Consumer Reports ranks Cadillac 30th in reliabilty when compared to other makes

[bcroe]

Truth is, new car owners do not put much value on long term reliability,
they will soon be buying another.  Then there are owners who keep
driving old cars and keeping their money in the bank.  I just did the
59th oil change on the 18 year old CRV, 442,500 miles, before its next
interstate trip.  ORIGINAL engine, 5 speed, and clutch, never been
towed.  It is possible to build such cars, but not many are worrying
about it.  Bruce Roe

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

If the car makers had to rely on me buying new cars, they would soon go out of business.

By the time I am ready to buy any car, if it is still going, then it will last me a long time.

Bruce.

[64\/54Cadillacking]

I read online somewhere that the people that are buying new cars/trucks, are ones that already bought a new vehicle a few years ago and now they want to upgrade. The people that own really old cars over 10 years old, aren’t the consumers buying new cars, but used cars since they can’t afford new.

It seems like only the upper middle class these days are able to qualify and afford to buy  new cars as they have become incredibly expensive to purchase. The middle class are buying used, and even then used car prices are high depending on location.

Not to mention vehicles made within the last 10 years have been pretty reliable and aren’t breaking down like they used to. So there’s no need for someone to buy new, unless they want the latest tech features and current styling.

[fishnjim]

Good overview of what today's situation looks like.  No control on what ends up where, so no control/concern of reliability, but a lot of emphasis on cost and dual sourcing.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-autos-gm-nafta-insight/parts-with-passports-how-free-trade-drives-gms-engines-idUSKBN1XS19G

[Mike Josephic CLC #3877]

Interesting article.  Nice to know that all of the electronics
are sourced from "Asia"  (read: China).  Buy a Cadillac for
$100k and get a mixed bag of engine parts and cheap
Mexican labor doing pre-assembly with Chinese electronics
for good measure.

A good example of Chinese quality in eletronics is a
microwave oven I bought (a Kitchenaid). Made in China
it lasted about 6 years before blowing up.  My 40 year
old Amana "Radar-Range" antique still works.  I kept it
around as a spare. (just for giggles).

Mike
 

[64\/54Cadillacking]

As a owner of a 17 Impala, it has the exact same drivetrain that’s in a Cadillac XTS (GM’s 3.6L V6). GM part shares like it’s nobody’s business, but in this day and age due to heavy competition, just about every automaker is part sharing heavily these days to stay financially afloat.

The 3.6 V6 is a great Powertrain to be honest, and is very smooth and had been reliable at 75,000 miles. I’ve had no issues with the car either. I do my own oil changes using strictly Mobil 1 or Royal Purple and so far so good because the early 3.6 V6 engines had serious timing chain failure due to using poor quality oil and delayed oil change intervals.

I don’t care what the owner manuals says about not having to change the oil until 6,000-7,500 miles, because the oil is already pitch black by 3,000 miles because of the Direct Injection design that contaminates the oil far sooner than a straight up port-injection system.

I’m glad to see that GM uses Denso for its alternator and A/C compressor as they are a very high quality parts company. It just goes to show how much times have changed. Back in the days GM used to design, and build their own parts in house and didn’t purchase parts from random suppliers like they do now.

Maybe someone could gather sources from every automaker on where they too source their vehicle parts from. I am sure many of them use the same exact suppliers.

It’s the end product and build quality that determines the success or disaster when it comes to reliability even if say GM and Toyota used the similar suppliers. What separates both brands and companies from each other comes down to engineering and serious focus on quality control.

[cadillacmike68]

Lol, actually Cadillac was dead last, Fiat was second to last.

20 degrees this morning, I started my SRX with the remote control and thought it would be nice and toasty as I left for work. But nooo, the car was an icebox. Seems the old diverter door was stuck closed and no air in the cabin. No defrost, no panel no foot. CUE system fault. Lol. Too late to switch to one of my other 6 cars so I figure heated seats and steering wheel will get me to work...

About 15 minutes into the ride, the system came alive and worked fine for the rest of the day.

I have to say I spent most of those 15 minutes cursing GM and Cadillac and I swear I will ever buy another modern caddy.

This survey is right on.

