'Luxury' Yank saloon for £5Kish
Discussion
Endless trawling of the classifieds has me yearning for something a bit left field. Looking for a big luxurious wafter, and because I have questionable taste Im finding myself looking at American stuff.
For £5Kish I could have a decent E60 5 series or a 2003> Jag XJ, but then that would just be too easy.
Currently looking at Chrysler 300Cs and Cadillac CTSs. Don't do huge miles, so not particularly fussy about engine size (although the 5.7 V8 in the 300C might be a bit rich for me). Main concerns are reliability and shonkiness of interior trim, not going to be on par with Euro equivalents obviously...
Which option would fellow PHers choose? Suggestions for other left field luxury saloons welcome.
For £5Kish I could have a decent E60 5 series or a 2003> Jag XJ, but then that would just be too easy.
Currently looking at Chrysler 300Cs and Cadillac CTSs. Don't do huge miles, so not particularly fussy about engine size (although the 5.7 V8 in the 300C might be a bit rich for me). Main concerns are reliability and shonkiness of interior trim, not going to be on par with Euro equivalents obviously...
Which option would fellow PHers choose? Suggestions for other left field luxury saloons welcome.
i don't think you've got much else than the 2 you've already considered on that budget
unless you are going to count ford Mondeo as american, or look at right hand drive imports from the 90s
personally i wouldn't be interest in either, Chryslers sell for a premium over hear because they're uncommon, where as in american they're an every day brand and sell for every day prices.
To me it would seem like paying a premium for a Rover in a foreign country because they're seen there as a great British brand
unless you are going to count ford Mondeo as american, or look at right hand drive imports from the 90s
personally i wouldn't be interest in either, Chryslers sell for a premium over hear because they're uncommon, where as in american they're an every day brand and sell for every day prices.
To me it would seem like paying a premium for a Rover in a foreign country because they're seen there as a great British brand
If you look at an sts check the head gaskets VERY carefully, the Northstar is a bit of a lemon of an engine, and it's rare for one to go much past 120,000 without work (why do you think caddy dropped it in favour of the ls1) , also the gearboxes develop a problem with converter lockup which is extremely expensive to fix. I ran yanks for about ten years, ranging from old crocks to ultra low mileage. The newer stuff really is very dubious, you would be better off either something like an old bmw or merc.
The Chrysler is basically an old e class merc, so at least it's reasonably robust, looks are a matter of taste and the interior is typical Chrysler flimsy, but it depends how important that is to you.
Both of the cars you mentioned were officially imported into the uk, but Vauxhall never really knew what to do with Cadillac, so finding expert knowledge can be tricky, as independent garages can only go so far. As a cautionary tale my mustang was off the road for over six months with a mystery power loss and vibration issue (turned out to be a poorly manufactured crank which had twisted, throwing the ignition timing massively out. My dad had a Chevy Tahoe (not that far off new at the time) which developed a misfire when LPG converted. The misfire turned out to be a cracked intake manifold (again, poor quality materials) which finally manifested itself about a year later as a coolant leak. After the leak appeared the vehicle was off the road for around nine wheels before it could be traced. The heater control panel also failed in the middle of winter (no fun with no demisters) the part took six weeks to arrive.
Modern vehicles really need proper importer knowledge and support which the American stuff just doesn't have. It's fine when everything is ok, but it's you who will be left with the expensive ornament on the drive when a fault occurs that can't be fixed.
Both of the cars you mentioned were officially imported into the uk, but Vauxhall never really knew what to do with Cadillac, so finding expert knowledge can be tricky, as independent garages can only go so far. As a cautionary tale my mustang was off the road for over six months with a mystery power loss and vibration issue (turned out to be a poorly manufactured crank which had twisted, throwing the ignition timing massively out. My dad had a Chevy Tahoe (not that far off new at the time) which developed a misfire when LPG converted. The misfire turned out to be a cracked intake manifold (again, poor quality materials) which finally manifested itself about a year later as a coolant leak. After the leak appeared the vehicle was off the road for around nine wheels before it could be traced. The heater control panel also failed in the middle of winter (no fun with no demisters) the part took six weeks to arrive.
