The 2016 Cadillac Escalade has 4 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 7,141,302 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 120 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the engine. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Recall campaigns
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC19V6450002019-09-063,456,719 affected
Defect
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2017 Cadillac Escalade, 2014-2018 Chevrolet Silverado, GMC Sierra, 2015-2018 Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Yukon vehicles. The amount of vacuum created by the vacuum pump may decrease over time.
Consequence
As the vacuum level drops, the brake assist decreases, increasing braking effort, extending the distance required to stop the vehicle, thereby increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the Electronic Brake Control Module, free of charge. The recall began October 8, 2019. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-630-2438, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this…
SEAT BELTS17V4370002017-07-1040,683 affected
Defect
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2014-2016 Buick Lacrosse and Chevrolet Spark EV, Caprice PPV and SS vehicles, 2014-2017 Buick Encore and Chevrolet Corvette, Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 vehicles, 2015-2016 Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Tahoe, Trax, Suburban and Silverado…
Consequence
A failure of the front air bags or seat belt pretensioners to deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger.
Remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will reflash the SDM software. Vehicles that have had a previous air bag deployment will have the SDM replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on August 4, 2017. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer…
AIR BAGS16V6510002016-09-083,640,162 affected
Defect
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2015-2017 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD, 3500 HD, Tahoe, Suburban, GMC Sierra 2500 HD and 3500 HD, GMC Yukon, GMC Yukon XL, Cadillac Escalade and Cadillac Escalade ESV vehicles and 2014-2017 Chevrolet Corvette, Silverado 1500, Trax, Caprice Police Pursuit…
Consequence
A failure of the front air bags or seat belt pretensioners to deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger.
Remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will reflash the SDM software. Vehicles that have had a previous air bag deployment will have the SDM replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on October 13, 2016. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer…
SUSPENSION16V2560002016-04-283,738 affected
Defect
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and 2016 Cadillac Escalade, Cadillac Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe, GMC Sierra, GMC Yukon and GMC Yukon XL vehicles. The front upper control arms may have inadequate welds near the control arm bushing.
Consequence
Inadequate welds may allow the control arm to separate from the bushing, compromising steering and increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the left and right front upper control arms and realign the vehicle, free of charge. The recall began on May 18, 2016. Until the repairs have been made, owners are advised not to drive their vehicles. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020,…
Complaints by component
ENGINE
29
1fires
POWER TRAIN
16
1crashes
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
15
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
14
2fires
SUSPENSION
8
STEERING
7
AIR BAGS
6
1crashes3injuries
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)
4
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
3
1fires
SERVICE BRAKES
3
1crashes1injuries
Total complaints120
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“Suspension failed at 50,000 miles. At 56,000 miles one of the valve components inside the engine (a lifter) has collapsed. This part controls the opening of the engine valve, and because it is no longer moving, that cylinder cannot build compression and is causing the misfire. This is an internal…”
“Suspension failed at 50,000 miles. At 56,000 miles one of the valve components inside the engine (a lifter) has collapsed. This part controls the opening of the engine valve, and because it is no longer moving, that cylinder cannot build compression and is causing the misfire. This is an internal…”
“Transmission issues. My vehicle lunges and has hard shifts when accelerating from low speed to high speeds. Also lunges when slowing down or stopping”
“The contact owns a 2016 cadillac escalade. The contact stated that while driving at 65 mph, there was an abnormal popping sound coming from the engine. The contact stated that the vehicle sounded like it was going to stall, and the accelerator pedal was depressed to keep the vehicle from stalling.…”
“Experienced loss of electric power steering while driving at 60 mph on interstate. Had 6 passengers in vehicle at the time and could have crashed if another vehicle was in other lane next to us during steering loss. Steering available for inspection. Have taken vehicle to dealer to fix issue. They…”
“While driving in rush hour traffic, engine completely stopped. We were stranded in traffic for 2 hours until the police came to help push us out of the street. It was 20 degrees and we sat for 4 hours to get towed. After much ado, the dealership stated the following; "checked and found engine…”
“While driving my 2016 cadillac escalade, the vehicle experienced a sudden mechanical failure associated with the engine and charging system. Upon failure, the vehicle displayed warning indicators including a “low batteryâ€� warning and emitted a burnt smell. The engine subsequently failed…”
“I purchased a car from a used car dealer in sacramento. Two days later, the lifters went bad. This truck only has 115,000 miles on it. This is a know issue that gm has and they're doing nothing to remedy the issue. They keep putting dod/afm in these expensive cars knowing the lifters will fail and…”
Defect investigations
InvestigationPE18012 Opened 2018-11-20 · closed 2022-04-10
Brake Vacuum Pump Failure
On November 20, 2018, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened PE18-012 to investigate instances of sudden onset of a hard brake pedal that could result in extended stopping distance due to an issue with the brake assist vacuum pump in model year (MY) 2014 through 2016 GMC Sierra 1500 and Chevrolet Silverado…
InvestigationPE18012 Opened 2018-11-20 · closed 2022-04-10
Brake Vacuum Pump Failure
On November 20, 2018, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened PE18-012 to investigate instances of sudden onset of a hard brake pedal that could result in extended stopping distance due to an issue with the brake assist vacuum pump in model year (MY) 2014 through 2016 GMC Sierra 1500 and Chevrolet Silverado…
InvestigationPE18012 Opened 2018-11-20 · closed 2022-04-10
Brake Vacuum Pump Failure
On November 20, 2018, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened PE18-012 to investigate instances of sudden onset of a hard brake pedal that could result in extended stopping distance due to an issue with the brake assist vacuum pump in model year (MY) 2014 through 2016 GMC Sierra 1500 and Chevrolet Silverado…
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2016 Cadillac Escalade as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.