Home · 2018 Cadillac Escalade · Complaints

What 21 owners told NHTSA about the 2018 Cadillac Escalade

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)Engine (10)Brakes (3)Electrical system (3)Transmission & drivetrain (3)Lights (2)Suspension (2)Electronic Stability Control (esc) (1)Seats (1)Steering (1)Visibility & wipers (1)

3 of 21 complaints match · Electrical system · clear filters

Jun 22, 2026Electrical systemLights

THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER RESET, FLASHES AND THE TURN SIGNALS WILL STOP WORKING WHILE THE SYSTEM IS CYCLING OR RESTTING, WHILW CHANGING LANES OR IN A MIDDLE OF A TURN

NHTSA ODI 11745705

Aug 9, 2024Electrical system

On July 28th 2024 my wife backed the vehicle out of the garage and the vehicle locked out the steering wheel. The cluster and gauges went completely out. The vehicle did not start or turn on after that point. It was no longer drivable as we could no longer start the vehicle. The vehicle had to be towed to Penske Cadillac of Torrance where it took them a week to diagnose the vehicle. The vehicle fuse box went out which locked out the steering wheel if my wife would of been driving the vehicle she would of been involved in a major accident. The problem was confirmed by the dealer a new fuse box was installed. I have the fuse box here as I requested it to follow up with the NHTSA. There was no warning that the vehicle had any malfuncitons. All electircal componenets and steering went out suddenly and abruplty.

NHTSA ODI 11607553

May 27, 2019Electrical system

MOON ROOF DRAIN LINE OBSTRUCTED POSSIBLE PINCHED DURING MANUFACTURE. DRIPPING BROUGHT TO DEALERS ATTENTION . SERVICE TECNITION MAY HAVE APPLIED AIR PRESSURE TO DRAIN LINE BURSTING IT. WATER FROM RAIN THEN LEAKED ON ELECTRONICS PACKAGE UNDER DRIVER SIDE DASH. DRIVER BECAME LOCKED IN AUTO DUE TO WET MALFUNCTIONING ELECTRONIC PACKAGE. POSSIBLE HAZARD IN EMERGENCY SITUATION.

NHTSA ODI 11210118

Working with the data? Download all 21 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 10, 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 Escalade verdict →