Bruce Nunnally Posted July 26, 2008 Report Share Posted July 26, 2008 Glad to see the CTS included in this article: http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/jul/26...limit_gas48794/ Soaring gas prices are changing new vehicle purchase plans. Some buyers are choosing to stick with what they have, while others are looking to purchase something with fuel economy as their only consideration. Yet there are a few who seek better fuel economy, but they still want luxury and/or performance. If you fall into this group, the following models might be right up your alley. They are: ... --2008 Cadillac CTS. The exterior of the 2008 CTS is simply beautiful, with only the Infiniti G35 sedan outpacing its style. And most importantly, the interior of the all-new CTS is one of the best, even better than the Lexus IS350. This could be the best Caddy ever. Oh, and look for a CTS this fall. More information: www.cadillac.com. Cadillac CTS Price: $33,000-$36,000. Engines: 2.8 liter, 210 hp V6; 3.6 liter, 263 hp V6; 3.6 liter, 305 hp V6. Fuel Economy: 18 mpg city, 26 highway; (3.6 liter) 17 mpg city, 26 mpg highway. Bruce 2023 Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing Follow me on: Twitter Instagram Youtube Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Nunnally Posted July 26, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 26, 2008 I think by "look for a CTS this fall" the author meant to say "...look for a CTS coupe this fall." Bruce 2023 Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing Follow me on: Twitter Instagram Youtube Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrEldo97 Posted July 26, 2008 Report Share Posted July 26, 2008 I've been reading and hearing more lately about timing chains loosening and occasionally breaking on the 3.6 V-6. Anyone hear similar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texas Jim Posted July 26, 2008 Report Share Posted July 26, 2008 It is about time that some writer realized that for decent fuel mileage, you don't have to drive around in a cramped up SARDINE CAN. A few months ago, when my DTS was in for service, I drove a 3.6 CTS for a couple of days. Put several hundred miles on it. It got around 26...27...and I didn't baby it around. It was fun to drive with the manual shift buttons on the steering wheel. So I had fun. The car makers always seem to be picking the magic number of 30 MPG to advertise... The difference in fuel use, over driving 10,000 miles a year, between 26 MPG and 30 MPG... is...... ONE GALLON A WEEK. Skip JUST ONE double mocha latte's a week and that will pay for the extra gallon of gas. I will take a Cadillac ANY DAY vs a Sardine Can ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Nunnally Posted July 26, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 26, 2008 I've been reading and hearing more lately about timing chains loosening and occasionally breaking on the 3.6 V-6. Anyone hear similar? No. When I have specifically asked what was breaking on the CTS's the response I got was 'nothing'. Bruce 2023 Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing Follow me on: Twitter Instagram Youtube Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joeb Posted July 27, 2008 Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 your mileage numbers are somewhat misleading. i mean to say that 200 miles in a few days is not around town driving or mimic normal "go to work" stuff. how about driving 5 miles to work. going out for lunch on a 2 miles trip and than go home? lets see what your mileage numbers look like than? i would expect 20mpg tops. maybe less if you don't baby it like you say. i am not ripping the CTS, i would love to have one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrEldo97 Posted July 27, 2008 Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 On the 3.6 I've been hearing and reading stories of cam sprockets and timing chains loosening and some timing chains breaking. I have no idea how prevalent this is or even if these are problems at all, but the stories are "out there". Any Caddie techs have experience with the above? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted July 27, 2008 Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 On the 3.6 I've been hearing and reading stories of cam sprockets and timing chains loosening and some timing chains breaking. I have no idea how prevalent this is or even if these are problems at all, but the stories are "out there". Any Caddie techs have experience with the above? A simple 5 second search turned this up so what you are reading and hearing may have support. It is easy to blame the supplier, but the supplier is not responsible for GMs reputation. I don't know what the answer is to this for GM where suppliers are screwing up, but they need to straighten it out (CATS, JETRAG differential and now chains that I know of). Typically, I treat rumors like this as an internet negative wave, because you don't get happy people coming in to say how incredible their timing chains are performing you only hear the failure with most things. But in this