2013 Cadillac ATS: Power Steering Malfunction
May 20, 2013
This warning popped up on the instrument display of our 2013 Cadillac ATS when I climbed in this morning. I did not notice any associated issue with the power steering, and the warning did not stay illuminated. And I have not seen it again since. We'll keep an eye on this and have it addressed at the dealer if necessary.
2013 Cadillac ATS: The Creaky Steering Is Fixed
April 9, 2013
Our Cadillac ATS no longer sounds like a socket wrench every time you spin the steering wheel. After dropping it off at Martin Cadillac in West L.A. they got to work on diagnosing the problem. Turns out that the SIR (Steering Wheel Inflatable Restraint) coil was rubbing against the steering angle sensor.
First, the tech tried using a new SIR coil to see if that would cure the problem. It didn't. Then he tried a new steering sensor, that didn't work either. Then put in both replacement parts together and all was good. All five and a half hours of labor were covered under warranty. Whew.
2013 Cadillac ATS: XM Subscriptions
April 5, 2013
I snapped this picture of our 2013 Cadillac ATS touchscreen to show to our Car Wrangler Extraordinaire, Mike Schmidt (CWE). True to form, he already knew about the expired XM subscription, had in fact paid it, but suspects the car didn't respond in kind because the signal couldn't reach it, deep in the parking bunker under our office building.
2013 Cadillac ATS: Creaky Cadillac
March 21, 2013
This little issue has been driving me nuts for a while. The steering wheel in our ATS makes a clicking sound as it rotates. It's like turning a socket wrench every time you park. If you don't believe me you can hear it for yourself.
Some people have driven it and barely even noticed. I'm not sure how given how prominent it is every time you turn the wheel. It grated on my ears every time I got behind the wheel, so I finally took it to the dealer today to see if they could smooth things out.
2013 Cadillac ATS: Chirping Sound
February 21, 2013
I noticed an odd little sound in our long-term 2013 Cadillac ATS the last time I drove it. It's a muted chirpchirpchirp that happens briefly during moderate acceleration from a standstill. The sound only occurs immediately following the 1-2 upshift and can be reproduced fairly easily.
2013 Cadillac ATS: Another Electrical Gremlin
January 24, 2013
Along with the inaccurate headlight malfunction warning that both Walton and I have experienced, our 2013 Cadillac also has another electrical gremlin. During normal use, the backlight for the PRND next to the shifter keeps fading in an out. This is happening whether the car is in motion or not and when the automatic headlights are on or off.
At first I just thought I was having a stroke, but then another editor here confirmed that the lights were indeed failing.
Mike Magrath, Features Editor @ 3,700 miles
2013 Cadillac ATS: Erroneous Headlamp Fault Code
January 1, 2013
Donna liked our 2013 Cadillac ATS's headlamps here, and I do too. They do an amazing job bending around corners with the steering input. However, they caused some sort of erroneous fault code on the instrument panel. I hopped out of the car and checked for myself...
2013 Cadillac ATS: Microfiber Included
December 31, 2012
It's inevitable. Despite a semi-reliable voice-recognition system in our 2013 Cadillac ATS, sometimes we have to actually touch the touchscreen. The problem is that we filthy humans produce sebum, or oil from our skin and it gets on the screen. Luckily, Cadillac has provided an amazingly effective sebum removal system...
