Cadillac BLS Saloon (06 on) - Review

Review by Ben Wall on
Last Updated: 05 November 2008
The BLS is Cadillac's attempt at a medium-sized saloon. It's actually built in the same factory as (and shares many components with) the Saab 9-3, which itself has plenty in common with the Vauxhall Vectra. So despite the all-American name it is developed for European tastes. The styling is distinctive and it's certainly a good choice if you want to stand out from the crowd, while equipment levels are generous too. But there's little else to recommend the BLS. It's dull to drive, looks and feels dated inside with some flimsy switchgear while Cadillac's dealer network is very limited in size. So while the price tag puts it alongside the likes of the BMW 3-Series, the quality and driving experience falls way short.
3 out of 5

Other Cadillac reviews

2.5 out of 5

Running costs

The Cadillac brand is relatively new to the UK which makes predictions about its future residuals less certain, but it is not expected to perform any better than rivals from Saab and Alfa Romeo. A top spec diesel engined model would be the one to hold its value best. Servicing should be relatively affordable but bear in mind that you may face a lengthy journey to your nearest Cadillac dealer.

* based on most recent data

Estimated fuel cost for 10,000 miles per year

Unleaded

£1,805 - £2,360 *

Diesel

£1,308 - £1,644 *

The estimated fuel cost figure is a guide to how much this model will cost to fuel each year, so you can compare between cars. It's calculated by using the model's average mpg (calculated from both town centre and motorway driving) and the average fuel price. It's based on the following cost-per-litre: petrol 135p and diesel 141p. Prices are updated daily.

Summary Running Costs

Servicing period

Every 10,000 miles or 12 months.

Warranty

Three years/60,000 miles.

Road tax (12 months)

£170.00 - £475.00

Vehicle excise duty (VED) varies according to the CO2 emissions and the fuel type of the vehicle. For cars registered after March 1st 2001 VED or road tax is based on the car's CO2 emissions. For cars registered before March 1st 2001 it is based on engine size.

Full running costs data

2.5 out of 5

Green credentials

  • A
  • B
  • C
  • D
  • E
  • F
  • G
    151
  • H
  • I
  • J
  • K
  • L
  • M
    259

CO2 emission figure (g/km)

Fuel economy rating

The arrows indicate the best and worst CO2 bands for this model.

Emissions summary

The BLS is quite a polluting model and with an average of 205g/km CO2 across the line-up, its emissions are a touch high. The greenest model is the actually the more powerful 1.9-litre diesel with 180bhp - it emits 151g/km of CO2 and returns 50mpg.

Find the exact engine and CO2