General Comments:
Was so excited the night we went to pick up our brand new black on black STS. A new Cadillac, what more could you want.
Salesman was great, He went over that car with us with a fine tooth comb. He showed us how everything worked, Set up our On-Star account, Programed our seats you name it he did it.
We left the dealer as happy as you could possibly be about a new vehicle, after all we just got a brand new Cadillac, The car we always dreamed of having, The one we worked years for to be able to afford.
Our first few miles were great. We were ecstatic. We decided to take it for a fast ride on the freeway, After all this is the American version of a luxury sports sedan. This car will be best at highway speeds. As soon as we got to about 60-65mph we noticed a vibration-pulsation in the steering wheel and could also feel it in the seats. Didn't think much of it, figured it just needs to break in a little bit.
THEN THE NIGHTMARE BEGINS. After the first week we decided to bring it back to our dealer to have it looked at. They said probably just needs the wheels balanced, it will be just a few minutes. Go to our customer lounge, have a cup of coffee, maybe a donut, we will have it done for you in no time. Left the dealer and sure enough it was still vibrating. Seemed like it could of been a little worse.
Over the next few months we got really familiar with the service department at our dealer. Not only for the vibration problem, but for a few others like heated seats that kept blowing fuses, They tried fixing that about 6 or 7 times, finally just putting a larger fuse in to correct it, and excessive oil consumption, They wanted us to come back every week to measure the oil to see if it was to GM specifications. No wonder the customer lounge was so nice, they knew we were going to be spending a lot of time there. They finally threw a service bulletin at us and said it was normal for the engine to burn 1 or 2 quarts of oil every few thousand miles. We thought they must know, This is a Cadillac, The best of the American cars. But the worst one was the vibration. We had everything done that was recommended, Tires repalced with special Michelin's, Rotors cut, Special wheel balancing procedures, New control arms, You name it they did it. You've heard it all before.
The car still vibrated. I talked to the service manager and he said "That's the way these cars are, they have a tight sporty suspension they are supposed to ride a little rough" That was not what I was expecting to here about a $50000.00 car. Not that beautiful black Cadillac I worked so hard for.
Next I contacted Cadillac customer service. They then contacted my dealer to try to resolve this problem. I was told by the service manager there was nothing more he could do with the car. He did everything Cadillac told him to. He also told me I wasn't the only one with this problem.
Next I contacted an attorney. I won't go into details, but I don't have the car any longer, The one I thought I would keep forever, Only had it for a year and a half. Its a Cadillac where could you possibly go from here. I will never look at a Cadillac the way I did before ever again. They blew it.
Don't let them get away with it. I have read a lot of other postings to this site about the same problems over and over.
27th May 2005, 09:58
Mine is a 1997, bought from a Wholesale dealer. Checked with Carfax after I bought it, had been a leased car twice. Love this car! No vibration at any speed. Have had some oil usage. Actually, this is my fourth Cad and I think my favorite, although the 1979 Deville Deluxe is pretty close. Will try to keep it "up to par" so I can have it forever!