10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
20,215 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2013 Cadillac ATS engine problems

engine problem

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2013 Cadillac ATS Owner Comments (Page 2 of 3)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #25

Apr 012013

ATS 6-cyl

  • 3,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The service engine soon, stabilitrak, and traction control lights continuously illuminate my dashboard. It has happened approximately 6 times. Each time the dealer has found basically nothing wrong, just replaced a spark plug each time, changed the oil, and cleared the codes. The car has stalled on multiple occasions. I was almost rear ended by someone because a light turned green and my car was stalled. Prior to it stalling it violently shakes, which is just a little bit more rough than the constant shaking it always does. Also recently it has been having trouble starting. Everything seems to be related and is getting worse. The dealer extended my warranty to almost 90,000 miles but I feel unsafe in this car because of all the problems that it has and all the new problems that keep coming up.

- Grayslake, IL, USA

problem #24

Apr 082014

ATS

  • 3,920 miles
The vehicle stalled while sitting in neutral, waiting at a red light. The air conditioning was running. The engine runs so quietly that from inside the vehicle I would not have been able to tell the engine had shut off if the A/C had not stopped blowing. I restarted the vehicle and an alert came on the dash screen stating: Service power steering, drive with care. I was approximately 3/4 of a mile from my home coming downhill on a quiet neighborhood street so I carefully drove the vehicle home and parked in the garage while I called the service department at my local Cadillac dealership. He told me the power steering is controlled by the electrical system may have glitched when I restarted the vehicle and not been activated. He said I could restart the vehicle after 30 seconds and the power steering should function properly again. He told me if there is an issue I can have GM tow the vehicle in, or if the power steering begins to function again I can drive it in to have it serviced. Once I restarted the vehicle the power steering was functioning properly. I will be having Cadillac look at the vehicle this afternoon.

- Temecula, CA, USA

problem #23

Mar 282013

ATS

  • 12,112 miles
2013 Cadillac Ats 6mt stalls when decelerating with an ensuing loss of power steering. Cadillac has come up with a software fix for this issue. Software written to protect the flywheel was modified to eliminate this problem.

- @Wellington, FL, USA

problem #22

Mar 122014

ATS 4-cyl

  • 6,320 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Hello, I have a 2013 Cadillac Ats 2.0T AWD and I have been having serious issues with the car stalling and idling roughly. It has stalled on my three times already since I got the car in October, and I have taken it in for service on two different occasions for that same issue. Each time they kept the car for three days to try and replicate the issue with no answers for me except "make sure you bring it in next time it happens". I no longer feel safe driving the car especially since the last time it happened I was driving 25mph in heavy traffic, and I narrowly avoided getting rear-ended.

- Keego Harbor, MI, USA

problem #21

Feb 242014

ATS

  • 11,000 miles
I have experienced an intermittent shudder/jerkiness in the past month while driving the vehicle at low speeds. Today, while slowing and turning into a parking lot, the engine shut off and I coasted the vehicle into a parking space and stopped. I turned on the ignition and the car started immediately. When I got home I searched the internet for issues and found this thread on the Cadillac forums of others with similar problems: www.cadillacforums.com/forums/Cadillac-Ats-technical-discussion-forum/391273-2013-6-speed-manual-stalling-affected.html I called my local dealer and spoke with [xxx] in the service department. He said that they are aware of the shudder at low speeds and have a fix for that problem. He said that they have not heard of the vehicle actually stalling. I told him that he could read about it on the forum above. He asked me to bring my vehicle into the dealership to have some transmission parts replaced. I am concerned that this might only resolve the jerking, but not the stalling, which is a major safety issue. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Coconut Creek, FL, USA

problem #20

May 302013

ATS

  • 500 miles
Car idles badly may come close to stalling at times. It shutters at warm up in cold weather. What is sad is GM well aware and will not fix it. I am stuck with it according to dealers I have visited.

- Boothwyn, PA, USA

problem #19

Jun 282013

ATS 4-cyl

  • 5,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

When coasting to come to a stop the vehicle engine will stall. The vehicle either doesn't attempt to idle at all once the clutch has been depressed, or it seems to get to a lower RPM than normal (<500rpm) and then the engine just shuts off, very abruptly.

- Sterling Heights , MI, USA

problem #18

Aug 012013

ATS 4-cyl

  • 4,000 miles
Since buying this Cadillac Ats 2013, 2.0T rwd manual, vehicle new, the engine has stalled several times. The stalling occurs when the vehicle is idling in neutral (at stoplights, in traffic). The stalling happens in both warm and cold conditions. The stalling is not like normal manual transmission stalling where the vehicle lunges forward. The stalling is silent. You do not notice the vehicle has stalled until you put the car into gear and attempt to drive. The vehicle has been taken to a Cadillac dealership to inspect the issue (lindsay Cadillac of alexandria). The technicians were unable to reproduce the issue and there was no resolution. Approximate service date was 09/26/2013.

- Falls Church, VA, USA

problem #17

Apr 122013

ATS

  • 300 miles
While decelerating to make various turns or stop at an intersection the vehicle shuts off with no warning. Also the steering and brakes become hard. On one occasion while merging onto the highway it occurred again, almost causing me to crash into a vehicle then lose control.

- Miami, FL, USA

problem #16

Mar 252013

ATS

  • 500 miles
The 6-speed manual Ats has an issue with stalling, usually when coasting to a stop, and less frequently on initial acceleration. It is not due to poor release practice with the clutch. The car will die unexpectedly when coasting, which kills the electric power steering, which makes for an unsafe situation. This happens infrequently, and I don't really know what combination of things leads to the stall. I have changed the way I drive the car in order to minimize coasting or using the transmission for deceleration. This helps, but there are still times when I get surprised at an intersection by the car being dead when I'm ready to accelerate. It is a very quiet car, especially at idle, so if I'm watching traffic and not the dash, it can die and I don't know it until I hit the gas again.

