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My '93 Cadillac STS - RIP 1992-2011


Chris

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Hi Guys,

I've been around these forums a long time, but not very active the past few years. I recently replaced my 93 STS and thought it would be interesting to post some info about my car and costs of ownership. I'm pretty meticulous at keeping records, so I hope this may be of interest.

I bought the car in October of 2002 and got rid of it in April of 2011, approximately 8.5 years. Over this time, the odometer crawled from just under 170,000km to 292,300km - most of this time I was in school, partially explaining the low mileage.

Total capital cost (purchase price + taxes/transferFees + safety - salePrice) = $9,746.81 = $1,146.68 depreciation per year

Total maintenance/repair cost (includes cost of new tires, oil/filter, washer fluid, etc) = $11,641.38 = $1,369.57 per year

A note about repairs - the first few years, I bought whatever parts were sold at the local auto parts store (UAP/NAPA). After I discovered this forum, I switched to almost exclusively Delco parts. Major components were then bought at gmotors.com, rockauto.com, or picked up at Dalgliesh Cadillac in Detroit. All major repairs were done by my independant mechanic, I did minor repairs and maintenance myself.

I should also mention that I drove like an absolute maniac the first few years I had the car, and this likely drove maintenance costs higher than they should have been.

Major Repairs:

2002 - neutral safety switch

2003 - new tires, transmission solenoid replacement, alternator (NAPA), refill R12

2004 - replace engine idle motor, new brake pads (4), rotors (4), calipers (rear), caliper service (front)

2005 - front wheel bearings, new tires (4 traction t/a for summer and 4 blizzaks for winter), convert AC to R134a

2006 - rad cooling fan replacement, replace muffler, replace RR brake line, replace both rear spindle/knuckles and RR wheel bearing

2007 - replace alternator (Delco), battery, new front brake calipers and rotors, service slider, new fuel filter

2008 - no major work

2009 - replace rear brake calipers, ebrake cable, turn signal lever, wiper switch, replace both front half-shafts

2010 - replace catalytic converter

2011 - no major work

I started keeping track of fuel purchases in 2005. I used almost exclusively 87 octane from name-brand stations (Esso/PetroCanada/Shell, BP/Chevron/Marathon):

Average MPG: 17.95

Fuel cost per km: 12.15cents

Average cost of fuel: 92.7c/L

After buying another car, I tried to sell the STS. After 3 weeks or so, many people drove it and seemed to like it, but were afraid to safety/etest. I ended up taking it to a scrapyard, where I sold it for $380. I was able to keep the wheels/tires, battery, fuses, and some momentos. The following link shows the final minutes of its life (may disturb some Cadillac fans!!) Photo documentary: End of the STS

A great car, and it will be missed dearly!

-Chris

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what did the pics show? they picked it up, tore off roof and put it down. i see the wheels are gone but that seemed like a lot of jerking around for not much gain?

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Why would the junkyard destroy many saleable parts by moving it with the crane????

Kevin
'93 Fleetwood Brougham
'05 Deville
'04 Deville
2013 Silverado Z71

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wheels/tires might be worth 300? so no one wanted to pay 680? for a running car? guess folks are picky these days.

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Bruce - Youre welcome; I hope the post gives potential buyers some incite into maintenance costs.

Mike - Really sad to see it go like that, but at least they put on a show while I was there!

joeb - I removed all the lug nuts, they picked up the car and dropped it (wheels bounced off). Then picked it up, but the roof started to peel, so he dropped it on the ground. Then he got a better grip, picked it up and moved it to the scale. After weighing, he picked it up, swung it around and dropped it. Peeled back the hood, pressed it into the cabin. Then he snipped each side of the rad and pulled it out.

KHE - It is a scrapyard I took it to, the best offer I could get from a junkyard/autowrecker was $300, and they didn't want me to remove any parts

joeb - No kidding, about 12 people called and said they were coming to see it. 6 actually showed up. Each drove it and seemed to like it. The only semi-offer was a guy that wanted it for the same price he could get a Neon for ($450). I let him buy the neon.

The tires are Blizzaks with only a couple winters on them. I don't think winter tires are necessary on these cars (which is why I hardly used them), but since the SLS has chrome rims, I'd like another set of wheels/tires to put on the car.

-Chris

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  • 1 month later...

Great Post. :D I keep the same meticulous details about my Eldorado. Just had the all engine gaskets replaced and hope to get another 117k out of it before the salvage man cometh !!!!!

Hi Guys,

I've been around these forums a long time, but not very active the past few years. I recently replaced my 93 STS and thought it would be interesting to post some info about my car and costs of ownership. I'm pretty meticulous at keeping records, so I hope this may be of interest.

I bought the car in October of 2002 and got rid of it in April of 2011, approximately 8.5 years. Over this time, the odometer crawled from just under 170,000km to 292,300km - most of this time I was in school, partially explaining the low mileage.

Total capital cost (purchase price + taxes/transferFees + safety - salePrice) = $9,746.81 = $1,146.68 depreciation per year

Total maintenance/repair cost (includes cost of new tires, oil/filter, washer fluid, etc) = $11,641.38 = $1,369.57 per year

A note about repairs - the first few years, I bought whatever parts were sold at the local auto parts store (UAP/NAPA). After I discovered this forum, I switched to almost exclusively Delco parts. Major components were then bought at gmotors.com, rockauto.com, or picked up at Dalgliesh Cadillac in Detroit. All major repairs were done by my independant mechanic, I did minor repairs and maintenance myself.

I should also mention that I drove like an absolute maniac the first few years I had the car, and this likely drove maintenance costs higher than they should have been.

Major Repairs:

2002 - neutral safety switch

2003 - new tires, transmission solenoid replacement, alternator (NAPA), refill R12

2004 - replace engine idle motor, new brake pads (4), rotors (4), calipers (rear), caliper service (front)

2005 - front wheel bearings, new tires (4 traction t/a for summer and 4 blizzaks for winter), convert AC to R134a

2006 - rad cooling fan replacement, replace muffler, replace RR brake line, replace both rear spindle/knuckles and RR wheel bearing

2007 - replace alternator (Delco), battery, new front brake calipers and rotors, service slider, new fuel filter

2008 - no major work

2009 - replace rear brake calipers, ebrake cable, turn signal lever, wiper switch, replace both front half-shafts

2010 - replace catalytic converter

2011 - no major work

I started keeping track of fuel purchases in 2005. I used almost exclusively 87 octane from name-brand stations (Esso/PetroCanada/Shell, BP/Chevron/Marathon):

Average MPG: 17.95

Fuel cost per km: 12.15cents

Average cost of fuel: 92.7c/L

After buying another car, I tried to sell the STS. After 3 weeks or so, many people drove it and seemed to like it, but were afraid to safety/etest. I ended up taking it to a scrapyard, where I sold it for $380. I was able to keep the wheels/tires, battery, fuses, and some momentos. The following link shows the final minutes of its life (may disturb some Cadillac fans!!) Photo documentary: End of the STS

A great car, and it will be missed dearly!

P Christopher :)

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