2003 Cadillac CTS problems
Owners have filed 450 complaints about the 2003 Cadillac CTS with NHTSA. Electrical system accounts for 12.7% of them — narrowly the most common, ahead of engine and engine cooling at 9.3%.
Complaints450
Crashes46
Fires19
Injuries34
Deaths0
What owners report breaking
Electrical system 12.7% · 57
Engine and engine cooling 9.3% · 42
Exterior lighting 8.7% · 39
Air bags 8.4% · 38
Engine 6.4% · 29
Steering 6.2% · 28
Power train 5.8% · 26
Service brakes, hydraulic 5.8% · 26
Severity
Of those complaints, 46 describe a crash, 19 describe a fire and 34 report an injury.
Reading the numbers
Across the 11 model years of the Cadillac CTS in this data, 2003 draws the most complaints of any of them.
Filings have fallen off, 6 in the last three years against 29 in the three before. That is normal as a generation leaves the road.
The median odometer reading at the time of complaint was 72,150 miles.
In owners' own words
The contact owns a 2003 Cadillac CTS. While driving at approximately 35 mph, the vehicle stalled. The failure recurred on multiple occasions. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic. The mechanic diagnosed that the ignition module and switch failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 190,000. The vin was unavailable. Electrical system · reported at 190,000 miles
The contact owns a 2003 Cadillac CTS. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 10v105000 (service brakes, hydraulic) and nhtsa campaign number: 14v394000 (electrical system). The contact stated that the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact did not experience a failure. Electrical system
The contact owned a 2003 Cadillac CTS. After the vehicle was parked, there was an explosion and the vehicle caught fire without warning. The fire department extinguished the fire. The source of the fire was unknown. The vehicle was destroyed. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 74,000. Updated 10/30/14*lj updated 7/9/2015 Electrical system · reported at 74,000 miles
Verbatim from NHTSA filings. Complaints are unverified owner reports.
Safety recalls
Checking NHTSA for open recalls…