2006 Cadillac DTS: complaints, problems and recalls

DT*: THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING 55 MPH THE VEHICLE HAD A BLOW OUT OF THE SIDEWALL IN THE PASSENGER SIDE FRONT TIRE. A FEW WEEKS LATER THE CONTACT DISCOVERED BOTH THE RIGHT FRONT AND REAR TIRES WERE FLAT. AIR APPEARED TO BE SEEPING THROUGH SECTIONS OF THE SIDEWALL. THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN INSPECTED BY THE DEALER AND THE TIRES WERE REPLACED. THE TIRES ARE GOODYEAR VOGUE Y TRAC TOURING II H RATED. UPDATED 3/20/2006 - *NM

Owner-reported narrative. 2,028 miles reported. Look up ODI 10149522 at NHTSA ↗

FLICKERING TAIL LIGHTS. RECENT MODELS OF CADILLAC (E.G. DTS), USE LED TAIL LIGHTS. ON THIS CAR, THEY FLICKER AT ABOUT 50 HZ. I WORK IN THE SOFTWARE INDUSTRY AND CAN CLEARLY SEE COMPUTER MONITORS FLICKERING AT 60 HZ OR BELOW. AT NIGHT, AND ESPECIALLY WHILE IN MOTION, THESE TAIL LIGHTS ARE EXTREMELY DISTRACTING, AND OCCASIONALLY NAUSEATING. I HAVE NOTICED THIS BEGINNING TO OCCUR ON MORE TYPES OF VEHICLES EACH YEAR. I AM VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THE EFFECT ON SAFETY AND COMFORT SHOULD THIS TREND BE ALLOWED TO CONTINUE. I BELIEVE THE DOT SHOULD …

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10154996 at NHTSA ↗

VEHICLE WILL NOT START. I HAVE HAD THE CAR SINCE THE END OF NOVEMBER 2005 AND ON TWO OCCASIONS THE CAR WAS DEAD. I DID NOT BUY THE CAR TO RUN EVERYDAY OR IN BAD WEATHER. *JB

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10156593 at NHTSA ↗

THE STEERING IN THE CONSUMER 2006 CADILLAC DTS WAS SENSITIVE. THE VEHICLE WAS INVOLVED IN A SINGLE CAR ACCIDENT WHEN THE DRIVER OVERCORRECTED TO AVOID COLLIDING WITH ANOTHER VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE HIT TWO GUARDRAILS AND OVERTURNED ONTO IT'S TOP. *NM THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY AND THE SEAT BELTS DID NOT SECURE THE OCCUPANTS DURING THE IMPACT. THE CONSUMER STATED THE PRE-TENSIONERS DID NOT ACTIVATE. *JB THE CONSUMER WAS UNABLE TO UNLOCK THE TRUNK DOOR MANUALLY. UPDATED *JB *NM UPDATED

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10157290 at NHTSA ↗

2006 CADILLAC DTS INADVERTENT ACCELERATION PROBLEM. *NM

Owner-reported narrative. 25 miles reported. Look up ODI 10158887 at NHTSA ↗

CAR GAINS EXCESSIVE SPEED ON DOWNHILL SLOPES. 15 MPH ON HILLS THAT OTHER CARS GAIN 3 TO 5 MPH. *JB

Owner-reported narrative. 20 miles reported. Look up ODI 10159747 at NHTSA ↗

WE HAVE CONTACTED CADILLAC AND THEY TELL US THERE IS NO FIX FOR THIS PROBLEM. THE DEALER HAS HAD THE CAR FOR TESTING TWO TIMES FOR SEVERAL DAYS. RICH TRETHEWAY, THE HEAD TECHNICIAN AT THE WEAVER DEALERSHIP IN GRASS VALLEY WHO DROVE MY CAR AND THEN EXPLAINED TO US WHAT THE CAR DOES. HERE IS WHAT THE CAR DOES FROM A DRIVING POINT OF VIEW. WHEN GOING DOWN HILL OR TRYING TO SLOW DOWN, WHEN THE CAR REACHES ABOUT 25 MILES PER HOUR OR ABOUT 1000 RPM, IT THEN GIVES ITSELF GAS WHICH CAUSE A FEELING THAT ONE WOULD HAVE IF THE CRUISE CONTROL WAS ON (IT…

