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What 21 owners told NHTSA about the 2018 Cadillac ATS V-series

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (21)Crash / fire / injury (1)Transmission & drivetrain (6)Electrical system (3)Steering (3)Airbags (2)Fuel system (2)Lights (2)Body & structure (1)Engine (1)Equipment (1)Suspension (1)

6 of 21 complaints match · Transmission & drivetrain · clear filters

Jul 11, 2025Transmission & drivetrain

Rear differential. This part will be available after removal. This put me at risk of potentially locking up while driving. According to the dealership, Faulkner Cadillac, "found rear differential bearings damaged, causing noise in the rear end. The Rear Differential will need replaced." There were no warning lights, but there was noise - a new, not normal noise I noticed two weeks prior to the diagnostic procedure by the dealership service department. This is the second rear differential failure. The service writer said there was no sign of leakage.

NHTSA ODI 11672691

Nov 28, 2023Transmission & drivetrain

The contact owns a 2018 Cadillac ATS. The contact stated while driving at undisclosed speeds, there was an abnormal growling sound coming from the vehicle. The contact looked underneath the vehicle, checked the tires, and checked the inside of the vehicle but found no failure. The contact continued to drive the vehicle and heard an abnormal winding or rubber sound. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the differential needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 84,000.

NHTSA ODI 11557178

Jun 25, 2023Transmission & drivetrain

Unexpected shutter of vehicle, loss of power, unpredictable forward motion, erratic movement, delayed acceleration.

NHTSA ODI 11528735

Feb 1, 2023Transmission & drivetrain

2018 cadillac ats (most of the cadillac vehicles reported same issue). The transmission fluid is wrong fluid by manufacturer and driving at regular speed all of a sudden it starts shuddering and loses power or slows down at freeway speeds or any local roads. took the car for inspection to a local dealer and they said it is the transmission fluid which has to be upgraded and charged me hundreds of dollars. But how it is not recalled by GM since they sold the cars with wrong transmission fluid which is causing these issues?

NHTSA ODI 11504832

Jun 2, 2022Transmission & drivetrain

Transmission shudder noticed between 42 to 48 mph. It appears the transmission is shaking, it seems to be continually shifting between gears in the 42 to 48 mph range.

NHTSA ODI 11467229

Jul 1, 2018Transmission & drivetrainEngineFuel system

HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP

NHTSA ODI 11104928

Working with the data? Download all 21 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 27, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2018 Cadillac ATS V-series verdict →