Engine Belts And Pulleys problems of the 1998 Cadillac Catera

The tensioner pulley & timing belt was a know defect for vehicle and was recalled but I was never notified, at the time of failure I lost all power & control of the vehicle on an decline in a high traffic location in a server rain storm. Vehicle is now doa and gm refuses to remedy tues evening 6/23 the check engine light goes on, in 30-45 seconds the car stopped running, earlier in the day I heard a knock and thought I ran over something as all gauges indicated everything was running normal. Had aaa tow it to my home and next day (wed. ) to the caddy dealer. They charge me $109 to assess the problem, then tell me the timing belt broke! it will cost another $600 labor for 5 hours of inspection to check the problem and depending what they find $$$$$$ to fix, daaaaa! I call the service manager he tells me he'll check it out and call me back. Ok so now he calls me and tell me the rep miss-quoted what they were going to do. Now it's the tension pulley that failed casing the timing belt to snap, to replace the whole set is $699 + labor and suggested I invest another $150 to change the coolant pump as it's showing signs of leakage at the same time so it doesn't run me additional costs later as it's in the same part of the engine as the pulley and belt. Grand total of $1207 + tax. "but" depending on what happens after they replace the tensioner pulley & timing belt there might be additional cost if the car still will not start. Ok so I tell him to go ahead. I decided to goggle the problem to see what it is I am paying for, hellllllo! what do I find but a major recall back in 9/2002 on the tensioner pulley failure causing the timing belt to snap!!!!!!!!! & the replacement of the coolant pump. I was never notified or advised of this recall. They never told me anything every time I brought the car in for service. I only have only 20,654 miles on the car, as it's my 2nd vehicle and use it locally for shopping. Normal replacement for the timing belt & tensioner pulley is 70k mi.

The contact owns a 1998 Cadillac Catera. While driving 30 mph, the check engine light illuminated and the vehicle shut off. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and they stated that the tension timing belt pulley failed. The entire system needed to be replaced at the estimated cost of $1,200. After the dealer replaced the parts, they found that the component was not the cause of the failure. The dealer will re-examine the vehicle in a three part order at the estimated cost of $6,000. A report was filed with the manufacturer and they stated that the VIN was included in the recall, but the recall was for specific manufacturing plants; therefore, they would not assist. The NHTSA campaign id number was unknown. The current and failure mileages were 20,000. Updated 08/04/09. The windshield wiper did not clean the window, the vehicle had 4 batteries, the oxygen sensor was replaced.

I'm repairing the blown head gasket on the same engine for the third time in less than 50000 miles, 100000 total miles. These cars were lemons! Cadillac knows it, but does not feel the need to respond to the thousands of Catera owners who have suffered the expense of repeated repairs, totaling $10,000 with transmission replacement, major engine repair, timing belts, cooling systems, water pumps,and OH yeah. . . Electrical system failure!!! give me a break! and any advice besides the obvious.

While I was making a wide turn, the timing belt of my 1998 Catera broke and damaged the engine head of my car. The pulley was bent in the process. This is a manufacturer's defect associated with the Catera. Now the manufacturer has refused to fix my car. It will cost $5000. 00.

: the contact stated while driving 50 mph on the highway, the engine stalled and there was a loss of all vehicle power without warning. The contact managed to pull the vehicle over without incident. The engine would not restart. The vehicle was towed to a dealer who determined the timing belt separated into and damaged the engine. Due to the belt separation, the engine needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was alerted.

While driving at 65 mph, the tachometer dropped to zero, the check light came on and the vehicle stalled. The consumer was able to pull the vehicle to the side of the road, the vehicle was towed to a dealership. The dealership indicated that the timing belt had broke and destroyed the engine. The owners manual indicated that this part shouldn't been replaced until 60,000 miles and replacement is only required if the vehicle has more than one or more extreme cold start. Which hadn't occurred on this vehicle.

Car ran hot. Towed back to dealer. Dealer stated Cadillac had a recall on the water pump. Cadillac replaced the water pump. Dealer paid for belt, etc. Amounting to about $190. Less than a month following the water pump failure, the coolant began leaking. Cadillac dealer charged $950 to replace heater value and a few hoses. 1 week later, car leaked again. Returned to Cadillac dealer. Dealer kept car for two days, re-seated a water hose. 1 week later, car began skipping. Now Cadillac dealer wants to remove hoses, etc. To get to elec spark plug. No estimate of cost yet. I believe all of this is related to the faulty water pump which I understand Cadillac had on recall but I do not find the recall on your site.

Bought this 98 Catera new. To be safe from blowouts tires need to be replaced about every 20,000 miles; basically, inside shoulder wear. Gm maintains this is normal and will not take any responsibility. Now at 67,000 miles timing belt tensioner pulley failed resulting in several thousand dollars of engine damage ! very disappointed in this gm product and note the lauded 'Cadillac service'' is clearly false advertising. In good faith we are unable to sell this car. Is this government site of any real use ? clearly the tire wear safety problem and expensive idler/tensioner fan belt/timing belt problems deserve some consumer protection!.

While driving at 65mph and with no warning vehicle shuts off. Consumer is unable to get vehicle started back up. Dealer notified, the dealer found that the timing belt broke, the manufacturer had a program to repair 1998 Catera's but since the consumers vehicle had a salvaged title the dealership was released from any responsiblity to repair the vehicle at no cost.

Consumer received letter from manufacturer warning him that camshaft/timing belt idler ,and pulley could fail, resulting in engine failure.

Timing belt tensioner failed at 51,000 miles (warranty ends at 50,000 miles) causing major damage to the valves and gears. Requires new valves, tensioner, head gasket, belt, etc. Service department told me that this is a problem specific to the Catera. He said that tensioner system is unique to Catera. This problem appears to be associated with a faulty system. Other Cadillac models do not have the same timing belt system. Quoted repair cost is $4,800. This is not just a timing belt problem, which is a normal wear and tear problem. Most car owners expect to repair timing belts some time during their ownership, if they keep the vehicles long enough. However, we are talking about a $40,000 vehicle. Consumers should not expect such a costly problem to occur on this car for a very long time, if ever. Hopefully, once repaired, this will not occur again. Most consumers can not afford an unexpected $4,800 repair bill once, let alone every few thousand miles. It just seems like the tensioner must be faulty or have a faulty design. The edmunds website shows many customers who have had this problem. Gm knows about this costly problem. Why haven't they made some provision for fixing the problem?.

Timing belt tensioner pulley bearing is prematurely failing and causing major damage in the engine valve train. If the car is out of warranty, this defect results in the customer having to pay a repair bill of several thousand dollars. If the defect is found soon enough it still costs the cusomer over five hundred dollars. When I bought the Cadillac the timing belt was suppose to last at least 100,000 miles and now I hear they are recommending the replacement of the assembly (p/n9120501) within 60k. The only problem with is some cars have the problem before 60k. The warranty on the replacement parts is 12 months/12k. There are also no procedures to assist the customer in reducing the costs of the necessary repairs. The edmunds website list many customers all over the country who have experienced this problem. Gm should be required to have a recall to fix this problem and they should be required to reimburse all customers who have experienced this problem. As far as I know all years of this model can experience this problem. Also the current replacement parts are prone to fail at the same rate as the original parts since the design hasn't been improved.

While driving vehicle died due to a faulty timing belt. Dealer has vehicle currently.

The drive belt shredded causing the timing belt to jam resulting in damage the valve head. Yh.

While driving about 25 mph serpentine belt fell off, causing power steering to malfunction. This happened without any indication. The problem was reported to the dealership. Crankshaft/pulley was replaced under warranty.

While driving and without warning engine cut off. Mechanic stated that timing belt broke, causing engine to malfunction.

Engine belt failed, caused major engine damage. Yh.