QuestionI am thinking of buying a Cadillac coupe deville for weekend driving. I have read from 1977 to 1979 the 425 is a great engine. In 1980 the deville has a 368 fuel injected then in 1981 the problems started. I would like to know your opinion on the 425 engine compared to the fuel injected 368 .
I would also consider the 2 door fleetwood big body style from the early 80's. Do these have the same problems as the devilles?
Is the 4.1 L engine and the V 8 6 4 engine the only ones to stay away from?
Thank You
AnswerHi,
Questions like this are fun for me. I love the 368. Great engine. I also did not care for the 77-79 body style. It's just me. I worked on thousands of all of these repairing them from theft. The steering column can be broken on the left side with a screwdriver and all the locking mechanisms are accessible. 1 minute or less the car is gone! Buy one and I will tell you how to keep it safe cheaply without all the junk out there. That piece of Garbage Club annoyed me because thieves would cut the steering wheel, then I had to find a replacement in color.
The 4.1 or any aluminum engine, I would tell you to run from it. The 4.1 came from the factory with an annoying engine knock. The aluminum engine can not be over heated even a little bit, because the engine is melting! Head gaskets blow if you are lucky. You will not find a good engine in the junk yards. This is all of them-4.1, 4.5, 4.9, 4.6. Good engine as long as not over heated. Since you are not buying the car new, you have no clue if it has had overheating issues in the past, I would say stay away from all Cadillac aluminum engines. I have had luck, but I also know what to look for. My last Cadillac was a 1987 Allante convert with a 4.1. I bought is with a 4.1 with 40k. Drove it for 25k and traded for a truck. I loved the car and I will probably buy another.
the 80 and 81 coupe better. The problems you heard of on the 81 is the 4 6 8. Yeah, that was a junk idea. All we did was pull one wire under the hood and you were now running on 8 cylinders. End of problem. If you can get one and get a deal because of the problems with the 4 6 8, snatch it up! As I said, it is just a matter of pulling off one wire that goes to the computer. I had a 1981 Eldo, no I had 3 and that is all I did.
I just liked the body lines on the 80 and 81. They were not as square as the 77-79. In fact, I just did not care for the 77-79 for many reasons. The interiors were not as nice either.
Happy motoring!
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