Where to begin?
I have been looking for a 2007 or newer GM full size SUV for a couple of years now. I wasn't even looking at Cadillacs. Not because they are unreliable, but because I am a DIY'er. I like to wrench on my own stuff, and Cadillac just doesn't work that way. Friends have had Cadillacs since the mid 90's and it's always the same story, breakdowns and warning lights that simply cannot be fixed without throwing a great deal of labor or parts at it. I know, I get it, lovers of Caddy's will be testifying that theirs went hundreds of thousands of miles with nothing they couldn't fix, okay. That just wasn't my friends story and now, it isn't mine either.
When this 2008 Cadillac ESV blue chip, 2WD Escalade came up for sale at a 1/3 of retail I jumped on it. It actually ran and drove. It had a slip in the transmission, 4th wasn't there, a misfire, a damaged Information Display(more on that later) and no check engine light, or so I thought, but the traction control light was on and a real bad oil leak. Quick math for parts and I thought this was a deal! l pulled the trigger.
First purchases were all new Michelins, tailgate shocks, head lights and wipers. I had a broken drivers rear door handle, passenger front lock actuator failure, and center console passenger trim piece broken off. The passenger mirror actuator energizes but does not turn the mirror. The rain sensing wiper function works flawlessly!
The instrument cluster. I had a mobile guy who repairs these things come out and take a look. He removed the cluster and immediately saw intentional damage to the display. Scanning the cluster, he found the CEL had been damaged as well. We replaced the panel with a new one. It lit up like fireworks on July 4th.
I realized this was over my head, so I paid someone else to have this headache.
1st diagnosis. Code 0174. Scan tool tells us there is a misfire on the number 2 cylinder. New spark plug wire tells us it may be the injector. It also tells us the evap cylinder has failed. Okay, not bad. I purchased new injectors, plugs and wires, replaced the evap cylinders, front and back, and did an oil change. When I fired it up, it had an extended crank issue. I cleared the codes and thought I was on my way.
The extended crank issue didn't go away. When the car was cold, it would fire right up. When I started it and shut it off a few minutes later then re-started it, it would have extended crank. If I let it sit for a few hours, it would start right up. Now I am getting an 1174 1175 fuel trim lean Bank 1 and 2 codes. Long term trim is bad, really high, short is just fine.
2nd diagnosis. O rings crushed on injectors. Map sensor not reading correctly. Oh, and it needed all new brakes. Several hundred dollars later all fixed up. I was so confident that I had a new transmission installed. Nope. Check engine light and extended crank. BTW, 2nd mechanic, 1st shop, try to keep up.
3rd diagnosis. Must be a fuel pump, or Maf sensor, probably an internal vacuum leak. New fuel pump and MAF. Transmission is bad too. Nope, extended crank and weird sound coming out of the drivers rear brake, a squeal at low speed braking. 3rd mechanic, 3rd shop(including transmission shop).
4th diagnosis. Same shop. Bad fuel pump, a Delphi, not cheap parts here. New fuel pump. No more extended crank, but check engine light on. Over half of the injectors were replaced as they leaked. When the new fuel pump was installed, the injectors were getting more pressure for longer periods of time, and they failed. Plug wires that were brand new came apart like old vacuum lines. New transmission, the first one didn't seem bad, but I got a another rebuilt one, okay.
The mistake I made was purchasing AC DELCO injectors off a popular auction site with the correct identification and a reputable dealer. The dealer refunded half of the original price, but the diagnostics and labor and Hail Mary parts lobs did not even feel that infusion. Here's a hint, purchase parts with a labor and parts guarantee. They are $178 new, each, plus labor. 8 of those and labor would be cheaper and MUCH less time consuming than what I did. And the only ones like that are from GM.
The second mistake I made was to not have a scan tool. It is the blind leading the blind without one. Good mechanics were making wild hair guesses that school kids would have stared gob smacked at and rejected.
I still have to replace the rear shocks, air compressor, maybe relay, who knows, but wow, is that expensive. Cheap stuff is out there, but fellas and fellettes, even the good stuff they are making is junk today, really. Oh yeah, and there is body work on the quarter panel and a repaint will cost a couple grand, the previous repaint is delaminating.
I am no longer at a 1/3 of retail, but I am a couple thousand over retail and upside down. In fact, it has cost me two dollars a mile to repair this since October, 2020. I wish Cadillac would have made the vehicle from whatever they made the dash analog clock out of, cuz that thing just keeps going!
I'm just going to drive it till the wheels fall off. It drives amazingly well, so comfortable. I am going to put a piece of black tape over the CEL and pretend I didn't see it.
