KnownCarProblems2008 Cadillac Cts Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 175 complaints with NHTSA about the 2008 Cadillac Cts, most often about the electrical (22% of complaints, typically around 74,000 miles). It is 6th of 17 Cts model years by number of complaints and has 2 recalls.
Most common 2008 Cadillac Cts problems
Electrical
39 complaints · 22%Half of these problems showed up before 74,000 miles. Parts named most often: ignition.
I was driving in a parking garage so my speed was about 5-10mph when the whole system shut down. The car stopped moving and all of the system warnings popped off (ABS, stabiltrack,engine). The car would not turn back on. I had it towed to the shop where I was told that it was an electrical problem. The PCM was…
The contact owns a 2008 Cadillac Cts. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled several times intermittently. While traveling on a major highway at an unknown speed, all of the instrument panel indicators illuminated each time the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was able to be restarted after several attempts. The key…
Engine
29 complaints · 17%Half of these problems showed up before 62,500 miles. Parts named most often: engine, exhaust system.
First incident: when driving, engine would loose power, engine light on, fuel pump replaced second incident: two weeks later, driving car and engine shuts down, no power, no brakes, no power steering, gas mileage to empty was at 68 miles. Replaced fuel gauges third incident: one week after replaced fuel gauge, engine…
Car has failed emission testing for 2 consecutive years since I purchased it. After driving for the better part of a year I took it to a dealer in 2018 and explained that check engine light comes on and off persistently. They tested emissions and said it passed. Again in 2019 it failed emissions again and the dealer…
Fuel system
28 complaints · 16%Half of these problems showed up before 73,500 miles.
The contact owns a 2008 Cadillac Cts. While driving 35 MPH, the contact smelled fuel inside the vehicle. There were no warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was taken to ritchey Cadillac (located at 932 n nova rd #101, daytona beach, fl 32117, ([phone]) where it was diagnosed that the fuel pump module needed to…
The contact owns a 2008 Cadillac Cts. Immediately after pulling the vehicle inside the garage, a very strong fuel odor was present. The fuel odor seeped inside the house. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that a line in the fuel tank failed and needed replacement. The vehicle was not…
Brakes
22 complaints · 13%Half of these problems showed up before 50,000 miles. Parts named most often: foundation components, power assist.
The contact owns a 2008 Cadillac Cts. While driving at various speeds, the vehicle would rattle. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the failure was undetermined. The vehicle was then taken to an independent mechanic where it was informed that the front struts needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired.…
The contact owns a 2008 Cadillac Cts. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH, she depressed the brake pedal but the it was hard to engage and the vehicle would not stop. The contact stated that she pumped the brake pedal several times before the vehicle came to a complete stop. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for…
Transmission
21 complaints · 12%Half of these problems showed up before 83,000 miles. Parts named most often: automatic transmission, driveline, clutch assembly.
I brought a 2008 Cadillac back in sept. 2014. April of 2015 I had a crankshaft sensor went out on me three times all three times I took it in to roth Cadillac of erie pa and I also contact Cadillac headquarters at the same time. I pay all three times. They fixed the sensor and repaired the wiring harness all three…
On april 8 2016 my wife was on the way to the bank at peach and liberty in erie pa. She was stopped at a red light when the light turn green she had no transmission or brakes. Luckily for her the emergence break worked because she was going backwards. Had it towed to roth Cadillac in erie pa. Was told that the…
Other or unspecified
17 complaints · 10%Half of these problems showed up before 90,000 miles.
Takata recall: my service air bag light keeps coming and off. Also my tire gage ,keeps flashing after my air levels has been check. It will not go off on its on.
Code p0430 cam or crank shaft position censor. Timing chain issue caused by manufacture defection. Rear driver side passenger seat belt not working properly. And leaking moon roof
Body and structure
14 complaints · 8%Half of these problems showed up before 58,500 miles. Parts named most often: body, frame and members.
I was driving and heading on a curve I didn't see that it was 25 MPH and I was going about 45 and I brake and I slid, hit a tree about three fists thick slide on my drivers side which is completely smushed in and rolled over and fell straight into a ditch up side down.
Trunk lid will not open with remote device or by depressing the drivers door trunk release. You can hear the trunk latch engaging but will not release. Attempted to open via the back seat pass thru by pulling on the emergency trunk release handle and this failed as well.
Speed control
14 complaints · 8%Half of these problems showed up before 30,000 miles. Parts named most often: accelerator pedal.
Tl contact owns a 2008 Cadillac Cts. While driving at 30 MPH, the contact attempted to brake and noticed that the floor mat was stuck between the brake pedal and accelerator pedal, causing the contact to crash into nearby vehicle. There were no injuries but a police report was filed. The vehicle was taken to an…
The contact owns a 2008 Cadillac Cts. The contact stated that while sitting idle with the brakes depressed, the speedometer suddenly increased to 80 MPH as the rear tires began spinning uncontrollably. The contact immediately placed both feet on the brake pedal and the vehicle resumed normal operation. The vehicle was…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2008 Cadillac Cts recalls
Electrical: ignition
Risk: If the key is not in the run position, the air bags may not deploy if the vehicle is involved in a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will install two key rings and an insert in the key slot or a cover over the key head on all ignition keys, free of charge. The recall began on september 15, 2014. Owners may contact cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. Gm's number for this recall is 14172.
Full defect summary
This defect can affect the safe operation of the airbag system. Until this recall is performed, customers should remove all items from their key rings, leaving only the ignition key. The key fob (if applicable), should also be removed from the key ring. General motors llc (gm) notified the agency on july 2, 2014 that they are recalling 554,328 model year 2003-2014 cadillac cts vehicles manufactured august 16, 2001, to april 28, 2014, and 2004-2006 cadillac srx vehicles manufactured march 20, 2003, to august 11, 2006. In these models, the weight on the key ring and/or road conditions or some other jarring event may cause the ignition switch to move out of the run position, turning off the engine.
Electrical: electrical system
Risk: It is possible for the heated washer module to ignite and a fire may occur.
Fix: Dealers will permanently disable and remove the heated washer fluid module. An updated page for the owner manual will be provided and inserted in the owner manual to document that the feature has been permanently disabled and removed from the vehicle. The safety recall began on june 11, 2010. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080, cadillac at 1-866-982-2339, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, saturn at 1-800-972-8876, gmc at 1-866-996-9463 and hummer at 1-800-732-5493 or at the owner center at www.gmownercenter.com.
Full defect summary
Gm is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 buick, lucerne; cadillac dts; hummer h2; model year 2008-2009 buick enclave; cadillac cts; model year 2007-2009 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, silverado, suburban, tahoe; gmc acadia, sierra, yukon, yukon xl; saturn outlook; and model year 2009 chevrolet traverse vehicles equipped with a heated washer fluid system (hwfs). A recall was implemented in 2008 to add a fuse to the control circuit harness to address the potential consequences of a printed circuit board (pcb) electrical short. However, there have been new reports of thermal incidents on hwfs modules after this improvement was installed. These incidents resulted from a new failure mode attributed to the device's thermal protection feature. The significance varies from minor distortion to considerable melting of the plastic around the hwfs fluid chamb
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
Questions about the 2008 Cadillac Cts
- What are the most common problems with the 2008 Cadillac Cts?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: electrical (39 complaints, typically around 74,000 miles); engine (29 complaints, typically around 62,500 miles); fuel system (28 complaints, typically around 73,500 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2008 Cadillac Cts have?
- 2 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from July 2, 2014 (electrical). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2008 a bad year for the Cadillac Cts?
- It is 6th of 17 Cts model years by number of complaints, with 175 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.