1997 Cadillac Catera review from North America

Wheels permanently out of alignment.

Excessive tire wear (I get a flat about once every 2 months)

Bad ignition switch.

Heater blower never turns off, have to pull the fuse out every time I turn off the car, otherwise bye-bye battery.

Warped Rotors.

Loose trunk hinge.

Struts are almost destroyed.

Oil pressure, battery, and coolant gauges have all failed.

Radiator/coolant line touches the battery! Had to install heat shielding after the heat killed a brand new battery.

The Catera is essentially a run of the mill, no frills car built and meant for German consumers IN Germany, not America! GM did virtually nothing to modify it to US usage, except cramming in as much electronics and trinkets as they could to sell it off as a "luxury car". It's as if someone took a Ford Escort and tried to pretty it up to pawn off as BMW 3 series.

This car has constantly failed me. I have had to pull off the highway literally at least 8 times to change blown out tires due to an unfixable flaw with the wheel alignment. I've had the wheels aligned twice, but they go back to the original German Autobahn settings, which are not compatible in the US.

The struts are nearly at their end due to normal driving in the Midwest, I don't live in the mountains, I don't off-road, there is no excuse for this at all.

I would only recommend this car to a masochist, err.. I mean mechanic who has a lot of time and enjoys problem solving. This car handles terrible in the snow, it is simply NOT SAFE. I would never drive children in this car. I'm getting rid of it, Thank God, for a Dodge Neon. That should say a lot, what other "luxury" car would anyone gleefully sell to buy a Neon?