I've had my eyes open for one of these Cadillac Eldorado's since they went on sale back in 1992. GM hasn't made them since 2002 so they're getting very rare and the ones I've found up here in Cleveland have been rust buckets so imagine how excited I was when my latest "cheap car search" unveiled this rust-free 2000 "ESC" with just 98,000 miles on it and an asking price of under four-grand. Let's go!
Sadly, the earliest versions of these cars are actually the ones you want to get your hands on. Those being the ones with the 4.9 liter V-8 engine that started out as the infamous "HT4100" mess than inhaled head gaskets like Cheeto's and couldn't punch a hole in a soaking wet Kleenex. GM eventually worked out most of the kinks and made it into what they should have had from the get go but the problem is the interiors of those 1992 and 1993 4.9 liter versions screams 1980's; GM updated the interior for 1996. Furthermore, just as GM got the old HT4100 right they came out with their "world-beating" Northstar V-8 that while a strong performer out of the box, was just as notorious if not worse than the old HT4100 was for catastrophic failure. However, rumor has it GM fixed those issues come model year 2000. For the record, "Northstar" replaced the old 4.9 in the Eldorado ETC (Eldorado Touring Coupe) for 1993 and a somewhat less potent version of it was put in place for the "ESC" (Eldorado Sports Coupe) for 1994.
So, with the improved interior and fortified Northstar this silver fox thought he'd spend an afternoon after working from home with this silver fox.
To say I was somewhat dismayed when I realized this car was a good ten footer is an understatement. The driver's door would not close properly without slamming it shut nor was the left side of the hood aligned with the fender properly. Bolts on the top of the fender weren't centered in their holes either - this thing's been in an accident although the CarFax said nothing about one.
More driver's door shenanigans - there was water in the cutout on the armrest for the door pull and the power lock switch was pushed out behind the bezel. Worse yet, the bezel was loose so it looked like someone had tried to fix it but gave up. Ok. Simple enough stuff. No biggie. Bargaining chips if anything.
She fired right up and had the smooth, manly growl I love but the check engine light was on. Lovely. Then I noticed the ABS and Traction Control Lights were also on along with the Service Tire Pressure Monitor warning. Oh, brother. And the AC wouldn't blow cold. Another scrolling message on the dash saying that the refrigerant was gone. Thanks for the update.
Out on the road is where things got really, really bad. The car had no pickup. I mean, none. I told my very nice and accommodating "product specialist" who came with me that the lack of power reminded me of the "HT4100" powered two-ton Cadillac's from the early '80's. I mean, this thing had trouble getting out of first gear! Worse yet, when I'd floor the gas peddle an ominous yet flaccid roar came from the left side of the engine and that damn check engine started blinking. Blinking! That's not good. Suffice to say I'd venture to guess the head gasket or gaskets were gone on this thing. Yes, an engine with a bad head gasket will turn over and run, but with the compression shot in one if not both banks, the engine makes little to no power. If you can find a mechanic who'll do head gaskets on a Northstar you're looking at around seven thousand dollars. Good luck finding a junker to swap and I've yet to see anyone swap a 3800 V-6 into one of these. What a shame. For us fans of these cars there are few other cars like them.
We limped back into the dealership with the Northstar losing even more power the warmer it got. I swear it had trouble getting up the curb cutout to get into the parking lot. My sales guy telling me that the row of cars this was in was their "auction row" of cars that they don't check anything on. So, at that, four-grand or so was all the money in the world for a worn the hell out old Cadillac that needs just about everything. Even at a thousand dollars this car's a useless money pit.
He joked through his mask as he elbow bumped goodbye, "so, when are going to pick it up?"
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