Problems owners report
Complaints filed with NHTSA about the 2013 Cadillac ATS, by the system named in each complaint. One complaint can name several.
- Engine48
- Power train45
- Electrical system36
- Steering25
- Unknown or other17
- Service brakes14
- Vehicle speed control10
- Air bags9
- Exterior lighting7
- Suspension5
NHTSA ODI complaints (public domain) · updated 23 Oct 2026 · 8 injuries and 0 deaths reported
Compared with other years
NHTSA ODI complaints by model year
Fatal crashes in the US
From 2020 to 2023, 23 2013 ATS vehicles were involved in crashes on US public roads in which someone died; 17 people died inside them, and 3 of the vehicles rolled over. This is a count, not a crash rate: it grows with the number of cars on the road.
NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), crash years 2020–2023 (public domain)
New York safety inspections
At its first New York inspection the 2013 Cadillac ATS failed the safety check 2.32% of the time — 2% less often than the average 2013 passenger car (2.38%). Median odometer at inspection: 93,074 miles.
NY DMV Vehicle Inspections (vezn-fmmk), initial inspections since Aug 2021 · how we count
Crash-test ratings
NHTSA 5-star results for 2 variants; 2 of 2 rated variants score five stars overall. Rollover risk is the estimated chance of rolling over in a single-vehicle crash.
| Variant | Overall | Rollover risk |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 Cadillac ATS 4 DR AWD | ★★★★★ | 10.1 % |
| 2013 Cadillac ATS 4 DR RWD | ★★★★★ | 10.1 % |
- Electronic stability control
- Standard
- Forward collision warning
- Optional
- Lane departure warning
- Optional
- Best overall rating
- 5 / 5
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program (5-Star Safety Ratings), api.nhtsa.gov · US federal work, public domain
Fuel consumption
Official Canadian test results for 8 variants: combined 9.0–14.9 L/100 km (about 16–26 mpg US), CO₂ 207–260 g/km.
| Variant | City | Highway | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| ATS · Compact · Regular gasoline | 10.5 | 7.2 | 9.0 |
| ATS · Compact · Premium gasoline | 11.3 | 7.5 | 9.6 |
| ATS AWD · Compact · Premium gasoline | 11.7 | 7.9 | 10.0 |
| ATS · Compact · Premium gasoline | 12.0 | 8.0 | 10.2 |
| ATS · Compact · Regular gasoline | 12.6 | 8.5 | 10.7 |
| ATS AWD · Compact · Regular gasoline | 13.2 | 8.9 | 11.3 |
| ATS · Compact · E85 ethanol | 16.5 | 11.3 | 14.2 |
| ATS AWD · Compact · E85 ethanol | 17.3 | 11.9 | 14.9 |
Litres per 100 km. Natural Resources Canada, Fuel consumption ratings (open.canada.ca) · Open Government Licence – Canada
Recalls in Canada
10 Transport Canada recalls for the 2013 Cadillac ATS.
| 2020291 25 Jun 2020 | Steering Issue: On certain vehicles, the bolts that attach the electric power steering assist motor to the steering gear may corrode and break. This could cause a loss… |
| 2018463 30 Aug 2018 | Steering On certain vehicles originally sold or currently registered in areas of heavy road salt usage during winter months (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia,… |
| 2015390 3 Sept 2015 | Electrical On certain 4-door sedans, the coil antenna module located in the driver side rear pillar, which powers the rear defogger system, could generate significant temp… |
| 2015322 21 Jul 2015 | Electrical Certain vehicles equipped with power-operated sunroof system may fail to conform to Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (CMVSS) 118 - Power-Operated Window, Pa… |
| 2015075 19 Feb 2015 | Electrical Certain vehicles equipped with power-operated sunroof system may fail to conform to Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (CMVSS) 118 - Power-Operated Window, Pa… |
| 2014343 11 Aug 2014 | Seats And Restraints On certain vehicles, the front outboard driver and passenger seatbelt pretensioners may not function as designed in the event of a crash. The pretensioners coul… |
| 2014315 29 Jul 2014 | Seats And Restraints On certain vehicles, the hook bracket assembly for either front seat may have been manufactured with an incomplete weld. If the weld is incomplete and the asse… |
| 2014239 19 Jun 2014 | Powertrain On certain vehicles equipped with automatic transmissions, the shift cable may not be fully seated on the shifter and/or transmission bracket. If the cable wer… |
| 2013356 16 Oct 2013 | Lights And Instruments On certain vehicles, the brake lamps could flash intermittently without the brake pedal being depressed. This would convey a confusing message to following roa… |
| 2013176 24 May 2013 | Lights And Instruments On certain vehicles, the brake lamps could flash intermittently without the brake pedal being depressed. This would convey a confusing message to following roa… |
Transport Canada Vehicle Recalls Database · Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada
Recalls
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013-2016 Cadillac ATS sedan vehicles manufactured April 23, 2012, to September 2, 2015. In the affected vehicles, the coil antenna module that powers the rear defogger system may generate excessive heat due to excessive cycling or continuous operation.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013-2016 Cadillac ATS vehicles manufactured April 25, 2012, to June 25, 2015. The affected vehicles may experience the roof panel closing automatically when the non-recessed switches are pressed and the roof panel is open. These vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 118, "Power-Operated Window, Partition, and Roof Panel Systems."
