struts and spark plugs

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Robertslowpoke

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hi guys!

have a 2008 Cadillac DTS. 71,000 original miles. changed oil with mobil 1 synthetic every 3-5000 miles. no rust. I DO want to keep it.

had fluids changed, and the local garage thought I might consider spark plugs, ($500) and front struts and rear shocks. ($1900)

I THINK Caddy plugs are rated to 100,000 miles, and know very little about suspension. the car rides ok to my senses.

I want to keep this car 3-5 more years.

should I do the plugs? struts and shocks? thanks. would like any and all advice
bob
 
I wouldn't touch the suspension until you suspect an issue.

Plugs are probably iridium and good until 100k.

I'd put your wallet back for awhile.
 
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The last two GM vehicles I've had I've changed the plugs early (2009 Malibu 3.6, 90,000 miles) and (2012 Regal GS, 2.0 turbo, 85,000) and on both occasions the plugs have been in perfect shape, little to no gap widening with the stock iridium plugs at that mileage, you could probably reliably push the plugs off until 120,000 miles.

Struts are a judgement call on your part, are you happy with the ride? Have they noticeably lost dampening? only you can judge since you're driving it. Don't throw parts at something just because a shop is looking for work.
 
If it rides to your liking, and the shop only "thinks" it needs struts, I'd err towards leaving alone.

Seems outrageous for plugs though--but if they want to charge that much, I'm thinking it's gotta be a pain of a job. In that case, I'd leave them alone, and let the next owner deal with them.
 
Both sound really expensive and most likely unnecessary. Plugs I wouldn't worry about. They are 100k at least and unless you noticed a drastic drop in MPG or sputtering etc. I wouldn't bother

The struts and shocks I also don't feel are necessary. Unless the car is bouncing excessively I also wouldn't bother. I changed out my struts and shocks at 80k in my Equinox purely because I beat the tar out of it (drive it more like a truck that an cute utility vehicle.)

Save your money and buy your significant other something nice.
 
If your computer throws a misfire or its hard to start then worry about the plugs. I find it hard to believe that your suspension parts are failing already on a road only vehicle. 150k yeah maybe.
 
The OP doesn't drive a lot. Perhaps he drives mostly in the city which is the equivalent of many more highway miles. The plugs are going on 9 years old. My son's 2008 Cadillac 3.6 [coil on plug ignition] started to misfire at 115,000 miles and the mechanic wanted to change a couple of coils. I just changed the plugs and things were fine. My point is, sometimes a little preventative maintenance can avoid future problems. He only wants to keep the car a few more years and if he changes plugs now he can be sure he won't have a plug induced misfire in the future.

$500 to change plugs is fight'n words.
 
$500 for spark plugs!! Then again, changing the plugs on the rear bank of a transverse DOHC V8 has got to suck!
 
$1900 for four shocks!

That's hugely expensive.

As is the $500 for the plugs.

I agree with many of the sentiments above.

If you have no running issues and the handling and braking are as they always were then I certainly wouldn't be entertaining spending nearly $2500.

Sounds like the Garage is fishing for work.
 
GM uses Denso or NGK iridium plugs that really are good for 100K+ - and then some. For the shocks, does your Caddy ride like a Caddy does? I only recommend shock replacement if there are signs of leakage or if the car rides rough - which you will feel.
 
Originally Posted By: WobblyElvis
The OP doesn't drive a lot. Perhaps he drives mostly in the city which is the equivalent of many more highway miles. The plugs are going on 9 years old. My son's 2008 Cadillac 3.6 [coil on plug ignition] started to misfire at 115,000 miles and the mechanic wanted to change a couple of coils. I just changed the plugs and things were fine. My point is, sometimes a little preventative maintenance can avoid future problems. He only wants to keep the car a few more years and if he changes plugs now he can be sure he won't have a plug induced misfire in the future.

$500 to change plugs is fight'n words.


I would leave changing the plugs till it had a misfire.

I have swapped modern long licence plugs on a couple of cars, the one that springs to mind was the BiL with his Vectra 2.2 SRi (2.2 Ecotec engine) I changed them at over 120k if I remember correctly and the ones that came out were in great condition and could have easily lasted a fair few more years.

I also changed the on long life plugs on the 05 Picanto and they were in a sorry state indeed. They were rusty, stained and worn. Silly to leave them that long as they only cost £12 to replace with good quality Bosch replacements.
 
All you guys crying wolf at the cost of the spark plugs...

