kizzzzle Posted October 10, 2011 Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 My Buddy is selling a 94' seville for $500 with 130k on it. It is in pretty decent condition and I am considering buying it. Was just looking for some other opinions and any information you guys got about these cars. Are they reliable? Anything known to go wrong on them? Anything helps thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cordell Posted October 10, 2011 Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 Northstar engine, not only is everything a bitch to work on, they are bad about head gaskets. Some stuff is just goofy like the starter under the intake, but a lot of parts are overpriced just because its a Cadillac, and everything is tight in the engine bay making it a pain to do much. If want a $500 car thats reliable this wouldn't be it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acklac7 Posted October 10, 2011 Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 92-95 STS/Seville's are sweet, for $500 it could be a steal. How well do you know your friend? Reason I ask is most of the time you see 90's Caddy's listed for that low the gaskets (well really the block) has already begun to fail and will require a massive overhaul to get fixed ($2000+). At that point the cost of the repair is usually more then the car itself so the car is more or less worthless. Other then the headgaskets those caddys can be decent rides, transmission is sound (other then the shift solenoids, which are easy to replace) and you can find a decent amount of parts @ the junkyard(s). And yea, you can't fit your fist anywhere in the engine bay, total pain in the ass to work on, then again what luxury car isn't... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocky31186 Posted October 10, 2011 Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 Not worth it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc1647545523 Posted October 10, 2011 Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 I owned one for about a year and totally agree with the above comments. Even though mine was only 6 years old back then, there were frequent electronic and accessory problems. Mine was a very tight, great driving and riding car. It's hard for me to imagine one for that price that didn't have serious and major issues, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Jones Posted October 10, 2011 Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 Run away.... Just had a guy at work do the same thing, bought a 94 as well. Over the period of 1 year he put about 2500 into it for various sensors, and strange maintenance issues. Then it rewards him with the classic head gasket failure and was staring down another 3K bill. I believe he got about $500 in trade for it. :dumb: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acklac7 Posted October 10, 2011 Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 Just want to add that other then the headgaskets/oil leaks the N* (and 4t80e) is one hell of an Engine/Transmission. In the 10 years I owned my Eldorado I mashed it to 6500rpm's hundreds, maybe thousands of times - rock solid. Shame on GM for not addressing the gasket/block issues until it was too late... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dre2013 Posted October 10, 2011 Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 are you guys serious? its 500 dollars, damn near anything that runs/drives is worth that much. buy the damn thing and if it runs like shit then just scrap it. ive had several northstars and yes they can be problematic but when theyre properly maintained they run great Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tshensley Posted October 10, 2011 Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 1. Buy vehicle for $500 2. Buy chrome rims and install 3. Sell vehicle for double profit Nowhere in these steps has drive vehicle for transportation... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianZ06 Posted October 10, 2011 Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 are you guys serious? its 500 dollars, damn near anything that runs/drives is worth that much. buy the damn thing and if it runs like shit then just scrap it. ive had several northstars and yes they can be problematic but when theyre properly maintained they run great Agree, If it runs and drives ok currently it is well worth 500 bucks. What are you going to find for 500 ??? When it goes to hell just junk it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cordell Posted October 11, 2011 Report Share Posted October 11, 2011 My Buddy is selling a 94' seville for $500 with 130k on it. It is in pretty decent condition and I am considering buying it. Was just looking for some other opinions and any information you guys got about these cars. Are they reliable? Anything known to go wrong on them? Anything helps thanks. are you guys serious? its 500 dollars, damn near anything that runs/drives is worth that much. buy the damn thing and if it runs like shit then just scrap it. ive had several northstars and yes they can be problematic but when theyre properly maintained they run great When it comes to reliable there isn't much of anything for $500, but he asked for opinions of this car, so we gave them. His post didn't lead me to beleive he just wanted a beater, if he just wants to use it till it goes pop fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87GT Posted October 11, 2011 Report Share Posted October 11, 2011 I sold a car for $500 over a year ago and it still is running Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocky31186 Posted October 11, 2011 Report Share Posted October 11, 2011 I sold a car for $500 over a year ago and it still is running Bet it wasnt a 94 seville... I couldnt get paid 500$ to take one of those.. But I agree, you cant expect much for 500$.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
