Automobile Magazine currently has a 2013 Cadillac ATS equipped with a 3.6 liter V6 in its long-term test fleet. The car has suffered from three issues since they first acquired it: a rough engine idle, off-center steering and a power steering warning light, which comes on intermittently.
While the quality issues have been irritating, there are always a few bugs in the first model year of an all-new car, and none of the problems have been totally crippling. However, the real problem lies with their Cadillac dealer experience.
5,000 miles into their ownership, Automobile brought the ATS in to their local General Motors dealer to fix the misaligned steering and address the power-steering warning light. A $90 four-wheel alignment was performed, which fixed the problem, but they were unable to resolve the warning light. About a month later, they brought the car back to the same dealer to fix the rough idle, which they described as a “noticeable stumble or shudder (for instance, when sitting at a red light with your foot on the brake).” The dealer told them there was an update for rough-idle in four-cylinder cars, but none yet for six-cylinder cars and they could not resolve the issue.
A little while later the car returned to the dealer with 14, 088 miles on the odometer. The rough-idle had persisted and the steering was once again misaligned. They told the dealer to keep the car until everything was fixed.
Another front-end alignment and new winter tires solved the steering issue, but the dealer was unable to fix the rough engine idle. Automobile placed a call with a Cadillac’s customer service line. A rep from GM is supposed to work with the dealer to resolve the problem. The rep took down all their information and promised they would call them back within 48-hours, which never happened.
Growing frustrated, they found a Cadillac-only dealer down in Ohio to see if they could help them out. They noticed the Cadillac dealer was very different from their local GM dealer, there was rich wood floors, leather couches and brick walkways. The technician there immediately recognized the rough-idle problem, but could offer no fix.
They consulted Cadillac engineers about the rough idle, who told them a calibration issue has affected a small amount of cars. The fix includes revised engine mounts and a software update, which should be available for six-cylinder cars later this year. The power-steering light was most likely an over-sensitive sensor.
Automobile says the frustrating, inconclusive experiences at the dealerships bring to light a problem with the brand’s dealer network. There are more than 900 Cadillac dealerships across the U.S. and only about 150 sell only Cadillacs. Compare that to Lexus who runs fewer than 250 dealers in the U.S., most of them separate from Toyota dealers. With over 900 dealers nationwide, it’s hard to give customers the upscale experience that should come along with a premium car. If you walk into a BMW dealership, the place most likely exudes high quality, while the same can’t be said for a Cadillac dealer selling a $40,000 ATS next to a Chevrolet Spark.
Automobile has the car for another four months and will most likely be paying closer attention to how the dealers perform rather than how the ATS does.
Comments
This has been an Issue for a Very Long time, the “Dumbing Down” of Cadillac Dealers!! This needs to be the Utmost Priority of GM to Fix and Upscale Cadillac Dealers to a Level even BMW would inspire to be and they have the means to do this, again, my issue is still lies with the New Cadillac Escalade that they didn’t go far enuff with the engine separation keeping it in the pack with it’s lessor siblings, I mean let’s face it, u gonna spend almost $75 – 85K on a Premium SUV, but people who buy the GMC and Chevy can compare engines with you…….That’s Waaay Unacceptable, but shows you why Cadillac Dealers are lacking in the Customer Experience, just like the article said “for a Cadillac dealer selling a $40,000 ATS next to a Chevrolet Spark” is just as Blasphemous as “Selling a $75-85K Escalade next to $50-65K GMC and Chevy” with the same engine…………..Fix All that Please!!!! What you think Gang and Great Reporting Sam??!!
I find a problem with the dealer experience. But who cares about the same engines. GM is the biggest U.S. Automaker and it would be a waste of money to have several different engines per brand. The 3.6L T/T is already a Cadillac only engine (so far). .
As for now, GM needs to work on making sure that their dealers are doing the absolute best they can at selling vehicles without being pressuring to customers. I personally love the dealers in my area (Eden Prairie, MN and Indianapolis, IN). They are funny when you want them to be and get down to business when it is time to do so.
