Engine Die's

[Marcus815]

Well Mike, I guess they had an overhaul of electronics in '96 or something, because the guy told me that a lot has changed since my car, which doesn't particularly surprise me, but not to the point that they can't service my car. So I've been thinking, what do I do when the makers of my car can't fix it? I'm considering running it till it's at the point of no longer functioning and then switching insurance to the '02 Lexus ES300 we've had sitting here for a little over a year since my father upgraded to the LS, which is in perfect physical and running condition. But that's not really what I want. The Lexus is a lot slower and not nearly as fun to drive, even though it's very reliable and great on gas. The Cadillac was special though. People look at it and say "That's a spiffy looking car" whereas Lexus's are a dime a dozen and are nothing special. I think I'm going to do everything I can to fix this so I don't have to run it down and I can squeeze more years out of it.

[Ranger]

Any dealer worth their salt should have mo problem fixing the car. With that excuse, I am not sure I would want them touching my car in the first place. Find a more competent one.

[BodybyFisher]

Well Mike, I guess they had an overhaul of electronics in '96 or something, because the guy told me that a lot has changed since my car, which doesn't particularly surprise me, but not to the point that they can't service my car. So I've been thinking, what do I do when the makers of my car can't fix it? I'm considering running it till it's at the point of no longer functioning and then switching insurance to the '02 Lexus ES300 we've had sitting here for a little over a year since my father upgraded to the LS, which is in perfect physical and running condition. But that's not really what I want. The Lexus is a lot slower and not nearly as fun to drive, even though it's very reliable and great on gas. The Cadillac was special though. People look at it and say "That's a spiffy looking car" whereas Lexus's are a dime a dozen and are nothing special. I think I'm going to do everything I can to fix this so I don't have to run it down and I can squeeze more years out of it.

I agree with you, hell I understand both engines, why can't they? All I can suggest is, have the revving diagnosed, if its the transmission, you need to made a decision. See if you can find a mechanic to diagnose your problems. If you are mechanically inclined, old cars are fine to own, having to take old cars in for service and repairs is expensive. Its hard for us to diagnose your problem that sounds like a transmission slipping here. If you decide to keep it, I would buy a service manual. Good Luck, Mike

[Ranger]

Adjusting the ICM after installation is very simple.

I meant ISC motor. Surprised no one called me on that. You guys are slipping.

[KHE]

I would not give up on this car just yet...

Keep looking for a dealer or independent mechanic that can diagnose and repair your car at a reasonable price. I think the dealer you took the car to did you a favor by NOT looking at it as they would have emptied your wallet and the problem still would not have been fixed...

Have you checked to make sure the accelerator cable is not binding? The throttle body could be dirty and sticking or the cruise control cable/chain could be binding. Very simple checks. A few months ago, my wife told me that her '96 SLS was idling very high - I checked it out and sure enough, it was idling at 3500 RPM. A quick check revealed that the floor mat was partially covering the gas pedal...

It is a very simple task to hook up a fuel pressure gage, duct tape it to the windshield, and then take a test drive. That will verify the condition of the fuel pump. The other area to check would be the idle speed control motor as others have stated.

[Marcus815]

Well, I've got some good news. I called up a friend whose father owns several caddys and asked him if he knew of any places where they'd be able to service mine. He referred me to a place nearby, telling me that they specialise in repairing and selling older caddy's. I called them up and they said to me, almost in these exact words...

"Absolutely, we have mechanics who have been here for over 35 years. We get car's like yours all the time"

So, I feel a little bit more confident in this place. I'm going to head over on Thursday and drop it off and I'll let you know how it goes. Before that however I am spending tomorrow morning and afternoon cleaning off my car. I'm also going to remove the broken fuse box under the hood which I have covered up with duct tape (which is beginning to worry me because it is peeling and may fall into some part of the engine) and then go to the junk yard to check out that same caddy which had the same engine as my car. Would the fuse box under the hood of a '94 Deville fit my car?

I've got an attire all picked out for this outing, by recommendation...

