Owners have filed 360 complaints on the Cadillac ATS, covering 2013–2019. The system named most often is Power Train (87 reports). Worst years by volume: 2013, 2014, 2016; cleanest: 2019, 2018, 2015. 18 reports describe a crash, 3 a fire. On average the car was 4.7 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Cadillac ATS
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 360 ATS complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Power Train 87 Read
The contact owns a 2016 cadillac ats. While the contact was pulling into a driveway, the vehicle accelerated and crashed into a garage. There was no warning indicator illuminated. The air bags did not deploy. The contact sustained minor aches and pains that did not require medical attention. A police report was filed.…
The contact owns a 2014 cadillac ats. The contact stated that when the vehicle was parked on an incline, there was an abnormal grinding noise heard and the vehicle began to roll backwards without warning. The contact stated that the brake pedal was depressed but the vehicle failed to stop. The vehicle stopped after…
Transmission shudder noticed between 42 to 48 mph. It appears the transmission is shaking, it seems to be continually shifting between gears in the 42 to 48 mph range
Steering 58 Read
While driving on the freeway, a car was merging into my lane. I quickly turned into the next available lane as it was empty, and when I turned the steering wheel slightly to the left, it overcompensated and violently turned the steering wheel to the left, leading to the car spinning out on the freeway. It was…
First in line while stopped at a left-turn light on a city street. Light turned green, began to accelerate. Mid-way through the turn, heard a "pop", lost steering control, and the rear end spun car into the curb. Keep in mind this is a 4-wheel-drive car. When the car came to a stop, the nose of the car was resting on…
Vehicle has an issue where it intermittently throws errors, loses power, accelerates on its own, and is difficult to steer. I purchased it with 12,800 miles in it and it has been having this issue since then and no one has been able to fix it. It appears from maintenance records it has been happening since it had 2800…
Electrical System 51 Read
On saturday december 22nd I was going to a car meet. On my way to the meet I was having some electrical issues with my car. The radio and my seats were acting weird. The radio would turn up and down by itself and the heated seats would turn on and off. I got to the meet and everything was fine. On my way home I was…
The screen is starting to spider crack underneath the glass. Vehicle was stationary in my driveway
The car was parked outside at around 85 degrees. After entering the vehicle and driving with the AC on for a few minutes the CUE screen started to crack on the inside like a spider web. This has already been reported in 11576315 and 11325962. But I can't find any manufacturer communication on these. On the Internet I…
Engine 28 Read
The contact owns a 2014 cadillac ats. While driving 25 mph, the temperature gauge increased and the vehicle began to overheat. All the warning indicators illuminated on the instrument panel. The contact was unaware if smoke was present from under the hood. The vehicle was taken to braman miami (2060 biscayne blvd,…
The contact owed a 2014 cadillac ats. The contact stated that while his girlfriend was driving 55 mph and he was sitting in the front passenger seat, smoke was seen coming from the hood. The contact stated that no warning lights were illuminated. The driver was able to pull over to the side of the road, the vehicle…
The engine stopped itself when I was at a complete stop at a traffic signal. After a few minutes I was able to start the engine again. It did this three times in the space of an hour. Always at a complete stop
Air Bags 19 Read
Vehicle was involved in a accident all front damage and airbags didn’t deploy
The contact owned a 2016 Cadillac ATS. The contact stated while driving 40-50 MPH and entering the expressway, she engaged the turn signal and verified that the road was cleared. The contact stated that while she was making the turn, an 18-wheeler truck suddenly hit the vehicle, causing the vehicle to crash into…
I was involved in a car crash on 8-11-14. My husband brought my a 2014 cadillac ats for my birthday. A few months after ownership I noticed that when it rained the car would hydroplane but the stabilitrak would make the vehicle jump back into it's lane. My husband thought I was being a brat, so I told him to drive the…
Exterior Lighting 12 Read
5am, 2/9/23, it's dark and I'm driving 90 minutes to Portland Airport. ~10 cars that came up behind with what seemed to me to have their bright lights on high beam. Approximately 7 vehicles of these were: ALL Ford F-150 (newish) pickups. Bright lights shining in rear view mirrors is a visibility hazard at night. It…
My headlight bulbs have been replaced and checked 2x by the used auto superstore which I will not name at this time ! And by the manufacturer (dealer) but once it’s dark out and the automatic brights come on and either both or one side goes completely out only to come back on sometimes or not at all which is very…
The headlights do not provide adequate illumination under all driving conditions. I am a retired airline pilot with 20-20 vision. The city I live in does not have sidewalks and I have had several close calls with street walkers that can be easily seen by other makes and models. NHTSA rates the 2015 cadillac ats worst…
Service Brakes 11 Read
Upon braking car shakes and makes a loud noise but eventualy stops. About 8 days later while parking the brakes failed to operate resulting in a collision
The contact owns a 2017 Cadillac ATS. The contact stated that while driving approximately 75 MPH and attempting to stop the vehicle, the brake pedal was very stiff and hard to depress causing the braking distance to be extended. The contact drove off the roadway to avoid a collision and activated the parking brake and…
Drove my car on the highway and the brakes failed. I applied all of my force to get the car to stop. This is the second time the brakes failed while driving on the highway in less than 14 months. Had it repaired the first time. It had no brake assist and a cracked pcv valve. The vacuum pump and hose to booster was…
Suspension 9 Read
The contact owns a 2018 Cadillac ATS. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, there was an abnormal sound coming from the rear of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and axles, gaskets, and seals were replaced; however, the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be…
At 38,000 miles, rear differential leak discovered. Dealership repaired leak. At 42,000 dear differential leak discovered. Prognosis: rear differential failure. Dealership replaced rear differential, shocks. Cost repairs paid by me (cadillac rejected paying repairs)
I have 2014 ats cadillac 4.0 t ( with run flat tires)..when it rains while I'm driving at speed over 35 mph or higher my vehicle will hydroplane but will jump right back because of the stabilitrak stability control system. This was the most terrifying thing to experience. I had to pull over and get myself together. I…
ATS years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Engine | — | — | |
| 2018 | Air Bags | 1 | — | |
| 2017 | Back Over Prevention | 1 | — | |
| 2016 | Air Bags | 3 | 1 | |
| 2015 | Air Bags | 1 | — | |
| 2014 | Air Bags | 4 | 2 | |
| 2013 | Air Bags | 8 | — |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 271 |
| Average complaints per series | 1.3 |
| Worst single series | 7 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 4.7 years |
A model average of 1.3 hides a worst series at 7. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
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How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the ATS?
By complaint volume, 2013, 2014, 2016 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which ATS years are the cleanest?
2019, 2018, 2015 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Cadillac ATS have?
360 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2013–2019. Of those, 18 describe a crash and 3 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.