Cadillac Repair: EGR Valve, combustion chambers, cadillac sedan deville

Question
I own a 1996 Cadillac Sedan Deville with 116,000 miles and is driven daily on the Highway. Friday I came to a stop light after exiting from the highway and suddenly the car went dead, without warning. I did receive an earlier dash warning about Emissions Service, then it died about 2 miles past this notice. I was unable to restart the car and had it towed to my Dealer in Detroit. The dealer said it was the EGR valve which was stuck in the open position. Why did this cause the car to shut down? My question is what happend and why did the car quit without warning? The EGR was replaced by the dealer. Could this happen again? What is the purpose of the EGR valve? Thanks

John

Answer
Although this is RARE it does happen. The EGR is part of your emissions system and what it does is recirculate unburned fuel from the combustion chambers back thru the engine to reburn it a second time.

Chances of this happening again are about a million to one.


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