The “Catera” was a German made (Opel) automobile…in Germany it is called the Opel Senator. Cadillac sold them from 1997 to 2002 here, under the Cadillac name. They are now pretty cheap as used cars…anyway are they decent cars? Given the problems you can get in to (finding parts for an orphaned import), is it worth buying one of these cars?
I hear the Senator was considered a decnt car in Germany…anyone ever had one?
Or should you avoid these cars like the plague?
This should probably be in IMHO, but from what I’ve read, the Catera was a pretty mediocre car. It got pretty good reviews as a new car, but seems to have reliability problems.
Here are some reviews at Carreview.com, and
Here’s the Edmunds Review of the 1997 Catera
And here’s the Edmunds Review of the 2000 Catera.
They seemed to like the car quite a bit, but with its reliability issues I think you might want to research any used models very carefully.
A good one might be a steal, though.
[Moderator Hat ON]
To IMHO.
[Moderator Hat OFF]
I read somewhere that the Catera has been renamed and is now made in the US. I can’t remember the new name, though. :smack:
I got to thrash a late 90s Catera when my boss had it as a loaner while his other Caddy was in the shop. IMHO Cadillac managed to eliminate any European driving character with soft springs and the car felt like it was carrying excess weight. The interior felt cramped for its size, and the seats were crappy.
Its funny because I was driving an XR4Ti at the time and all the mistakes Ford made with that model were basically rehashed in the Catera. At least now the big three automakers seem to be coming around to the idea that people who are inclined to buy their European offerings actually like firm suspensions.
Modern Japanese cars like the Accord and Maxima blow the Catera out of the water in terms of driving dynamics and reliability. If you have driven and like the Catera, you might want to cross-shop a Mazda Millenia or Lexus GS300.