case, GM issued a bulletin about the issue. It is nice that the warranty is 100K miles as this type of issue will be covered for a long time at no cost. Think about being a tech at a Cadillac dealer and working on timing chains for the next 5 years, think that hurts their reputation? Long before I bought my 91 Seville over ten years ago, my neighbor's son who worked at a Cadillac dealer told me never to buy a Northstar as he was seeing problems. How is that for pride? He had his father, a 70 year Cadillac lover hating the Northstar. I love the NS, I must be odd huh? The engine, oh I am sorry, the Powertrain, is too good for the general public to appreciate that have not driven 390,429,472 engines. My advice to most, go drive a Taurus, Pick any year, and experience first hand, its ball-less power, its soft suspension and its searching over running transmission with no clue what gear it should be in at any given point. The Northstar Powertrain is perfection, and perfection does not come easy, but they NEED to get a handle on suppliers and improve that quality control. Here is the link to what you are hearing. <a href="http://www.gminsidenews.com/forums/f21/07-...ng-chain-61965/" target="_blank">http://www.gminsidenews.com/forums/f21/07-...ng-chain-61965/</a> Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texas Jim Posted July 27, 2008 Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 your mileage numbers are somewhat misleading. i mean to say that 200 miles in a few days is not around town driving or mimic normal "go to work" stuff. how about driving 5 miles to work. going out for lunch on a 2 miles trip and than go home? lets see what your mileage numbers look like than? i would expect 20mpg tops. maybe less if you don't baby it like you say. i am not ripping the CTS, i would love to have one. I am sorry, I didn't mean it to be misleading. I can only report on what is "MY" normal GO TO WORK driving. I understand that most people don't drive the kind of miles I do. I drive about 60,000 miles a year. I was using the HIGHWAY MILEAGE (30 MPG) that I see advertised on TV day in and day out for the SARDINE CANS and contrasting it to the ACTUAL mileage I got driving the CTS. I do onsite computer and network service work for a major bank. I drive from one bank to another, here in the metro Dallas / Ft Worth area, all day... every day. Couple of hundred miles A DAY (or more) is NORMAL GO TO WORK driving for me. Using your example of ...driving 5 miles to work. going out for lunch on a 2 miles trip and than go home... I really don't think would change anything. The ACTUAL MPG NUMBERS will shift a little downward... but it will shift DOWNWARD for BOTH the SARDINE CAN and the CTS. In your example... you WILL NOT be getting 30 MPG from the little car, just as you will not be getting 26 or 27 from the CTS. A big percentage of my NORMAL GO TO WORK driving is freeway driving. Sometimes at 70 mph... sometimes at 20mph... depending on time of day and traffic. I usually drive my 2006 Chevy Express van. (Full size van) I own it... it is not company supplied. It usually averages about 17 or so in my style of driving. Sometimes 15... sometimes 18 depending on if I get caught in a bad traffic jam and sit idling on the freeway for a half hour or more. I pay for the fuel and get a VERY SMALL reimbursment. My fuel reimbursement has not increased in over three years. I usually drive fairly easy so as not to burn fuel needlessly. I don't do WOT's at every opportunity. Only when NEEDED. The mileage figures I posted in the other post was based on 10,000 miles a year. I think it would extrapolate to about the same PERCENTAGE no matter what miles you drove and would apply equally to the two cars no matter what your driving style. I was just trying to point out that getting a tiny car thats gets the MAGIC 30MPG.. is not necessary (or even desirable) for a lot of people. The FUEL SAVINGS are miniscule. Based on 10,000 miles a year ... fuel cost difference is less than FOUR BUCKS a week between the LITTLE CAR and the CTS. The CTS gets GREAT MILEAGE for a fairly large car, and is SO MUCH NICER to ride in and drive than most of the tiny cars. If I could haul enough STUFF for my workday... I have thought of selling the van and getting a late model Cadillac 2006 or so, DTS LUX ll or LUX lll for a work car. Not just for the mileage... but for the comfort. A/C seats..XM...more comfortable seats than the van... etc ... etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted July 27, 2008 Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 I like to watch Indy Car racing, the level of engineering is cutting edge. In spite of the money that goes into these cars, how many have seen someone leading a race drop out because of a simple component failure, ignition module, etc. We are talking 500 miles here and the cars don't finish. Cutting edge technology, growing technology, failures will occur. GM is rushing headlong into its own survival, gas prices soaring, they get criticized for not having fuel efficient cars, they to produce a great fuel efficient, powerful, low