AI Damage2004 Cadillac CTS: common problems
Owners of the 2004 Cadillac CTS filed 224 complaints with NHTSA, most often about powertrain and service brakes. Details by component below, with sources.
Key figures
- Owner complaints
- 224
- involving a crash
- 25
What fails most often
- 1 Powertrain 23% of all complaints
- 2 Service brakes 17% of all complaints
- 3 Electrical system 15% of all complaints
- 4 Air bags 12% of all complaints
- 5 Structure 8% of all complaints
- 6 Suspension 7% of all complaints
- 7 Steering 6% of all complaints
- 8 Engine and cooling 5% of all complaints
- Powertrain: 52 complaints (23% of all), 3 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Service brakes: 38 complaints (17% of all), 5 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Electrical system: 34 complaints (15% of all).
- Air bags: 26 complaints (12% of all), 14 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Structure: 17 complaints (8% of all).
Engines and transmissions
US-market versions per EPA. On the right: how many NHTSA complaints name this engine or transmission type.
- 3.2 L · petrol · 6 cyl
- 3.6 L · petrol · 6 cylnamed in 2 complaints
- 5.7 L · petrol · 8 cyl
- automatic, 5-speed
- manual, 5-speednamed in 1 complaints
- manual, 6-speednamed in 1 complaints
Drive: RWD
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 224 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Powertrain | 52 | 3 | 0 |
| Service brakes | 38 | 5 | 0 |
| Electrical system | 34 | 0 | 0 |
| Air bags | 26 | 14 | 0 |
| Structure | 17 | 0 | 0 |
| Suspension | 16 | 1 | 0 |
| Steering | 14 | 1 | 0 |
| Engine and cooling | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| Vehicle speed control | 11 | 4 | 0 |
| Wheels | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| Exterior lighting | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| Electronic stability control | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| Tires | 6 | 2 | 0 |
| Engine | 5 | 0 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
The air bags failed to deploy. The vehicle was destroyed and towed. A police report was filed. The contact received face, arm, and back injuries that required medical attention. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vin and dot number were unknown.
As I make sharp turns while on my brakes, my car makes a noise near the tire area and does not stop and then abs indicator and the traction control indicator lights come on. It usually occurs when I am trying to turn into spaces going 1-2 mph.
The air bag did not deploy- my head hit the steering wheel, rather hard. I traded this vehicle in last year. Should the air bag have deployed? I think if it had, I would not have sustained the injuries.
While entering a parking place, my brakes failed to engage. The abs system warning appeared and also the traction control warning illuminated, as I struck a restraining post. This could have been tragic if a person had been infront of the vehicle.
1) leaving the parking lot of my employer, turning right onto major highway 2) one occurrence. The lower front ball joint separated from the control arm, hence dropping the front right corner onto of the wheel/tire. The nut "backed off" and slowly spun itself off.
Brake failure in cadillac cts I have a large amount of information in a pdf that explains our experience as well as documents multiple similar experiences from other individuals. How do I send it to you?
I was wearing my seatbelt but my nose hit the steering wheel causing me to have a blooded nose, black eyes, and fractured nose. My air bags did not deploy. I was amazed. The vehicle that I hit was also a cadillac but an older model.
The air bags did not deploy, and both passengers incurred pinched nerve injuries and mild spinal injuries in the collision. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a service dealer where only the body of the vehicle was repaired. Since this incident, the vehicle has been exchanged for a different vehicle.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
Comparison
By complaint count this model year ranks 1,808 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 5% most complained about).
On average one model year of the CTS has 131 complaints (17 years in the data). This year has 224, above average.
What to check before buying
- Powertrain. Shift quality under load, harsh shifts, transmission codes, CV joints.
- Service brakes. Pedal feel, ABS operation, leaks, discs and hoses.
- Electrical system. Scan all modules, test the battery and alternator, inspect connectors near the impact zone.
- Air bags. Check the SRS light, stored codes and airbag/curtain status after any impact.
Other years of this model
- CTS 2003313 sources
- CTS 2005277 sources
- CTS 2006269 sources
- CTS 2007217 sources
- CTS 2008175 sources
- CTS 2009168 sources
- CTS 201067 sources
- CTS 2011101 sources
- CTS 201265 sources
- CTS 201373 sources
- CTS 2014146 sources
- CTS 201549 sources
- CTS 20161,161 sources
- CTS 2017968 sources
- CTS 2018719 sources
- CTS 2019675 sources
Questions and answers
What are the most common problems with the 2004 Cadillac CTS?
Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: powertrain, service brakes, electrical system. Total complaints: 224. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: knocking, grinding or other noise (11%), airbags did not deploy (5%), warning lights, check engine (5%).
How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 2004 Cadillac CTS?
NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.
Should I buy a 2004 Cadillac CTS from a US auction?
Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.
Other 2004 models
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.