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2016 Cadillac Escalade Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 89 complaints with NHTSA about the 2016 Cadillac Escalade, most often about the engine (36% of complaints, typically around 73,000 miles). It is 6th of 27 Escalade model years by number of complaints and has 4 recalls.
⚠ Safety advisory1 recall for this car came with a do-not-drive warning. See below and check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Most common 2016 Cadillac Escalade problems
Engine
32 complaints · 36%Half of these problems showed up before 73,000 miles.
From owner: car begins to shake violently at random times while going 50-70 MPH. Have to pull over to get to stop. No overheating to engine or issues when car is restarted. Faulty torque convertor. Have at Cadillac dealer now. Saying it is not covered by the recall for the torque convertor on other 2015-17 escalades.…
Car has what is called the "chevy shake" which effects almost all models from 2015-2017. Car shakes violently at times. Paid for repairs. This should be a recall as it is with other Escalade models and gm models of the same chassis..car has extreme rumble at times and is difficult to steer. While in motion at speeds…
Transmission
17 complaints · 19%Half of these problems showed up before 48,000 miles.
My vehicle had about 46600 miles. Today while on a very busy interstate, the car started shaking really bad. It felt like I was going over bumps. This is a vehicle I barely drive as I have another vehicle for my primary use. I purchased the vehicle brand new with 10 miles in march of 2016. There's no excuse why this…
The 8 speed transmission has been jerky at slow speeds from almost day one. But after 30,000 miles it has become worse. At time after starting the vehicle and placing into gear it will suddenly and violently lung forward or reverse, when accelerating from a slow speed it will stall abruptly, twice causing an engine…
Electrical
15 complaints · 17%The contact owns a 2016 Cadillac Escalade. Every time the contact parked and locked the vehicle, the brake lights remained illuminated. The vehicle was taken to ed morse Cadillac tampa (101 e fletcher ave, tampa, fl 33612, ([phone]) four times while under the warranty. The dealer replaced the sensor under the brake…
The adaptive cruise control radar sensor was found crack after being taken to the dealership for error code. ( their was no physical damage to the front bumper or the bottom of the bumper of the vehicle. Gm failed to replace the part under warranty because they say there is physical damage to the part needed to be…
Other or unspecified
14 complaints · 16%Half of these problems showed up before 20,000 miles.
In the early hours of august 15th 2016 my Cadillac Escalade 2016, VIN [], caught fire while staying parked (stationary) all night. As per the pictures taken by the neighbors, the Escalade tuned into a huge fire ball and burned the truck down to ashes. It also burned down two other cars parked behind it and the…
Infotainment screen shows cracking, becomes unresponsive and clicks on it's own intermittantly. Renders all functionality including all radio/sound, navigation, projection, etc... Useless.
Suspension
8 complaints · 9%Half of these problems showed up before 4,000 miles.
The contact owns a 2016 Cadillac Escalade. The contact stated that while driving at 35 MPH, the vehicle began to vibrate as the speed increased. The vehicle was taken to be repaired but the dealer could not remedy the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 4,000. Updated…
This vehicle is about to shake me out of it. The sun roof even shakes at all speeds and at all time. A $50.000.00 piece of junk. I'm embarrassed to let someone ride with me. It's unsafe!!!
Steering
7 complaints · 8%My vehicle pulls to the left aggressively none stop and its bad enough to were you take your eyes for a second to look at the fuel gauge and you are already in the middle of the other lane. The Cadillac dealership has performed work on it and replaced parts,in a few words they told me..we have done our best. As of…
Took car in feb 2019 to repair torque converter. Was replaced and now is back to shaking at random times. This should be a recall as Cadillac has numerous problems with powertrain on escalades from 2015-17.
Air bags
6 complaints · 7%Half of these problems showed up before 43,000 miles.
The contact owns a 2016 Cadillac Escalade. While driving approximately 42 MPH, the contact noticed another vehicle traveling in the wrong direction and heading towards him. The contact swerved to the left to avoid the vehicle. As a result, the contact drove off the road and struck a large rock in a nearby lawn. The…
While in motion - the Cadillac Escalade's airbags all suddenly deployed. There was no collision or impact that preceded the incident. The police officer on scene was also quite surprised. The driver of the vehicle suffered bruises, and a mild concussion. The other occupants were safe. However, the deployment of these…
Stability control
4 complaints · 5%This vehicle is about to shake me out of it. The sun roof even shakes at all speeds and at all time. A $50.000.00 piece of junk. I'm embarrassed to let someone ride with me. It's unsafe!!!
