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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 4:32 am 
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Joined: Fri Aug 05, 2011 10:53 am
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Location: Margate, England.
Year and Trim: 1998 Buick Park Avenue
I'm considering buying a 1990 Cadillac Seville, apparently equipped with the 180bhp 4.5 liter engine.
Are there any pitfalls to be avoided, is it a money pit to run from in terror? http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Cadillac-Seville/224207336153
Or is it a pleasant car for gentle cruising and light duties.

I know it's not an H body, but it seems to have the same basic layout. I'm looking for comfort smooth riding quiet rather than tire shredding performance, something Cadillac ought to be good at.

Are parts hard to find?, bear in mind I'm in England so I can't go to the local parts store or junkyard to pick up something I need in a hurry, but the same can be said of any car with no dealer backup here.
Thanks in anticipation;

Roger.


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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 8:58 am 
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My only question would be how bad of a thing is rust across the pond?

That's what usually kills any vehicle deal around these parts in the US. If the car isn't rusty, you can always replace whatever is broken, to a degree of course.

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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 10:55 am 
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Nice to hear from you again Roger! I’ve missed your car show pics.

You asked if parts for a 1990 Caddy are hard to find. I would say in the UK they’ll be near impossible to find. Normal stuff like starters, brake pads, spark plugs, etc. you likely can get from RockAuto or some other online source. Grille, windshield, tail lamp, and things like that you’ll certainly struggle with.

I was in your country about a year and a half ago, and the car situation is very different than in the USA. We rented a big-a$$ Mercedes van (had to transport a large stroller for 2-year old). Thought this would be great! Plenty of room for our crap & people. ½ Kilometer out of Heathrow I’m curbing the left rims and my wife is screaming with a death grip clawed into the dashboard. Good grief those roads are narrow!

Here I am trying to squeeze the frikken Vito Tourer through a passage without taking out someone’s plumbing or gas line. BTW, a lot of the plumbing is on the outside of houses there, but that’s another story.
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I quickly understood why most people over there drive roller skates (and quickly wished I’d rented one). Another automotive observation was that, like, 95% of the cars on the road were no more than about 3 years old. Everyone was driving new cars. I was told that pricing on new cars was so reasonable that, rather than fixing their current car, it was cost effective to purchase a new one. And that kills the used car market, so cars that are only a few years old are scrapped. Because everyone is driving new cars, there is no market for used parts for older cars so those scrapped cars are destroyed. (So, Carl, probably nobody knows if rust is an issue over there because the cars aren’t around long enough to rust. :lol: ) Americans are probably thinking why not take them across the Channel and sell them instead of destroying perfectly good cars? That was my thought, at least. Problem is that in the UK the steering wheel is on the wrong side of the car. :poke: It’s undesirable (and in some countries illegal) to drive a RH car in a LH country. The guy who told me all this was making a business buying used cars dirt cheap and parting them out. Apparently there are still a few people that are content not replacing the entire car every 3 years.

I guess the point I’m trying to make, other than to enlighten the US contingent on some of the uniqueness in the UK, is that you probably would have trouble finding odd parts for a 3-5 year old car over there let alone a 90’s Cadillac. But it looks like you own, or owned, an 87 Olds and 89 Buick so you’re well aware of the troubles you’ll have. I would expect the reliability of the 90 Seville to be on par with those two cars. I don’t think you’ll have any worries about shredding the tires on it either.

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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 11:22 am 
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I will add, that I don't think there were any "major" issues with the 4.5, it was an "in-between" engine, meaning a couple years later, the Northstar was introduced. So there really wasn't a lot of investment in this engine, as such, even here, parts are not abundant to find. So over there, probably next to impossible.

