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-- IAN -- Northstar questions

Ian,

My eyes have been wandering lately while driving from Buick dealer to dealer. I see painted windowsheilds across from Buick reading " 04 Towncar was $41,000 Now $33,000 " or " 04 DeVilles save $9- $12,000."

I've read your many posts & comments on the Northstar engine in the past, but is there really all that much that goes wrong in say the first

5-6 years of ownership?

The hole blown in the side of the block by your buddy last week was not a pretty picture. Better not happen to me !

I know the starter is buried under the intake and the altenator is damn near scrapping the asphalt. Is a basic tune up, belt changes & tranny oil changes easy to do? Hell is an engine oil change easy to do? LOL.

This may be to much beast for me to work on.

Are there any different problems between the engine in the DeVille & DHS or the DTS. I know the DTS has 300 HP / 295 TQ vs. 275 HP & 300 TQ in the other two models. Just wondering if the different models had their own set of problems with said engine?

How reliable is the Electronic auto climate control unit in these cars? Mother has a 91 Brougham and were on CC head unit # 3.

I saw a nice 05 supercharged Ultra today for $42,000. Gorgeous White Opal with a Shale interior. Lotta $$$ for a V6. All the base Park Avenues I see around here are loaded up eqaulling or topping out over the price of the Ultra ( probably only in Chicago ).

Even the base Park, which starts at $35,555 is a lot of $$$ especially for having the same engine you can get in a Impala for $13,000 less.

For $2000 more than the Ultra I can really go like hell in Caddy. ( Nobody say Buy a GTO if you want to go fast, ie. D Smith ).

If Enterprise Car Rental ain't asking a Queens Ransom for rent, I may rent one for a couple of days next week for my birthday present.

Might be settin my sights on a Cadillac but with a Chevy bank account....lol.

========= Harryface =========

1991 Pontiac Bonneville LE 3800 V6 ( C ), Black/Slate Grey _~_~_~280,596 miles_~_~_

~_~_~_~_U.S.A._~_~_~_~_~_

~~~The Former Fleet ~~~

89 Cavalier Z 24 convertible 78 Holiday 88 coupe 68 LeSabre convertible 73 Impala sedan
Reply to
Harry Face
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Face, if you want a '04 DTS my boss may be selling the one he bought for his 87 year old dad earlier this year. It has around 6,000 miles I think.

Buy it so my boss can give me my money and I can go buy me a GTO :-)

Reply to
Dennis Smith

No, not really. The 2003 engines do seem to have problems with engine noise when cold, but from what I've seen when we've torn them apart, the problem is excessive carbon buildup on the pistons. If you drive the thing like you stole it every now and then, you probably won't encounter that problem.

Basic maintenance is very simple on these engines. You have no plug wires to worry about, removing the coil pack assemblies is not that difficult and it's not that hard to access the plugs. Starter replacement is much easier then you think, alternator is more difficult, but still could easily be done by anyone with a little bit of mechanical ability. The transmission filter cannot be replaced without removing the transmission, but frankly they don't seem to need to be replaced. You can drop the pan like any other trans and just replace the fluid if you want. Water pump belt is at the rear of the engine, easy to get at. Main serpentine belt is pretty tight, but not impossible to change. The engine has timing chains, they "never" wear out.

Identical engines, other then slight difference in camshafts and probably ECM.

This I can't comment on, I do see the Cadillac's in for electrical problems, but no more then any other car, so I think that they are fairly reliable. You know of course that the car has something like

18 on board computers?

I think that is a smart idea. Two techs in our shop have rented Devilles for long trips and they absolutely swear by them. It's probably the ultimate road car.

If you want to get a good education on Cadillac's, I'd recommend that you go spend some time on this forum: Lots of knowledgable owners on there.

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Ian

Reply to
shiden_Kai

These are great cars to drive, but I wouldn't want to have to fix my own or pay to fix it. I think the Town Car, Mercury Grand Marquis, Crown Vic are more reliable vehicles and easier to work on, but not as nice to drive. Your call.

Reply to
hyundaitech

Thanks Ian , I looked at the forum. I like the comment about "Who Are You?" from the guy who's doorpanel came off after the AC recharge.

LOL

========= Harryface =========

1991 Pontiac Bonneville LE 3800 V6 ( C ), Black/Slate Grey _~_~_~280,596 miles_~_~_

~_~_~_~_U.S.A._~_~_~_~_~_

~~~The Former Fleet ~~~

89 Cavalier Z 24 convertible 78 Holiday 88 coupe 68 LeSabre convertible 73 Impala sedan
Reply to
Harry Face

I wonder does GM offer the 24 hour test drive for the Caddy's?

Brian

Reply to
NoSpam

Yep, just not on the Deville.

Reply to
Phillip Schmid

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