04SVT Posted October 11, 2011 Report Share Posted October 11, 2011 Golden rule...You get what you pay for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crossle Posted October 11, 2011 Report Share Posted October 11, 2011 I finally condemned all of them that came into the shop regularly, it was a glorious day. I hated working on them, probably because every hill jack had their hands on them before I got it then had to charge big bucks to make it right. If you do consider getting it, at least check the safety issues with a car of that time. Take a close look at the brake/fuel lines and make sure they aren't about to pop. Make sure there isn't coolant already leaking on the bottom of the motor, oil leakage is a given as long as it's not pouring out and you keep it full you will be fine. Check to see how clean/dirty the coolant is in the radiator. If it smells terrible and is a nasty color I would just pass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acklac7 Posted October 11, 2011 Report Share Posted October 11, 2011 (edited) I finally condemned all of them that came into the shop regularly, it was a glorious day. I hated working on them, probably because every hill jack had their hands on them before I got it then had to charge big bucks to make it right. Run away.... Just had a guy at work do the same thing, bought a 94 as well. Over the period of 1 year he put about 2500 into it for various sensors, and strange maintenance issues. : I'd argue most of those sensors and strange maintenance issues were more the result of the person working on the car then the car itself. Without a FSM (factory service manual) those cars are a bastard to work on. If you do consider getting it, at least check the safety issues with a car of that time. Take a close look at the brake/fuel lines and make sure they aren't about to pop. Make sure there isn't coolant already leaking on the bottom of the motor, oil leakage is a given as long as it's not pouring out and you keep it full you will be fine. Check to see how clean/dirty the coolant is in the radiator. If it smells terrible and is a nasty color I would just pass. Definitely take a look at the brake lines in the upper rear wheel-wells, thats where mine blew, the rest looked decent. Miniscule visual coolant leaks are not typically a sign of headgasket failure and can usually be remedied with bars-leak (added to the radiator-hose and not the coolant bottle). The exception is the pipe running along the firewall near the rear of the engine, it's a pain to replace. Last I checked it was never a big problem. The only real way to diagnose the head gaskets is to run a cylinder leak down test. If it fails then it's almost surely the head gasket / head bolts rather then the rings. As for the oil leaks nothing significant, seepage more then anything, few drips here, few drips there..just people bitch about them so much. Edited October 11, 2011 by acklac7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cordell Posted October 11, 2011 Report Share Posted October 11, 2011 I'd argue most of those sensors and strange maintenance issues were more the result of the person working on the car then the car itself. Without a FSM (factory service manual) those cars are a bastard to work on. Definitely take a look at the brake lines in the upper rear wheel-wells, thats where mine blew, the rest looked decent. Miniscule visual coolant leaks are not typically a sign of headgasket failure and can usually be remedied with bars-leak (added to the radiator-hose and not the coolant bottle). The exception is the pipe running along the firewall near the rear of the engine, it's a pain to replace. Last I checked it was never a big problem. The only real way to diagnose the head gaskets is to run a cylinder leak down test. If it fails then it's almost surely the head gasket / head bolts rather then the rings. As for the oil leaks nothing significant, seepage more then anything, few drips here, few drips there..just people bitch about them so much. Why do you have such a hard on for these cars? Do you realize that you're in the minority? How old was yours when you got it and how much did you have to pay? