I drive a 2001 Cadillac STS. It has 146,000 miles on it. Its my 6th or 7th Cadillac and my absolute favorite. Its mono black with black leather, rims and 18" wheels. Also has a spoiler. Toyo performance tires, nosed and decked. I bought it off of the dealer showroom after they had already tricked it out as a demo. I’d keep this care for life if I could.
Been having trouble with it over spradically heating for the last week. Also using more oil than its supposed to for the last 6 months. No oil in the garage. No smoke out the rear. Couldn’t figure it out. where was the oil going.
Talked to my mechanic on the phone. He’s a good one. Described the situation. He said he can test for what he believes is the explaination for over heating and unusual oil consumption but he thinks he knows what it is… a leak in the head gasket. I asked how much and he said…It’s rediculous but you’re gonna have to take it back to the dealer and its gonna run around $10,000.
Obviously I’m not gonna put 10K in a car with 145K but I do love the car. Is there a more modestly priced alternative even if it will just buy me another 10 to 15k miles?
The price seems, shall I say, high. I also wonder why he said it needed to be the dealer. Maybe there is something about that car that would be the reason, but I have not hear of it. Maybe someone else here has. I should add that it has not been determined that it really is the head gasket yet. How is the coolant? Does it show any sign of oil in it?
For $10,000 you could probably just buy a brand new engine-forget fixing the original. I’m no Cadillac expert, but I can’t imagine how it would possibly cost that much to do a head gasket.
I agree with Dave. Unless Cadillac head gaskets are now made of 18k gold, I can’t imagine how replacement of the head gasket could possibly cost $10,000. Your mechanic has obviously estimated this job on the (very) high side. Then again, as we all know, Cadillac is “The World Standard of Excellence”–or at least this is what GM would like you to believe.