My daughter took her 2000 model Caddy Catera in for an oil change and was told that there was water in her oil. She took it to the Cadillac dealer and was told that the oil cooler needed to be replaced, that the engine was probably damaged beyond the point where it would be worth fixing. They didn't actually do anything that I can see that would justify sending the car to the scrap heap. Does it seem reasonable to just turn an otherwise clean-looking car with 80,000 miles on it to the junk yard??

Most of the replies by owners here seem to say that it was a terrible car. It turned off many from every buying a Caddy again. If the car needs a new engine, putting in a rebuilt one will cost at least $4000. Below is the blue book on it from cars.com.

2000 Cadillac Catera
Side-by-Side Comparison
Kelley Blue Book Retail: $6,225 – $6,725

On this site, the Reliability is rated at 1.5 out of 5, and none of the 4 owners would recommend the car to a friend.

I don't think getting it fixed is worth it. Selling it as is might be the best way to go.

OK, a little out of my league but I will try to help. I say out of my league because I don’t know the plumbing of a Caddy. Last I look, it did not have an engine cooler in the radiator.

My big question is where did they see the oil and how much?

The oil cooler I think they are referring to is the transmission oil cooler. This cooler is part of the radiator near the bottom. If it leaked oil in to the cooling system, water side, this can be flushed out. If water got in to the transmission, this too can be flushed out but not as good.

Water can also get in to the engine oil. This is not as bad as the transmission. This water gets in the possible cause is the head gasket leak. This is a little bigger problem as the head gasket has to be replaced first. If this is the problem, be sure to have the head check for warping. This is the usual cause for blowing head gaskets. Next to racing the car that is.

Water in the transmission is not good.

If this car were mine, I would have the radiator/transmission oil cooler replace, assuming that is where the water is coming from, and both systems, cooling and transmission, flushed and refilled.

If you go along with this, be sure to re-flush and re-fill the system after the first 1000 miles or so as this will pick up anything missed during the first flushing.

You need to do this as quickly as possible the keep the water for attacking the metal in the systems.

Now in to the light. If have not noticed any problems with this car, I might suspect the garage is try to make an extra buck here. Look for a second opinion from a reliable, recommended garage.

You will have to balance your need for the car and cost of repairs. I really don’t think you will need a new engine.

BTW, it is not unusal to see a few specs of water in the oil when left standing. This is from condenstation trapped in the oil. Mostly in cold climates where the engine may not get warm enough to evaporate this moisture. I know everyone knows this but I will say it here. Glass jar as the water will collect on the bottom. Oil floats on water.

I hope this helps.

PS. I once had a head gasket blow and had about a quart of water in the crank case. The engine lived after having the head checked and trued and gasket replaced.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Walks On Water,