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acklac7 Posted October 12, 2011 Report Share Posted October 12, 2011 (edited) Ha, I was 18 when I got it, at the time I was right out of high school (2000) and the car was only 5 years old (paid $16,000 for it I think?). It was pretty much the cats-ass back then (same body style through '02 so you really couldn't tell it was 5 years old). I got pulled over / followed like it was my job. About a year or two after I purchased it I ran into all kinds of issues that would have cost me thousands to replace so I decided to work on it myself. Mind you at that point I had basically never worked on anything so it was a challenge to say the least. Thankfully that was right around the time most of the information boards began to pop up and with there help (and a FSM) I was able to basically fix most any/everything myself (destroyed a few things, *cough tranny*, in the process, but thats part of the learning process, right?). I guess you could say I became attached to it because it was so challenging and there was so much to learn? That and the fact that there were so many people dedicated to fixing them on the 'net, became sort of a passion I guess. Also my screen name (for basically like every board im on) is the name I had on my plates until about the 30th time I got pulled over - true story. And yea, if people need help on these cars let me know, I still have the service manuals and whatnot and have a fairly good understanding of what goes wrong with them and why http://www.ohiogamefishing.com/community/images/smilies/redface.gif. http://i52.tinypic.com/2yzk2tx.jpg Edited October 12, 2011 by acklac7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowflake Posted October 12, 2011 Report Share Posted October 12, 2011 Ha, I was 18 when I got it, at the time I was right out of high school (2000) and the car was only 5 years old (paid $16,000 for it I think?). It was pretty much the cats-ass back then (same body style through '02 so you really couldn't tell it was 5 years old). I got pulled over / followed like it was my job. About a year or two after I purchased it I ran into all kinds of issues that would have cost me thousands to replace so I decided to work on it myself. Mind you at that point I had basically never worked on anything so it was a challenge to say the least. Thankfully that was right around the time most of the information boards began to pop up and with there help (and a FSM) I was able to basically fix most any/everything myself (destroyed a few things, *cough tranny*, in the process, but thats part of the learning process, right?). I guess you could say I became attached to it because it was so challenging and there was so much to learn? That and the fact that there were so many people dedicated to fixing them on the 'net, became sort of a passion I guess. Also my screen name (for basically like every board im on) is the name I had on my plates until about the 30th time I got pulled over - true story. And yea, if people need help on these cars let me know, I still have the service manuals and whatnot and have a fairly good understanding of what goes wrong with them and why http://www.ohiogamefishing.com/community/images/smilies/redface.gif. http://i52.tinypic.com/2yzk2tx.jpg WOW! You paid 16k for that? You's a gangsta! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cordell Posted October 12, 2011 Report Share Posted October 12, 2011 WOW! You paid 16k for that? You's a gangsta! Lol. $16k is a little off the $500 price tag on OP's offer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
appn88 Posted October 12, 2011 Report Share Posted October 12, 2011 ive owned northstar cars before.... run away run away fast Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fiji ST Posted October 12, 2011 Report Share Posted October 12, 2011 For $500, who honestly cares? As long as you don't have to put anything into it, just run it until it dies, then scrap it and make most of your money back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crossle Posted October 12, 2011 Report Share Posted October 12, 2011 Miniscule visual coolant leaks are not typically a sign of headgasket failure and can usually be remedied with bars-leak (added to the radiator-hose and not the coolant bottle). The exception is the pipe running along the firewall near the rear of the engine, it's a pain to replace. Last I checked it was never a big problem. My comment was in reference to the ever popular water pumps, not the head gaskets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acklac7 Posted October 12, 2011 Report Share Posted October 12, 2011 WOW! You paid 16k for that? You's a gangsta! correction, "was" a gangsta And honestly if you work on them yourself and have access to a FSM they really aren't that bad of a car, hence why I kept mine for 10 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acklac7 Posted October 12, 2011 Report Share Posted October 12, 2011 Lol. $16k is a little off the $500 price tag on OP's offer. Keep in mind back then the head gasket / block issues were only just beginning to become widely known. Once the internet really took off basically everyone found out how wide-spread the issue was and prices dropped off the face of the earth. Sort of funny, I remember first reading about the gasket issues on Caddyinfo and Cadillacowners when they had like 50 members...Not sure how I missed this place for so long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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