1989 Allante Purchase

[mrmilt]

I am looking at the purchase of a 1989 Allante. The pearl white with ruby interior is great. Tha car is in perfect cosmetic condition and seems to check out pretty good when I take it out on the road. I love the car and will get the mechanics tested before I buy it. it sounds a little throaty but I understand they were a little bit louder than most Caddys. Any prepurchase advise on what to look for mechanics, interior problems. the car will not be my daily drive but my wife an I both will drive it and I need to know that the car is reliable. any advice before I purchase it would be great. Thanks and I need help. If i get this car it will add to my Caddy collection as I already have a 1998 Concours and it is so sweet. ANY help please. Will I be able to get parts????

[Bob D]

Not too many posts historically on Allantes here, but you might want to use the search function to see what you can find. I do know that some parts are next to impossible to get, and the ones that are available can be expensive. One part, if remember correctly that there was trouble with, was part of the ABS system. If it goes, your're stuck, and they're not made anymore. A good used unit (if you can find one..) can cost A LOT.

Maybe 'bbobynski' (our resident Cadillac guru) will chime in and correct me if I'm wrong. He's the guy that can offer you detailed info on those models.

Good Luck!

** there also maybe a link to the 'Allante Net' (forum) on the homepage here?

[556393]

I HAVE A `93 ALLANTE AND I CHOSE A `93 FOR THE NORTHSTAR AND BETTER BRAKING SYSTEM. WHEN THAT ABS PUMP GOES OUT, YOU HAVE ZERO BRAKES. THE PUMP IS REBUILDIABLE AND THEY RUN AROUND $1000.00. THERE IS ALLANTE WEB SITE WITH SOME KNOWLEDGEABLE PEOPLE AND SOME REAL KNUCKLEHEADS. I NO LONGER VISIT THAT SITE.( ALLANTE CLUB OF AMERICA ).GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR PURCHASE, THEY ARE A FUN CAR TO DRIVE.

[Poobah]

If you go to bottom of the main Caddyinfo.com Discussion Board page (where all the discussion topics are listed) you will find a box marked "Search this Forum." Enter the word "Allante" and you will get several pages of threads where "Allante" is mentioned. You can quickly scroll through the threads. The word "Allante" will be red with yellow highlighting so it is easy to spot. If you spend some time on this type of homework, you can find out a lot about those cars.

[67coupedeville]

From what I can remember reading about Allante's is that there has been corrosion problems since the battery sits underneath the passenger seat. I'm sure someone can either tell me I'm right or tell you where the battery really is but I am sure it is under the passenger side seat. And yea parts are really hard to come by. But those cars are sure nice.

Spence

[JimD]

http://cadillacforums.com/forums/index.php has an Allante Forum.

[Bruce Nunnally]

When you are purchasing a 1989 model used, a car that is 16 years old now, reliable is a relative term. If the car has been well cared for, you should have normal sorts of used car issues, combined with some things that just need to be replaced due to age. The Allante would make a better weekend car than daily driver I would think.

[jh50]

Also, keep in mind insurance costs which are very high on this vehicle.

[Daniel Kuczek]

I haven't posted here for a while, but I think I can be of some help on this one. I recently sold my '91 Allante, hopefully I'll have another sometime. I'll look for a '93, I don't want to deal with brake master cylinder/ABS problems as on the earlier models. If the brake system is working, the first thing you should do is change the brake fluid, it's recommended every two years anyway.

Make sure everything electrical is working. Things like switches and dash lights are expensive and hard to replace. The Bose stereo has the usual amplifier issues.

The battery is in a compartment behind the passenger seat. There's plastic tubing that's supposed to vent the battery to the outside, make sure that's intact or you might have the corrosion problems mentioned in the earlier post.

The insurance wasn't that bad, it was only a little more than my '89 Brougham.

Run the codes, the procedure is pretty much the same as on other Caddies of that era.

Most of all, have fun - these cars are an absolute blast to drive.

Hope some of this helps.

[OynxSTS]

I had a 90 1/2 Allante... Bright Red on Black... The brake system on mine took a dump too... GM fixed it under warrantee. IIRC the other rule of thumb with these cars is never force the brake pistons back into the callipers. This will push crud into the ABS pump and cause its death… Mine went right after a “home” brake job… even though I followed the Helm guide to the T.

I think the "right" way is to open the bleed valves and force the fluid out and then bleed the whole system.

Make sure your car is complete… Forget about parts from GM, they are non-existent. Total shame as in my opinion this was one of the nicest cars they ever made. Even when you could source them at the dealer, they would take weeks to arrive as, just like the car, parts came from all over the world. Make sure you get the little extensions for the top cover. They usually get lost somewhere along the way. Ask the owner for the GOLD KEYS and the Gold Key Chain… These are hard to find… But I have seen them on Ebay…I still have mine for my 90 even though the car is at that big wrecking yard in the sky!

The Bose speakers also have some issues but they are rebuildable.

4.1/4.5/4.9 Litre engine is very reliable and provides lots of go for this little (but heavy) car… Like Northstars, flush the coolant regularly and use the tablets.

The power door lock motors are a little exposed to the weather and tend to fail too. GM fixed this and the weather stripping around the door in 93 too.. Bet that the weather stripping at the top, back of the door is split.. All of the before 93’s do that. All of them corrode on the trunk support on the driver side too. Some kind of galvanic reaction.

Good Luck a truly awesome car!