Modern vehicles really need proper importer knowledge and support which the American stuff just doesn't have. It's fine when everything is ok, but it's you who will be left with the expensive ornament on the drive when a fault occurs that can't be fixed.
Edited by philoldsmobile on Saturday 28th June 19:08
redtwin said:
Lexus LS400 is the closest I have come to a Lincoln Town Car without actually being in a Lincoln TC.
If you want a big Yank tank for the waft-ability, then the LS is perfect. If you are specifically after cheap interior materials and low tech mechanicals then it obviously won't suit.
That post actually contains an answer to the question.Just import a Crown Vic or the Lincoln.Simple easy to maintain,pushrod V8,and will probably run forever.If you want a big Yank tank for the waft-ability, then the LS is perfect. If you are specifically after cheap interior materials and low tech mechanicals then it obviously won't suit.
bimsb6 said:
Cheeky b'stards at the car rental place last year tried to give me crown vic .lol
I'm guessing the latest version isn't like the typical old school one.Back then you had to ask the rental firm for one because everyone wanted them.www.youtube.com/watch?v=_T8Sid6386s
XJ Flyer said:
bimsb6 said:
Cheeky b'stards at the car rental place last year tried to give me crown vic .lol
I'm guessing the latest version isn't like the typical old school one.Back then you had to ask the rental firm for one because everyone wanted them.www.youtube.com/watch?v=_T8Sid6386s
davepoth said:
XJ Flyer said:
bimsb6 said:
Cheeky b'stards at the car rental place last year tried to give me crown vic .lol
I'm guessing the latest version isn't like the typical old school one.Back then you had to ask the rental firm for one because everyone wanted them.www.youtube.com/watch?v=_T8Sid6386s
davepoth said:
XJ Flyer said:
bimsb6 said:
Cheeky b'stards at the car rental place last year tried to give me crown vic .lol
I'm guessing the latest version isn't like the typical old school one.Back then you had to ask the rental firm for one because everyone wanted them.www.youtube.com/watch?v=_T8Sid6386s
bimsb6 said:
Cheeky b'stards at the car rental place last year tried to give me crown vic .lol
I believe that the Crown Vic is only available to Government/Police departments and car hire firms now.Its still available to the rental firms because it is very popular. Of course it may be their preferred rental car, as opposed to being popular with hirers...
GC8 said:
I believe that the Crown Vic is only available to Government/Police departments and car hire firms now.
Its still available to the rental firms because it is very popular. Of course it may be their preferred rental car, as opposed to being popular with hirers...
When it's seen in the environment where even the performance of the Crown Vic,can be sufficient to create a borderline felony speeding offence on a clear Interstate, it's ability to cover long distances with limo type comfort,with old fashioned US simplicity,is/was hard to beat.By that comparison it's probably just as popular with hirers,not just the rental firms themselves,now as it ever was. Its still available to the rental firms because it is very popular. Of course it may be their preferred rental car, as opposed to being popular with hirers...
XJ Flyer said:
davepoth said:
XJ Flyer said:
bimsb6 said:
Cheeky b'stards at the car rental place last year tried to give me crown vic .lol
I'm guessing the latest version isn't like the typical old school one.Back then you had to ask the rental firm for one because everyone wanted them.www.youtube.com/watch?v=_T8Sid6386s
Anyway the 5.0 - so the 302 (?) Cubic Inch small block was phased out in the early nineties. There hasn't been a car equipped with that engine for several generations. I know thee 1991/92 Victoria had the 4.6 single cam fitted - the Intech V8? Anyhow it's proven to be reliable in service.
The 5.0 litre was carburettor fed! As far as I know it was the last carburettor V8 in a normal car; but the car was a weird thing with electronic sensors attached. Apparently it was unreliable and the later fuel injected 4.6 was a lot better.
It's an interesting history lesson but I don't think the request would be best served by a late eighties sedan. Does it have to be a saloon? It's relatively easy to get a late nineties Camaro for that price.
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