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[Olddavid]

I bought a beautiful Catera with only 56000 miles on it (90k km. to you metric folks). First 20k miles trouble free. Now, oil in the spark plug wells with resultant misfire. New gaskets installed and guess what? Still misfiring. My plug wires were replaced the weekend I got the car - I always replace all maintenance items when purchasing a used vehicle so I have a baseline. I have always used Mobil One and GM's Dexcool, for what its's worth. i am certain I repaired the cam covers appropriately - I followed this sites instructions implicitly. recommendations? Coil pack or spark control? Any input appreciated, as is this site. The American repair establishment has no clue on these cars, yet they're willing to spend my $100/hr. to play at being technicians. Help! P.S. My car is a 1997 model Catera, which they tell me is equivalent of an Omega

[dbug]

I'd change plugs first, and as you've changed leads, I'd suspect the DIS pack.

[Andy B]

I bought a beautiful Catera with only 56000 miles on it (90k km. to you metric folks).  ....

Welcome to the forum!   
It's just that lot on the continent that use kilometers ...... we use miles here in Great Britain!     

[Olddavid]

I love your terminology - "that lot"? Changed plugs, but not wires after soaking. Cleaned them with isopropyl alcohol.

[cem_devecioglu]

I bought a beautiful Catera with only 56000 miles on it (90k km. to you metric folks). First 20k miles trouble free. Now, oil in the spark plug wells with resultant misfire. New gaskets installed and guess what? Still misfiring. My plug wires were replaced the weekend I got the car - I always replace all maintenance items when purchasing a used vehicle so I have a baseline. I have always used Mobil One and GM's Dexcool, for what its's worth. i am certain I repaired the cam covers appropriately - I followed this sites instructions implicitly. recommendations? Coil pack or spark control? Any input appreciated, as is this site. The American repair establishment has no clue on these cars, yet they're willing to spend my $100/hr. to play at being technicians. Help! P.S. My car is a 1997 model Catera, which they tell me is equivalent of an Omega

Welcome to forum
 
I would change coolant asap.. and cambelt will be  at the top of list to change..

[RobG]

I love your terminology - "that lot"? Changed plugs, but not wires after soaking. Cleaned them with isopropyl alcohol.

Change

[dbug]

Agreed - read for your post these had been changed !

So leads, plugs and DIS (in that order)

[Olddavid]

The local gougers want $25/wire. Must be made of unobtanium. Heading out to buy. will post results. Thank you to all for your advice.

[b4ndit]

Hello and welcome

[Olddavid]

I want to give a grateful shout out to the Mark's DTM guy for his excellent how-to on cam cover gaskets. You, sir, should be a technical writer.And photographer.

[2woody]

so it's ......

change cam cover gaskets according to guide
replace plugs
change plug leads
change DIS pack.

the DIS pack is a Bosch part and could well be fitted to some other US-market vehicles. They actually rust apart - rust gets inside the laminations of the iron core and breaks the casing apart.

Oregon is one of the more "temperate" parts of the US, so I suggest it's more likely that the DIS pack has failed in this manner.

[Olddavid]

OK. Progress. Wires were original to car. But, "helper" pulled spark plug wires out and didn't label. On the DIS, what is the proper order? I cannot find a diagram indicating which wire goes to which post. I've had disastrous results with a 240 in days past when firing order wrong.

[Auto Addict]

Cylinder number 1 is the front left.

Cylinder number 4 is on the right front

You should be able to see the numbers on dispack.

[Marks DTM Calib]

Contary to what has been stated already, I would do a few more steps before replacing anything and spending those greenbacks as self diagnosis and inspection is much cheaper than willy nilly part changing.

First question, was the breather system cleaned fully as per the guide?.

Secondly, are the plug leads connected to the DIS pack in the correct order? The 1-3-5 bank (left as you view the engine from the front, your passenger side) is easy enough but the 2-4-6 bank is not as obvious due to the wasted spark setup.

Connections are:

                        ......5............3................1.
THIS IS THE
ELECTRIC PLUG
    SIDE                       
                     
                        ......2............6................4.

[Olddavid]

Cleaned breathers per your illustrated guide, Mark. Replaced plug wires. Car started this morning and ran like a Patek. I cannot express my gratitude enough to you folks for your insightful advice to a lost Yankee (I'm Canadian, too). In America, this car is an orphan, and even though it drives great and looks great, none of the Cadillac dealers has a clue as to how to work on it. Their estimate to replace cam gaskets, wires and plugs was $2,271! I bought the car for $2850. I think it's their way of discouraging people from bringing them in. It's my intention to drive it until something seizes, so I'm thinking we'll get to know each other in the next few years. I live in a little beach community on the Pacific ocean, right next to one of the premier Salmon and Steelhead streams in Oregon. It would be my pleasure to show any fellow gearhead around my neighborhood should any of you make the journey. My grandfather was born in Wales and next year my Mother and I are making a pilgrimage. Again, thanks to all. You'll soon be used to hearing my ignorant questions and comments.