1993 Allante

[Barry M Wheeler #2189]

Need advice. Would a 1993 Allante well under $4,000 with 190K on the Northstar be worth messing with for a summer car (At my age, sort of a last fling...) if it runs?  It's got a new top as well and new tires. Guy says it's in "fair" condition and is less than twenty miles from me.

[Dave Shepherd]

Will say the earlier Nstars, were subject to oil leaks and oil consumption issues, now at that mileage these issues may have been repaired.

[Mike Josephic CLC #3877]

Hello Barry:

I've had some experience with Northstars as my wife
drove her '95 Seville up to about 80k miles before
it started to leak oil.  Great car, but be aware of
the pitfalls.

I like the idea of a "last fling".  However, with
that mileage if the engine has not been rebuilt
I think you would be buying perhaps a last headache
and putting a large dent in your wallet at the same
time.

Good luck whatever you decide.

Mike

[Eric DeVirgilis CLC# 8621]

I think the potential for problems is high, especially in proportion to the value of the car.

1993 was also the first year for the Northstar and there's no guarantee the head gaskets will not fail again simply because they've already been done, assuming this is the case.

If reliability is a factor, you can do a lot better.

[Barry M Wheeler #2189]

My experience with the Northstar has been only on the selling end when they were new in late 1992. We had a county road that now borders our Meijers. "Back then" it was dark and deserted so I used it as a test track. When I was showing a Concours or STS I'd have the guy drive out there and then pull over and tell him what I wanted him to do.

Mainly to make sure he knew what was going to happen when he floored the car. About a quarter of a mile south, there was an overpass going over I-65. Usually, the customer was doing at least seventy by the time he got to the top of the overpass. It was a nice stretch of road to show off the engine torque.

We never had an Allante on the lot and I only had one guy ask about one. There was a nice discount on them at the time, but he was thinking close to "free," since they'd discontinued them in 1993.

[Barry M Wheeler #2189]

Eric, you're no fun at all. However, you are the voice of reason. I'll probably go look at it just to have a reason to take Gay out to lunch. (It IS triple black...)

[Eric DeVirgilis CLC# 8621]

Barry...I would hate for you (or anyone else) to make a decision that would be regretted later. Especially in a case where the potential for downside is far outweighs that for the good.

Should the head gaskets go, you've just bought yourself a $4,000 yard ornament and there's still a lot left that can go wrong.

[Series75]

Barry,  I've owned and enjoyed every minute of my 93 Allante pace car since buying it in 1995.  It's the best driving Cadillac I own and it's quick. With 134k on it, I have no fear with this car.   With your opportunity, I'd say buy it, have fun and if the doomsday the folks above predict comes along well, youVe got a parts car that may net you 1/2 your investment in high demand parts or whole to a breaker.  I would say owning an Allante asks you to tinker with it regularly.  But you do that with the Seville anyway. 
Regards, Tom CLC 6866

[Barry M Wheeler #2189]

I appreciate all the yeas and nays. It's coming up on Friday and guys "get paid" then, so I might miss out anyway. I wasn't being entirely truthful about the price. When I said it was "well under $4K," how about $2200? And Eric, I know that a car like this can become a money pit quickly. We'll see... Maybe the guy's wife is selling it because of illness. She's sick of looking at it.

The picture is so small I can't tell, but it may still have a 30 day paper plate on it, so the guy may have "discovered" something after HE bought it and he's trying to get out from under.

[76eldo]

It’s not worth the risk with that mileage.

Brian

[Roger Zimmermann]

Recently, a friend of mine bought a STS with a rather high mileage, about 120'000. The car was very cheap; however everything was functioning as intended and the body was in excellent shape. After 5000 miles, the car began to "eat" cooling water. The verdict is easy: cylinder head(s) gasket(s) or the threads in the engine block are letting go.
The car now is good to be scraped.

[Eric DeVirgilis CLC# 8621]

... it may still have a 30 day paper plate on it, so the guy may have "discovered" something after HE bought it and he's trying to get out from under.

That would worry me right off the bat.