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Summer Toys: Combined 827 RWHP / 877lb/ft RWTQ
2004 Pontiac GTO: Impulse Blue Metallic/Black/M6: lots 'o mods, 415 RWHP / 405lb/ft RWTQ!
2006 Cadillac STS-V: Light Platinum Metallic/Light Gray/A6 - Spectre CAI, Magnaflow exhaust, Speed Inc. tune, 412 RWHP / 472lb/ft RWTQ

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2015 Chrysler Town & Country Limited Platinum: Kids new RGC
2007 Chrysler Town & Country Limited: Sold to neighbor
2009 Pontiac G8 GT: L76, Sport Red Metallic
2003 Chevrolet Suburban 2500: Doeskin Tan - 8.1L Big Block... new plow truck
1999 Chevrolet Suburban: Sunset Gold Metallic - Daddy's winter beater and plow truck


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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 1:53 pm 
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Joined: Fri Aug 05, 2011 10:53 am
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Location: Margate, England.
Year and Trim: 1998 Buick Park Avenue
From what I've learned since making enquiries is this;
The engines are prone to leaking rear crank seals, it seems this one has an oil leak. However taking an engine out of a GM fwd isn't beyond me. I blew up the transmission in my 1989 Buick so I get it's not a quick job.
It seems the 4.1 early versions were trouble prone, mainly because (you'll never believe this :roll: ) the GM bean counters got in the way, but later larger versions were much improved. This remind anyone of the Olds diesel?

Anyway, at the moment it's at a bargain price, so I'll let you know tomorrow if I won the auction.

Roger.


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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 2:55 pm 
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Location: Margate, England.
Year and Trim: 1998 Buick Park Avenue
Sirius wrote:
Nice to hear from you again Roger! I’ve missed your car show pics.

I was in your country about a year and a half ago, and the car situation is very different than in the USA. We rented a big-a$$ Mercedes van (had to transport a large stroller for 2-year old). Thought this would be great! Plenty of room for our crap & people. ½ Kilometer out of Heathrow I’m curbing the left rims and my wife is screaming with a death grip clawed into the dashboard. Good grief those roads are narrow!

Here I am trying to squeeze the frikken Vito Tourer through a passage without taking out someone’s plumbing or gas line. BTW, a lot of the plumbing is on the outside of houses there, but that’s another story.
Image

I quickly understood why most people over there drive roller skates (and quickly wished I’d rented one). Another automotive observation was that, like, 95% of the cars on the road were no more than about 3 years old. Everyone was driving new cars. I was told that pricing on new cars was so reasonable that, rather than fixing their current car, it was cost effective to purchase a new one. And that kills the used car market, so cars that are only a few years old are scrapped. Because everyone is driving new cars, there is no market for used parts for older cars so those scrapped cars are destroyed. (So, Carl, probably nobody knows if rust is an issue over there because the cars aren’t around long enough to rust. :lol: ) Americans are probably thinking why not take them across the Channel and sell them instead of destroying perfectly good cars? That was my thought, at least. Problem is that in the UK the steering wheel is on the wrong side of the car. :poke: It’s undesirable (and in some countries illegal) to drive a RH car in a LH country. The guy who told me all this was making a business buying used cars dirt cheap and parting them out. Apparently there are still a few people that are content not replacing the entire car every 3 years.

I guess the point I’m trying to make, other than to enlighten the US contingent on some of the uniqueness in the UK, is that you probably would have trouble finding odd parts for a 3-5 year old car over there let alone a 90’s Cadillac. But it looks like you own, or owned, an 87 Olds and 89 Buick so you’re well aware of the troubles you’ll have. I would expect the reliability of the 90 Seville to be on par with those two cars. I don’t think you’ll have any worries about shredding the tires on it either.


Mercedes cars are commonplace over here, even their Minivans. In fact many cars on our roads are not much smaller than a G Body, my wife's Citroen and my SIL's Ford Mondeo are taller, just as wide, and maybe a foot shorter. Many cars are leased as well, which might explain the disproportionate amouint of new cars.
However there is a thriving trade keeping older cars on the road, the mainstay of their work is swapping out failed major components rather than replacing worn out engines and repairing structural rust which was how I earned my living for many years. Not all cars die young, a good example is my dd peugeot diesel wagon which I took over from my wife when she retired. She earned her living with it as a cab driver for 14 years, racking up 250k miles with it. It hasn't had any major failures in that time, the powertrain is untouched apart from regular oil changes and thorough servicing.
We are used to our roads, most of Europe had its road infrastructure long before the advent of affordable automobiles. Narrow roads and expensive gas made large cars something for the rich to enjoy.

