Cadillac CT5 Reliability by YearBest & worst years, problems & recalls — NHTSA data

I've had my driver side door handle switch replaced beacuse it was faulty and I could not get into my car through the driver side. Now I am having the same issue with the passanger side. In a case of an emergeny if I can not get into my car I fear for my or my passanger's safety. I fear the quality of the parts are not ment to last. I replaced the driver side handle right before the manufactur warreny ran out then the passanger door stopped working when the warrenty ran out.

While driving on a very busy highway going downhill when suddenly the vehicle started feeling abnormal like it was going to turn off automatically, heard an abnormal grinding noise coming from the engine the vehicle dropped speed drastically and the check engine light turned on , luckily we were on a part of the road where I merged quickly to the side of the road followed by a sudden engine shut down, the safety of myself and 3 other passengers was very compromised due to nearly being hit by other vehicles coming at a high speed on a main highway when my vehicle suddenly slowed down coming to a shut down due to the engine failure, I attempted to turn the car on again but would not turn on, was not getting any response at all, had to get the car towed, the vehicle did not have other warning lights before the failure, the check engine light came on after the engine failed, the vehicle was taken to an authorized Cadillac dealer where the engine was diagnosed as Engine seized, locked up and will not turn over. I received a Recall regarding Momentary Wheel Lock-Up which leads me to believe that might be related to what happened to my vehicle but did not have 8K dollars for a teardown to further inspect the root cause of my engine failure and definitely did not have over 11K dollars for a new engine/labor cost. The Cadillac dealer was quick to deny the possibility to be related to the recall without even doing a teardown of engine also the dealer denied the option to work on the recall repair due to the vehicle being inoperable.

Exterior driver side door handle will not open the door causing issues with ingress into vehicle.

The passive door locks on the handles to the car do not work. The electronic sensor to unlock the car does not work due to misalignment of the pin that is supposed to press the key. This is a widely known issue on 2020-2021 Cadillac ct5 vehicles. This eventually results in total lockout of the vehicle. I currently have three doors that do not unlock. Please see a link to the issue I reported on Cadillacs form website as well https://www.cadillacforums.com/threads/door-handle-issues.1141023/?nested_view1#post-18436706

The contact owns a 2021 Cadillac CT5. The contact stated that while driving approximately 42 MPH – 66 MPH, the vehicle was shaking abnormally. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle jerked and shuddered while shifting gears. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 48,600.

Car interior smelled like gas when the car is started. but seemed to clear while driving. Found that the Fuel hose between the pipe and the fuel intake was leaking when the car initially started. You could smell the odor when the hood was raised. This is the Pipe and Hose that you need the Fuel clamp removal tool for that is located in the rear center of the engine just in front of the firewall. The leak was about 3 inches from then end where it connected to the engine. Currently I have a temporary repair on it (Fuel coupling) where the hole was. Note, This car is out of warranty. It has been to the dealership (Step One Cadillac in Ft. Walton Beach, FL) for other recalls, but the dealership did not mention any issues.

The exterior door handle latch release switch fails to open the door. This issue happened to all 4 exterior doors. The problem starts with intermittently, then progresses to complete failure. Once it fails, the entire door handle needs to be replaced. If all 4 doors fail, the only way to access the car is with the Emergency Key or if you activated the Remote Window Down. This only works if you have access to the key. If you left your keys in the car, the car would lock (even if running) then your only option is to fiddle with the switch in hopes of activating it or crawl through the trunk (if you're small enough). If an infant or a pet is in the car, then that could lead to problems. Also if you pass out and emergency responders came out, they would have to break the window or pry the door open to gain access, which could pose a life or death situation. This is a well documented issue with this car per the Cadillac Forums. I replaced both the front door handle assemblies to repair the main access to the car. The rear handles are still inoperable. During inspection of the Handle Electronic assembly, it appears that the switch isn't fully seated against the circuit card, which causes the solder connection on the circuit card to fail.

Beginning of 2025 my drivers side door handle would not open from the outside of the car only the inside . I took it to a certified Cadillac dealer which they had to replace the door handle . Now July 10, 2025 my front passenger side is doing the same thing and I will not have to take my car in to see if they can fix it or it this too will need to be replaced. This causes a hazard of emergency no one would be able to open the door from outside of the vehicle .

aste): The vehicle has a serious pulling issue while driving, which was not corrected with alignment and poses a safety risk. Additionally, the windshield was scratched by faulty wiper blades that impaired visibility — the dealer later reimbursed me. Lastly, the driver-side running light was not functioning, which creates a hazard and may violate federal lighting safety standards.

Currently my passenger door and my rear driver side door do not open from the outside. I already had to have my driver side door handle replaced for the same issue, now three out of four of my handles have failed. If an accident were to occur no one would be able to access the passenger or the rear driver passenger from the outside because the doors do not open. Since I can not open the door from the outside I had to remove the child lock from the rear door so my child can exit the vehicle.

Service transmission message showed up on dash. Dealer stated after performance test found P17A5 code for shift control. The dealer stated that the gear shift assembly needed to be replaced and if not, that the car could get stuck in gear which I feel is a safety risk. My vehicle only has 37,111 miles on it and I am pretty much the only driver.

Driver Side door handle stops working. Because the door handle operates with a sensor and not a standard pull door handle something is being affected and it will not open door. Causing safety issue and not being able to enter car normally.