Faulty head gasket faulty warning lights.
1998 Cadillac Catera engine complaints
Page 2 of 3: complaints 11 to 40 of 56, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Car over heating, smoking, steaming. Took to mechanic, was told that engine blew, later to find out oil cooler went. Also just found out my transmissions needs over hauled, no warning, no leaks. Heat regulator has been replaced twice, ignition coil has been replaced, all wires have to be replaced. Engine has and still does run too hot, causing continuous problems with engine parts. Etc. I purchased the car in 2001, purchased extended warranty, that has since ware out. My sun roof does not work, my keyless entry does not work, here it is 2005 and the car only has or around 65,000 miles on it, when purchased only had 23,000, I only drive the car to work and back, and too run errands. Why am I having so many problems with it, I can't even get a dealer to take it as trade in.
I would like to place a complaint on record about the poor quality of the cadillac catera. These vehicles should have all been bought back by gm to protect the american public from their poor quality. I have a 1998 cadillac catera ,well cared for. Over the past year though the car has begun to leak oil heavily,to the point of actually being an enviromental hazard. The other day I took it to a local cadillac dealer only to be told the car has leaking valve cover gaskets,cam cover gaskets and an oil cooling line. They say $1200 will seal up most of the leaks. The car only has an original 65,000 miles on it. Upon hearing this I did an internet search on cateras and the horror stories are endless. It seems they all including mine have broken headlight aligners. This is apparently caused by heat and cheap manufacturing. This off course makes the headlights impossible to align and aim.it also seems that all cateras wear out tires in a very rapid time frame due to poor front end design. My 1998 has all these problems plus all four radio speakers have blown although they were never played loudly. The headlight lenses have heavily yellowed over thus reducing greatly the headlight power. I would strongly suggest you review accidents involving cateras as they could easily relate to the all to common headlight adjustment problem on these cars not to mention the oil blow by from the engine onto the front brake rotors. Please help get these cars off the road.
Cadillac cater 1998 experienced multiple failure that caused engine damage. *bf the trunk light bulbs failed. The trunk light bar failed. The key fob failed. The cd player failed. The window washer hose failed. The switch for heating and cooling system had to be replaced. The bottom gear of the crankshaft broke causing engine damage. The front and rear end had to be aligned due to the vehicle pulling to the right. The center link was also replaced.
Purchased 1998 cadillac catera 2/06/04. 64,546 miles. Water pump failed as we arrived home with vehicle. Selling dealer sent vehicle to his local cadillac dealer, capital cadillac for repairs. Water pump was on recall. *ak when water pump failed it damaged the main belt and caused it to come off disabeling power steering and other equipment powered by belt. Engine briefly overheated while stopping. Cadillac dealer replaced water pump on campaign 02041 and secondary air injection hose - campaign 01037. The failure does not mention 02018. Car has leaked coolant every since the dealer returned the car to us. The water pump damaged the engine. We want cadillac to repair or replace it. Cadillac cs will not communicate in writing, stating they only discuss orally. Cadillac has refused to assist or give out any information related to similiar problems.
On july 24, 2004 while driving between 65-70 MPH in the left lane on I-81, I could feel that the power steering was gone in the vehicle,there was no indication in the idiot lights or the gauges that the vehicle was in distress. As I got to the right the battery light came on, then the radiator light came on, I immediately stopped the vehicle. The repair shop had the car for 2 days and finished the repair of the water pump. When I started the car the idiot light came on again I got out of the car and noticed that there was white smoke emanating from the exhaust tail pipe. The car was towed to cadillac for repair the next day. They told the head gaskets were gone and it would be $ 1800.00 for the left one and $1900.00 for the right one in addition to the gasket and the labor for the repair. I found out from the dealer that this vehicle was recalled for the water pump nd 2 other pulleys. The record showed that the recall work was performed by kristal cadillac the dealer I purchased the vehicle from. They never informed me that the vehicle was recalled for any reason when they sold me the vehicle. My total out of pocket expense for repair $2314.38. I got my vehicle back on august 6, 2004. The car now broke down completely and had to be towed into kristal cadillac. The dealer has had the car for 2 weeks and have still not looked at it furthermore they are claiming that it is now an ignition problem and not an engine/water pump problem. I believe that they are trying to distance themselves from any liability in this issue with this false diagnostic of the vehicle. This problem is definitely related to the recall and should be paid for by gm totally.