The intake manifold has to come off.
wink.gif


If you have the money now and plan to keep the car past 100k, I would do them now.

If you're not chopping tires and you're happy with the ride, I would leave the shocks + struts.
 
I understand that some models are pia to change plugs. Had a quote on my Xterra of $400. You have to remove the intake to get to 2 plugs. I was able to just lift it a couple inches and several extentions latter got them out but spent better part of afternoon and a 6 pack on the project. Computer will pickup the misfire before any real travel issues.
Sometimes just because you drive a certain car shops try and hook ya:(
 
Originally Posted By: rooflessVW
All you guys crying wolf at the cost of the spark plugs...

The intake manifold has to come off.
wink.gif


If you have the money now and plan to keep the car past 100k, I would do them now.

If you're not chopping tires and you're happy with the ride, I would leave the shocks + struts.



You must be referring to the 3.6 engine up to 2007 which the manual says remove intake but you don't have too. Just loosen it and lift a little to get to the 3 tight coils. 2008+ 3.6 you don't have to remove or touch the intake. I do early 3.6 (like CTS) plugs in about an hour and 2008+ CTS 3.6 in 30 minutes.

This is a DTS with the 4.6 V8




From the GM LABOR GUIDE to replace spark plugs:


4020060 Spark Plug Replacement
Effective Date: Oct 1, 2016
LABOR CODE: 4020060
WARRANTY CODE: Coverage Code: Emission E
Base LABOR TIME: 0.5
Diagnosis Time: You may claim up to the allowable labor hours depending on actual time to perform electrical diagnosis. ADD TIME: 0.0-0.3
To Replace Plug - Each Additional ADD TIME: 0.1
With SAI ADD TIME: 0.1




**** NO INTAKE REMOVAL per GM manual. This shop is charging way too much! I would possible accept as high as 2 hours labor but the job can be done in ONE hour - I have done these DTS Northstars before.
 
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thank you all! I am glad you all said the same thing! makes it easy for a dummy like me! Kira: yes, I DID change the transmission fluid and filter at 30,000 and again last week. I do the cabin AND engine air filter, each year by myself. I did the coolant 3 times, brake and steer fluid 3 times, etc.

YES: the car runs fine, no codes, no engine burps. spark plugs are likely OK. just hard for me to think of plugs going 100,000 miles! ha

YES: the car drives fine, struts likely ok.

I drive 9000 miles per year. in 3 more years, car will have 97,000 miles and I will buy a new one.

THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR HELP! it is a local shop who wants to make money. my friend, a real mechanic, thought the coil packs have to come off to do the plugs. and yes,he thought $500 was outrageous to do the plugs. will keep car, put on snow tires now, new summer tires in Spring.

so glad to have all this expert advice!
bob
57.gif
 
Some cars say that their spark plugs last 100K, but they don't. I had a 2003 Saturn ION that ran rough at 60,000 miles and was told by a friend to replace the plugs. It made a huge difference. They were double platinum, and the replacement parts from the dealer were iridium.

However, I replaced the spark plugs on my dad's 2007 Pontiac G6 at 90,000 miles, and it didn't seem to change anything. It was equipped with iridium plugs.

The price for shocks and struts doesn't make sense to me. If you have air shocks on the rear suspension, don't buy OEM air shocks, Monroe air shocks cost far less and are a perfect replacement. The price for front struts doesn't make sense to me either. You should look into buying 2 quick struts from Monroe. Gabriel Readymount and KYB Strut-Plus may be cheaper, but it is better to have the same brand of suspension component at both the front and rear.
 
Originally Posted By: artificialist
Some cars say that their spark plugs last 100K, but they don't. I had a 2003 Saturn ION that ran rough at 60,000 miles and was told by a friend to replace the plugs. It made a huge difference. They were double platinum, and the replacement parts from the dealer were iridium.

However, I replaced the spark plugs on my dad's 2007 Pontiac G6 at 90,000 miles, and it didn't seem to change anything. It was equipped with iridium plugs.

The price for shocks and struts doesn't make sense to me. If you have air shocks on the rear suspension, don't buy OEM air shocks, Monroe air shocks cost far less and are a perfect replacement. The price for front struts doesn't make sense to me either. You should look into buying 2 quick struts from Monroe. Gabriel Readymount and KYB Strut-Plus may be cheaper, but it is better to have the same brand of suspension component at both the front and rear.


In general, platinums usually last 60k while OE iridiums are good for at least 100k.

For the quick struts, buy all four since they're on rebate right now
smile.gif
 
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