29K Original Miles: 2003 Cadillac DeVille DTS
Over the last several years, Cadillac has strived to get younger shoppers into the showroom, an approach that has had its share of ups and downs. As a company, I’d say it’s hard to recall the last time Cadillac had a truly “hit” model that shattered sales goals, but before it migrated to a much more performance-oriented lineup with SUVs and smaller sedans, its big four-door offerings were still top banana among a certain group of more seasoned car shoppers. Check out this low-mileage 2003 Cadillac DeVille here on eBay with bids to $6,600 and no reserve.
There’s a large part of me that wishes Cadillac had stuck to making cars like this and the Seville, but I can certainly understand why it didn’t. Models like this were going the way of the dinosaurs, and like the Lincoln Town Car and Continental, it was growing increasingly difficult to sell car shoppers on the concept of a large, V8-powered sedan that still offered a landau roof as an option. From a styling standpoint, you can see how Cadillac was attempting to bring more modern touches into the design, but when owners still opted for tires with yellow bands on the sidewall to accentuate the chrome wheel finish, you can understand why Cadillac had to blow the whole lineup up.
There were also issues of reliability that plagued some of the late 90s and 2000s-era Cadillacs, particularly with the Northstar engine. The interiors, however, were quite handsome, with high-grade materials used throughout and plenty of space that made driving across town or the country a treat. Despite this, these cars often had low resale value once they eclipsed 50,000 miles or so, and they cascaded down the slippery slope of deferred maintenance and neglectful owners. This DeVille, however, has clearly been loved and is absolutely loaded with front and rear heated seats, the gold badges package, full power options, and much more.
The 4.6L Northstar V8 kicked out a respectable 275 horsepower and 300 lb-ft of torque. With under 30,000 original miles, this one is still relatively fresh, and even though the Northstar in general had a reputation for being mechanically-needy, one with miles this low should be easy to live with for some time to come. These days, it’s hard to get into anything classified as a luxury vehicle for under $65,000, so if you’re OK with living in the past, a low-mileage DeVille DTS like this one may be worth a closer look as a possible daily driver replacement. What do you think a low-mileage DeVille like this is worth?
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Comments
1st sentence, spot on. My daughter, who is going to be 38 next week( where did THAT time go?), and a couple years back, her Dodge Caliber, which I thought was a great car, just didn’t fit in the Hollywood parking lots, with M-Bs, Lambos, and such, she needed to upgrade. I BEGGED her to look at the Caddys. She hemmed and hawed, said, “I don’t want an old grandpa car, dad”, and looked at Audis and settled on a BMW. She’s been very happy with it, and will probably buy another. I think we, in our lifetime, will see the demise of the once greatest car in America, and possibly the world. Who’s to blame? Well, certainly cushy, affordable BMWs didn’t help, but the bigger picture, GM waited too long, as in typical fashion. Once folks, like my kid, drove a BMW, why would you buy anything else?
This car for what seems to be a pittance, is a slap in the face to this great marque. Oh, Caddy, you were once so proud, what ever happened to that?
I agree with you! A relative of mine had a newer edition of this same car because at the time,he was a VP at GM. I always loved that car and I wished I had the money to buy it from him.Cadillacs now are all numbers and letters and you don’t know trim levels or models unless you really research them.
Also Cadillac like all the rest now focuses on SUVS (glorified trucks),crossovers and melted jelly beans! 🤮 🤮 🤮
Unfortunately the Standard of the WORLD, like all other traditional American Luxury Sedans are sadly Gone With the Wind! 🏰. As God is my witness, I shall never drive a POS! And, Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn!
In my opinion a great car company has to be controlled by a great car guy and not a committee made up of bean counters and lawyers. Once the great designers were overruled by accountants it was just a matter of time. GM also made the mistake of following the lead of their foreign competition and going away from RWD to FWD for their luxury models and Once they committed to it MB and BMW switched back but GM took too long to make the change back as nobody wants to stick out due to the culture at GM of keeping your head down and not being a target to get beheaded.
I’ve driven one of these and I know what the DTS stands for. With 300 lb ft of torque feeding the front wheels, you have Definite Torque Steer.
Buddy drove one for a customer to the desert 🏜 from BC. Said it was an absolute dreamboat on the highway 🛣
Agreed, once she’s up and going, it is nice. Just don’t take off with full throttle, or be ready to grab it. The seats are very comfortable and they are well equipped. I did not mean to make it degrading, it is just my observation.
LOL but DTS originally was Deville Touring Sedan. I wouldn’t consider touring or anything else in one of these!
I drove them for years and never experienced torque steer.
Has anyone driven a CTS-V ? Cadillac has not always hit the right mark lately but there are still great cars just pick the right one
With all due respect, NOTHING Cadillac (or any other manufacturer) currently makes, has any interest for me. My current 2007 Town Car is the last gasp of traditional American Luxury sedans. As a Vintage Rolls Canardly, Roll down one hill and Can ardly get up the next, I will not let this one get away.
Like you, I won’t let my 2007 Town Car get away. As a tall friend of mine (who drives a Lexus) said as he got into the back seat, “Now THIS is a luxury automobile!”
Sir, your responses are like television in the summer; all reruns.
Then you don’t know what you are missing. I have a ’22 CT4 V Blackwing with the 6 speed manual. That car is an out right blast. The CT4 and CT5 series show Cadillac is trying, now if consumers would actually fall back in love with rwd sedans.