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013 Buick Encore vehicles manufactured August 23, 2012, to March 1, 2013, and model year 2013 Cadillac ATS vehicles manufactured April 23, 2012, to May 1, 2013. In the affected vehicles, the driver and passenger lap belt pretensioner cables may not lock in a retracted position, allowing the seat belts to extend when pulled upon.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Buick Encore and Cadillac ATS; 2014 Cadillac CTS, ELR, Chevrolet Caprice and SS vehicles; and 2014-2015 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra Trucks. Due to an incomplete weld on the seat hook bracket assembly, the front seats in the affected vehicles may not stay secured in place during a high load condition such as a crash.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Cadillac ATS vehicles manufactured April 23, 2012, to March 20, 2014, and 2014 Cadillac CTS vehicles manufactured June 10, 2013, to March 20, 2014. In the affected vehicles, the transmission shift cable may detach from either the bracket on the transmission shifter or the bracket on the transmission.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013 Cadillac ATS and model year 2013 Cadillac XTS; model year 2014 Chevrolet Impala; and 2013 Chevrolet Sonic vehicles. Originally, in May 2013, GM recalled 1,627 model year 2013 Cadillac ATS and model year 2013 Cadillac XTS; and model year 2014 Chevrolet Impala vehicles. In October 2013, GM informed the agency that it was adding model year 2013 Chevrolet Sonic vehicles to this campaign , representing an additional 8,050 units. The total number of vehicles being recalled is now 9,677. On the affected vehicles, the brake lamps may intermittently flash without the brakes being applied and the cruise control may disengage. Thus, these vehicles fail to conform to the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 108, "Lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment."
Whether a recall was fixed on a particular car is known only to the manufacturer: check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
NHTSA recalls · summaries in NHTSA's own words
Service bulletins
What Cadillac told its dealers about the 2013 Cadillac ATS: known faults, fixes and updates.
| Bulletin | Summary |
|---|---|
| 11011989 | This service bulletin provides information on the harmful effects of ethylene glycol in transmission fluid. |
| 11011805 | This Preliminary information communicates a GM part number forreflective high temperature heat or insulating tape when repairing wiring harnesses. |
| 11011782 | This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about the use of J-35616-64B terminal test probe, replacement terminals, and terminated leads. The J-35616-64B is the latest test probe released for checking tension or probing the .64 series terminals. The test probe terminal has been released in the terminal repair kit (J-38125-620H) located in Lear Tray 7 part number 963716-2. There are 5 terminated leads in a package part number is 13505346, which can be ordered through your normal General Motors Customer Care and Aftersales parts channel. |
| 11011709 | This bulletin advises the dealers to maintain the vehicle stock on hand by doing a full inspection on the vehicles before being sold (prepping) to the customer. |
| 11011444 | This Preliminary information communicates to the dealer a process for accessing the procedure to add attachments to a GM technical assistance case using the dealer case management tool. |
| 11011406 | This Preliminary information communicatesa "Forward Collision System Reduced" message displayed on the DIC when theForward Automatic Braking has been set to the "Alert" setting. This is normal when theFAB has been set to "Alert". |
| 11011205 | This informational bulletin explains Unscheduled Supplemental Services and the importance of GM Simplified Maintenance Schedules. |
| 11010562 | This bulletin provides information on possible normal brake drag caused by the vehicle parked for an extended period of time. |
| 11010545 | This service bulletin provides information on key code security rules and information on GM keycode look-up applications (U.S). |
| 11010491 | This warranty administration bulletin provides policy information for GM courtesy transportation and roadside assistance programs. |
| 11010490 | This service bulletin provides guidelines and diagnostic/repair information to technicians regarding vehicle engine oil consumption. |
| 11010421 | This warranty administration bulletin provides policy information on the requirements for 12V battery testing and warranty replacements. |
| 11009764 | This service bulletin provides information on Concerns or Questions Regarding Installation of Dealer Installed Accessories. |
| 11009756 | This bulletin provides information on Policies Applicable to All U.S. Dealers for Engine and Transmission Assembly Replacement Under Warranty, Policy or Customer Enthusiasm and information on Submission of Warranty Transaction in Global Warranty Management. |
| 11009532 | This service bulletin provides information for maintenance cleaning of the fuel injectors and gasoline detergent additive. |
| 11009531 | This service bulletin provides information for maintenance cleaning of the fuel injectors and gasoline detergent additive. |
| 11009461 | This service bulletin provides information on Characteristics of Wide Low Aspect Ratio Tires, Vehicle Pulls Left or Right, Wanders, Follows Depressions in Road Surface, Tramlining. |
| 11009170 | This Preliminary information communicates additional information on how a LIN bus operates and diagnostic tips when working on a LIN bus. |
| 11009156 | This Preliminary Information communicates to the dealer the process for downloading or updating operating software for the Tire Pressure Monitor, Active Fuel Injector tester, multi media tester, PICO Scope, GR8 starting/charging tester and Vehicle Data Recorder tools, giving website address and step by step instructions to complete the update. |
| 11009088 | This service bulletin provides information on some vehicles that may rock or move slightly forward or rearward while in Park at start up after cold soak. This condition may be accompanied by a clunk noise. This is a slight movement that is more often seen visually, rather than felt, when viewed from the outside and using the auto-start feature, if equipped. |
| 11009039 | This warranty administration bulletin provides policy information, proper labor operation selection and causal part identification for warranty transactions (U.S. Only). |
| 11008986 | This Preliminary information communicatesdirection and examples when diagnosing multiple DTCs, one of which includes U**** Byte 71 DTC. |
| 11008956 | This service bulletin provides information for dealers/technicians on When and How to Submit a Field Product Report (FPR) (U.S. and Canada Dealers Only). |
| 11008906 | This service bulletin provides graphics, information and guidelines for engine component wear to assist service personnel as a guideline to perform necessary engine repairs and prevent unnecessary engine replacement. |
| 11008898 | The bulletin provides direction on how to locate the Temporary Service Part (TSP) form in GlobalConnect. |
NHTSA manufacturer communications (public domain)