The G bodies have gone now :sad: replaced with a Chrysler Fifth Avenue. It looks much more like the traditional American :usa: car than the Buick or Olds, but needs me to concentrate when I drive it.

Roger.


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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 4:47 pm 
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I mean, my LC3 N* leaks from the rear main bearing. So...

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Retired Bonneville Owner and former GM Tech:
2004 Pontiac Bonneville GXP: Black/Ebony *SOLD*

Summer Toys: Combined 827 RWHP / 877lb/ft RWTQ
2004 Pontiac GTO: Impulse Blue Metallic/Black/M6: lots 'o mods, 415 RWHP / 405lb/ft RWTQ!
2006 Cadillac STS-V: Light Platinum Metallic/Light Gray/A6 - Spectre CAI, Magnaflow exhaust, Speed Inc. tune, 412 RWHP / 472lb/ft RWTQ

Daily Drivers:
2019 Chrysler Pacifica Limited: Mommy's new RGC
2015 Chrysler Town & Country Limited Platinum: Kids new RGC
2007 Chrysler Town & Country Limited: Sold to neighbor
2009 Pontiac G8 GT: L76, Sport Red Metallic
2003 Chevrolet Suburban 2500: Doeskin Tan - 8.1L Big Block... new plow truck
1999 Chevrolet Suburban: Sunset Gold Metallic - Daddy's winter beater and plow truck


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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 5:06 pm 
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Your wife was a cabby? That's freakin' awesome! We were there for the Great London Cab Strike of 2019 (don't know if that's that it was called, but sounds impressive). We talked to some cab drivers and what it takes to be a cab driver is impressive. They have to remember, like, 25000 different sites and addresses, pass all kinds of tests...you don't just hop in a black car with a sign on top. (Unlike Uber...) :bpylons: :) Seriously, UK cabbies know their stuff.

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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 5:33 pm 
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Joined: Fri Aug 05, 2011 10:53 am
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Location: Margate, England.
Year and Trim: 1998 Buick Park Avenue
She wasn't a London Hackney Carriage cab driver, but worked in Margate (look it up on Google Maps). She used the Peugeot as her workhorse, Hackney carriage drivers must only use vehicles of a specific design, the ubiquitous "Black Cab".
London cabbies probably have to meet the stiffest standards in the world, and their cabs must be in first class shape. I knew a few cab drivers, I thought I knew my way round parts of London having lived and worked there for a while, but a quick chat about the areas I lived and worked in soon displayed a woeful lack of knowledge on my part!.

Sorry I haven't any show pics this year, quite simply there have been very few shows in the UK this year, and none of the bigger ones. hopefully the Covid pandemic will be over by next year and we can return to normal.

Roger.


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PostPosted: Thu Oct 29, 2020 9:48 am 
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Looks like you could throw a rock and hit France from Margate. We didn't go that far east when we were there. I did find a Texas Pizza on the map in Margate though. I had no idea Texas was famous for pizza! :lol:

Yes, the wretched COVID has put a damper on pretty much everything. I didn't see any COVID on the Salt Flats, however - appeared to be COVID-free. ;)

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PostPosted: Thu Oct 29, 2020 2:45 pm 
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Joined: Fri Aug 05, 2011 10:53 am
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Location: Margate, England.
Year and Trim: 1998 Buick Park Avenue
Well. there's a London in Texas (nw of Fredericksburg).

I didn't win the Cadillac, :sad: it went for more than I was prepared to pay.
Still, keep on looking.

Roger.


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PostPosted: Thu Oct 29, 2020 3:42 pm 
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rustyroger wrote:
Well. there's a London in Texas (nw of Fredericksburg).
I wonder if they sell pizza there? :)

Sorry you missed the Caddy.

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