineering" comments stem from the fact that the BLS sedan does share a lot of body panels and interior parts with the 9-3 sedan.
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Yago Bal 9:39AM (3/12/2007)
11# Unfortunatly, you are wrong: they share every glass, every structural element and even dashboard bits, in the sedam, no to mention the rest of the interior
In fact, it's a cheap badge engineering exercise: they only changed some of the skin (like a restyling), and a small part of the interior.
(The Vectra and the Aura are not the same car, nor share the platform -the Aura is built on the extended version of the Epsilon platform-, in spite the current mith. Maybe in the next generation of the model.)
Are these photoshop pictures? I'm not sure they are real... The BLS sold 1300 cars last year in Europe (while SAAB sold 57000), so it doesn't make sense to invest in developing more cars on brand than doesn't appeal to Europe...
They should invest that money in a broader model range for SAAB.
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mbongo 10:19AM (3/12/2007)
Nice job. This Caddy looks pretty. I would buy one if I can. For those who don't know, the Cadillac BLS, the first Cadillac to be designed specifically with the demands of European driving conditions in mind, has been honoured with the “Winter Car 2007” Award by Finland’s Tekniikan Maailma magazine. The award was presented to Jim Taylor, Cadillac’s General Manager by Martti Merilinna, COTY member and Chief Editor of Finland’s leading motoring magazine, at the Geneva Motor Show.
Go GM Go
Jim Mbongo
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Rene Curry 10:49AM (3/12/2007)
I am sorry, it looks like a bad photoshop job to me. It looks like it doesn't know where it's roots are. SUV, sedan, wagon, mini-van all cobbled together. Now slap a Caddy front end on it. The front end is busy while the sides are slabbed, the roof & the greenhouse is ...ohhh well enough from me.
I am dissappointed that the BLS is under the Cadillac umbrella in Europe. It pulls the brand down.
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Howard Kerr 11:15AM (3/12/2007)
Interesting......the BLS is being derided because it's just a bad case of "badge engineering" with one critic going so far as to point out ALL the parts it shares with a Saab. YET...there are even more people here who claim it's a classic case of "platform sharing" though they can't seem to agree on which platform it shares/which cars it's sharing with.
I thing Yago Bal probably makes the best point here:
considering the number of cars sold, shouldn't GM devote ALL the money wasted (?) on the BLS, on the Saab brand? All this, to bring a FULL RANGE of Cadillac models to European customers...who don't seem to really care, if the sales numbers are to be believed.
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Nellydesign 11:29AM (3/12/2007)
#14 So what your telling me is that as exterior styling goes, the only visual element shared is the glass planes? OH NOES! TEH BADGE ENGINEERING IS TEH SUCK!
"Structural elements and interior bits" have little to no effect on the outward appearance of a car. Its the sheetmetal. Badge engineering, IMO, is taking one vehicle and creating another vehicle by minimally changing the front and rear facias to incorporate new head lights, tail lights and grills and keeping the interior carryover. i.e. the Ford Fusion/Mercury Milan.
People can pick out the two Ford siblings as badge engineered with ease. The same can not be said for this car and when seeing this on the road I, and most others, would never make the connection to the Saab.
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Nellydesign 11:33AM (3/12/2007)
I will agree that these are photoshopped images anyway, so what are we even arguing about:)
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why not the LS2LS7? 11:38AM (3/12/2007)
How are people saying this shares interior bits with the Saab? I don't see any interior pics here.
Are there other pics not linked to by this site?
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Nellydesign 11:48AM (3/12/2007)
http://www.kenrockwell.com/saab/images/2006-CIMG7389.jpg
http://arabam.milliyet.com.tr/fuar/2005/cenevre/cadillac_bls.jpg
I will admit the interior is less than all new. Same lower and Door. At least they changed the IP upper. But the exterior is very good about making the right changes. The doors are similar, but they treated the back edge of the DLO in such a way to differentiate from the swoopier Saab lines. All I know is I wish our "badge engineered" products had this much differentiation where I work.
And I will agree also that GM should do more with Saab, perhaps by bringing the Aero X to life, as it is my favorite concept of the last year.
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LibiergRodríguez 10:49AM (9/13/2007)
Hi, could you explain to me what is the IP upper, please. Thank you
GOT 12:24PM (3/12/2007)
It doesn't look nearly as nice as Dodge's Magnum wagon.
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