Comments: 1-15, 16
When the car was purchased within the first four days the rear tail lights went out. They were replaced by the dealership under warranty.
At 50,000 miles the whole ECU system went down in mid driving on the highway. I took it into the dealership to find out that it was due to three faulty fuses. I don't know, but for three fuses to go bad all at once is rare. A little problem, but it was taken care of under the 6 month warranty. Folks there is only one cup holder in the entire LUXURY car. It broke and cost $45.
Fifteen thousand miles later and the 6 month warranty was terminated, their became a coolant leak due to a bad hose. That one leak turned into a $1250 headache. Of course there were more to it than just a coolant leak.
After three months of no problems. The car starts to overheat constantly. So I replaced the radiator ($200+labor),heater hoses ($45+labor),thermostat and housing ($120-$150+labor). Luckily I had a mechanic in the family.
At 78,000 the front struts finally had enough of the normal wear. Replaced for 175+labor.
I started to hear and feel that the rear air bag system was leaking. I went to the dealer they wanted to charge $55 for a tube. By now I knew the car inside and out. So I rigged it using a air tube from my fish tank. First free Fix!
The car near death at 100,000 miles with overheating problems.
I must say that this car was built in Canada and is a German car sold in America by Cadillac. If you know Cadillac for their nice appearance, plush leather, comfortable handling and superior performance. Don't waste your time with this model unless you like punishment.
This mid size sedan handled good because of the air bag system.
The 200hp V6 3.0 engine was kind of weak coming from a line of 300+ V8 bred cars.
The leather interior never had any problems. Great leather! Lots of room for a small family.
The Bose radio was pathetic, it only had a cassette player. Kind of out dated for a 98'.
The Catera was a rebadged, Americanized Opel Omega MV6, and was assembled in Germany, not Canada.
I must agree. I have a 97 Catera and have had nothing, but problems with it since I bought it. 5G's for the car itself. First day I got it home the alternator was bad. Within a week, I had to get the bushings replaced for over 1000 dollars. The tires on the car go flat periodically. The oil leaks in two places and the ia motor or something to do with the starter went bad also. Its currently in the shop for that now. They're asking for over 1000 to fix these problems. New tires run about 200 or a little less. All together since I bought the car, I've spent over 8,000 dollars. Because of all this I now regret my choice of wanting to get a Cadillac.
Don't let the Catera spoil your image of Cadillac. The Catera was an isolated disaster that everyone should run from! Other Cadillacs, although not perfect, are pretty sound choices. The new CTS is great! If you see a Catera, do not get near it as it will cause even non-owners some sort of grief.
Cadillac catera is nothing, but problems.
I own a 1997 catera and it is now dumping oil on the garage floor... it was anti freeze before...but before that the air conditioning quit working... I bought this P.O.S. used and have never been burnt this bad on a car... Cadillac should be ashamed they associated themselves with this car.
I was going to buy a Catera today, so I took it to my dealer, and right when he turned it on, he said there is something wrong with the engine. He said it is only running on 5 cylinders, and it is 6, so there is something wrong.
I didn't see any other problems with the car, and neither did he, it has 200,000 km.. well just a bit under, but yeah, after reading all your coments, I'm having really bad thoughts about getting it... has anyone one got any helpful suggestions?
I'm agree catera is not a good at all I bought my 98 last summer and in the first week I discovered coolant leak I went to the mechanic they told me it will cost a Lot $$$$$$$$ also at the 65000 miles a havd to change spark wires and cover gascket cost me $600 and now every time when is high temperature outside the oil presure light goes on in other word catera is the worst car I ever had.
I'm so glad I don't own one, in the shop I work in we replaced rear brake pads and rotors, it was 500 dollar job, ouch!!
It's a Cadillac, so of course the parts are more expensive. The tires are Z rated, better for turning at a higher speed, that is why they are priced higher. The only thing I don't like is the fact that it has one set of flimsy cup holders. I had a brand new car before this and things went wrong with it as well. Any used vehicle definitely needs repairs, I just happened to pick a Cadillac.
My catera is nice and so are it's payments, oh and also the parts. my alternator went out and it costed over a thousand dollars. buy expensive pay expensive. and now my fog lights went out, my ac is not as cold, I replaced my battery, now my sports light is flashing and indicates my transmition needs service... I think it's time to trade it in for something newer. it's a 2001 with 77,ooo+miles.
I have a '97 Catera which I bought new in October of '97. It's the best car I've ever had. Until this year, the only repair on it (besides an early oil temp indicator which was covered by warranty) was a valve in the cooling system (about $175). Recently the fuel door opening motor went out; I did not have it replaced. My dealer just rigged it to stay unlocked. Yesterday I had a fuse go on the AC system, which may be an indicator of a compressor problem, but they couldn't find a problem. It has 67,000 miles on it and still runs beautifully. Its only problem is that it is really hard on tires, and the tires it uses are expensive to replace. I believe I am on my third set of tires. It gets great mileage, up to 27 mpg on the highway, usually 20 or less in town. I use premium in it.
I just bought a 97 cadillac Cat era. It's used... just realized that my tail lights doesn't work and it's pouring oil from underneath it... Any suggestions on what I should do?
Well here are some suggestions. This site helped me to save hundreds of dollars. Paste this link into your address bar and I know you'll find answers to your problems. This forum is dedicate to people that own Cadillacs http://www.cadillacforums.com/forums/cadillac-catera-cimarron-forum/
Hi! I'm Rob, I own a Cadillac Catera 1998. It has 160,000 on it so far. Since May of 2007 I've only spent on regular tune ups, maintenance, oil filter, brakes, coolant, etc.
Like every other car, wear and tear is acceptable!
I like my Catera 98, I bought the repair manual straight out of the dealer. It helped me a lot! I work on my car myself! New or old, they still break!
I wrote this review well over 2 years ago. Nice too see there were comments left. If it means anything up to a day like today, I still see Catera's broke down on the side of the road. Thanks to the guy that corrected me on the origin of the Catera. Honestly I hope it helped!