1. Cut up Shirt

2. Dumpy looking shorts

3. Messy, greasy hair

4. Worker boots

5. *smurf* crack exposure

6. Cigar (I'm taking one of my cheaper one's, a smelly, poorly burning Garcia Vega)

I'll let you all know how it goes.

[Cadillac Jim]

You'll fit right in.

Actually I think that once a car gets to be more than 5 years old, a dealer may or may not be the best place to maintain it. I've also found that the older a car gets, the more pressure you get from people to let it go, cheap out on the repairs, etc. A dealer is always the right place to go for some things but this thread has a lot of common sense in it about when to go to a general purpose mechanic, particularly one that is comfortable with older Cadillacs.

[Bruce Nunnally]

I appreciate that your attire is focused on the repair price. I normally focus on making the Cadillac as immaculate as possible, to try to communicate that you are very particular about the car and want them to be as particular while it is in their care.

[coolnesss]

I appreciate that your attire is focused on the repair price. I normally focus on making the Cadillac as immaculate as possible, to try to communicate that you are very particular about the car and want them to be as particular while it is in their care.

Funny - I always wash my car and fill it with gas before it goes for service - and I thought I was the only crazy enough person in the universe to pull that stunt!

[Marcus815]

On a side note, I made a trip to the junk yard today with some friends. I needed a replacement fuse box to put under the hood (the old one shattered when the hood was closed too hard). I actually picked up a second backup one just in case it shatters again while in the shop or something. I'm beginning to enjoy the junk yard, while is somewhat due to the fact that all those dead, rusting cars make my Cadillac look great haha, but also because I don't know much about cars and I get to learn a little every time I go.

I'll still be taking it in on Thursday, but I do have a question on a side note. I'm going back with a friend tomorrow to the junk yard because he wants to look at some parts for his Dodge Stealth, and I guess it's good timing because I realized this evening that the brake light on the back, left hand side is out. I want to check out some of those rear lights at the yard tomorrow. My question is this. How hard is it to remove a rear brake light from any car, and would a brake light from any car fit my Cadillac, or only GMC car's or only other Caddy's or only Seville's?

Thanks a lot, you guys know your stuff.

P.S. I met an elderly lady in the parking lot of Walmart who owned a Cadillac Fleetwood, a '94 apparently although the interior looked much older and more glamorous than any other Caddy from that period. She had an old Gold medallion on the grill which she didn't even know she had, and I asked her if she'd be interested in selling it. She didn't give me an answer, but took down my name and number. She also exclaimed before all this that she would love to clean out her Caddy but that she was too old, but hinted very directly that she would like it if I'd clean it for her, and since I offered (which really lit up her face) and she doesn't live far at all from me, I have a feeling I'll have a nice slightly used Medallion for my grill very shortly.

[Marcus815]

I went to another Junk yard today with a few friends. I picked up a new, identical head unit and antenna along with some front lights and brake lights. The radio works except for the CD player which plagues my radio as well, but we have an idea of what the problem is so we're going to try and fix it.

This new junk yard was great, had maybe a dozen caddy's and such.

[Manny]

She had an old Gold medallion on the grill

kind of off topic, but if you are referring to the Cadillac Heritage of Ownership Grille Medallion, you can get them pretty cheaply on eBay.

[Marcus815]

She had an old Gold medallion on the grill

kind of off topic, but if you are referring to the Cadillac Heritage of Ownership Grille Medallion, you can get them pretty cheaply on eBay.

Yes Manny, I'm aware of the fact that they are available on Ebay (What isn't?). I however would much rather get it in person rather than from someone on Ebay. Face to Face is always better than keyboard to wallet.

I dropped the car off today, and boy was I impressed with this place. They had a massive lot full of Cadillac's in the hundreds. They have a little entrance where I pulled it in and immediately a guy came out, put down paper mats and pulled the car into the work place, which had 24 lifts if I am correct (I counted in a hurry). I also saw two older Caddy's up on lifts, one was probably close to 30 years old, so I feel confident they'll know what to do. It'll probably cost an arm and a leg though.