Selling a junk Cadillac Catera
Any Catera sells for scrap or parts, running or not. Below: what owners report most often for each model year, the recalls on file, and which of those change the offer. Enter your ZIP for a buyer near you.
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What owners report about the Cadillac Catera
NHTSA has 826 owner complaints on file for the Cadillac Catera, model years 1997 to 2003, the 313th-most of the 423 models in our data. The most-reported components are engine and cooling (208, 25%), electrical system (100, 12%), suspension (59, 7%). 44 complaints involved a crash, 11 a fire, and 0 say the vehicle had to be towed. The median mileage when the problem was reported is 60,000 miles. The 1997 model year has the most complaints (269). Data as of 2026-10-12.
When the top complaint is engine and cooling, the question for a seller is whether a buyer will resell the car, pull the parts or scrap it. Read our guide to selling a car with a blown engine: it explains which offers assume the part works and how to describe the car so the price holds at pickup.
Cadillac Catera by model year
| Year | Complaints | Most reported | Crash | Fire | Recalls | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 269 | Engine and cooling | 16 | 5 | 0 | 64,414 |
| 1998 | 267 | Engine and cooling | 9 | 1 | 0 | 60,000 |
| 1999 | 140 | Engine and cooling | 5 | 4 | 0 | 60,000 |
| 2000 | 107 | Electrical system | 10 | 1 | 0 | 69,857 |
| 2001 | 38 | Engine and cooling | 4 | 0 | 0 | 43,000 |
| 2002 | 2 | Speed control | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2003 | 3 | Electrical system | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not confirmed defects. Median miles is the odometer reading owners gave when they reported a problem, shown only where 20 or more reports include it.
Cadillac Catera recalls
NHTSA lists no recall campaigns for these Cadillac Catera model years. Check your own VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before you sell, because campaigns are added over time.
What a Cadillac Catera is worth as a junk car
Buyers price a junk Catera on four things: its weight at today's scrap steel price (the floor), the parts still on it that can be resold, whether it starts and drives, and how far they have to tow it. None of those come from a complaint database, so use this page to describe the car accurately and our junk car value guide to work out a ceiling for the metal. Then get more than one offer.
Guides for selling this car
How to sell a car with a blown engine 
How much is my junk car worth? 
How junkyards price cars 
Catalytic converters and junk cars 
How to prepare your car for the junkyard 
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Questions people ask
- What is a junk Cadillac Catera worth?
- What a yard can recover: the car's weight at the current scrap steel price, plus parts it can resell (the catalytic converter, engine, transmission and wheels if they're good), minus towing and processing. The same Catera gets different offers from different buyers, so compare at least two. Our value guide shows the public benchmark.
- Will a junkyard buy a Cadillac Catera that doesn't run?
- Yes. Junkyards and junk car buyers take cars that don't start, and most arrange the tow. Tell them honestly whether it starts, whether the engine and transmission are still in it, and whether the catalytic converter is on; those are what change the price.
- Should I fix an open recall before selling a Cadillac Catera?
- Recall repairs are free at a franchised dealer for as long as the car exists. If the car is going for scrap, the repair won't change the scrap price. If a buyer might resell it or pull parts, a completed recall can help. Check your VIN at NHTSA's recall lookup first.
- Where do these Cadillac Catera numbers come from?
- From the complaint and recall data NHTSA publishes for every make and model, counted by model year on 2026-10-12. A complaint is an owner's report, not a confirmed defect, and the count rises with how many of the model were sold.