CadillacDeVille1973Overview/cadillac/deville/1973/base/

1973 Cadillac DeVille

Factory specifications, fluid capacities, torque values, EPA fuel economy and the federal safety record for the 1973 DeVille.

The 1973 Cadillac DeVille carries a minimal complaint footprint with just one recorded owner issue centered on wheels and zero recalls, a quiet reliability profile that contrasts sharply with the broader model trajectory documented from 1990 through 2005 where annual complaints ranged from a low of 94 in 1990 to a peak of 306 in 1997, positioning this early Seventies iteration as a notably trouble-free outlier before the nameplate's later surge in reported problems.

Model year200520042003200220012000199919981973

Performance & power Independent road tests

0–60 mph, quarter-mile, horsepower and torque from independent road tests.

Independent road tests for the DeVille of this era, listed by trim and engine — this page spans more than one engine, so no single horsepower figure is shown.

10.9 sec0–60 mph (tested)quickest 10.90 sec — 1975 Coupe
YearTrim / engine0–60¼ mileHPDrivetrain
1975Coupe 8.2L V810.90 sec17.66 sec190 hpRWD

Reliability & federal safety record

Owner-reported issues, recalls, investigations and service bulletins on record with NHTSA — an unfiltered look at what owners actually experience.

The 1973 Cadillac DeVille shows minimal federal activity, with only one recorded complaint regarding wheels and zero reported crash or fire complaints. This is significantly lower than the 1990-2005 period, where complaints rose from 94 in 1990 to a peak of 306 in 1997. The later generation also experienced a sharp increase in Technical Service Bulletins, which climbed from 5 in 1990 to 548 by 2005. As the 1973 model predates this record, it exists outside the arc of rising complaints and recalls observed in the subsequent years. The data does not specify the root cause of the single wheel complaint. Given the lack of reported issues compared to the later record, this is a good year to buy.

0
Open recalls
NHTSA campaigns
0
Service bulletins
Manufacturer communications
0
ODI investigations
Office of Defects Investigation
1
Owner complaints
0 involved a crash · 0 a fire
Owner complaints by model year NHTSA · this generation & adjacent

Owner complaints filed with NHTSA, by component

All 1 complaints on record, top 1 components.

Wheels1

Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation complaint database.

Recalls NHTSA · verified

No recall campaigns on record with NHTSA for this vehicle as of the last data refresh.

Common OBD-II trouble codes

The most common OBD-II codes for this vehicle's emissions system. These are standardized SAE J2012 definitions, not vehicle-specific fault reports.

P0420
Catalyst system efficiency below threshold — Bank 1
P0300
Random / multiple cylinder misfire detected
P0171
System too lean — Bank 1
P0455
Evaporative emission system leak detected — large leak
P0128
Coolant thermostat below regulating temperature
P0442
Evaporative emission system leak detected — small leak

VIN tools

Decode factory build data for a specific vehicle by VIN.

VIN
Decode a VIN to confirm the transmission and build data for a specific DeVille. OEM
Build data
Plant, GVWR class, engine and body data for any 17-character VIN.
Recalls
Check open recall campaigns against a specific vehicle by VIN.

Reference guides

Cross-vehicle references for the kinds of data on this page.

Frequently asked

Does the 1973 DeVille have open recalls?

NHTSA lists 0 recall campaign(s) for this model year. Check your specific vehicle by VIN.