Owner-reported complaints naming the powertrain system, filed with NHTSA
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Powertrain reports that are not specifically the engine or transmission — driveshafts, axles, transfer cases and differentials. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2023 Cadillac XT5 submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 8 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed
I brought this car as a used dealer certified pre-owned. It is showing all the recalls as handled but in fact that isn't true. Since my purchase I returned because of a problem with the transmission failing to go into gear and 11/8/2026 I had the car towed to the dealer by AAA. The car is also leaking oil.
The contact owns a 2023 Cadillac XT5. The contact stated that upon shifting into reverse(R), the vehicle intermittently failed to respond. The contact stated that the failure had progressively worsened, and the vehicle responded after an extended period. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the failure was not duplicated. The failure mileage was approximately 13,000.
I am reporting an imminent, life-threatening safety defect regarding a Cadillac XT5, purchased 1/10/26 and repurchased by the dealership on 5/16/2026. While driving, this vehicle experiences an unpredictable and intermittent defect causing the transmission to unexpectedly shift into PARK while the vehicle is in motion.The vehicle was taken to the franchised Cadillac dealer it was purchased fr three times for repair assessments. The service appointents lasted between 1 week- 4 weeks. In total, the car was in my possssion 5 days since the first service appointment due to the ongoing, dangerous drivetrain defect. On the 2nd attempt, parts of the transmission were replaced and the dealer documented at least one occurrence of the gear shift failure, but the defect was not resolved. General Motors (GM) corporate inspectors subsequently inspected the vehicle. Ater that, the dealership repurchased the vehicle from me to take it off the road. About a week after the dealer repurchased the car, GM contacted me, wanting to repurchase the car. When i told them it was already repurchased by the dealership. GM's reponse was to offer me financial resitution for the payments I made only if I sign a General Release of Liability(GRL) for them. However, the dealer has since listed this vehicle for sale to the general public without any evidence of repairing the defect. It is currently being marketed to unsuspecting consumers. This vehicle poses an immediate crash and injury risk to anyone who drives it or shares the road with it. The CARFAX report does not reflect any of the drivetrain issues,nor does it reflect the buyback. GM's response regarding my concern about the dealership re-selling the car was that its out of their hands since the dealer owns the car. I will not sign the GM Release until the records accurately reflect the safety defect. I filed carfax dispute 6/22/26 in an attempt to protect others from this dangerous vehicle.
The car has a shudder/vibrate and what feels like jerking at certain speeds. I have a 2023 XT5 Premium Luxury 3.6 However, I have taken multiple times to Big O tires had tires replaced, brakes, Lower control arms, I still had a vibration issue. Took back to Big O due to Tire balance issue but came back tires and balance and alignment were fine. I was told that Big O, hooked the car up to a TPS machine and stated my torque convertor needs replaced. My car only has 51,500 miles. They stated that the shudder is between gears 3 & 4. I understand my car powertrain and drive train are under the 70,000 mile warranty. But I keep hearing this is major issue with the 2023 XT5. Making me think I have a lemon since the issue is already happening on such a new car.
Driving vehicle when it lost all power and stopped. On a main road . No lights, no start. No emergency flashers ! Vehicle had to be towed to dealer ! Vehicle was stuck on main road in traffic. And could not be moved because since it had no power at all was stuck in park!
The contact owns a 2023 Cadillac XT5. The contact stated driving at various speeds, he noticed that the floorboard was vibrating. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring intermittently. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was test-driven and the transmission fluid was replaced; however, the failure recurred increasingly. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V172000 (Power Train); however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 10,000.
The contact owns a 2023 Cadillac XT5. The contact stated that on two occasions while driving at approximately 25 MPH, the steering wheel seized, and the vehicle veered to the side of the road. Additionally, the gear shifter malfunctioned and the light to indicate that the vehicle was parked, was inoperable. The ABS, Check engine, powertrain malfunction, and brake warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that unknown part needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 1,000. The contact stated after being in the shop for three months the first time and completely gutted (after only having the vehicle for 10 days) it was returned to her. The manufacturer and dealer refused to issue a buyback for the vehicle.
11/12/2022 / At Highway speed vehicle became unresponsive to throttle. Engine would increase in RPMs as indicated on Tach and speedometer would show increased speed, but acceleration was not noticeable and a gear grinding sound was heard. Unable to move vehicle in any direction. Vehicle towed to dealer and was told the left front axel pulled out of transmission. Dealer was asked to return defective drive shaft to GM but was never sent. All this with only 147 miles on odometer. 01/14/2023 / Second time this happened was at 453 miles on odometer and was on interstate. After discussion’s with service manager was told that on January 6 2022 an engineering bulletin was issued addressing this issue (#PIE0732A) that states (If you have a 2023 vehicle (Acadia, Blazer, Enclave, Traverse, XT5, XT6) built between September 15 and October31,2022 with this condition, please replace the transmission and axle. ) A statement was made that GM was not replacing all transmissions on all affected vehicles only those with have the drive shaft fall out. This presents a safety to consumers by allowing a defective vehicle on the roads that could loose power and or control in a moment of emergency that could cause a crash.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
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