[General_Motors_Fan]

I've got 2 '93 DeVilles. They have been great cars but I'm thinking of moving up. I have very little experience with anything '96 and newer. Thinking of buying an '05 to '12. What should I look for and wondering what I should stay away from? About the only thing I do know is that I would like to stay away from the Northstar. I would like a car that is just as good if not better than the '92 and '93 models were and a car in similar size as well.

Any info would be appreciated.

 

[Jakerin]

Just curious since my 06 V Northstar has over 105,000 miles, why do you dislike them? BTW I loved my 91 Coupe.

 

[General_Motors_Fan]

I know some have had good luck with them, but they don't have the best recommendation out there. Not only from this site all through the years, but it is also the word around town in the garages and repair shops here. This is on the older ones anyway, not sure about the newer ones, but glad to see that you are happy with your Northstar.

The '91 to '93's are great cars. I'm still keeping at least one of mine though. I got my other one just about wore out. Had it 12 years now and it's got close to 230,000 on it.

 

[Byrdman]

agree with Jakerin, what is your reluctance about the N*? My '03 has been bulletproof and I just passed 150K. The '04 and up should fair even better.

 

[basscatt]

the BEST upgrade from a 1993 Deville would be the 1995 Sedan Deville with the 4.9 motor -

I bought a LOADED Deville - it had EVERY option Cadillac offered -
I LOVED that car - put 176,000 miles on it - MANY of those miles were towing a 2000# bass boat -
that's the longest I ever kept a car and the most miles I ever put on a car -
besides regular maintenance - I replaced the injectors at around 135,000 -
and rebuilt the trans at 136,000 -
but finding a nice one with low mileage today would be pretty tough -

I'd look for a 2002 or 2003 DHS model Deville - has the most options and best ride -
2004 Cadillac started eliminating features - the first one being the automatic parking brake release -

as for the Northstar motor - YES - some of them had/have problems - head gaskets and oil leaks -
and YES - they were expensive to fix -
HOWEVER - once these issues were PROPERLY addressed - the problems were solved -

I bought my VERY clean - VERY low miles 2003 DHS really cheap because of oil leaks -
had Midwest Cadillac Repair in Palatine Illinois do a complete re-seal -
and the head gasket job - for less than $2500 -
this car will last a LONG LONG time -

the 2006 through 2011 DTS is VERY "plastic" looking compared to the 2000 through 2005 Deville

 

[Submariner409]

Yep - when Deville died at the end of the 2005 model year the generic "DTS" took over in all its different plastic fantastic trim levels.

Find a creampuff 2004/2005 real DTS or even a DHS. Just remember the VIN Y and VIN 9 powertrain differences.

 

[General_Motors_Fan]

as for the Northstar motor - YES - some of them had/have problems - head gaskets and oil leaks -
and YES - they were expensive to fix -
HOWEVER - once these issues were PROPERLY addressed - the problems were solved -

Appreciate the replies.

When you stated "once these issues were PROPERLY addressed - the problems were solved" wondering if you talking about the factory? Or the owner of the car fixing them? If so the factory, at what year did they finally get the problems solved?

Thanks

 

[General_Motors_Fan]

Find a creampuff 2004/2005 real DTS or even a DHS. Just remember the VIN Y and VIN 9 powertrain differences.

Is is possible to find one without a Northstar? Or is there no choice?

Thanks

 

[Submariner409]

All that series of Deville were FWD Northstar cars. Good vehicles, and as of late 2001 the head bolt hole thread failures dropped significantly.

Look through the Northstar engines poll in the Northstar forum - 97, 98, 99 were the worst for head bolt problems.
Scroll down the years and "view results" in the lower right corner.

Northstar Headgasket/Cracked Block/Bolt Failure? Please let us know

Here is the Definitive Northstar Headgasket Thread. Please choose your year of Cadillac and state if you have had a headgasket problem with your Seville or Eldorado and what mileage it occured at. If you have never had a problem please do not participate in the poll!

www.cadillacforums.com

"Properly addressed" is cylinder block studding or inserting by either by a dealership (expensive), Mom & Pop shop (sort of expensive), or owner DIY (relatively inexpensive but labor intensive).

 

[General_Motors_Fan]

"Properly addressed" is cylinder block studding or inserting by either by a dealership (expensive), Mom & Pop shop (sort of expensive), or owner DIY (relatively inexpensive but labor intensive).

That's what I was afraid of. An extra figure of about $2500 would surely kill the deal for me, if I were to go that route.

The chart is pretty interesting. I can also remember reading on here through the years that by '06 the problems were basically solved. Even though I see that it was on a downward trend even earlier. And it's nice to verify that.

 

[Cuthundreville97]

That's what I was afraid of. An extra figure of about $2500 would surely kill the deal for me, if I were to go that route.

The chart is pretty interesting. I can also remember reading on here through the years that by '06 the problems were basically solved. Even though I see that it was on a downward trend even earlier. And it's nice to verify that.

The info here can vary depending on who you ask, but from what I remember, the head gasket/head bolt issue was virtually eliminated starting with the 2004.5 Northstars and up, all the way until the engine was discontinued in 2011. I'd go 2005+ if I were you, as I can see you are definitely cautious. They ended up replacing the revised 2000 head bolts (which were lengthened from 1999, but still had a fine thread pitch) with LS6 head bolts from the small block V8 family (longer AND had a much coarser thread pitch for superior grip), that did the trick.

The head bolt failures did drop off hard after the 2000 bolt lengthening, but that didn't "eliminate" the issue. You can find 2000-2004 Devilles and Sevilles all day long on craigslist with blown head gaskets for $1,000. But you can also find quality, low mileage 2000-2004 Devilles on there as well.

Combined with what bass and Sub said, I'd highly recommend a 2005 Deville DHS or DTS, depending on what suspension setup you prefer. The DTS, which was essentially the next gen Deville (2006-2011), had a very plastic-covered, sterile interior. The Deville interior was much more comfy and pleasing to the eye. I have a loaded 2005 Deville, and couldn't be happier. The Northstar runs perfectly and is the smoothest engine I've ever owned! Best of all, I have peace of mind.