5th Mar 2008, 17:19
I am so surprise here to see some many people got the exact problem as I met. I own a STS 97 with 98k on it, and recently, the 'oil light' is on when rpm is low. I just changed oil type from '10w30' to '20w50'. Does not work.
21st Apr 2008, 19:52
I have a 96 STS - got if for a great price from a neighboring friend whose father in-law was the second owner moving into a nursing home. I loved it from the beginning, lots of power and had only 94000K when I got it in 2005. But since - I've hammered it hard and now burns lots of oil - smokes blue smoke sometimes and black smoke when I gun it, nock on cold starts in the winters until it heats up and now I've started noticing the higher temperatures on idling and bumper to bumper traffic. Last year after doing my taxes I discovered that I had spent over $5000 on service from 2 new mufflers - $1000, brakes all around, 1 rear caliper, alternator, body control module, some front end parts and more. Previous to this year - fuel rail, busted headlight, tires and more. Costly to repair. I hind-sight I think it was foolish to pile all the repairs into it that I did and maybe I should have gotten ride of it earlier. Overall probably slightly less than leasing a new car. After reading all the above postings I'm thinking it's time to unload it to some high school guy who wants to pay $3500 for 300 horse and styling like no other. Would I buy another? I must say they look great and the power is great - I like the Northstar but wonder if the newer ones still have the same old problems? With todays gas prices – it’s hard not to think about a v6 or smaller – maybe Audi A4, Acura TSX.
John Caswell.
11th Jul 2008, 19:12
I have a 97 Seville. It runs great but burns oil. It has 125,000 miles on the engine, replaced one alternator and the plugs. Now it is starting to use antifreeze. I love the car with all the power, but now the blower motor does not run, you can hear the air compressor working, and there is cold air coming out of the vents from force air. Is there a fuse that I can change? Will I have to change the blower motor? HELP.
21st Jul 2008, 14:42
I have a 97 "N" engine with 132500 miles and the stop engine is coming on along with low oil pressure. What will happen if I let this go on without any engine work being done? Also the AC was not working just blowing out a little at the bottom. I had the sensors changed and it runs great now. I have had great dependablity with this car.
12th Nov 2008, 21:57
WOW, all these comments are pretty scary. I just bought a 99 STS with 150k for 5k. The check engine light is on too. I don't know what to do. I really don't have all the money in the world. The belts make a squeaky noise. I'm from Rochester mn so it's pretty cool here. What should I check for?
28th Nov 2008, 20:52
Well, throw me under the bus also, I just bought a 99 STS 128,000. It runs great, except for the qt of oil every week.
Service engine light came on. Misfire on cyl 2. Changed plugs, most are full of ash. Research shows valve guides? Bought the car for my wife. It blows smoke when you floor it at 55.
21st Aug 2007, 21:27
September 2006, I bought a '97 STS from a 72 year old lady with 81k miles. The car looks like it came off the showroom floor. In the past year I've put 20k miles on it and I love it. The only issues I've had are the "Check Oil Level" message showing up. With all the reviews of the N* engine I was shocked to see this message. I changed the oil the first week I got the car, using synthetic oil and a 70k or higher oil filter. This message came on about six weeks later. After reading in the manual this message was to come on when the car was approximately 1 quart low, I have to add 3 quarts to get the level to the normal level. I've changed the oil twice since that time, not using synthetic being I got the same life with non-synthetic. I was very relieved (after reading these comments) to see this was a normal problem with N* engine in the '97 STS.
I've never had the "Service Engine" light come on or any other type of oil indicator while idling. The only other thing that has happened to me in the year I've had the car is;
Twice I've gotten a message pertaining to the stabilization and the speed had been reduced to 85 MPH.
I have noticed the car will miss from time to time. When I first bought the car I changed the spark plugs (platinum) and wires. Once of the plugs (2) I could not get out. I was afraid I was going to break the plug; therefore, I left it in. After visiting my mechanic he advised me to get the engine hot, spray some WD-40 on the plug and work it back and forth. The whole time I was doing this I was worried I was stripping the threads in the engine. This worked, the threads stripped on the spark plug, not the engine. I have often wondered if the missing I'm getting is because this plug is not screwed all the way down due to messing up the threads... not sure.
Recently I've noticed the A/C doesn't blow as cool while stopped at a signal light/idling. I had freon added and it seemed to make it worse. Over the last week the A/C doesn't seem to work at all; although, the compressor seems to be on. You can hear it come on when you turn the A/C. It seems to work normally; it doesn't cycle off/on often.
I did have the window controls go out in the driver's door. I was out of town, rolled down the window at McDonald's and it wouldn't go up. I was 800 miles from home during the winter. I went to Wal-Mart, bought some speaker wire, removed the door panel, had a friend hold the wires to the window motor while I touched the other end to the battery (under the hood) and the window went up. This proved to me it wasn't the motor it was the control. I replaced the controls ($100) and all windows work well.
The only other thing I've noticed with my STS is; I recently had the windows tented. I had the visor strip across the front, they cut around the automatic windshield wiper sensor; however, it has effected the sensorship of the sensor.
Reading these comments has taught me a few things I didn't know. I'll try these things and see if they make a difference.
Does anyone have any ideas or recommendations on the A/C?