Owner-reported narrative. 2,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10160619 at NHTSA ↗

2006 CADILLAC DTS-L3, SUN REFLECTS INTO THE CHROME BEZEL SURROUNDING THE ANALOG JEWEL CLOCK. *KB THE CLOCK IS MOUNTED AT AN ANGLE OF APPROX 45 DEGREES. DEPENDING ON THE TIME OF DAY AND THE DIRECTION OF TRAVEL THE CLOCK ACTS LIKE A MIRROR AND REFLECTS THE BRIGHT SUN FROM THE GLASS AND CHROME INTO THE DRIVER'S EYES. DARK SUNGLASSES PROVIDED LITTLE, IF ANY, RELIEF FROM THE GLARE. THE CONSUMER HAD TO TAPE A PIECE OF CLOTH OVER THE CLOCK TO GET SOME RELIEF. *NM

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10163694 at NHTSA ↗

Reported: 2006-04-05 (April 5, 2006)

ON CERTAIN VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH A V8 ENGINE,THE POWER STEERING HOSE CONNECTORS MAY HAVE BEEN INADEQUATELY CRIMPED WHICH COULD RESULT IN A FLUID LEAK.

Consequence: IF THIS WERE TO OCCUR, POWER STEERING ASSIST MAY BE LOST AND INCREASED STEERING EFFORT WOULD BE REQUIRED AT LOW SPEEDS. ALSO, IF THE POWER STEERING FLUID WERE TO CONTACT HOT ENGINE PARTS, AN ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRE COULD OCCUR.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE POWER STEERING GEAR INLET HOSE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON MARCH 29, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT BUICK AT 1-866-608-8080 OR CADILLAC AT 1-866-982-2339.

Reported: 2008-08-28 (August 28, 2008)

GM IS RECALLING 857,735 MY 2006-2008 BUICK LUCERNE; CADILLAC DTS; HUMMER H2; MY 2007-2008 CADILLAC ESCALADE, ESCALADE ESV, ESCALADE EXT; CHEVROLET AVALANCHE, SILVERADO, SUBURBAN, TAHOE; GMC ACADIA, SIERRA, YUKON, YUKON XL, SATURN OUTLOOK; AND MY 2008 BUICK ENCLAVE VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH A HEATED WIPER WASHER FLUID SYSTEM. A SHORT CIRCUIT ON THE PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD FOR THE WASHER FLUID HEATER MAY OVERHEAT THE CONTROL-CIRCUIT GROUND WIRE.

Consequence: THIS MAY CAUSE OTHER ELECTRICAL FEATURES TO MALFUNCTION, CREATE AN ODOR, OR CAUSE SMOKE INCREASING THE RISK OF A FIRE.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSTALL A WIRE HARNESS WITH AN IN-LINE FUSE FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON SEPTEMBER 12, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT BUICK AT 1-866-608-8080; CADILLAC AT 1-800-982-2339 OR HTTP://WWW.CADILLAC.COM; CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438; SATURN AT 1-800-972-8876 OR HTTP://WWW.SATURN.COM, GMC AT 1-866-996-9436; OR HUMMER AT 1-800-732-5493; OR THROUGH THEIR WEBSITE AT <A HREF=HTTP://WWW.GMOWNERCENTER.COM>HTTP://WWW.GMOWNERCENTER.COM</A> .

Reported: 2010-06-04 (June 4, 2010)

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 CHAMBER.

Consequence: IT IS POSSIBLE FOR THE HEATED WASHER MODULE TO IGNITE AND A FIRE MAY OCCUR.

Remedy: 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.

Reported: 2014-06-23 (June 23, 2014)

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) is recalling certain model year 2005-2009 Buick LaCrosse, 2006-2011 Buick Lucerne, 2000-2005 Cadillac DeVille, 2006-2011 Cadillac DTS, 2006-2014 Chevrolet Impala, and 2006-2007 Chevrolet Monte Carlo vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the weight on the key ring and road conditions or some other jarring event may cause the ignition switch to move out of the run position, turning off the engine.

Consequence: 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. Additionally, a key knocked out of the run position will cause loss of engine power, power steering, and power braking, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.

Remedy: 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 23, 2014. Owners may contact General Motors customer service at 1-800-521-7300 (Buick), 1-800-458-8006 (Cadillac), and 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet). GM's number for this recall is 14299.