Cadillac CTS next to Redondo pier

Finally, it worked a charm. The third time lasplash.com took out a splendid Cadillac CTS to snap its usual live pictures, the skies above Los Angeles cleared and the temperature soared briefly into the, er, 60s.

So much rain and miserable, foggy weather had proved troublesome for your average motoring photographer to get great shots of the Caddy's fine lines, but for me it gave a chance to compare the CTS to four separate cars in a short space of time, after a week spend driving it about in the drizzle the month before.

Twice within two weeks I drove the CTS the day before and after stepping into two other, remarkably different vehicles, each one of them more than competent in its own way. The CTS was the only  manual shift among them.

First week, I took out the CTS between a Mercury Mariner hybrid and a Lincoln Zephyr; second week the Caddy was sandwiched between a Ford Mustang and a Buick Lucerne. And guess what?

Finally, a day for the beach

The CTS remained the one I would most likely, and most like to, buy at some stage in future though with a serious nod to the Mustang, a full review of which will appear next week.

It's not difficult to see why the CTS rates so highly. It's compact, well-designed inside and out, sporty and luxurious, and comes with a seriously prestigious badge. It has the BMW 3-series in its sights, so it has to match the best of German precision engineering and its appeal to a seriously loyal fan base.

LA and its surrounds are of course a prime market for the luxury brand, as is clear on any drive round Manhattan Beach or Redondo or further south into Orange County, where disposable income has rocketed alongside house prices (and perhaps home-equity loan rates).

This combination of badge, luxury and design has propelled the CTS to the top of the luxury-car bestseller lists not just out west, selling almost 54,000 across the nation last year, or a 6% increase year on year, and it now makes up a quarter of Cadillac's sales alongside the slightly-larger STS, the DTS flagship and Escalade SUV, (the latter two of which also make the luxury-car top ten in terms of sales).

Trunk can carry three sets of golf clubs

Prestigious front grille, sculpted headlights

But back to the comparisons, and really where the CTS stood head and shoulders above the field was in terms of its roadholding: its handling and ride.

Far from Cadillac wafters of old, which were primarily used by senior types to take long drives to see the relatives Arizona,  the CTS grips the road like our governor does a barbell, or a political lifeline. And that means it just doesn't let go.

It's quick but not spectacular through the gears (save the serious acceleration for its sister CTS-V, which has a Corvette 6-liter engine shoehorned under the hood), and the Hydra-Matic five-speed box itself is a joy to change quickly up and down. It doesn't quite have enough torque or horsepower (210 hp @ 6,500 rpm/194 lb.-ft. at 3,300 rpm) to get serious traction if you put the foot down in the wrong gear, but then again you should be  in the right gear to begin with.

 The Sigma chassis employed across the whole Caddy range and honed on Germany's Nurburgring is tight and well-sprung., bringing to mind that of Stuttgart's finest, Mercedes, headquartered within 150 miles of the famous German  track.  Power assisted rack and pinion steering keeps it nicely on the straight and narrow.

Possibly the finest line in its class

Inside is all leather and roomy with power everything, expected of its class. It came with satellite radio but no satellite-navigation console, perhaps the only disappointment.  Safety ratings between four and five stars ease any worries when sitting comfortably behind the leather-clad wheel.

But when you've been spoiled for choice, a price tag of just over $29,000 for the standard and $32,690 for the 3.6 liter stands above most of its likely competitors - form an orderly queue now, behind me.

Plush leather interior

Easy to use and well-designed ergonomics

Long view of the South Bay