While driving at 65 MPH, the tachometer dropped to zero, the check light came on and the vehicle stalled. The consumer was able to pull the vehicle to the side of the road, the vehicle was towed to a dealership. The dealership indicated that the timing belt had broke and destroyed the engine. The owners manual indicated that this part shouldn't been replaced until 60,000 miles and replacement is only required if the vehicle has more than one or more extreme cold start. Which hadn't occurred on this vehicle. *nm *sc
Water keeps leaking from the engine. I have had the heater control valve replaced 3 weeks ago and now the water pump is leaking coolant.
Like all cadillac catera owners we know, we have had and are continuing to have endless major repair bills on the catera (98 model). The water pump has failed and caused the engine to run hot. The water pump was on recall. Cadillac replaced the pump but charged for belts and other parts damaged by the failure. We have spend over $1,900 trying to solve a morning cold start skipping problem. The problem comes and goes. Cadillac dealer replaced the heater control valve and charged $953. Problem still occurs. Then a repair shop charged over $600 to replace the spark plugs and spark plug wires. Problem still occurs. Then they told us it had to be the coil pack. We spent over $300 on that. Problem still occurs. The car in back at the cadillac dealer's shop yesterday and today. So far they cannot locate problem. A co-worker of my wife's at the georgia motor vehicle safety department ownes a catera. She and her husband have spent over $9,000 on their catera in the past two years for repairs. They cannot keep tires on the car. The co-worker said they had the same cold start problem with their catera. It cost over $500 for a starter switch part. It appears cadillac threw the car together from an engine from england, a transmission from france and assembled the car in germany. I don't think it is fair for consummers to have to foot the bill for cadillac's neglegency in not properly testing the car prior to marketing. This is nothing short of consummer fraud. We have owned two cadillac sevilles, a deville, and a small cadillac back in the 80's. We presently drive a seville. We have never had any major problems with cadillac products until this catera. It is not cadillac quality and appears to have been marketed without proper training of mechanics in the field in spite of gm's constant advertisements about the excellence of "mr. Good wrench." cadillac should be required to fix their problems with the catera design.
I have had so many problems with this car and they just keep piling up. I just replaced the head gasket and valve cover gaskets a month ago and now my oil pressure is failing. My service writter tells me this car is notorius for problems with the engine, specifically the way it handles oil and cooling. I sent a letter to cadillac when I had probles a month ago but have heard nothing. Is there anything I can do?
Car ran hot. Towed back to dealer. Dealer stated cadillac had a recall on the water pump. Cadillac replaced the water pump. Dealer paid for belt, etc. Amounting to about $190. Less than a month following the water pump failure, the coolant began leaking. Cadillac dealer charged $950 to replace heater value and a few hoses. 1 week later, car leaked again. Returned to cadillac dealer. Dealer kept car for two days, re-seated a water hose. 1 week later, car began skipping. Now cadillac dealer wants to remove hoses, etc. To get to elec spark plug. No estimate of cost yet. I believe all of this is related to the faulty water pump which I understand cadillac had on recall but I do not find the recall on your site.
Sensors went bad. Oil currently in the engine, head gaskets gone. Too much play in the steering column. Crank sensor and ignition coil pack repair
While driving 65 MPH, the vehicle stalled and lost power. Consumer managed to pull over and had the vehicle towed to dealership but the problem was not resolved.*ak the consumer stated a recall was performed on the vehicle regarding the timing, but the recall repair failed. *jb
Engine cooling fluid leaked onto the engine and caused the vehicle to stall, and will not restart. Had to be towed to the dealership.
Bought this 98 catera new. To be safe from blowouts tires need to be replaced about every 20,000 miles; basically, inside shoulder wear. Gm maintains this is normal and will not take any responsibility. Now at 67,000 miles timing belt tensioner pulley failed resulting in several thousand dollars of engine damage ! Very disappointed in this gm product and note the lauded 'cadillac service'' is clearly false advertising. In good faith we are unable to sell this car. Is this government site of any real use ? Clearly the tire wear safety problem and expensive idler/tensioner fan belt/timing belt problems deserve some consumer protection!
This car has been in the dealership more than 30 times for numerous problems. Too many to list. Now this vehicle has died on one of the most busiest intersections in minnesota.
