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Cadillac Repair/89 cadillac deville transmission problem

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Expert: - 9/1/2010


Question
i have an 89 cadillac deville and i started having problems shifting from 2nd to third gear...it has a hard time passing about 28-30 miles an hour...changed the transmission filter a few weeks ago and now suddenly will not shift into third at all and is overheating...

Answer
Hello,

I will start by telling you my expertise is not in transmissions and I cannot answer your question.

However, I am deeply concerned about a comment you made about overheating and I hope I am not too late.

This is an aluminum engine. If the temp gauge goes above 3/4, your engine is sustaining severe damage!!!!!!

You can't buy a used engine either because chances are real good it too was overheated and junk. From 1982 forward to now, Cadillac has always used an aluminum engine and they are notorious for problems associated with owners that thought they had a cast iron chevy engine which could be run hot doing little damage!

Such is not the case with the Cadillac engines. If one is lucky, all he did was blow the head gaskets. The hotter and longer the engine runs, the heads will crak or warp, the block may crack. In such cases I have seen $4k for a brand new engine!
My suggestion is get the car over to a transmission shop. If you think you will overheat, call a tow truck!

If the engine is going through anti-freeze now, you did some sort of catastrophic damage already. If white smoke is coming out of the exhaust, you now know at minimum you need head gaskets.

Before you take it to a trans shop, let the engine get to normal operating temp. See if  the temp gauge goes above 1/2. Shut down engine. Check the oil. If milky colored, head gaskets are blown.

I answer Cadillac overheating problems at least 2 times a week.

Cadillacs are a nice car, but the owners find out too late just how terrible the engine design is after they over heat it.

I hope I caught you in time and that you did not damage the engine.

Although I could not answer your transmission problem, I hope my explanation about over heating the engine helped you.

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Rob Painter

Expertise

Alarm system questions cannot be answered on this forum. These systems are not what I can answer. Without being physically at the vehicle and not knowing what kind of electrical service has been done on the vehicle, there is no possible way to give an accurate answer over the internet. My expertise is in Ignition/key based anti-theft systems. These issues include GM VATS (resistor chip in key blade) PASSLOCK (MRD)-ignition lock rotation based, no special ignition key and the PKIII Transponder (computer chip in key) systems. These systems are not alarm based and are integral with the starting of the engine. This is why I cannot diagnose alarm problems without physically looking at the vehicle: Alarm systems are a completely different annimal than ignition key/lock based anti-theft system. Many alarm questions come from vehicles 10 years old, and since older, many hands that had been involved over the years.I am an expert in all GM factory (ignition/key based)systems. Alarm system questions pose to many situations beyond my knowledge as to what has been done to the vehicle over the years. Some guy may have actually wired the stereo into the alarm system. Who knows? Over my past 30 years in vehicle wiring repair, I have seen unbelievable wiring disaters done by guys that consider themselves "mechanics." I have seen stereos and alarms intalled using surgical tape. I have seen modules burn up, un-fused circuits, wiring jambed between the doors and even lamp cord used for a starter kill. To answer alarm questions over the internet without examining the vehicle is like asking; What does it take to remove a dent?

Experience

Education/Credentials-ASE certified. 11 years with a GM dealer and 17 years with a repair facility dealing with only the repair of theft recovered vehicles.

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