1998 Cadillac Deville: common problems

Owners of the 1998 Cadillac Deville filed 237 complaints with NHTSA, most often about exterior lighting and service brakes. Details by component below, with sources.

Key figures

Owner complaints: 237
involving a crash: 14

What fails most often

1 Exterior lighting 18% of all complaints
2 Service brakes 15% of all complaints
3 Air bags 14% of all complaints
4 Engine and cooling 14% of all complaints
5 Electrical system 9% of all complaints
6 Visibility 7% of all complaints
7 Steering 6% of all complaints
8 Suspension 5% of all complaints

Circle size and colour show each component’s share of NHTSA complaints. Schematic only, not a drawing of the exact model.

Exterior lighting: 43 complaints (18% of all).
Service brakes: 36 complaints (15% of all), 3 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
Air bags: 34 complaints (14% of all), 7 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
Engine and cooling: 33 complaints (14% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
Electrical system: 21 complaints (9% of all).

Engines and transmissions

US-market versions per EPA. On the right: how many NHTSA complaints name this engine or transmission type.

4.6 L · petrol · 8 cylnamed in 3 complaints
automatic, 4-speed

Drive: FWD

Symptoms owners describe

How many of the 237 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).

headlights and tail lights36 · 15%
knocking, grinding or other noise10 · 4%
stalls while driving10 · 4%
steering or power steering problems9 · 4%
overheating, coolant loss8 · 3%
smoke, burning smell, fire8 · 3%
vibration8 · 3%
oil leak or consumption7 · 3%
warning lights, check engine6 · 3%
windows, sunroof6 · 3%

Components owners complain about

Component	Owner complaints	involving a crash
Exterior lighting	43	0
Service brakes	36	3
Air bags	34	7
Engine and cooling	33	1
Electrical system	21	0
Visibility	17	0
Steering	15	0
Suspension	13	0
Fuel system	12	0
Vehicle speed control	11	2
Powertrain	8	1
Equipment	5	0
Tires	5	1
Electronic stability control	4	1

What owners report

Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.

Customer was driving vehicle down road, all of a sudden coming up to a stoplight car suddenly died, at the same time white smoke came billowing out the back of the car, it caused a traffic hazard in which nobody could see her car, she was rearended, as well as the guy that rearended her.
Engine and cooling · crash · 2012-02-08 · NHTSA complaint #10447222
Driving and the stability light came on and the car began to bounce slightly. Continued to drive and bouncing had gotten worse and eventually cased me to go off the road when switching lanes the back end of my car spun around. Thank god their were no other cars around or it would have been a horrible accident.
Electronic stability control · crash · 2007-02-28 · NHTSA complaint #10183808
The contact and a passenger were both wearing seatbelts. The seatbelts did not restrain the occupants during the accident and the airbags did not deploy. The contact and the passenger both endured moderate injuries; the contact sustained a concussion, and neck problems while the passenger sustained a concussion,…
Air bags · crash · 2006-08-07 · NHTSA complaint #10164840
Dt: when the consumer puled into her driveway, she noticed that the disc brake traction stabilizer light illuminated on the dash. She immediately put vehicle into park and exited the vehicle to open her garage door. When she returned to the car it was rolling away.
Powertrain · crash · 2005-07-05 · NHTSA complaint #10127501
Brake rotors have been turned 4 times since new keep getting out of round and now need replaced dealer states this is normal maintence now brake pedal goes to floor at times with no brakes at all cannot find problem.
Service brakes · crash · 2005-03-26 · NHTSA complaint #10114782
At a vehicle crash side airbags did not deploy. Cause unknown. Dealer notified. Consumer was not in motion at time of accident, another motorist crashed into consumers vehicle, 2 people were injured in the accident, consumer states that the driver nor the passenger air bags deployed.
Air bags · crash · 2002-07-05 · NHTSA complaint #8013364
The side air bags did not deploy to prevent my head and left shoulder from impacting the left window and door frame. The dodge van impacted my left tire quarter panel, driver door panel, and left passenger door panel to the extent that the side mirror was knocked off the door, the driver window damaged, and the driver…
Air bags · crash · 1999-03-10 · NHTSA complaint #704251
While driving into a parking space the vehicle suddenly accelerated forward, running into a building and caused injury and a fatality. Also, total brake failure occurred. Cause unknown.
Service brakes · crash · 1999-03-08 · NHTSA complaint #835568

When owners complained

NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.

199811
199951
200030
200136
200224
200317
200422
200513
200611
20074
20086
20091
20103
20113
20122
20142
20153
20172
20181

Comparison

By complaint count this model year ranks 1,712 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 5% most complained about).

On average one model year of the Deville has 83 complaints (33 years in the data). This year has 237, above average.

What to check before buying

Exterior lighting. Headlamps, leveling, sensors and mounts after a frontal hit.
Service brakes. Pedal feel, ABS operation, leaks, discs and hoses.
Air bags. Check the SRS light, stored codes and airbag/curtain status after any impact.
Engine and cooling. Radiator and fan after a frontal hit, coolant level and condition, overheating.

Questions and answers

What are the most common problems with the 1998 Cadillac Deville?

Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: exterior lighting, service brakes, air bags. Total complaints: 237. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: headlights and tail lights (15%), knocking, grinding or other noise (4%), stalls while driving (4%).

How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 1998 Cadillac Deville?

NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.

Should I buy a 1998 Cadillac Deville from a US auction?

Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.

Other 1998 models

Read also

Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.