The Lemon IndexCadillac STS reliability.
Is it reliable? Not really. 1.2× the average car's complaints.
Worse than average · 2005–2007
What owners say on YouTube
2005–2011 STS · 194 most-watched videos
Owners praise
Owners complain about
Fixes owners look up most
Before you buy, watch
Praise and complaints: the share of each generation's most-watched videos that mention a topic with a praise or trouble word next to it, in the title or what's said. YouTube rank: how positive owners and reviewers sound, compared with every car of the same model year. It measures tone, not failure rates. Videos belong to their creators; we link to them.
Looking at a 2007 or newer? Those are too new for a full complaint score (any score shown is partial, in gray), but YouTube owners like the 2008 best.
Fewest complaints
2005.
Only 2 Cadillac STS years have enough complaints and sales to score, too few for best and worst lists. 2005 drew a bit more than the average car's complaints.
Every year. Lower is better. Tap a year for its full report.
Newest year first. Red = worse than average, gray = about average or too few complaints to score. #1, #2… = that year's YouTube rank among the 5 Cadillac STS years with enough videos (#1 = the year owners and reviewers talk about most positively). It is not a reliability rank.
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<iframe src="https://lemonindex.com/embed/cars/cadillac-sts/" title="Cadillac STS reliability by model year (The Lemon Index)" width="100%" height="261" style="border:0;max-width:720px" loading="lazy"></iframe><p style="font-size:13px;margin:4px 0 0">Data: <a href="https://lemonindex.com/cars/cadillac-sts/">Lemon Index</a> (Cadillac STS reliability by year)</p>Scores before 2010 are rough: fewer owners filed complaints back then.
YouTube rank: we read 200 YouTube videos about the Cadillac STS, 2005 to 2011, and ranked every year by how much they praise it vs. how much they talk about problems. YouTube's favorite: 2009. Old cars rank lower partly because most of their videos are repair and restoration videos. A gray dot means not enough data yet: under 10 videos, or a new year with no owner complaints to compare.
Compare the Cadillac STS.
Opens the compare tool with both cars, every year side by side. Compare with any car →
Quick answers.
Is the Cadillac STS reliable?
Not really. It draws 1.2× the average car's complaints, and YouTube owners complain about it more than about most cars its age. No year beat the average car. The year with the fewest complaints, 2005, still drew 1.2× the average.
Is the Cadillac STS a good car?
Not overall: it draws more complaints than the average car, by owner complaints to the government per car sold (2005-2007: Lemon Index 118; 100 is average). Some years are much better than others: 2005 drew the fewest complaints and 2006 the most.
What are the best Cadillac STS years to buy?
Only 2 Cadillac STS years have enough data to score, so we don't list best years. 2005 drew the fewest complaints (a bit more than the average car's complaints).
What Cadillac STS years should you stay away from?
Only 2 Cadillac STS years have enough data to score, too few to single out years to avoid.
How many recalls does the Cadillac STS have?
10 safety recalls across the 8 model years we track. Most: 2006 (4), 2005 (3), 2007 (2). Each year's page lists them.
What are the most common Cadillac STS problems?
Across every year, owners' complaints to the government name electrical, airbags and transmission & drivetrain most. Some years are much worse than others: see the chart above.
Every year in one table
| Year | Index | Compared with average | Complaints | Top complaint | Recalls | Crash test | MPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | – | complaints only, too few sold to score | 5 | lights (20%) | 0 | — | — |
| 2005 | 121 | a bit more than the average car's complaints | 28 | electrical (39%) | 3 | — | 17–18 |
| 2006 | 154 | about one and a half times the average car's complaints | 25 | airbags (36%) | 4 | — | 14–19 |
| 2007 | – | too few complaints to score | 15 | electrical (27%) | 2 | — | 15–19 |
| 2008 | – | complaints only, too few sold to score | 17 | airbags (24%) | 1 | — | 15–20 |
| 2009 | – | complaints only, too few sold to score | 2 | equipment (50%) | 0 | — | 15–20 |
| 2010 | – | complaints only, too few sold to score | 1 | lights (100%) | 0 | — | 17–21 |
| 2011 | – | complaints only, too few sold to score | 3 | seat belts (33%) | 0 | — | 21 |
The Lemon Index counts owner complaints filed with the U.S. government (NHTSA) in a car's first 3 years, per car sold, against the average car of the same model years (100 = average, lower is better). It measures complaints, not crash safety. U.S. sales source: en.wikipedia.org. How it works
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Updated · Free to use with credit: Source: The Lemon Index (lemonindex.com)
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