CSR

Cadillac · NHTSA safety record

2017 Cadillac ATS

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

32

Complaints

1

Crashes

0

Fires

0

Injuries

0

Deaths

Owners of the 2017 Cadillac ATS have filed 32 safety complaints with NHTSA between January 2018 and May 2026. The most complained-about system is the steering, named in 12 of them (38%). The typical failure was reported at 27,700 miles, the median across the 8 complaints that gave an odometer reading.

NHTSA has issued 2 recalls covering this vehicle.

Recalls (2)

STEERING:ELECTRIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM

25V175000 · March 20, 2025

The defect
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Cadillac CTS, 2017-2018 Cadillac ATS, Chevrolet Camaro, and Chevrolet Corvette vehicles. The electric power steering (EPS) assist may fail.
The risk
A loss of power steering assist can require greater steering effort, especially at low speeds, increasing the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Dealers will replace the power steering gear assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 15, 2025. Owners may contact Cadilac customer service at 1-800-333-4223 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N252497020.

General Motors, LLC · up to 934 vehicles across all model years covered

STEERING:ELECTRIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM

19V086000 · February 7, 2019

The defect
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Cadillac CTS, and 2017 Cadillac ATS, Chevrolet Camaro, and Chevrolet Corvette vehicles. The electric power steering (EPS) assist system may fail.
The risk
Loss of power steering assist would require a higher steering effort, especially at lower speeds, which may increase the risk of a crash.
The remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the power steering gear assembly, free of charge. The recall began June 13, 2019. GM' number for this recall is N182182760.

General Motors LLC · up to 26,772 vehicles across all model years covered

What owners report

Complaints naming each system. One complaint can name several, so these add up to more than 32.

STEERING 12 38%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 6 19%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 6 19%
POWER TRAIN 5 16%
ENGINE 3 9%
AIR BAGS 2 6%
SERVICE BRAKES 2 6%
BACK OVER PREVENTION 1 3%
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 3%
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 1 3%
STRUCTURE 1 3%
VISIBILITY/WIPER 1 3%

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2019 at 12.

2018 2019 2026
2018 to 2026, the last of them a part year

In owners' own words

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

SERVICE BRAKES

crash · towed · 2,414 miles

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.

NHTSA complaint 11064482. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

towed · 34,000 miles

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2017 CADILLAC ATS. WHILE DRIVING, THE VEHICLE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER (LES STANFORD CHEVROLET, 21711 MICHIGAN AVE, DEARBORN, MI 48124). THE DEALER DIAGNOSED THE VEHICLE, BUT THE CONTACT WAS UNAWARE OF THE RESULTS. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN BACK TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING OR REPAIRS. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURES. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 34,000.

NHTSA complaint 11089664. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SERVICE BRAKES

towed · 50,098 miles

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 shifted to park(P) causing the vehicle to come to an abrupt stop. During the failure the “Service Brake Assist" message was displayed. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was not yet notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 50,098.

NHTSA complaint 11464773. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

POWER TRAIN
Transmission fluid temperature sensor in the 8 speed automatic 8L90 transmission from GM is a known issue. Causes vehicle to shift/jerk erratically especially in stop and go traffic.

NHTSA complaint 11740000. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING
Driving home message came up on the dash, saying, power steering problem. Next thing you know, it was extremely hard to turn the wheel left or right.

NHTSA complaint 11733798. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

WHEELS
I have replaced two brand new tires on the back right. I then saw that there was a TSB for the very issue im having with my vehicle. A slow loss of air from the back right tire. The TSB link is Its a slow.loss of air that eventually ends you up with a blown tire on the side of the road which has happened twice to me now. There is no location on the vehicle for a spare tire coincidentally. I still have the tires with damage to them for proof . My brakes and rotors have been. Changed because the mechanic said that could be the issue. I never thought of it being the tire and rim until I saw the TSB for this which is exactly what it feels like when the air does get in the rim and begins to naw

NHTSA complaint 11721871, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

BACK OVER PREVENTION:DISPLAY FUNCTION
My Que Screen has webbed and makes it impossible to view my screen, important vehicles warnings and my maps for directions. This has been a recall in the past. Prior to me owning my vehicle. I can’t believe Cadillac installed junk in their vehicles. A third party is a direct extension of YoUR business. Do better. This is horrible. I demand a recall repair. If this was known and you all didn’t want to fix these vehicles should be pulled off the roadways. Right your wrongs.

NHTSA complaint 11687205. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS
In center console there is a dual USB port for either charging or data for CarPlay. When two phones are plugged in and charging, and one phone is in passengers hand, while vehicle is in motion or stopped, the airbag warning light will illuminate. When the phone is removed from passenger seat, airbag warning light turns off. This will happen any number of times and is very easy to reproduce issue. This problem is only occurring more often now that I have a passenger in the car. But it will happen if any phone is plugged in and sitting on the seat. It went to the dealer with this issue a couple years ago but they couldn’t get it to happen again because the phone wasn’t on the seat plugged in.

NHTSA complaint 11665197, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

POWER TRAIN
1. The transmission shudders at high speeds and at low speeds it either hesitates to shift gears or it lurches forward causing a rough shifting of gears. 2. I feel as though when I am braking and my car lurches forward, sometimes I have to brake even harder just to get the car to stop in time. This has caused me to almost hit pedestrians and/or other car. At high speeds, when the transmission shudders, I feel as though I have to slow down in order to stop the aggressive shaking, making others driving behind me have to slow down. 3. A former family mechanic has tried to resolve the transmission issue for me and he was unsuccessful in doing so. I have not taken it to a dealer or a big name

NHTSA complaint 11663588, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Cadillac ATS

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2018 21 2
2016 32 3
2015 29 4
2014 103 4
2013 160 6

Other 2017 Cadillac models

Every Cadillac on this site — 91 vehicles, 198 recall campaigns and 4 open investigation s.

If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. What each state asks for , read from the statutes.

Where these numbers come from

A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.

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