- Weatherford, TX, USA

problem #15

Nov 292013

ATS 4-cyl

  • 3,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

My vehicle is a 6-speed manual...twice now in the last month it has stalled at a complete stop even the clutch is fully depressed.

- San Diego, CA, USA

problem #14

May 102013

ATS 4-cyl

  • miles
When coasting to a stop light, or a stop sign, the car will occasionally stall for no reason. I drive a stick shift, and will move the shifter into neutral as I am coming to a stop, and on multiple occasions, the car has just stalled out and I lose all power steering and electronic brake assistance, which makes stopping the car more difficult. This issue has also occurred a few times when actively driving at higher speeds. I will get a message on my dic saying that my power steering needs to be serviced, and shortly after the car stalls.

- East Rochester, NY, USA

problem #13

Nov 242013

ATS 4-cyl

  • 7,500 miles
I was pulling in to a parking spot behind a car at a very low speed when I pressed the brakes for the car to stop, instead it accelerated and smashed in to a car in front of me. I tried pressing the brakes harder in order to avoid the impact and the car did not respond.

- Brooklyn , NY, USA

problem #12

Jul 132011

ATS

  • 500 miles
The brake and gas pedal are so close together that when braking in heavy traffic it is possible to depress the gas pedal while braking resulting in an engine surge condition. This only happens in bumper to bumper traffic or when stopping at a traffic light.

- Central Islip, NY, USA

problem #11

Jun 122013

ATS 4-cyl

  • 200 miles
I have a 2013 Ats 6 speed. A couple weeks after I got it will stall when slowing down to make a complete stop. It stopped for about a month then it continued again. It would happen as often as twice a week to a couple times a month. My car now has over 3K miles and it still happens. I noticed I has not been as frequent as previous months but it still happens once in a while.

- Salinas, CA, USA

problem #10

Jun 202013

ATS 4-cyl

  • 1,500 miles
When coasting to come to a stop the vehicle engine will stall/turn off. This has happened numerous times since the first incident in June. This is a 6 speed manual transmission equipped vehicle, and the transmission is either in neutral or the clutch pedal is depressed so that the engine/transmission are decoupled. I have been able to watch the tachometer when it has stalled twice, and then the engine just shuts off, very abruptly (no shaking, or noise). It has also happened when slowing to take a turn with the clutch pedal depressed, which is very difficult to get back started as you are trying to drive and not cause an accident (plus the steering wheel locks). I have reported this to the dealer, and they have tried to diagnose it, however no fix has happened. It will normally stall about once every week or so, it is very intermittent. The dealer went as far as to blame me for stalling the vehicle, they said I didn't disengage the clutch at a high enough RPM which is completely untrue and regardless the car was in neutral and I was coasting to a stop (therefore it would be impossible to stall the vehicle in gear). I am not the only one with this issue, there have been numerous people on forums complaining of the same issue. My car is currently in the lemon process with the BBB autoline program as this has happened multiple times. Dealer/GM can not duplicate the issue and has no idea what the problem is.

- Miami, FL, USA

problem #9

Jan 082013

ATS 4-cyl

  • 1,500 miles
When coasting to come to a stop the vehicle engine will stall. This has happened numerous times since the first incident in January. This is a 6 speed manual transmission equipped vehicle, and the transmission is either in neutral or the clutch pedal is depressed so that the engine/transmission are decoupled. I have been able to watch the tachometer when it has stalled twice, and it seems to get to a lower RPM than normal (<500rpm) and then the engine just shuts off, very abruptly. It has also happened when slowing to take a turn with the clutch pedal depressed, which is very difficult to get back started as you are trying to drive and not cause an accident. I have reported this to the dealer, and they have tried to diagnose it, however no fix has happened. It will normally stall about once every week or so, it is very intermittent and seems more often with a higher load on the engine (hot days, A/C running, etc...). the dealer went as far as to blame me for stalling the vehicle, they said I didn't disengage the clutch at a high enough RPM which is completely untrue and regardless the car was in neutral and I was coasting to a stop (therefore it would be impossible to stall the vehicle in gear). I am not the only one with this issue, there have been numerous people on forums complaining of the same issue.

- North Aurora, IL, USA

problem #8

Oct 042013

ATS

  • 420 miles
Vehicle quietly stalls and has happened numerous times since purchasing the vehicle less than a month ago. Brought it to the dealer but they basically just say it is designed to stall in certain instances which I believe is just nonsense and unsafe. I have read online that this is happening to other Ats owners so I know that this is a serious and unsafe issue with the 6spd Ats.

- San Diego, CA, USA

problem #7

Jul 262013

ATS 4-cyl

  • 38 miles
Vehicle turns off when in neutral approaching to stop. This is not from improper foot work on the clutch. The vehicle is in neutral. It has happened over 13 times since vehicle purchased on 7/26/2013 (first incident on date of purchase). The vehicle will turn on immediately after. It has been to the dealership three times and twice they kept it for a week. The problem did not duplicate with the dealership. On the third visit they replaced the engine control module. Five days after picking it up after they replaced the engine control module the problem happened again. This is very dangerous as it has happened at busy intersections and it is a safety concern.

- Vineland, NJ, USA

problem #6

Jun 032013

ATS 4-cyl

  • 63 miles
2.5 liter engine on my 2013 Cadillac Ats shakes while sitting at traffic lights. GM updated the software three times on a recall but now advised that the engine shaking in normal and they can do nothing about it.

- Missouri City, TX, USA

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