RE: Shed of the Week: Cadillac Seville STS

[bimsb6]

We had one of those brand new as the mrs company car , handling was interesting when pushed and a pig to park anywhere . Apparently the suspension is horrendously expensive to repair , there was a used one near me in someones garden with suspension issues effectively writing it off .

[macscrooge]

I know it’s wrong, but I quite like this....

[Sparky137]

wormus said:

BeirutTaxi said:

Why would you have one of these over a 540i?

Because you can tell your friends you drive a Cadillac

And it has working direction indicators - an option box often not ticked on BMW's

[freakybacon]

Sparky137 said:

wormus said:

BeirutTaxi said:

Why would you have one of these over a 540i?

Because you can tell your friends you drive a Cadillac

And it has working direction indicators - an option box often not ticked on BMW's

A cheap way of being able to shout “Ah want mah caddy back!” when hunting it in the multi-storey car park!

I would, if it suited my needs....

[legless]

This has to be a contender for the most powerful FWD saloon ever sold in the UK.

[The Eye]

And.....This was a pace car at Le Mans back in the 20th century when Cadillac had some race cars there... Money talks....

[jas xjr]

Flash, like a rat with a gold tooth.
















Courtesy of gbu in car magazine

[BeirutTaxi]

freakybacon said:

A cheap way of being able to shout “Ah want mah caddy back!” when hunting it in the multi-storey car park!

I would, if it suited my needs....

Okay... So looking at the replies there is no genuine, concrete reason for having this over the 540i

[darkyoung1000]

Blackpuddin said:

Every thread has the potential to be improved by an extract from Viz.

[Jimmy Recard]

BeirutTaxi said:

Okay... So looking at the replies there is no genuine, concrete reason for having this over the 540i

Sometimes you just want something.

I really like the STS and the 540i but for me the STS edges it. No good reason why, I’ve just always fancied one and my dad’s friend had one when I was a kid and I thought it was cool then!

Most people would rather have a 540i and I see why. They’re great cars

[ChemicalChaos]

Jimmy Recard said:

BeirutTaxi said:

Okay... So looking at the replies there is no genuine, concrete reason for having this over the 540i

Sometimes you just want something.

I really like the STS and the 540i but for me the STS edges it. No good reason why, I’ve just always fancied one and my dad’s friend had one when I was a kid and I thought it was cool then!

Most people would rather have a 540i and I see why. They’re great cars

Tell me, is an elderly 540i really that much better? The M62 V8s were riddled with issues - nikasil liners on early ones, VANOS failuresand broken timing chain guides on all of them. Not to mention the plastic water pumps that either leak of have the vanes erode away, leading to hot running and head gasket failure. The radiators are only just adequate if in good condition. Usually they are silted up, which again gives hot running, and also leads to gearbox issues as the autobox is cooled by the bottom rows of the rad. The gearbox heat exchanger also sits up. Drive enthusiastically on a hot day and it will soon lock up the torque convertor as the oil overheats. This is assuming the 5hp24 gearbox has made it past 100k miles without needing a rebuild, which they are famous for - either throwing error messages or physically going bang.
Let's not get started on the interior either shall we? Yes, the Cadillac is plasticky but so is an E39 (and an E60!). The wood is just as fake, and the optional "metal" sports trim that usurps it is simply some nasty painted plastic.


Anyway. For anyone considering this week's shed, here's a much better condition one for about the same money:
https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2...

[Jimmy Recard]

ChemicalChaos said:

Tell me, is an elderly 540i really that much better? The M62 V8s were riddled with issues - nikasil liners on early ones, VANOS failuresand broken timing chain guides on all of them. Not to mention the plastic water pumps that either leak of have the vanes erode away, leading to hot running and head gasket failure. The radiators are only just adequate if in good condition. Usually they are silted up, which again gives hot running, and also leads to gearbox issues as the autobox is cooled by the bottom rows of the rad. The gearbox heat exchanger also sits up. Drive enthusiastically on a hot day and it will soon lock up the torque convertor as the oil overheats. This is assuming the 5hp24 gearbox has made it past 100k miles without needing a rebuild, which they are famous for - either throwing error messages or physically going bang.
Let's not get started on the interior either shall we? Yes, the Cadillac is plasticky but so is an E39 (and an E60!). The wood is just as fake, and the optional "metal" sports trim that usurps it is simply some nasty painted plastic.


Anyway. For anyone considering this week's shed, here's a much better condition one for about the same money:
https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2...

You’re right, they certainly both have their issues and new V8s aren’t cheap to run, let alone old V8s like these.

I’d be a happy man with a 540i or an STS and I’ve always liked the Northstar and how the technology that was amazing when new in 1991 or 1992 made its way down the chain. A case of GM as a leviathan using its position to innovate. GM is not the same company that it was (mostly for better rather than worse) and doesn’t even operate a proper European arm nowadays

[aaron_2000]

Certainly a car to avoid if you rat your soon to be husband out to the FBI then get told he attempted suicide.

[Mr Tidy]

I really don't know why, but I like that a lot! Maybe it's just as well I don't need a car like that.

I'm not a fan of FWD but that hardly matters on a wafty barge and it's certainly very different to the other options!

[only1ian]

Great shed! Number 47 in the top gear all time list of crap cars:





They believe it has the whiff of Northern night club owner rather than an odour of Jimmy Savell

[williamp]

Top gear road test. "Imagine a car with the grace of a jaguar, built by Lexus and tuned by the people who gave you the mclaren F1..."


https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6mndX4SyORc

..isnt what clarkson said...

[calistomon]

Where did 'ensmallening' come from?

[Mike335i]

Sparky137 said:

wormus said:

BeirutTaxi said:

Why would you have one of these over a 540i?

Because you can tell your friends you drive a Cadillac

And it has working direction indicators - an option box often not ticked on BMW's

Aren't you just amazingly funny? What next? Weakest link joke?

My indicator wore out on my BMW.... Just saying.

I really like this as an idea. Big V8, terrible but comfy car, rarity and cheap. It would be terrible I know, but still liking it.

raspy said:

"This produced 300hp at a lofty 6000rpm, somewhat more than a GS ever had"

Not quite true. The 2005 GS430 had 279bhp from a 4.3 litre V8.

this made me laugh, even if there were GSs with more power, why give the example of one that did indeed have less power

[st4]

Mike335i said:

this made me laugh, even if there were GSs with more power, why give the example of one that did indeed have less power

As GS is still a better car, they just don't go wrong and the engine is mounted north south as opposed to transversely with the correct wheels driven.

[Jimmy Recard]

st4 said:

As GS is still a better car, they just don't go wrong and the engine is mounted north south as opposed to transversely with the correct wheels driven.

Irrelevant really.

The only person I know who has owned an STS had a GS300 before it and said over and over that the Cadillac was the better car. I think this is a case where you can’t state anything without someone else pointing out that it’s mere opinion