2006 Cadillac CTS problems
Owners have filed 371 complaints with NHTSA about the 2006 Cadillac CTS. Air bags is the most reported problem area, at 26% of complaints. After that come brakes (16%) and drivetrain & axles (13%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 371 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Air bags 26% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 39 and 3
- Injuries and deaths
- 22 and 3
- Typical mileage
- 64,000 miles 305 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 45 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 34 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 56 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 53 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 42 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 30 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 27 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 11 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 6 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 1 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Among the 305 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 64,000 miles. For air bags specifically, the median reported mileage is about 64,000 miles (85 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 39 complaints mention a crash; 3 complaints mention a fire; 22 injuries reported; 3 deaths reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2006 ranks 3rd most-complained-about out of 15 model years of the Cadillac CTS with enough data (155 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 6 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Fatal car crash resulted in death of driver (only person in the automobile). History of service brakes hydraulic problem on the 2006 cadillac cts--pressing brake pedal and lunging or sudden abnormal acceleration with loss of steering.
I had just exited the highway and waited at the end of the ramp for the traffic signal to change. I was proceeding into the intersection after waiting for light to change. I began to accelerate and another car ran the light and hit my car on passenger side. The responders said I was t-boned. When I got hit the car steering wheel locked up, the car came out of gear, the gear mechanism inside the car came apart, the brakes didn't work. I had no control of the car, it shut down.
I took my wife to get a hair cut on saturday jun 20th; when she was done a couple hours later we returned to the car and notice it was filled with smoke. I didn't see any fire but could smell something was melting, I unplugged the battery figuring that it may be electrical related. I opened all the doors to let the smoke out once the smoked cleared I plugged the battery back in and drove it to murdocks chevy dealership to have the mechanics take a look.