Hello all,

I am on my 3rd Cadillac and have always been a verysatisfied customer. I thought I would share a very disappointing experiencethat some of you might be experiencing.

Since I bought my 2009 CTS I have experienced the occasionalwaking up to a dead battery. This was very infrequent and because this was aweekend car, I just thought it was from the lack of use or that my wife a hadforgotten to turn something off. I did however mention the issue every time Itook the vehicle in for service, just in case, but was always told the chargingsystem was fine.

Fast forward to this year when my car went out of themanufacturer warranty and the extended warranty took over. All of a sudden, mybattery was dead every morning, even after driving the car. I replaced thebattery and it still happened. I took it into GM and they reset the computer,dead the next morning. I took it in to the local Cadillac dealership and theysaid it was the battery which I had just replaced. They put in a new Cadillacbattery $240 and it was dead the next morning. 11 days at the dealership andthey were stumped.

I did some research and found a Cadillac bulletin statingthe seat module would cause this issue and that it needed to be re-programmed.Cadillac said, ok $360 to program it. I was a little surprised at the price,but said, no big deal I have an extended warranty. Extended warranty companysaid, we will replace the module, but we wont pay to re-program it, that shouldbe something Cadillac should pay for ( I agree).

So to make a long story longer, it cost me 14 days without acar and $340 to have a module re-programmed that Cadillac new was a problem andnever fixed while it was under warranty.

Ok, no big deal, I will just call Cadillac corporate andthey will surely take care of this known problem for such a long time loyalcustomer. Nope, they told me we don't cover anything out of warranty.

End of story!!!!!

Still in shock over Cadillac's response and planning my next move, but my next movewill probably not have a Cadillac in it.

 

Hello,

I am sorry to learn that you are very disappointed with Cadillac. We do appreciate you as a loyal customer. We are interested in hearing more about your experience. Could you private message us?

Sincerely,

Jennifer T.
GM Customer Care

 

Hello Jennifer,

Thank you for your response. I am new to this forum and do not see a private message option. I have already opened a case with Cadillac and was assigned a district specialist who was unable to resolve the issue. Cadillac corporate and the dealership do not feel that they are responsible for paying for the software update, which is still baffling to me. I would appreciate any help you can provide, however it is my understanding that my only other option is through small claims court.

Brian

 

Hello Brian,

Jennifer helps assist me on the Cadillac forums. My name is Laura M. and I am the primary on these sites. Welcome to the forum! I am sorry you were not able to find the private message tab; sometimes as a new member you are not able to PM. I can be reached via Email at socialmedia@gm.com and include "ATTN LAURA" in the subject line. I see you were already working with a District Specialist. In the Email, can you include your case number so I can look into this for you? Thanks!

Sincerely,

Laura M.
Cadillac Customer Care

 

Hi Laura,

You already responded to my post in the other Cadillac forum and said that you would be unable to help as I have already talked with a district specialist.

 

Hello Brian,

I apologize for this. I work with multiple people each day and can mix up interactions by accident. I do see you are disappointed with the outcome and I wanted to double check your case number again for you.

Regards,

Laura M.
Cadillac Customer Care

 

This is interesting to me. I bought a CPO 05 CTS in Dec 07. I had no problem with it until the past year or so, long out of warranty. I had the same type of situation where the battery would be dead after a couple of days without starting the car. I tried an inexpensive battery from Advance and encountered the same result. I bought a Delco battery exactly like the OEM and it too would fail to start after a couple of days. If I started the car everyday there was no issue. I took it in to a local GM dealership and they said the alternator was bad and replaced it and charged the battery for $500. Two days later, battery was dead again. I have absolutely no faith in dealership mechanics at all. My stop gap solution was to buy a battery tender that plugs into the power outlet (cigarette lighter) every time I come home and park the car. I don't drive the car every day and it got to be a pain to remember to start it up for a few minutes every day. I imagine there is some parasitic draw but I can't trust dealerships to find it. You'd think with all the diagnostic equipment they have it would be a simple matter but, alas, not so. I will shortly be selling this car or trading it in but it certainly will not be on another Cadillac.

 

I am having the same problem with my 2011 CTS. The battery drains dead if the car sits for a few days. The dealer has been notified while in warranty and the problem persist. We have had the car to dealer's service center multiple times and they cannot find the problem. We replaced the battery and the problem continues. In my case the dealership has stood by us so far. However, no one can find the problem and my wife wants to get rid of the car since it is unpredictable. Who knows when it will not start again. We have alway bought gm cars but our patience is running thin.

 

The issue is the sit module. The dealer needs to reprogram it. It slowly drains the battery.

 

Brian I will pass this solution to my local Cadillac service department. They changed the on star system last week and mentioned something about reprogramming. I'll make sure it's the item you mentioned. Thank you for your prompt response. The car is still at the shop. Maybe my wife can keep her car now!