Thanks Evan for your response, so I 1st want to say to you that I did not say anything about different engines(Tho Caddy did have 1), I said compare engines, here’s a question for you = What was the horsepower on for the Cadillac Escalade and GMC Denali for 2008??? Give up…….Escalade 403 / Denali 380, a 23hp advantage, I sold prior to 2004 Cadillacs, GMC’s, Buicks, Pontiacs and Hummers and Cadillac Enjoy Monster sales lead then against any competitor and the Performance of the Engine matters back then as it does now!!! Fast forward now, well up until GM decided in 2009 to give the Denali the same performance as the Escalade……Sales started to fall, now in the Real Word, I don’t know how you purchase vehicles, but to buy a Premium vehicle that Cost Thousands More but have the same performance as that lesser vehicle is a sin and you won’t be seeing the other performance luxury companies do it so why you think it’s so right for GM to do it??? Now the Article is about the Dealer Experience but I needed to clarify this with you so you can understand the point I was making and to yours, if you want the dealers to sell then it will have to start with the Vehicle and giving them the right product for the fight!! Now about your statement “GM needs to work on making sure that their dealers are doing the absolute best they can at selling vehicles without being pressuring to customers”, I agree wholeheartedly with that, but, this ain’t about just dealers but Cadillac Dealers, a Premium Car dealership, that’s a whole new animal, do me a favor and when you get time go to a Mercedes, BMW, Audi & Lexus dealerships and then go to Cadillac, it’s like opening a door from the Earth to the Moon in Tech, Showroom, Customer Service and Product on hand…….you will not see a Kia sitting next to a 3 Series, so like the Article says, why should a ATS be sitting next to a Spark???? Now EvanG, this ain’t about who Dick is bigger, shit, we both Bleed GM, but you need to understand the Difference between Premium Luxury and everybody else….Cadillac has or will have Products that will be above and beyond my wildest dreams, but their dealerships can’t be stuck on bringing back the 80’s, that’s what this article is about, bring Caddy up to Speed Wholly…..Sales, Service, Showroom and Customer Service, I’ll be Dam if I walk in to buy a $70K vehicle and it’s parked next to a $18K car, NO Premium Buyer is down with that….All the heavies have Stepped up their Game it’s out turn, but do it Brilliantly!! Hope to hear from you soon my Friend 🙂
Regarding the article on the “Caddy Dealership Experience” Jbisrite, I think EvanG realizes the issue with some Caddy dealerships selling a premium car along side a spark doesn’t make any sense. I’m sure EvanG realizes that. My Cadillac dealership is a stand-alone outfit that’s really nice! (GoldCoast Cadillac in Oakhurst NJ checkout their website for pics of the dealership). I’ve seen hybrid GM dealers before and even then I haven’t seen a value GM product parked right next to a premium GM product ever (they were grouped according to relevance) but that is for another conversation.
Regarding the “Caddy engine differentiation issue” I would like to point out that EvanG as well as myself have concluded in your first response to this article that you ostensibly did say that different engines should be offered between Escalade, Tahoe & Yukon by suggesting it in a negative inference. I even copied the statement from your first post to show you where your point may lead some to confusion (idiots like me) with the words “same engine” in caps.
“for a Cadillac dealer selling a $40,000 ATS next to a Chevrolet Spark” is just as Blasphemous as “Selling a $75-85K Escalade next to $50-65K GMC and Chevy” with the SAME ENGINE…………..Fix All that Please!!!!”
If this doesn’t read like you aren’t suggesting a different engine shouldn’t be offered for each model then I don’t know what does. With that being said, it would be too expensive for GM to create a unique engine for Cadillac only.
I think a different state of tune for each model would be wise. For Cadillac a higher performing state of tune would make sense while for GMC a more torque-oriented state of tune could work there while for Chevy an efficient state of tune with cylinder deactivation could give it an edge against its competitors. I appreciate the opportunity to share my opinion with fellow GM fans! Especially Jbisrite & EvanG
Thanks for chiming in, just wanted to clarify I didn’t literally mean parked right next to each other. Just near each other and within the same confines.
I think this is a bit true… I mean most GM brands like Chevrolet are bonded to the upper level brands like Cadillac. The same goes for Buick and GMC. The same thing goes for the maintenance warranty. It’s fine that cadillac offers the shield maintenance program for 4 years or 50,000 miles (I wish it was 6 years 70000miles like their powertrain ones), but why are you putting Buick, GMC, and Chevy under the 2 years 24000 miles where Buick and GMC are a bit more premium than the Chevy counterparts? I think something like this would make people think that why would i spend more on a Buick or GMC vehicle where I could get the same 2 year maintenance on their Chevy counterpart. At least they should put Buick and GMC at the Lexus level of maintenance warranty. If they want to combine these two brands into one dealer they can put one brand in one building and another one in another. So like for Cadillac and Buick the dealer needs to feel more upscale and luxurious whereas GMC can be more upscale and maybe industrial? Just sayin…
GM has had dealer issues for a long time. Some are great and some are not. The problem is too often GM can not get rid of the poor dealers and if they do they always end up on the losing side.
Also GM tech network has had issues where solving issues with the dealers can be a problem. I had some issues with a GM Turbo Upgrade and too often the GM tech line did not offer the dealer an answer. I did find the GM engineer that designed the kit and he helped me correct the issue. Same on TSB’s as too often the dealers can not find them. I do my own home work and pass them on to the dealer and they performed the work.
GM also need to get the Cadillac dealers to build their own show rooms off to the side. They can still use the same service departments but they do need their own dealer show rooms.