The contact owns a 2016 Cadillac Escalade. The contact stated while coming to a stop to park the vehicle, the vehicle turned off and restarted continuously, and the steering wheel straightened unintendedly. The contact stated that on several occasions, the vehicle failed to restart after being turned off. The contact…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2016 Cadillac Escalade recalls
Brakes: vacuum
Risk: As the vacuum level drops, the brake assist decreases, increasing braking effort, extending the distance required to stop the vehicle, thereby increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the electronic brake control module, free of charge. The recall began october 8, 2019. Owners may contact chevrolet customer service at 1-800-630-2438, cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006 or gmc customer service at 1-800-462-8782. Gm's number for this recall is n192268490.
Full defect summary
General motors llc (gm) is recalling certain 2015-2017 cadillac escalade, 2014-2018 chevrolet silverado, gmc sierra, 2015-2018 chevrolet suburban, tahoe, gmc yukon vehicles. The amount of vacuum created by the vacuum pump may decrease over time.
Seat belts: pretensioner
Risk: A failure of the front air bags or seat belt pretensioners to deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will reflash the sdm software. Vehicles that have had a previous air bag deployment will have the sdm replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on august 4, 2017. Owners may contact buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or gmc customer service at 1-800-462-8782. Gm's number for this recall is 17287.
Full defect summary
General motors llc (gm) is recalling certain model year 2014-2016 buick lacrosse and chevrolet spark EV, caprice ppv and ss vehicles, 2014-2017 buick encore and chevrolet corvette, silverado 1500 and gmc sierra 1500 vehicles, 2015-2016 cadillac escalade and escalade esv, chevrolet tahoe, trax, suburban and silverado 2500 and 3500 and gmc yukon and yukon xl vehicles, and 2015-2017 gmc sierra hd 2500 and 3500 vehicles. While being previously remedied for recall 16v-651, the affected vehicles may not have received the complete software update necessary to remedy the recall condition. Without the update, certain driving conditions may cause the air bag sensing and diagnostic module (sdm) software to activate a diagnostic test. During this test, deployment of the frontal air bags and the seat belt pretensioners would not occur in the event of a crash.
Seat belts: pretensioner
Risk: A failure of the front air bags or seat belt pretensioners to deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will reflash the sdm software. Vehicles that have had a previous air bag deployment will have the sdm replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on october 13, 2016. Owners may contact buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or gmc customer service at 1-800-462-8782. Gm's number for this recall is 16007.
Full defect summary
General motors llc (gm) is recalling certain model year 2015-2017 chevrolet silverado 2500 hd, 3500 hd, tahoe, suburban, gmc sierra 2500 hd and 3500 hd, gmc yukon, gmc yukon xl, cadillac escalade and cadillac escalade esv vehicles and 2014-2017 chevrolet corvette, silverado 1500, trax, caprice police pursuit vehicle, gmc sierra 1500, buick encore, and 2014-2016 buick lacrosse, chevrolet spark EV and ss vehicles. In the affected vehicles, certain driving conditions may cause the air bag sensing and diagnostic module (sdm) software to activate a diagnostic test. During this test, deployment of the frontal air bags and the seat belt pretensioners would not occur in the event of a crash.
Suspension: control arm
Risk: Inadequate welds may allow the control arm to separate from the bushing, compromising steering and increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will replace the left and right front upper control arms and realign the vehicle, free of charge. The recall began on may 18, 2016. Until the repairs have been made, owners are advised not to drive their vehicles. Owners may contact chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, or gmc customer service at 1-800-462-8782. Gm's number for this recall is 42190.
Full defect summary
General motors llc (gm) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 chevrolet silverado 1500 and 2016 cadillac escalade, cadillac escalade esv, chevrolet suburban, chevrolet tahoe, gmc sierra, gmc yukon and gmc yukon xl vehicles. The front upper control arms may have inadequate welds near the control arm bushing.
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.
NHTSA defect investigations
Brake vacuum pump failure
Summary
On november 20, 2018, the office of defects investigations (odi) opened pe18-012 to investigate instances of sudden onset of a hard brake pedal that could result in extended stopping distance due to an issue with the brake assist vacuum pump in model year (my) 2014 through 2016 gmc sierra 1500 and chevrolet silverado 1500 series pickup trucks and my 2015 through 2016 cadillac escalade, chevrolet suburban, chevrolet tahoe, and gmc yukon suvs.if the brake assist vacuum pump fails to operate as intended, the amount of brake power assist supplied to the driver can be significantly reduced, extending the subject vehicle stopping distance. Gm stated that the root cause of pump failures was due to
Questions about the 2016 Cadillac Escalade
- What are the most common problems with the 2016 Cadillac Escalade?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: engine (32 complaints, typically around 73,000 miles); transmission (17 complaints, typically around 48,000 miles); electrical (15 complaints).
- How many recalls does the 2016 Cadillac Escalade have?
- 4 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from September 6, 2019 (brakes). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2016 a bad year for the Cadillac Escalade?
- It is 6th of 27 Escalade model years by number of complaints, with 89 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.