[Mizugori]

I'm interested in a 1996 Deville, it's a beautiful car, has 125k miles which the only claims are at least 1/2 highway miles, it does seem to be in great shape and the price is very reasonable.

Am I likely to have a lot of repairs soon? Should I expect this to leak or burn oil? What sort of issues are common with these / should I look for?

Thanks!

 

[Ranger]

Go to the top left of this page and click on Technical Archives. Read up on oil consumption.

Either get a test kit from Napa and test the coolant for exhaust gases or have it done. When you test drive it give it some WOT and see if the temp climbs.

 

[Dave S Texas]

Do what Ranger suggested. Also, check for Trouble Codes. If this is a private sale, they may not have been erased....
If you don't know how: read the 5th Stickey on this forum page.

 

[**bigslim**]

Likely issues include:
-Head gasket failure
-transmission problems, such as the Vehicle Speed Sensor (easy fix), the Torque converter clutch solenoid, as well as the Input speed sensor ($$$$)
-various other electrical quirks
-these cars eat through brake pads and rotors like crazy too (if you do happen to buy, make sure you get heavy duty rotors and ceramic pads when you do the brakes)

Definitely have it looked at by someone who knows cadillacs before you buy-and do as the other guys suggested-check the codes, make sure the oil isn't milky, etc....they are beautiful cars, but when something goes wrong, be prepared to shell out some big bucks for repairs...

As far as oil consumption goes, you should expect to burn anywhere between 1 and 2 quarts between changes...Your results may vary depending on how often you give her the WOT treatment.

My 96 is currently sitting idle in the driveway with a bad input speed sensor with 138k on the clock :helpless: