[align=left]steams a little with a skip upon cold startup, seems ok down the road. Park it for 15 minutes start it and steam away down the road. Oil looks good. Normal level. 179000 miles. no real change in coolant level, (yet) Mechanic says not too uncommon for headbolts to pull threads out. Any opinions out there?
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Does car run hotter than normal? If not I not sure I would worry to much about it. Water (H2O) is a by product of complete combustion. Water vapors will condense in exhaust system as its cools. The water now through out exhaust turns to steam as engine and pipes heat up.

 

I'll drive it 50 miles, shut it off and wait 15 minutes, start it up and it steams. It smells of antifreeze. Really disappointed about the northstar. Won't get another...

 

At 180k miles on an 8 year old car why are you disappointed?

 

[align=left]I bought it used with 130000 mi. for 9k. Nice car and love the ride but it seems a shame the motor is failing. I don't think its' worth changing the motor. From what I understand the head bolts may have pulled out causing seepage past the head gasket. If the northstar supposed to be such a great motor then why couldn't that weakness been forseen? So now if I replace it I can't say I'd trust the next one.... [/align]

 

Your car has alot of miles and it will expensive to repair,if you choose to. Things to think about: What kind of shape is car in?Very clean with a ton of miles or well worn. How much other stuff needs tended to... idiot lights on, a/c inop,more stuff not working right than working. How much do you are you willing to spend to replace car? New car equivelent to sls will set you back 30k+,Used car with a real warranty 15k+ without less but you may back in the same boat your in. If your car is very clean or better,and everything works as designed it maybe worth fixing. If the repair is not short cut. Short cutting may come back to bite you. Before commiting to repairing your engine investigate reman and used engine options and their warranties. Down side of repairing super clean car is total loss by ins.co. Contact your agent and dicuss proper coverage, so if you make the 5-10k investment you wont be SOL 6mo. later if car is wrecked or stolen.

 

[align=left]Nice parts car for sale
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heck, 180,000 on a high performance engine - pretty good if you ask me.

And who knows what the owner who had it for the first 2/3rds of its life did - they could have run the s**t out of it.

Hopefully you'll get enough out of the parts to buy something you like -

 

[align=left]Well what kind off frosts my butt is that the motor didn't fail due to wearing items. This was a "structural" failure due to poor engineering. I know the northstar is full of good things but certain metal laws apply to certain situations. Threads per inch, when aluminun is used, etc. I wonder what they've changed with the way the heads are bolted on? Larger dia hardware? Seems somebody dropped a ball..And this car was never abused and mostly highway miles. coming to an auction site near you
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Maybe this is why...

"The Northstar V8 engine family is General Motor's top-of-the-line luxury power plant. Introduced in 1993 in the Cadillac Allante, Eldorado and Seville STS, the 4.6L 32-valve dual overhead cam all-aluminum V8 engine was a quantum leap forward for U.S. automakers. Initially rated at 295 horsepower, the Northstar V8 has been ranked as one of the "10 Best Engines in North America" by Ward's Auto World. It also beat out both Mercedes-Benz and BMW in horsepower per liter of displacement, fuel economy and required maintenance (in the 1990s)."

"The '93 to '99 engines have forged rods, cast crank and good cast pistons. '93 to '95 engines came equipped with the OBD-1 computer which will allow the chip to be modified."

Just watch what you buy - they are really one of the best engines out there - if you maintain them...

Hope you enjoy the next car you buy, and you get lots for your SLS - go for something old, and cast iron, probably more your style...