To Anthony. Thank you 😊 I much prefer summer reruns of QUALITY shows to insipid talk, game, and so called reality shows! 👍
Sorry, my rerun comment was meant for Timothy. Here I go with another rerun! 😁 🤣. 😉
To Eric in NC… check my posts. Had 78 Town Coupe, HUGE Land YACHT. Loved piloting that big boat! Had 89 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham deElegance 🏆. 93 Brougham was a disappointment. Have also had several GRAND MARQUIS and TOWN CARS. My current low mileage 2007 Town Car Signature Limited is the last gasp of traditional American Luxury sedans. A recent article referred to these last generation Town Cars as the American ROLLS-ROYCE. My Town Car is not SILVER, but like riding on a CLOUD! 👍
To Anthony. LINCOLN, what a Luxury CAR should be and once was! 👍
My step mom had one.
Dad’s Cadillac and Marquis were better drivers cars and were big and comfy too.
Town car felt like driving a boat but was nice to ride in.
The Achilles heel would seem to be the Northstar V8…they were everywhere but hard to get any consensus what the issues really are.
$6,600 bid may barely cover the original cost of all the dealer add-on stuff: fake convertible top, vogue tires, chrome wheels and gold badges.
Good daily driver if there aren’t any Northstar gremlins.
Biggest problem with the Northstar is the head bolt issues and that can cause a nice repair bill.
The issue with the North Star engine as I have been informed is keeping the factory OEM antifreeze in good condition to keep the engine from overheating as when it happens the head gasket goes and it is then a case of redrilling the head for a replacement gasket with a very significant cost factor involved.
These are somewhat comfortable in a non engagement kind of way. Be sure you get the one with an adjustable length column (which this one doesn’t appear to have) as the stock placement is wrong. The Northstar engine is going to fail and it will be worth nothing. GM dealers don’t like working on them and the costs are frightful.
I wouldn’t take this as a gift, the one I had looked perfect but was such a disappointment. Don’t let a low price suck you in like it did me.
Wouldn’t give it a second glance. A friend had one of these. Northstar gave frequent problems. Replacing one head lamp $140. An auto exec (maybe Alfred Sloane) once said You can sell an old man a young mans car, but you can’t sell a young man an OLD man’s car. Even as a young man, I preferred traditional OTT excessive American Luxury. My 89 Brougham deElegance was for me the last generation of REAL Cadillacs. This is a FAR cry from when Cadillac WAS The Standard of the WORLD!
Beautiful boat! If it didn’t have a Northstar, I’d pay the price. With the Northstar, $3500 tops. The rest would go toward the engine swap.
Actually, I would pay $2000 because of the No-star and that ridiculous fake carriage top.
Wouldn’t give it a second glance. A friend had one of these. Northstar gave frequent problems. Replacing one head lamp $140. An auto exec (maybe Alfred Sloane) once said You can sell an old man a young mans car, but you can’t sell a young man an OLD man’s car. Even as a young man, I preferred traditional OTT excessive American Luxury. My 89 Brougham deElegance was for me the last generation of REAL Cadillacs. This is a FAR cry from when Cadillac WAS The Standard of the WORLD!
They say, you can put 💋 Lipstick 💄 on a 🐷 pig, but it’s still a 🐖 pig. 😉. Ĺove those BIG old Road Hogs, Like BOSS HOGGS Cadillac convertible! Believe J. Caroll Naish also was driven in a white Cadillac convertible on TV show, Westward Ho! Anyone else remember that?
Funny timing on this as I was sitting behind a Caddy at a light yesterday thinking you could probably start finding a fair number of them with low miles as their owners are no longer able to drive them and they might be a lot of car for the money. I was unaware of the Northstar issues as honestly I pay no attention to these, but do remember the marketing in favor of them.
Perhaps, as said before, money might be spent better elsewhere.
I owned the newer version of this and even with the reliability issues resolved it still cost over 10K in maintenance in one year. Very maintenance intensive.
I am a master mechanic and own an engine machine shop with over 50 years experience. I’ve heard negative comments about the Northstar, as far as I’m concerned it’s a great engine and I have never had a problem with them since they have come into existence. Lots of quiet smooth power in every Caddy I’ve ever owned.
I bought my ex wife a low mileage STS cad with a Northstar engine and she loved it. It had the typical problems of engines and a little more money spent on it . The car scared me a little jumping on it lol
The way I understand it is up here where we have sub zero winters, the head bolts break from the temperature swing. -20 up to 190 operating temp is too much expansion and contraction. I’ve heard that isn’t an issue south of here.
Cars like this, festooned with gold emblems, tacky chrome wheels, Vogue “Tyres,” and a ridiculous fake convertible top, are the reason why European car buyers have never taken Cadillac seriously, no matter how good the car under all those pointless add-ons is. I mean, come on, a convertible with a fabric roof and a glass sunroof? I can hear the retirees in Boca now: “Come on, Murray, we all know it’s not a real convertible. Stop pretending the top is up because you forgot your sunscreen.”
With all due respect, I have NEVER (except ROLLS-ROYCE) even considered a foreign brand, as well as most current automobiles. ROLLS-ROYCE is definitely out of my league, but happily continue to drive my 2007 Town Car Signature Limited. Last gasp of traditional American 🇺🇸 luxury sedans. This is truly a CADILLACKING example of Cadillacs sad descent into mediocrity.
My dad had one. It ate a cam lobe at 54k miles. I rebuilt the top end and it lasted to 100k when he sold it
SOLD for $8,500.