Numerous issues with 1998 catera. Had timing belt tensioner-pulleys/cam drive replaced last year(3-2002) while under warranty. "service campaign" was issued by cadillac in sept 2002 for catera's to have came drive idler/tensioner pulley/water pump replaced with new version. Got vehicle serviced today and was informed that car had another serious problem that needed to be corrected-out of pocket-coolant crossover leaking into oil cooler, and valve cover was leaking oil.....the car runs extremely hot, has poor performance, gets terrible gas millage, battery has low voltage when nothing is left on by mistake, replaced the battery 4 time in two years, A/C had new compressor replaced past summer 2002 still not able to cool car and while in use the car sounds like a tractor, boggs down the perfromance. Had to have entire brake system replaced (cost over 800.00) at 34,000, purchased 4 sets of michellan mxv4 tires in last 2 years-inside tread seperation on front tires caused blow out twice.
The vehicle stalls and is hard to start back up. Vehicle has been to dealer ten times, but the cause of the problem cannot be determined.
While driving engine locked up. Dealer diagnosed, to fixed it will cost over $10,000 since manufacturer doesn't produce any more this engine.
The consumer was informed the engine needed to be replaced.
The cruise control failed and the vehicles engine trembled because water had gotten into one of the cylinders. Ph
I had a problem with coolant leaking into oil possibly due to a bad oil cooler in the engine. The problem was fixed at a local mechanic shop. After a while, sometime in march of 2003 the problem reappeared and coolant is leaking into oil again. It also seemed that somebody replaced the oil cooler even before I bought the car. I had to pay a fortune to repair it the first time and now it's in the shop again and I will see what will happen this time. I am totally disappointed with cadillac, I will never buy another cadillac or possibly even gm after all the problems I had with this car. This was my first disappointment with american name car.
Coolant leaking cause engine head needs replacing.
While driving at 65mph and with no warning vehicle shuts off. Consumer is unable to get vehicle started back up. Dealer notified, the dealer found that the timing belt broke, the manufacturer had a program to repair 1998 catera's but since the consumers vehicle had a salvaged title the dealership was released from any responsiblity to repair the vehicle at no cost.*ak
Consumer received letter from manufacturer warning him that camshaft/timing belt idler ,and pulley could fail, resulting in engine failure.
While driving, vehicle stalls and surges, intermittently the vehicle will not start, dealer has replaced the battery, alternator and crank sensor as the problems.
While driving and without warning engine cut off. Mechanic stated that timing belt broke, causing engine to malfunction.
Timing belt tensioner failed at 51,000 miles (warranty ends at 50,000 miles) causing major damage to the valves and gears. Requires new valves, tensioner, head gasket, belt, etc. Service department told me that this is a problem specific to the catera. He said that tensioner system is unique to catera. This problem appears to be associated with a faulty system. Other cadillac models do not have the same timing belt system. Quoted repair cost is $4,800. This is not just a timing belt problem, which is a normal wear and tear problem. Most car owners expect to repair timing belts some time during their ownership, if they keep the vehicles long enough. However, we are talking about a $40,000 vehicle. Consumers should not expect such a costly problem to occur on this car for a very long time, if ever. Hopefully, once repaired, this will not occur again. Most consumers can not afford an unexpected $4,800 repair bill once, let alone every few thousand miles. It just seems like the tensioner must be faulty or have a faulty design. The edmunds website shows many customers who have had this problem. Gm knows about this costly problem. Why haven't they made some provision for fixing the problem?
Timing belt tensioner pulley bearing is prematurely failing and causing major damage in the engine valve train. If the car is out of warranty, this defect results in the customer having to pay a repair bill of several thousand dollars. If the defect is found soon enough it still costs the cusomer over five hundred dollars. When I bought the cadillac the timing belt was suppose to last at least 100,000 miles and now I hear they are recommending the replacement of the assembly (p/n9120501) within 60k. The only problem with is some cars have the problem before 60k. The warranty on the replacement parts is 12 months/12k. There are also no procedures to assist the customer in reducing the costs of the necessary repairs. The edmunds website list many customers all over the country who have experienced this problem. Gm should be required to have a recall to fix this problem and they should be required to reimburse all customers who have experienced this problem. As far as I know all years of this model can experience this problem. Also the current replacement parts are prone to fail at the same rate as the original parts since the design hasn't been improved.
Water valve failed resulting in coolant leak, the dealer replaced valve and refilled system, oil cooler line leaking, dealer resealed housing and replaced coolant bridge oil level sensor shorted . Nlm
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