Another reason not to buy anything with
Cadillac
User
Exasperation

CU / CR has been down on American cars, particularly Cadillac since about 1974. Not so back in 1968 when in their April Car issue, they actually had some good things to say about Cadillac. I have that original issue where they "tested" the 1968 Sedan deVille.

The new since 2014 crest is an abomination.

We have had 5 sigma platform cars (4 CTS, 1 STS) for a total of almost 500,00 miles, no real issues, although the boss lady's drive shaft broke (replaced under warranty) abut a mile from the house. We still have that car and another CTS (both 2011s)

[Big Apple Caddy]

A problem with some of these reliability surveys is that the results aren't weighted enough by seriousness of issue e.g., a problem with a radio or navigation system may be factored in at the same degree as a problem with the powertrain.

The bottom line, however, is that Cadillacs and other cars today last much longer on average than cars did decades ago.  Cars from the 1970s, 1960s, 1950s, etc. were junked/scrapped at much faster rates.  People today keep cars longer on average, cars are kept on the road much longer on average, etc.

[wrench]

The bottom line, however, is that Cadillacs and other cars today last much longer on average than cars did decades ago.  Cars from the 1970s, 1960s, 1950s, etc. were junked/scrapped at much faster rates.  People today keep cars longer on average, cars are kept on the road much longer on average, etc.

This is due to the recent popularity of leasing cars. The dealers/manufacturers/financers realized they were getting their crappy cars back and so they started making cars more reliable because they knew they were getting the cars back and would be reselling them.

I disagree with the assessment that technical problems need to be ‘weighted’.

It is precisely the items that the buyer ‘touches’ that result in satisfaction ratings.

So, like in my case, yeah, the car started, and ran and didn’t break down on the side of the road, the fact that the ‘radio’ interface controls the ‘climate’ is a big lol.

This ‘arrangement’ was a direct appeal to millennials who want to control ‘everything’ through a touch screen. This is the kind of nonsense that blinds sound engineering with ‘focus group engineering’ and you wind up with nightmare systems.

Or as someone famous once said ‘The sleep of reason produces monsters’.

[bcroe]

I agree the 60s and earlier cars needed way too much work to keep
them on the road.  But that changed by the end of the 70s.  At that
point I had no trouble getting cars to run past 300,000 miles, if I
could keep someone from wrecking them.  This I acknowledge was
not with the low end brands.  I have not yet seen demonstrated that
todays cars have much bested that. 

Now perhaps even the low end cars may have extended life.  Yeah,
except they to now come at an extended, premium price. 

However, when todays cars quit, they are approaching a near
impossible repair situation.  When the mfr drops parts and the
electronics fail, they will truly be impossible to fix.  Meanwhile
the carb cars will still be maintainable.  Bruce Roe

[Big Apple Caddy]

This is due to the recent popularity of leasing cars. The dealers/manufacturers/financers realized they were getting their crappy cars back and so they started making cars more reliable because they knew they were getting the cars back and would be reselling them.

I'm not sure how much leasing is or was a factor as average reliability had been steadily on the rise before leasing's "recent popularity" plus even today, only around 30% of new vehicles are leased.  The perception that some seem to have on here that people typically swap cars every year or two is incorrect.  The average length of new car, as well as used car, ownership is actually at or near record levels these days.  Average new car buyers keep their cars much longer today than they did in the 1970s, 1960s, 1950s, etc. thanks in large part to improved reliability and durability.

[Rich S]

Seldom have I found my experiences with various products similar to what Consumer Reports indicates. At almost 50,000 miles, my 2013 CTS Coupe has been reliable and problem-free and the quality of build seems much better (solid and squeak and rattle-free) than in the 2008 CTS Sedan traded for it. Other family members have had positive ownership experiences with three other Sigma platform CTS's, too. My 2013 CTS Coupe still receives compliments on a quite regular basis from observers wherever I go.

Here is a recently published feature (video) about the "Rise and Fall of Cadillac" from Business Insider web-site:

https://www.businessinsider.com/cadillac-rise-fall-luxury-brand-market-industry-2019-10

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

I like the part of the story where the customer is departing the building with his partner, calling for his Cadillac to be fetched.   The car is brought to him, and as he is putting his partner into it, another fellow comes up and says, "Excuse me, I believe that is my Buick".

Cadillac definitely lost its' exclusiveness.

Bruce.