End of the line for the Cadillac BLS in Europe
Discussion
DETROIT — When the Cadillac BLS sedan was launched in Europe in spring 2006, Cadillac described it as a "critical entry with which to grow our business in key international markets." But its ambitious plans for the car ended this summer when it quietly abandoned BLS production.
"It wasn't as good as we had hoped it would be," Cadillac spokesman David Caldwell told Inside Line in an interview on Monday. "But we are still in business in Europe, although we are scaling down. We don't expect a lot of growth [there]. It's very favorable to the home teams. Russia, China will be higher on our priority list."
Caldwell said Cadillac sold just 7,356 units of the BLS in sedan and wagon variants from its launch through 2008. The BLS sedan was launched in spring 2006, while the wagon version was launched in late 2007.
The midsize Cadillac BLS, which was not sold in the U.S., was described by Cadillac in 2006 as "another important element to Cadillac's growing international presence."
"The BLS was developed for luxury customers, with particular attention to the demands of the European and other international markets," said Jim Taylor, who at the time was Cadillac general manager. "BLS is an important addition to our Cadillac portfolio, and it provides a critical entry with which to grow our business in key international markets. The distinctive styling will attract customers daring to be different."
The Cadillac BLS marked an important moment in Cadillac history, since it was the brand's first turbodiesel variant.
Cadillac's future in Europe has been the source of questions on the "Tell Fritz" feature on Gmreinvention.com. On Monday, one outside observer mused: "To create growth in key global markets outside the U.S., Caddy needs a compact car. All your rivals offer one & Lexus will soon introduce a FWD offering in Europe."
In response, Bryan Nesbitt, the new Cadillac general manager, responded, "We are indeed working on a small, high-performance car, not just for Europe, but for all of our markets."
As Cadillac spokesman Caldwell puts it: "We're changing our priorities, scaling down a bit, but not moving out of Europe. We're going to be more focused on markets in which we've had prospects for good results."
"It wasn't as good as we had hoped it would be," Cadillac spokesman David Caldwell told Inside Line in an interview on Monday. "But we are still in business in Europe, although we are scaling down. We don't expect a lot of growth [there]. It's very favorable to the home teams. Russia, China will be higher on our priority list."
Caldwell said Cadillac sold just 7,356 units of the BLS in sedan and wagon variants from its launch through 2008. The BLS sedan was launched in spring 2006, while the wagon version was launched in late 2007.
The midsize Cadillac BLS, which was not sold in the U.S., was described by Cadillac in 2006 as "another important element to Cadillac's growing international presence."
"The BLS was developed for luxury customers, with particular attention to the demands of the European and other international markets," said Jim Taylor, who at the time was Cadillac general manager. "BLS is an important addition to our Cadillac portfolio, and it provides a critical entry with which to grow our business in key international markets. The distinctive styling will attract customers daring to be different."
The Cadillac BLS marked an important moment in Cadillac history, since it was the brand's first turbodiesel variant.
Cadillac's future in Europe has been the source of questions on the "Tell Fritz" feature on Gmreinvention.com. On Monday, one outside observer mused: "To create growth in key global markets outside the U.S., Caddy needs a compact car. All your rivals offer one & Lexus will soon introduce a FWD offering in Europe."
In response, Bryan Nesbitt, the new Cadillac general manager, responded, "We are indeed working on a small, high-performance car, not just for Europe, but for all of our markets."
As Cadillac spokesman Caldwell puts it: "We're changing our priorities, scaling down a bit, but not moving out of Europe. We're going to be more focused on markets in which we've had prospects for good results."
The BLS could have sold in reasonable numbers if the management had got their budget/strategies in order from the beginning.
The fact that the car was only a middle runner in its class could have been off set with decent standard equipment levels (which they did from 2008 - too late), and decent marketing (how do you expect to launch a brand without any TV advertising?!?).
The fact that the car was only a middle runner in its class could have been off set with decent standard equipment levels (which they did from 2008 - too late), and decent marketing (how do you expect to launch a brand without any TV advertising?!?).
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