CT5-V Has your engine blown up yet?

[MookdocOE]

I think there are two reasons for low activity compared to, say, BMW 2 and 3 Series forums. One, far fewer of these cars have been sold. Second, and more importantly, these cars hit their targets so well that there is less scope for performance and handling modifications. Hence the posts here are mostly about occasional problems rather than debating endless, dubious modifications.

Your probably correct on most of that. I mean 20yrs plus of GM perfecting the ultimate daily commuter/track star? They are splitting hairs now it's that good and at a semi reasonable ownership cost. The last thing I want to do to this car is yank the cam? Exhaust mods and that's about it because she's almost perfected from the factory.

 

[jbawden]

And every time an attempt is made to spice it up, people get upset and complain this is an auto forum and we shall not discuss other topics. That is where the old fart reputation comes from.

I agree, but on the other hand Rob gives us a long leash to go way off topic, so any Terry's or Karen's that try to be fun ruiners should be ignored. We know the edge of the lane around here.

 

[Finally-a-V]

I like Dr Rick

 

[VBhak]

Someone whose engine is blown is more likely to be active.
If everything is going swimmingly, there’s a damn good chance that you came on here to say hello to everyone in the giddy honeymoon phase of first receiving your car, and that you then carried on as if you never joined the forum.
In my opinion, while this poll may be fun, in the end it won’t tell us much about the genuine odds unless there is serious adjustment for the variable engagement of those who have no problems versus those who do, which I don’t think you can do accurately.
Any actuaries here? Maybe they could chime in?

Very true.... although I typically check the forum at least every other day just to see what's new.

Activity early on was robust, but it feels like:

1) You can search for the topics you need, hence, not starting a new thread
2) Everyone who wanted a Blackwing got one, and interest may be waning? Now that the used care market (and new market) has cooled, the $100-130K range of performance vehicles is MUCH more robust (when comparing the 5V)
3) Interest rates aren't letting up, and used ZL1's, V2 and V3's are hitting the market for that GM V8 fix for much cheaper, and potentially, cash out values.
4) C8 2LT and 3LT (the Cadillac trims) are relatively affordable now

However, it's always fun to check in with my brethren to see if anything is new.

 

[565565]

Well I think part of the reason why this forum isn't as active anymore is that this forum had a rather meteoric rise in popularity, and the reason for that sudden popularity is now gone.

Prior to the release of the Blackwings it looked like this forum was pretty dead and most of the V car discussions happened on other forum(s).

However with the whole Blackwing ordering goat rodeo and combined with Rob, the admin, doing an incredible service tracking the orders for members, this forum rocketed past the others in popularity, and became THE Blackwing forum. Most people joined this forum long (so so long)
before they ever got their Blackwings and the anticipation and excitement was infectious. People would come into the forum eagerly to see if today their status went from 1100 to 2000 or if their car left the lot of doom, and to live vicariously as others posted their delivery day pictures.

But alas, Rob's ability to track orders is gone, and the goat rodeo isn't as bad anymore, so the primary driver of traffic from those days is gone.

 

[T.O.Blackwing]

Back to the topic at hand.
If the stats at this article are correct and I understand them correctly (both fairly wild assumptions ), maybe it is to be expected that a dozen or so members of this forum have experienced engine break downs?
Maybe that’s not even all that bad in terms of the percentages based on my theory that those who joined the forum will come back to report a breakdown even if they haven’t been very active here otherwise?
Anyway, check this out:

German cars 'among worst for engine failures' | Auto Express

Audi, BMW and VW ranked in the bottom 10 of a study into engine reliability

www.autoexpress.co.uk

 

[Finally-a-V]

It's still THE best forum.........thanks @Rob

 

[Rob]

And don't forget, there's more to this site than just the forums - there's an entire Tech Center, Knowledgebase, and the Blackwing Registry.

 

[668LT4]

And don't forget, there's more to this site than just the forums - there's an entire Tech Center, Knowledgebase, and the Blackwing Registry.

Rob, the website is amazing. THANK YOU. I went from knowing nothing about Cadillac to learning so much thanks to this platform and so many great members. Ignore the trolls and dumb comments. Some of these guys don't even own a Blackwing and seem to take pleasure in dragging down those who do.

