Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (battery, alternator, wiring, ignition, instrument cluster, infotainment).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2008 Cadillac CTS owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Vehicle Purchase Statement - Top Tier Auto I, [redacted] , purchased a vehicle from Top Tier Auto on [redacted]. The vehicle details are as follows: VIN: [redacted] Warranty: 30-day coverage for the transmission and engine After owning the vehicle for only 15 minutes, I entered the freeway, and the car began to shake violently. Shortly after, a gentleman driving behind me alerted me that sparks and fire were falling from beneath the car. I immediately pulled over, just before the engine burst into flames. The Columbus Police Department responded to the scene and had to extinguish the fire. This incident occurred within minutes of purchasing the vehicle, despite the supposed 30-day warranty covering the transmission and engine.
I was pulled over by the Police because my 2008 Cadillac CTS license plate lights were not working and my rear brake lights were not working. These light failures were caused by a known design flaw with the wiring harness in the trunk lid near the right trunk lid hinge in where the wires inside the harness that go to the brake lights break in half after repeated opening and closing of the trunk lid because of the poor design of the wiring harness and it's mounting brackets. There should have been a safety recall from GM as I could have been killed if a car in back of me did not stop because my brake lights were not going on when I would step on my cars brake peddle! Now the car dealership service center wants to charge me $335.00 to replace the broken wires that were caused by GM/Cadillac's poor and unsafe design of this wiring harness. Regards [redacted]
The recall performed on this vehicle were not performed. They played a [redacted] man made him get aThe recall performed on this vehicle we're not performed. They played a [redacted] man made him get a timing chain for Morris Cadillac. I have several receipts from the vehicle being serviced because of the faulty windshield washer heater system that was supposed to be disabled caused an electrical short in the vehicle because it was not properly sealed water got in the wires and caused the computer to be fried this happened before the car still only has 67,000 miles and they won't even take it in. The car stopped in the middle of the road almost killing everybody. I've had several technicians explain that it's because of the faulty. Recall that they did not fix that is still exposed. Maybe they had a worker that was fired in 2017.
Car went crazy one day while behind the wheel everything malfunctioned then car shut off and won't start again. I could of easily got into an accident had there been any other vehicles around. Kids were scared. Codes come up as U0100,U0140,U0101,C0242,B0081-0F,B0081-71,B1370-01,B1370-06,U0155-00,U0170-00,P0856-00.
Ever since I purchased this 2008 CTS vehicle, I have dumped thousands of dollars to repair the vehicle even after the "recall repairs". Problems persist and the car has become more dangerous than ever. The vehicle had inspected by the dealership a number of times the first 5 years of ownership the first 3, listed below, were the replaced recalls from dealership, the rest are known safety issues that gm denies to admit to faults and recalls. *Ignition starter replacement (still have starter failure issues after 2 repairs from gm) *washer fluid warmer removal (they just snipped the wires and removed the component but left hot wires exposed in vehicle) *motherboard ecm replacement recall(ecm is still faulty and has caused dozens of electrical issues. **************** battery drains over night. …
Attempted to start the car while it was parked in the garage, but it would not crank and the dashboard display indicated a problem with the stabilizer. Also, the seats could not be moved, could not place the transmission in neutral, the door would automatically lock, and the lights would flicker off and on. I attempted to use brand new booster cables (positive to positive/negative to negative) at the remote terminals but stopped trying to connect from the charged battery due to sparking as though I was reversing my polar connections; at one point, I saw a flicker of flames and I never started the booster vehicle (12 volt). I had a wrecker attendant to try my booster cables and he attempted to charge with the connection directly to the battery and with the booster car started which created smoke and over heated cables. …
I was driving in a parking garage so my speed was about 5-10mph when the whole system shut down. The car stopped moving and all of the system warnings popped off (ABS, stabiltrack,engine). The car would not turn back on. I had it towed to the shop where I was told that it was an electrical problem. The PCM was replaced and I was told that the problem was fixed. Cost was approx $200. After the original system shut down, I was driving on an exit ramp to the interstate when once again the whole system shut down. All of the system warnings popped up and the car would not turn back on. The car was towed once again to the dealership where I was told that it wasn't the PCM and that they would have to charge me $265.00 to investigate the problem. The problem was said to be the electrical wiring on the drivers side from the front of the car to the back of the car. …
The car has had 7 batteries replaced. It has been towed three times to two different dealerships. When the failure occurs the door lock, the engine will not start, lights will not work, the car is completely dead. The last time my wife went one mile and the lights,radio, air conditioning and doors locked and would not open. She could not get the key out of the ignition. The door was opened and the car sat for two hours. When she went back to the car everything worked like nothing happened. She drove home and the next morning the battery was dead. It was towed to the dealership and the odor of burning wiring was obvious. One week later the dealer service department called to inform me that the fuse block was replaced and the radio caused the problem. The car was leased and I just returned it with 17,890 miles. …
The problem started with the timing chain, which LED to coil issues and catalytic converters issues which LED to low head beams constantly burning out. Everytime work is done it causes a chain reaction to other parts in the car that requires more and more money. Now the engine light is still on and I am told that since the first catalytic converter was repaired, the second one now needs replacing and the low head beam on the passenger side has wiring issues that will not allow the new bulb to burn, I am told that the wiring appears to be spliced. The catalytic converter was replaced in April and so was the low beam bulb. Headlight was replaced in April, 2015 it is not working today and was told by dealership that the wiring had been spliced or burned out. Radio speakers do not work and all was centered around issues with coils and catalytic coverters.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 Cadillac CTS. The contact stated that there were several electrical failures, such as the turn signals failed to function and the middle console electric functions failed to illuminate. After several repairs, the failures continued. The contact had three batteries replaced and the alternator assembly replaced, but the failures continued. The vent controls also failed to function for the heater and air conditioner. The manufacturer stated that there were no recalls pertaining to the failures. The VIN was not available. The approximate failure mileage was 110,000. Updated 08/29/17
Related recalls
Electrical system › Ignition
This defect can affect the safe operation of the airbag system. Until this recall is performed, customers should remove all items from their key rings, leaving only the ignition key. The key fob (if applicable), should also be removed from the key ring.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will install two key rings and an insert in the key slot or a cover over the key head on all ignition keys, free of charge. The recall began on September 15, 2014.
Electrical system
GM is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 Buick, lucerne; Cadillac dts; Hummer h2; model year 2008-2009 Buick enclave; Cadillac cts; model year 2007-2009 Cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext; Chevrolet avalanche, silverado, suburban, tahoe; GMC acadia, sierra, yukon, yukon xl; Saturn outlook; and model year 2009…
Remedy: Dealers will permanently disable and remove the heated washer fluid module. An updated page for the owner manual will be provided and inserted in the owner manual to document that the feature has been permanently…
Electrical complaints in other CTS years
Frequently asked questions
How common are electrical problems on the 2008 Cadillac CTS?
NHTSA has 39 complaints about the electrical system of the 2008 Cadillac CTS, 22% of the model year's 175 complaints. The component named most often is ignition (1 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2008 Cadillac CTS electrical problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 14V-394 (ignition, Jul 2, 2014); NHTSA recall 10V-240 (electrical system, Jun 4, 2010). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2008 Cadillac CTS electrical problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 74,000 miles, and 19% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 3 fires and 0 injuries to electrical system problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.