There are 14 owner-reported electrical system complaints for the 2016 Cadillac Escaladein NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
Purchased 2016 Cadillac Escalade in April 2022 - VIN [XXX] . License plate [XXX] . Car has had electrical shortage issues in the navigation screen ever since purchasing. The navigation screen flickers, switches between apps simultaneously and isn’t responsive to finger touch as advertised. I have taken the car to the dealership 4 times within the 90 day dealership warranty. Those dates were April 25, 2022; May 26, 2022; September 3, 2022; and September 24, 2022. However, the problem hasn’t been resolved. This has also caused the car ignition start up to start slowly. The battery has been checked and is fully charged and working properly. The ignition, alternator and transmission are all working properly in good condition. I believe the dealership sold me a “Lemon” vehicle. The initial CarFax report didn’t disclose any mechanical or electrical issues. I paid a $6000 downpayment and have paid $15,999.98 so far. My monthly car payment is $999.98. This car isn’t safe to drive and I am seeking a financial settlement of $20,000 and for the dealership to take back the car without a negative ding on my credit report and no voluntary repossession listed on my credit report. [XXX] my car completely shut down and no longer would start. I had a brand new battery installed a few days prior. Called AAA 4x’s and they couldn’t jump start my car. They tested the alternator, starter, and transmission and there were no failed sensors. I didn’t have any warning lights. I had my car towed to my mechanic and he verified nothing was wrong with transmission, starter and alternator. I noticed there was a strong burn smell and something popped underneath the car causing the car to no longer start or turn on. I ended having to voluntary surrender the car back to Capital One Auto Finance (Account [XXX] ) on Monday [XXX] because the car no longer is operable. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
The contact owns a 2016 Cadillac Escalade. The contact stated while coming to a stop to park the vehicle, the vehicle turned off and restarted continuously, and the steering wheel straightened unintendedly. The contact stated that on several occasions, the vehicle failed to restart after being turned off. The contact had to disconnect and reconnect the battery cables to start the vehicle. The contact stated that the message "Service Stabili-trak" was temporarily displayed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic; however, the failure could not be duplicated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 143,000.
When I’m trying to park my car shuts off and turns back on, steering wheel stops working, service stabilitrak turn on and goes away, sometimes my car won’t turn on and have to disconnect the battery and connect it for it to turn on again.
MY 2016 ESCALADE PREMIUM ENGINE IS STARTING TO SHUT OFF MORE FREQUENT WHEN COMING TO A STOP. IT ALSO HAS MORE FREQUENT ISSUES WHERE IT WILL NOT START WITH REMOTE OR IF INSIDE THE VEHICLE. NO WARNING OR FAILURE LIGHTS CAME ON. DASH LOOKS NORMAL BUT NO RPM'S IF IT SHUTS OFF AT A STOP. I’VE REPLACED THE BATTERY THINKING IT WAS AN OLDER BATTERY BUT STILL CONTINUES TO HAPPEN. I'M VERY NERVOUS THINKING IT WILL SHUT OFF WHILE DRIVING WITH MY FAMILY. PLEASE HELP!! I HAVE NOT TAKEN MY VEHICLE TO A REPAIR SHOP HOPING THIS CAN BE FIXED BY THE MANUFACTURE
The Escalade radio console keeps shorting out, operating irregularly, and stays "on" after the car has been turned off resulting in a stall and/or battery to drain leading to the car not starting, which has required several battery jumps.
The contact owns a 2016 Cadillac Escalade. The contact stated while driving approximately 20 MPH, the vehicle stalled. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed with a faulty wiring harness. The failure caused the battery to be drained. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified but no further assistance was provided. The approximate failure was unknown.
TOUCH SCREEN HAS BECOME NONE RESPONSIVE WITH A VISIBLE WEBBING EFFECT AND I AM NOT ABLE TO USE WHILE DRIVING WHICH CAUSES DISTRACTIONS
CUE SPIDER WEBBING CUE WILL GO BLANK NOT FUNCTION AT ALL. *TR
I had a problem with my vehicle having a horrible vibration at certain speeds and my Cadillac giving my so many problems too. I’ve had my vehicle at the gm dealer so many times to try and fix these issues. I’ve had multiple things fixed on my Cadillac to stop this vibration but nothing has worked! They can’t get the vibration fixed and causes my car to need balanced a lot! Fr what I read Cadillac is aware of this issue but has chosen not to take responsibility for it. They call it the Chevy shake or death wobble. They’ve put two different motors in the gm vehicles and they are junk. Plus my car hesitates when you put it drive and the check engine light comes every once in awhile. It’s terrible to drive this at certain speeds with the vibration. I also had other issues with my vehicle including the Cadillac cue and my back door handle breaking off. The recently replaced my Cadillac cue with the same one but all the Cadillac cues are junk. They freeze all the time and can’t use it. I have all my my paper work from the dealerships it’s been at and everything they have replaced. I don’t understand why Cadillac isn’t taking responsibility for these issues. It’s been so frustrating not being able to drive my car when it sits at the dealership for weeks at a time. Yes, I’ve had two open claims in this case and have two lawyers involved. I would prefer to fax all my paperwork since I have so much to upload.
