2011 Cadillac Escalade Ext problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Air Bags (3)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Cadillac Escalade Ext model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
Safety recalls (4)
Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module 2021-02-05 · campaign 21V050000 · 2,641,272 vehicles
Defect: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2007-2011 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Yukon, Yukon XL, and 2009-2011 Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, GMC Sierra 2500 and Sierra 3500 vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 22, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on March 1, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020; Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006; and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. G
Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module 2021-02-05 · campaign 21V054000 · 1,778,128 vehicles
Defect: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2014 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 2500, Sierra 3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of AL, CA, FL, GA, HI, LA, MS, SC, TX, PR, AS, GU, the MP, and VI or "Zone A." Additionally GM is recalling certain 2011-2014 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 2500, Sierra
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 25, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed to 40 VIN owners on May 11, 2021. A second owner notification letter was mailed to all other owners on January 24, 2022. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-8
Electrical System:ignition 2014-12-30 · campaign 14V827000 · 84,192 vehicles
Defect: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado HD, Silverado LD, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra LD, Sierra HD, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the ignition lock actuator may bind, making turning the key difficult or causing the ignition to get stuck in the "Start" position.
Risk: If stuck in the "Start" position, the ignition may suddenly snap back into the "Accessory" position, causing a loss of engine, steering, and braking power, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash. If the vehicle is in a crash, the air bags may not deploy, increasing the risk of occupant injury.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and replace the ignition lock housing, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on February 12, 2015. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1-800-458-8006 (Cadillac), 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet), or 1-800-462-8782 (GMC). GM's number for this recall is 14696 for the original equipment, and 14912 for the service replacement parts.
Suspension:rear:axle:spindle 2011-01-06 · campaign 11V007000 · 30,566 vehicles
Defect: GENERAL MOTORS IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2011 CADILLAC ESCALADE, ESCALADE ESV, ESCALADE EXT; CHEVROLET AVALANCHE, COLORADO, EXPRESS, SILVERADO, SUBURBAN, TAHOE; AND GMC CANYON, SIERRA, SAVANA, YUKON AND YUKON XL VEHICLES. THE REAR AXLE CROSS PINS WERE NOT PROPERLY HEAT TREATED AND COULD FRACTURE AND BECOME DISPLACED WITHIN THE REAR AXLE. SHOULD THE PIN SHIFT OUT OF POSITION, IT COULD CREATE AN INTERFERENCE CONDITION AND CAUSE THE REAR AXLE TO LOCK.
Risk: THE DRIVER MAY NOT BE ABLE TO MAINTAIN DIRECTIONAL CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE AND A CRASH COULD OCCUR WITHOUT WARNING.
Fix: DEALERS WILL INSTALL A NEW REAR AXLE CROSS PIN FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JANUARY 11, 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT CADILLAC AT 1-866-982-2339, CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438, GMC AT 1-866-996-9463 AND AT THE OWNER CENTER AT WWW.GMOWNERCENTER.COM.
Service bulletins (1,396)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Unknown Or Other 2026-09-04 · PIP4902W · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email gds2 session logs into technical assistance.
Unknown Or Other 2026-04-01 · PIT3271Q · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communicates information about how to determine if a wheel and tires size change is available.
Unknown Or Other 2026-03-09 · PIP6104 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communicates the steps on how to save a gds2 session log and upload to a technical assistance case in cx connect.
Unknown Or Other 2026-03-09 · PIP4902V · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email gds2 session logs into technical assistance.
Unknown Or Other 2026-01-08 · PIP4902U · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email gds2 session logs into technical assistance.
Unknown Or Other 2025-11-20 · PIT5214G · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communication provides information to the technician about vehicles that have had multiple repair attempts that are being performed on customer’s vehicles that exhibit vibration conditions without utilizing the support of general motors technical assistance center. if va
Showing the 6 most recent of 1,396 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2018-04-26 · Air Bags“takata recall - my vehicle is listed as having the takata airbag installed and recalled - gm recall # 2049151 - nhtsa # 16v381. when i called gm they said the recall was on hold and i could not get my car serviced under the recall. these air bags have been proven to be deadly and i do not understand why gm is holding back form allowing me to keep…”
2018-01-31 · Air Bags“takata recall - when checking the status of my recall it says incomplete remedy not available. i want my airbags replaced asap. how do i do that? www.airbagrecall.com site says this about my vehicle. recall status recall incomplete. remedy not yet available…”
2017-11-06 · Air Bags“i contacted my dealer when i got the original recall notice several months ago. at the time they told me that they did not have a solution to switch out the airbags. i received the card from tk holdings this week. i have again contacted my dealer today to be told that they, sewell cadillac of houston, do not have a fix yet or replacement bags from …”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.