 

[CBH]

This web site is great.

Another interesting dynamic will the changing of the guard as the original owners give way to 2nd and 3rd owners of these great cars.

I recently had a Big Dog chopper, and participated in their incredibly active and fantastic forum while I had it.

Big Dog was the largest factory-made chopper in the early 2000's when the craze began. It all crashed in 2008, but the bikes are still around. I could see the earliest days of that forum where everybody was ordering and receiving new bikes. Then it changed, and by the time I joined in 2018, it was still a very active and close-knit community.

But now concerned mostly with keeping the old bikes running and finding new sources of parts. The community was top notch though. We even met in person a couple of times per year. It was great to meet people and ride together. It was quite a sight to see a mile-long line of choppers on a cruise.

 

[Tall Steve]

This is basically a site for a handful of old farts….. The same people generally start and comment on the threads. Lately, it seems there’s very little activity.

And every time an attempt is made to spice it up, people get upset and complain this is an auto forum and we shall not discuss other topics. That is where the old fart reputation comes from.

It's still THE best forum.........thanks @Rob

I helped too!

 

[quikag]

I'm not as involved as I'm now in the 4th! year of ownership with my 5BW six-speed and it just works. I drive it on the weekends (work truck during the week) and it's just a joy to own and drive. No issues at all. Oil changes, tires, and go. Still one of the nicest cars I've ever driven and I smile every time I take it out. So, I don't have much to report on my week to week, month to month ownership experience.

 

[mfcentex]

Is this related to the GM 6.2l issues in the trucks?

https://gmauthority.com/blog/2024/04/some-2023-gmc-sierra-and-yukon-units-will-need-a-6-2l-v8-engine-replacement/

 

[white98ls]

Back to the topic at hand.
If the stats at this article are correct and I understand them correctly (both fairly wild assumptions ), maybe it is to be expected that a dozen or so members of this forum have experienced engine break downs?
Maybe that’s not even all that bad in terms of the percentages based on my theory that those who joined the forum will come back to report a breakdown even if they haven’t been very active here otherwise?
Anyway, check this out:

German cars 'among worst for engine failures' | Auto Express

Audi, BMW and VW ranked in the bottom 10 of a study into engine reliability

www.autoexpress.co.uk

Great link, thank you. I just wish they had said over what time period/mileage the failures were.

I do think a certain (low) percentage of failures is to be expected. That's why commercial airliners have backup systems, and backups to the backups. Even Honda, #1 by a large margin in the list above, has had lots of oil dilution issues on extremely high-production engines.

 

[poor-sha]

I’ve started spending more time on this forum again now that I want to trade my 22 on a 25 with the precision package.

Also, my car had a cracked spark plug insulator that caused a misfire. Should I have said “yes” to “engine blown up”?

 

[565565]

I’ve started spending more time on this forum again now that I want to trade my 22 on a 25 with the precision package.

Also, my car had a cracked spark plug insulator that caused a misfire. Should I have said “yes” to “engine blown up”?

Only counts if they have to replace the engine.

 

[MookdocOE]

It's still THE best forum.........thanks @Rob

Yeah..I agree the latitude allowed and mostly 99% respectful too. Wish all forums were this good?

 

[rubberduck]

Don't wait for us, you can bring it!

Exchanging information and providing solutions to problems is certainly a great use of forums. But, if that was the only thing, participation would be very limited. Forums are for entertainment too! These cars don't need a lot of mods like a Jeep or some Audis, so new topics are very scarce.

 

[Tall Steve]

Don't wait for us, you can bring it!

Exchanging information and providing solutions to problems is certainly a great use of forums. But, if that was the only thing, participation would be very limited. Forums are for entertainment too! These cars don't need a lot of mods like a Jeep or some Audis, so new topics are very scarce.

I don't start fires I just throw gas on them!

 

[quikag]

I know something that would light a fire on Blackwing sales. Strap in the LT6 with a six-speed manual. I'd run over grandma's crossing the street to get to the dealer first to order that thing. Would keep my '22 though.