Repair it or Crush it?

I'm surprised we haven't heard from @clinebarger

He's probably in his shop, like, ya know, actually working rather than keyboard wrenching like I do here.....

If this thing was super clean with no body damage.....Maybe? But I imagine the Bed Plate is leaking which is whole other can of worms to get into.
Then like others have said.....Put a Torque Converter in it along with a Pump Seal.

I'd also tune the low speed fans to come on about 190° no matter what. With no A/C head pressure.....The low speed fans don't come on 'til 228°. Also tune the PWM torque converter clutch apply out which extends TCC life.
 
Can you imagine if the Deville was fitted with an LS1 from '98 on? More efficient, more maintainable, higher horsepower, and about half the manufacturing cost. No wonder GM went bankrupt.

A 5.7L LS1 mated to the 4T80E would've been cool, But you have the whole Chevrolet engine in a Cadillac debacle which old timers that bought these new didn't care for.
 
Arg, my daughter just came by with a flashing CEL on hers. Misfire on #6. Looks like I'll be doing plugs and boots and hope it's not a problem with the coil (they are built into an integrated bank of 4 for that year).
 
Donate it as some have suggested, but if you've got the money, fix it first and use it as a learning experience
 
Junkyard hood and throw a package of GM cooling system tablets into the thing. I'd bet it'll be fine.

I've had 4 different N* cars of all generations: '94 STS, '98 STS, '03 STS, and a '97 Aurora. I had literally ZERO issues, cooling system wise, with any of them. The Aurora was the worst offender, the front end design allowed for basically no airflow through the radiator unless the car was moving.

That car suffered badly from heat soak. I'd park it after an extended drive, run into a store quick, and upon start up be presented with an almost pegged temp gauge. It always made me nervous, but nothing came of it.
 
The neighbor brought me the title last Saturday. So now I own a Northstar. Add it to the list of things to do...
 
Race it - LeMons. 😝

But, if the car was in good shape body-wise, all the electronics work and it’s just drivetrain, I’d fix the BHGs and try to flip it. However, Northstars have known block thread issues. The proper fix is thread inserts. Else, HG set from RockAuto, clean up the heads and block - if it ain’t warped you’re in good shape.
 
Any word on hood availability?

This thread fuels my, "I'll never buy another GM car", mindset.

One additional nuance, if I may? I like the OP's CV (curriculum vitae) and the "benefit of learning" this job would provide.
However, don't you have any number of other pressing things to get done this Spring?
For what reason did GM create these 'whack-job' engines when the others were available?
>>Seriously, what was "Northstar", anyway?
Nobody's going to want this 1999 barge even if you fix it.
The owner didn't want it. Could it have been totally neglected all its life?
Could it be a pizza delivery car?
 
So my 85 year old neighbor thinks because I’m a xxxxxx that I can fix everything. He had two repair shops tell him that the head gasket in his 2001 DeVille is blown but he doesn’t believe them. He thinks it might be something simple because the Caddy only overheats when pushing it hard. Otherwise it runs just fine on short trips around town. It does have unexplained coolant loss.

Neighbor brings the car over and just drops it off. Now this is a really good neighbor who gave my both of sons part time work around his house/barns and rental properties when they were teenagers. He always paid well (cash) and even bought them lunch every working day at the local old-timer hangout. Because of his kindness, I have a hard time telling him “no”. He has already bought a brand new Cadillac but he can’t bear the thought of crushing this one because it is in nice condition and has never seen salty Ohio roads.

I did a block test and confirmed the presence of combustion gasses in the overflow bottle. So I drive the car back over to his house to tell him the bad news. I tell him that even though I have a lift and work on my own clunkers that a job of this magnitude is a more than I feel comfortable attempting for him.

So then he says, “Well, I’m going to give you the car. I’ll bring you the title in a few days. Surely you can drive it or know someone who could.”

I say, “Hmm, well maybe I’ll consider giving it a shot. I guess if I get stuck or fail then I can tow it away for scrap.”

Him, “If you scrap it, just don’t tell me.”

Now you see my dilemma! On one hand I feel a bit obligated to try and fix it up; it would make the neighbor very happy if I were to succeed. And I would end up with a decent vehicle for relatively low cost. On the other hand, it could be a bit of a money and time pit when I have other things I would rather spend it on.

Pros
* Car drives nice.
* No other known mechanical issues.
* Never seen salt.
* Decent tires.
* Well maintained.
* Free

Cons
* 164xxx miles
* Broken grill and crinkled hood and from deer strike. (Hood still shuts and latches. Scheduled repair was put on hold due to overheating issue.)
* A very time-consuming repair that I am not overly comfortable doing.
* Color scheme would be almost my last choice. (Red and gold with whitewall tires.)

My skill level and things I’ve done in the past.
* General maintenance.
* Suspension work
* Alternator and water pump replacements
* Radiators
* Brakes
* Belts
* Hyundai Elantra timing belt
* Clutch and Transmission swap on 2000 Ford Focus
* Head gasket on 1998 Saturn

So this is obviously a very time consuming repair and one that is a bit more complicated than any I’ve ever attempted before.

Assuming I’m capable, do you think I could fix this thing for $1200 in parts?

Other thoughts?

I've owned a 2009 Northstar that started losing coolant. I immediately traded it away after reading the info below on a Northstar site.


The Northstar Engine has long been deemed the worst head gasket repair job in history by most mechanics and do-it-yourselfers. It's not that the engine is that terribly hard to work on; but it's because (until we introduced our repair method) the repairs never seemed to last.

The reason is because the threads inside the aluminum engine block corrode away and there's nothing left for the head bolts to grab on to. A new gasket and clean surfaces is great! But if you can't properly torque the bolts, all of that hard work and time goes to waste and you will have the same problem again. And believe me, it doesn't matter how good those threads look or seem to be, you cannot trust them. All 20 cylinder head bolt holes MUST be repaired in one way or another. You do NOT want to tear the car apart again anytime soon.
 
Any word on hood availability?

This thread fuels my, "I'll never buy another GM car", mindset.

One additional nuance, if I may? I like the OP's CV (curriculum vitae) and the "benefit of learning" this job would provide.
However, don't you have any number of other pressing things to get done this Spring?
For what reason did GM create these 'whack-job' engines when the others were available?
>>Seriously, what was "Northstar", anyway?
Nobody's going to want this 1999 barge even if you fix it.
The owner didn't want it. Could it have been totally neglected all its life?
Could it be a pizza delivery car?

Keep in mind this is an oddball luxury car...they finally came to the conclusion that they could just stuff a Chevy engine in a Caddy and everyone would be much happier. The last of the old Fleetwood Broughams from the late 80's got 350s and they were the best Caddy's from the time. So what if it has the same engine as a pickup, it's bulletproof.
 
I've done a couple of them. A tedious process but not rocket science. You have a lift so drop the cradle and work on it outside the car, this is waaay easier. Yes, drill and tap even if you use studs. I used timeserts, solid insert and not a helicoil. Jake from Canada has a kit with nice guide. I was on one of the Caddy forums and did a write up but that was years ago as Zonie77.

Doable if you are persistent.
 
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