Reliable Auto DB

2016 Cadillac CTS reliability

Is it reliable?

Owners have filed 31 complaints with NHTSA about the 2016 Cadillac CTS over 11 years — 2 per year. That is fewer complaints per year than most CTS years here — under the median of the other years, which is 3. NHTSA has 4 recalls on file, including Inflator, Electric power steering, and Seat heater.

2012 Cadillac CTS
Photo by MercurySable99, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
Complaints

31

Per year

2

Recalls

4

Years on the road

11

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (10 of 31), then Powertrain (9) and Engine (4). Those filings include 1 that reports a fire and 1 that reports an injury.

Next to 2015 and 2017

The 2015 CTS has 48 complaints, 2 per year, and the 2017 has 27 complaints, 3 per year. The 2016 has about the same number of complaints per year as the 2015. The 2016 has fewer complaints per year than the 2017.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2016 Cadillac CTS. How we count. Data as of .

Recalls (4)

Recall air bags, frontal, driver side, inflator 2026-05-21 · NHTSA campaign 26V329000
Summary General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, XTS, 2015-2016 Cadillac ATS, CTS, and SRX vehicles. The front-driver air bag inflator may rupture during deployment.
Remedy Dealers will replace the front-driver air bag module, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed June 19, 2026. Additional letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owners may contact Cadillac customer service at 1-800-333-4223. The manufacturer's number for this recall is N262555870. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on May 21, 2026.
Recall Electric power steering 2025-03-20 · NHTSA campaign 25V175000
Summary General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Cadillac CTS, 2017-2018 Cadillac ATS, Chevrolet Camaro, and Chevrolet Corvette vehicles. The electric power steering (EPS) assist may fail.
Remedy Dealers will replace the power steering gear assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 15, 2025. Owners may contact Cadilac customer service at 1-800-333-4223 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N252497020.
Recall Electric power steering 2019-02-07 · NHTSA campaign 19V086000
Summary General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Cadillac CTS, and 2017 Cadillac ATS, Chevrolet Camaro, and Chevrolet Corvette vehicles. The electric power steering (EPS) assist system may fail.
Remedy GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the power steering gear assembly, free of charge. The recall began June 13, 2019. GM' number for this recall is N182182760.
Recall seats, front assembly, seat heater 2018-09-07 · NHTSA campaign 18V595000
Summary General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2014-2016 Cadillac CTS vehicles, equipped with heated front seats. The flexible heating mats in the front seats may be damaged over time, resulting in the seat heaters producing excessive heat.
Remedy GM will notify owners, and dealers will recalibrate the body control module, disabling the automatic activation of the heated seat when the vehicle is remotely started, free of charge. The recall began November 1, 2018. Owners may contact Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. GM's number for the recall is 18286.

Complaints by component (31 total)

Electrical system
10
Powertrain
9
Engine
4
Steering
4
Suspension
4
Structure
3
Air bags
2
Wheels
2
Forward collision avoidance
1
Fuel and propulsion system
1
Lane departure
1
Service brakes
1
Show 4 more Show less
Crash-flagged

0

Fire-flagged

1

Injury reports

1

Death reports

0

Complaints filed per year

120166201722019620204202142022120232202452025
Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings
  • "The contact owns 2016 Cadillac CTS. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. A dealer was contacted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed…"
    Steering · filed 2025-12-08
  • "Message "Shift to Park" even though the car is already in Park, preventing shutting down the car."
    Unknown or other · filed 2025-06-16
  • "The contact owns a 2016 Cadillac CTS. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the carbon fiber-optic piece on the rear passenger door was fractured. The contact stated the occupant was exiting the rear…"
    Structure · filed 2025-04-29
  • "The passenger side airbag stays illuminated after the vehicle is started and continues to stay on as the vehicle is driven, never going off. General Motors have not issued a recall on this safety problem with the 2016…"
    Air bags · filed 2025-03-01
  • "The contact's relative owns a 2016 Cadillac CTS. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 40 MPH, the passenger's side air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, where it was…"
    Air bags · filed 2025-02-26

NHTSA crash ratings

Version Overall Front Side Rollover
2016 Cadillac CTS 4 DR AWD 5 stars 5 stars 5 stars 5 stars
2016 Cadillac CTS 4 DR RWD 5 stars 5 stars 5 stars 5 stars

Stars are how this vehicle did in NHTSA crash tests. They are a safety result, separate from the complaint record. Not rated means that test was not run for this version.

Fuel economy

Trim Engine Transmission Drive City Hwy Combined Annual fuel cost
CTS Sedan 3.6L, 6-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Rear-wheel drive 20 29 24 MPG $2700
CTS Sedan 3.6L, 6-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Rear-wheel drive 16 24 19 MPG $4200
CTS Sedan 2L, 4-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Rear-wheel drive 21 30 25 MPG $3200
CTS Sedan all-wheel drive 2L, 4-cyl Automatic (8-speed) All-wheel drive 21 29 24 MPG $3300
CTS Sedan all-wheel drive 3.6L, 6-cyl Automatic (8-speed) All-wheel drive 19 27 22 MPG $2950

Specs and fitment

3rd generation, 2014–2019
Body styles Sedan
Oil 5W-30 (all temps); 0W-30 below -29°C , 6 qt capacity
Tire size 245/45R17, 245/40R18, 255/35R19 (trim dependent)

Known issues for this generation

Recall 19V-086 covers certain 2016-2018 Cadillac CTS vehicles (and ATS/Camaro/Corvette years named in the campaign): the electric power steering assist system may fail, requiring higher steering effort especially at low speeds. Dealers replace the power steering gear assembly. Recall 25V-175 covers certain 2016-2018 CTS vehicles among other GM models for the same EPS assist failure mode; dealers replace the power steering gear assembly.

Compare

Previous year 2015 Cadillac CTS Next year 2017 Cadillac CTS See every Cadillac CTS model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2016 Cadillac CTS reliable?

Owners have filed 31 complaints with NHTSA about the 2016 Cadillac CTS over 11 years — 2 per year. That is fewer complaints per year than most CTS years here — under the median of the other years, which is 3. NHTSA has 4 recalls on file, including Inflator, Electric power steering, and Seat heater.

What are common problems with a 2016 Cadillac CTS?

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (10 of 31), then Powertrain (9) and Engine (4). Those filings include 1 that reports a fire and 1 that reports an injury.

Is the 2016 Cadillac CTS more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2015 CTS has 48 complaints, 2 per year, and the 2017 has 27 complaints, 3 per year. The 2016 has about the same number of complaints per year as the 2015. The 2016 has fewer complaints per year than the 2017.

Has the 2016 Cadillac CTS been recalled?

The 2016 Cadillac CTS has 4 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2016 Cadillac CTS?

Owners have filed 31 complaints about the 2016 Cadillac CTS with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2016 Cadillac CTS get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2016 Cadillac CTS is 22.8 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What oil does a Cadillac CTS take?

US notes list 5W-30 for all temperatures, with 0W-30 as an alternative below -29°C (about 6.0 qt with filter).

Does recall 19V-086 cover the Cadillac CTS?

It covers certain 2016-2018 CTS vehicles (and ATS/Camaro/Corvette years named in the campaign): electric power steering assist may fail; dealers replace the EPS assembly as directed.

What generation is a 2015 Cadillac CTS?

3rd generation (2014-2019). Model years 2012-2013 are 2nd generation in this catalog.