THE ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL RADAR SENSOR WAS FOUND CRACK AFTER BEING TAKEN TO THE DEALERSHIP FOR ERROR CODE. ( THEIR WAS NO PHYSICAL DAMAGE TO THE FRONT BUMPER OR THE BOTTOM OF THE BUMPER OF THE VEHICLE. GM FAILED TO REPLACE THE PART UNDER WARRANTY BECAUSE THEY SAY THERE IS PHYSICAL DAMAGE TO THE PART NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. I BELIEVE THE PART SHOULD BE IN LOCATION WHERE ROAD DEBRIS CAN HIT THE PART. SERVICE ADVISOR HAS SAID THIS IS KNOWN ISSUE WITH THIS CADILLAC MODEL.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 CADILLAC ESCALADE ESV. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FRONT AND REAR COLLISION SENSORS PROVIDED INCORRECT INFORMATION. THE CONTACT STATED THAT FALSE WARNINGS PROVIDED BY THE SENSORS SIGNALED AN IMMINENT CRASH WHEN THERE WERE NO VEHICLES IN CLOSE PROXIMITY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO FREMONT CADILLAC (5939 AUTO MALL PKWY, FREMONT, CA 94538, (510) 686-8969) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE SENSORS NEEDED TO BE RE-CALIBRATED AND THE WIRING HARNESS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED THREE TIMES, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURES. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 15,462.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 CADILLAC ESCALADE. EVERY TIME THE CONTACT PARKED AND LOCKED THE VEHICLE, THE BRAKE LIGHTS REMAINED ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO ED MORSE CADILLAC TAMPA (101 E FLETCHER AVE, TAMPA, FL 33612, (813) 556-7287) FOUR TIMES WHILE UNDER THE WARRANTY. THE DEALER REPLACED THE SENSOR UNDER THE BRAKE PEDAL TWICE. DURING THE THIRD VISIT, THE DEALER REPLACED THE WIRES AFTER SPEAKING WITH THE MANUFACTURER; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE STILL PERSISTED. DURING THE FOURTH VISIT, THE DEALER KEPT THE VEHICLE FOR 28 DAYS, BUT THE FAILURE COULD NOT BE DUPLICATED. THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 25,000. THE VIN WAS INVALID.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 CADILLAC ESCALADE ESV. SEVERAL TIMES, WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER FAILED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO HARRYS ON THE HILL (819 PATTON AVE, ASHEVILLE, NC 28806, (828) 252-3821) TO BE DIAGNOSED, BUT THE MECHANIC WAS UNABLE TO DUPLICATE THE FAILURE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FAILURE WAS INTERMITTENT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FAILURE BEGAN AFTER A MODULE BEHIND THE DASHBOARD WAS REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 10,000.
I own a 2016 Cadillac Escalade that has been experiencing issues with the DVD player unit, as described in Bulletin No.: PIT5370C, dated December 2015. The specific problem is that a DVD has been stuck in the unit and will not eject. Additionally, the DVD button does not light up or respond to any touch. This malfunction aligns perfectly with the condition outlined in the bulletin, where the Instrument Panel Multifunction Switch (Eject Button) has been found to be hypersensitive, causing these disc handling problems. The safety of my passengers and myself has been compromised due to this issue. For instance, the inability to use the DVD player has caused significant distraction while trying to manage the media system during travel. This has been particularly concerning on longer trips where the media system is intended to provide entertainment to backseat passengers, reducing driver distraction. The unexpected ejection of discs has also posed a potential hazard within the vehicle. The problem has been confirmed by an independent service center, where the technicians verified that the disc player is malfunctioning due to the hypersensitive multifunction switch as detailed in the bulletin. However, despite this confirmation, my vehicle's VIN has been erroneously excluded from the recall, leaving the DVD unit inoperable. Prior to the complete failure of the DVD player, there were no specific warning lamps or messages indicating the impending issue. The symptoms started appearing gradually and have now rendered the DVD player completely unusable. Given that the described issue and its symptoms match the conditions outlined in Bulletin No.: PIT5370C, I request that my vehicle be included in the recall for covered repair to replace the faulty Instrument Panel Multifunction Switch (Eject Button) and restore the functionality of the media disc player.
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 25, 2026