If there is any connection between the BLS and its Cadillac bloodline, it is its appetite for congestion-free highways: the BLS makes its most convincing case easing away the miles on the motorway. Assisted by a relatively long sixth gear, the BLS is quiet and comfortable.Better still, when a traditional Caddy would struggle to manage 20mpg, the diesel BLS ekes out a far more acceptable official combined figure of 47mpg. It even managed an excellent 52mpg on our touring route. Off the motorway the 148bhp/236lb ft 1.9 is an effective if rather uninspiring engine, with little of the traditional turbodiesel surge but a welcome willingness to rev. The 0-60mph time of 9.5sec is acceptable, but nothing more.
The gearchange is much like the engine: satisfactory but not satisfying. The six ratios are well chosen – better than in the leggier 9-3 – but the action is slightly notchy and the lever awkwardly shaped so it doesn’t fit comfortably in your hand.
Cadillac has experimented with front-wheel drive before, balancing a V8 over the front axle and then asking it to simultaneously steer and channel 300bhp to the road in the Seville STS of 1998. The results were predictably dire. Thankfully, the BLS’s chassis makes a far better fist of things. There is little torquesteer and, for the most part, the BLS responds faithfully to your inputs.
The steering is accurate if rather light and, despite a hydraulic set-up, offers little feedback. More disappointing, however, is the kickback through the wheel, especially over mid-corner bumps, and the slight float from the rear suspension over an undulating B-road.
Given the efforts to minimise noise intrusion, it’s surprising the rear suspension is so audible. The ride is flawed, too. For the most part it remains settled, but transverse ridges and potholes upset the BLS’s balance more than they would a 9-3’s.
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