A Cadillac in Saudi

I've always liked big American saloon cars, which the Yanks themselves call full-size sedans. It must be the sound of those big burbling V8s, their size and presence on the road, the ride comfort from the soft suspension and the space and luxury of their interiors. As a Englishman now working in Saudi Arabia, I was pleased to own and drive something very different from the typical 'buzz-boxes' on the roads in the UK.

My American car odyssey started with a 1990 Lincoln Continental, but that turned out to be a big disappointment. It was nice to drive when it was out of the repair shop, but it's reliability was appalling. If I'd done my research beforehand on the internet, I'd have known about the numerous endemic problems that this model suffers i.e. blown head gaskets, chronic air suspension that costs a fortune to replace, intermittent electrical problems, weak transmission, power steering pipes which rupture, and various other niggles. Those problems in red I experienced personally in the short 9 months that I owned the car. Battered from my own experiences and educated courtesy of the internet as to what to expect in the near future, I had to sell this car. I did...

So I'd bought a lemon, but I'd survived and I still liked American cars. What to buy next then? Conventional wisdom here in Saudi, is that of the American makes, GM is best. They're more numerous than other types, the parts are cheaper and more readily available, and the repair workshops mostly know how to fix 'em. The Chevy Caprice is particularly popular here and you see many battered and bruised examples covered in dust, which seemingly soldier on forever. That seemed to me to be a good indication that it would be best to look for a GM.

GM is the parent company of the Chevrolet, Buick, Oldsmobile, Cadillac and Pontiac brands. Mechanically there is considerable overlap between models of the various brands. That's good news if you need spare parts, and you will sooner or later, with an older model car. An engine which features in different guises in many GMs is the 5.7 litre V8, known as the '350' (from it's capacity in cubic inches). It's smooth, it's fairly powerful, it's reliable, it lasts and has a good reputation. Furthermore it's common and easy to get fixed and serviced here in Saudi. From a European perspective 5.7 litres is an extraordinarily big engine, but it gives you plenty of power and good longevity. Anyway, petrol is cheap at 90 Halalas (GBP 0.17) a litre, so who cares!.

So we're looking for a luxury 'full-size' GM with the '350' engine. As luck would have it, my mate Bob was driving just the sort of car I wanted - a 1990 Cadillac Brougham. I knew the car, it was reliable and was well maintained. All I had to do was persuade him that he needed a better car. I could then inherit a car with a known history and free of problems. Being someone with a history of owning sporty cars and having a leaden right foot, it wasn't long before a Lexus SC400 coupe was enough to tempt him.

Here's some details and pictures of the Cadillac.

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Added 27th May 2001 (1 image)

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Added 5th May 2001 (8 images)
           
       

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