BLS Paris autoshow notes

[Bruce Nunnally]

The Cadillac BLS is at the forefront of the American luxury brand’s growing international presence. It is enhanced by the choice of both a luxury midsize sedan and the stylish, versatile BLS Wagon which was launched in 2007 as the first station wagon in Cadillac history.

The Cadillac BLS offers the widest-ever choice of powertrains. The BLS sedan and Wagon are both offered with a choice of three – all turbocharged – gasoline engines, two turbo-diesels and a low-emission bio-ethanol engine, running on either E85 bio-ethanol or traditional gasoline.

A new more powerful, 205 kW (280hp), 2.8L V6 heads the range of turbocharged gasoline engines. Both it and BLS models powered by the 154 kW (210hp) four cylinder turbo now feature all wheel-drive as standard and complement the front wheel-drive, 129 kW (175hp) model.

The 110kW (150hp) and 132kW(180hp) common rail 1.9 liter turbo diesel engines are powerful direct-injected units offering the dynamic driving performance that customers have come to expect from Cadillac. The top of the diesel line, the 132 kW engine is a two-stage turbo-diesel that delivers 400 Nm of maximum torque. It gives the BLS a top speed of 220 km/h and 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) acceleration in 8.7 seconds. Diesel units are fitted with a maintenance-free diesel particulate filter for optimum emissions performance.

The BLS wagon and sedan are the first Cadillac models to be offered in Europe with the option of a low-emission, bio-ethanol FLEXPOWER engine, which runs on E85 bio-ethanol, unleaded gasoline or any combination of both fuels, developing 147 kW (200hp).

All engines share common features of high torque and low fuel consumption and are matched to six-speed manual and five- or six-speed automatic transmissions, depending on engine type. StabiliTrak electronic stability control is fitted as standard across all BLS models.

The Cadillac BLS sedan offers an attractive and elegant alternative choice in the premium mid-size market segment. The Cadillac BLS wagon measures 4,716 mm, compared with 4,680 mm for the BLS sedan and combines a compact, sporty shape with a high degree of versatility and functionality, offering with the rear seats folded down a total of 1,285 liters of flexible and versatile cargo space. As with all Cadillac automobiles, the level of standard equipment is high.