So 2 dealers said there was no fix available at this time for the v6, which turns out to be true and somehow this reflects poorly on the dealer? I don’t understand that thought process. An intermittent warning light leaves no codes and the dealer is supposed to guess what part is failing?
The car is in the hands of Automobile magazine and requires steering alignment? Shocking!! If you want to point fingers aim at the engineers, suppliers and the manufacturer. They are the cause.
Regarding the article on the “Caddy Dealership Experience” Jbisrite, I think EvanG realizes the issue with some Caddy dealerships selling a premium car along side a spark doesn’t make any sense. In fact I’m sure EvanG realizes that. My Cadillac dealership is a stand-alone outfit that’s really nice! (GoldCoast Cadillac in Oakhurst NJ checkout their website for pics of the dealership). I’ve seen hybrid GM dealers before and even then I haven’t seen a value GM product parked right next to a premium GM product ever (they were grouped according to relevance) but that is for another conversation.
Regarding the “Caddy engine differentiation issue” I would like to point out that EvanG as well as myself have concluded in your first response to this article that you ostensibly did say that different engines should be offered between Escalade, Tahoe & Yukon by suggesting it in a negative inference. I even copied the statement from your first post to show you where your point may lead some to confusion (idiots like me) with the words “same engine” in caps.
“for a Cadillac dealer selling a $40,000 ATS next to a Chevrolet Spark” is just as Blasphemous as “Selling a $75-85K Escalade next to $50-65K GMC and Chevy” with the SAME ENGINE…………..Fix All that Please!!!!”
If this doesn’t read like you aren’t suggesting a different engine shouldn’t be offered for each model then I don’t know what does. With that being said, it would be too expensive for GM to create a unique engine for Cadillac only.
I think a different state of tune for each model would be wise. For Cadillac a higher performing state of tune would make sense while for GMC a more torque-oriented state of tune could work there while for Chevy an efficient state of tune with cylinder deactivation could give it an edge against its competitors. I appreciate the opportunity to share my opinion with fellow GM fans! Especially Jbisrite & EvanG
Cadillac is already offering different tuned engines as an option. While not the entire line up they working to make things different. As with all of GM it takes time and many never be 100%
As for totally different engines the cost and regulations have killed this long ago. GM will have to make due with what they have as GM just can not provide a engine just for a hand full of cars. The cost is just way too high. They can and will offer things like Twin Turbo’s that will provide a totally different experience vs. a 3.6 in a Chevy. At this point the 3.6 is quickly disappearing from most other GM models and may only be used in a Cadillac in the end. Just about all the cars are now just Ecotec models.
does it not make you wonder how the hell does the steering get misaligned twice, how does this happen???????
Because Michigan.
Cadillac can definitely step up more in terms of the dealer experience. The place I bought my vehicle from seem to have a mixture of Chevy Cadillac and Buick throughout the showroom. I felt they should definitely have a separate area for Cadillac if they want people to take it more seriously here. When you go to a BMW dealership for example, you get the royal treatment. The spaces are usually state-of-the-art and you feel you are a luxury buyer getting a luxury car.
I understand the challenges GM faces in creating space is just for the Cadillac, but they do need to come up with something. The dealer I bought my ATS from has a separate service desk for Cadillac. But in the two services I have had with them they always took me at the normal desk. Even though it’s trivial, I found that disappointing. The place I had it serviced last time could not do enough for me. Even the service manager came out it gave me his card shook my hand and made sure I was looked after for coffee etc. that made me feel like I had bought a premium vehicle.
It’s a tough run here for Cadillac to beat out the various established BMW Mercedes and Audi cars. In Toronto they are everywhere. And Cadillac still has an image problem compared to them. If and when one of those owners decided to try that cool looking Cadillac he saw out, the dealers better make him feel important, because I know BMW etc. will.
I have a 2013 ATS 3.6 with the rough idle. The most frustrating part of my customer experience with Cadillac is that when you take it to the Dealer and point out the issue, they deem it as “Normal” and then tell you there is no fix at this time. It feels like they are covering their ass so you don’t have records of attempted repairs or visit as to not give any ammunition for a lemon law case instead of trying to fix the issue. The only information that I’m finding is thru forums and articles stating that there is an issue, but no fix from Cadillac yet. I do feel let down by my Dealer and ultimately Cadillac for how they are handling the problem. Does anyone know if the fix for the 6cy engine is in the Dealers hands yet??
Here are a few things that helped… I have 2014, this article describes everything I been through literally. For the rough idle, I noticed first thing the fuel, chevron shell is all I use and high octane 91 only…. then the other thing I did that helped is I used Mobil 1 synthetic oil with the Mobil 1 filter. I sill get the rough idle but it’s no where near as bad as it was before, it’s still annoying, it pops up most the time, but sometimes it’s like it’s gone. Hope this helps