emission powertrain to compete, and they do, did and have. It gets into production and some weak link crops up and bam. I'd have someone by the tie. What I hope they do better is turn on the dime, and remedy situations better. What goes into the prototype that was tested to failure OVER and OVER by the powertrain engineers, needs to end up in the production model, if that does not happen, how can an engines durability be gaged. The accountants/planned obsolesces, build it to get just to 100K departments need to be pushed aside, build it bullet proof. If key batches of parts from suppliers are not stress tested before their use how do you know you are not being the victim of bait and switch quality or worse yet, sabotage? I am sure that stress and quality testing is time consuming and expensive, so is a reputation to regain, make it bullet proof, dazzle. I mean, chains that stretch?, how bad/cheap does the metallurgy/heat treating have to be for that to occur?, that supplier would be gone. How can this hurt?, oh the kind salesman at XYZ Foreign motor company who finds out his prospective buyer is going over to Cadillac to see his CTS competition, just pulls out the an article on on the problem...and says read this on the way over, my deal is only good today... build it bullet proof, and take heads. Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notch8 Posted July 28, 2008 Report Share Posted July 28, 2008 Boy I sure am glad I read this thread! We've been looking at a used 06 CTS at a local dealer. We love the looks of the car, as everybody does, but after reading BBF's links to timing chain problems-no way- we don't need those problems! Thanks for the GREAT info! Roger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted July 28, 2008 Report Share Posted July 28, 2008 Boy I sure am glad I read this thread! We've been looking at a used 06 CTS at a local dealer. We love the looks of the car, as everybody does, but after reading BBF's links to timing chain problems-no way- we don't need those problems! Thanks for the GREAT info! Roger I am too lazy to look back is the 06 3.6 included in the bulletin? Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notch8 Posted July 28, 2008 Report Share Posted July 28, 2008 My fault-looks like 07-3.6 on the tsb. Roger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WarrenJ Posted July 28, 2008 Report Share Posted July 28, 2008 For a savings of about 0.5-1mpg I'm not about to give up my 4,000 lb. luxo-boat. Econo-cars Beware! Regards, Warren There is no means of avoiding the final collapse of a boom brought about by credit expansion. The alternative is only whether the crisis should come sooner as the result of a voluntary abandonment of further credit expansion, or later as a final and total catastrophe of the currency system involved. - Ludwig von Mises Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texas Jim Posted July 29, 2008 Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 Boy I sure am glad I read this thread! We've been looking at a used 06 CTS at a local dealer. We love the looks of the car, as everybody does, but after reading BBF's links to timing chain problems-no way- we don't need those problems! Thanks for the GREAT info! Roger The ones having problems are a TINY percentage of all the ones sold. Any Cadillac you are looking at... at a dealer... They can run the VIN thru their computer and give you a complete printout of it's repair history. A 2006 will probably still be under warranty anyway.... and if you buy from a Cadillac dealer... It can be CERTIFIED for SIX YEARS and 100,000 MILES. Whichever comes first. Personally, if I found THE CAR i wanted... I wouldn't worry about it. Buy it ... make sure it is CERTIFIED and enjoy the heck out of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texas Jim Posted July 29, 2008 Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 For a savings of about 0.5-1mpg I'm not about to give up my 4,000 lb. luxo-boat. Econo-cars Beware! Regards, Warren Warren, I agree with you.... I am not giving up my Cadillac. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnnyG Posted July 29, 2008 Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 This is a great thread. I've been telling people for years that GM engines....any from '99 on up get better overall fuel economy than ANY of the competing brands. In trucks that includes the large Toyotas and Nissans, and just forget about Chrysler! All that said, my DTS is getting a solid 27.5 - 28 on the highway, just where does that leave the CTS? I've thought this over of course, and have come to THIS conclusion. If you need an everyday driver that will give you great economy in all kinds of driving, go for the CTS. If your driving is MOSTLY highway with very little around town stuff, the DTS/Northstar can't be beat! I'll get an econobox or a Vespa for getting groceries if I have to, but I'll always keep my Caddy for the road trips. Never underestimate the amount of a persons greed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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