I have been looking for a 2007 or newer GM full size SUV for a couple of years now. I wasn't even looking at Cadillacs. Not because they are unreliable, but because I am a DIY'er. I like to wrench on my own stuff, and Cadillac just doesn't work that way. Friends have had Cadillacs since the mid 90's and it's always the same story, breakdowns and warning lights that simply cannot be fixed without throwing a great deal of labor or parts at it. I know, I get it, lovers of Caddy's will be testifying that theirs went hundreds of thousands of miles with nothing they couldn't fix, okay. That just wasn't my friends story and now, it isn't mine either.
When this 2008 Cadillac ESV blue chip, 2WD Escalade came up for sale at a 1/3 of retail I jumped on it. It actually ran and drove. It had a slip in the transmission, 4th wasn't there, a misfire, a damaged Information Display(more on that later) and no check engine light, or so I thought, but the traction control light was on and a real bad oil leak. Quick math for parts and I thought this was a deal! l pulled the trigger.
First purchases were all new Michelins, tailgate shocks, head lights and wipers. I had a broken drivers rear door handle, passenger front lock actuator failure, and center console passenger trim piece broken off. The passenger mirror actuator energizes but does not turn the mirror. The rain sensing wiper function works flawlessly!
The instrument cluster. I had a mobile guy who repairs these things come out and take a look. He removed the cluster and immediately saw intentional damage to the display. Scanning the cluster, he found the CEL had been damaged as well. We replaced the panel with a new one. It lit up like fireworks on July 4th.
I realized this was over my head, so I paid someone else to have this headache.
1st diagnosis. Code 0174. Scan tool tells us there is a misfire on the number 2 cylinder. New spark plug wire tells us it may be the injector. It also tells us the evap cylinder has failed. Okay, not bad. I purchased new injectors, plugs and wires, replaced the evap cylinders, front and back, and did an oil change. When I fired it up, it had an extended crank issue. I cleared the codes and thought I was on my way.
The extended crank issue didn't go away. When the car was cold, it would fire right up. When I started it and shut it off a few minutes later then re-started it, it would have extended crank. If I let it sit for a few hours, it would start right up. Now I am getting an 1174 1175 fuel trim lean Bank 1 and 2 codes. Long term trim is bad, really high, short is just fine.
2nd diagnosis. O rings crushed on injectors. Map sensor not reading correctly. Oh, and it needed all new brakes. Several hundred dollars later all fixed up. I was so confident that I had a new transmission installed. Nope. Check engine light and extended crank. BTW, 2nd mechanic, 1st shop, try to keep up.
3rd diagnosis. Must be a fuel pump, or Maf sensor, probably an internal vacuum leak. New fuel pump and MAF. Transmission is bad too. Nope, extended crank and weird sound coming out of the drivers rear brake, a squeal at low speed braking. 3rd mechanic, 3rd shop(including transmission shop).
4th diagnosis. Same shop. Bad fuel pump, a Delphi, not cheap parts here. New fuel pump. No more extended crank, but check engine light on. Over half of the injectors were replaced as they leaked. When the new fuel pump was installed, the injectors were getting more pressure for longer periods of time, and they failed. Plug wires that were brand new came apart like old vacuum lines. New transmission, the first one didn't seem bad, but I got a another rebuilt one, okay.
The mistake I made was purchasing AC DELCO injectors off a popular auction site with the correct identification and a reputable dealer. The dealer refunded half of the original price, but the diagnostics and labor and Hail Mary parts lobs did not even feel that infusion. Here's a hint, purchase parts with a labor and parts guarantee. They are $178 new, each, plus labor. 8 of those and labor would be cheaper and MUCH less time consuming than what I did. And the only ones like that are from GM.
The second mistake I made was to not have a scan tool. It is the blind leading the blind without one. Good mechanics were making wild hair guesses that school kids would have stared gob smacked at and rejected.
I still have to replace the rear shocks, air compressor, maybe relay, who knows, but wow, is that expensive. Cheap stuff is out there, but fellas and fellettes, even the good stuff they are making is junk today, really. Oh yeah, and there is body work on the quarter panel and a repaint will cost a couple grand, the previous repaint is delaminating.
I am no longer at a 1/3 of retail, but I am a couple thousand over retail and upside down. In fact, it has cost me two dollars a mile to repair this since October, 2020. I wish Cadillac would have made the vehicle from whatever they made the dash analog clock out of, cuz that thing just keeps going!
I'm just going to drive it till the wheels fall off. It drives amazingly well, so comfortable. I am going to put a piece of black tape over the CEL and pretend I didn't see it.
