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Acceleration vibration at speeds above 50mph

9K views 50 replies 15 participants last post by  vandammeskillz 
#1 ·
Hi there,

I leased a 2013 CTS-V Coupe last Friday and I got to say I love the car, but one thing has me worried/scratching my head. When I drive the car above 50mph on the highway and I accelerate, there is a noticeable vibration coming through the gas pedal which also slightly manifests on the steering wheel. The vibration is not very consistent as sometimes i seem to not get vibration but other times i do, could be my imagination, so i'm having a hard time putting my finger on it. But I can say this for sure, there is definitely a vibration. I've driven Mercedes and BMWs and never experienced such thing so i have to say this is not normal.

The interesting thing is that for some reason if i'm traveling with a passenger the vibration issue is not there, or so it seems to me. I haven't tested this theory fully yet but i will. I brought the car to the dealership suggesting it might be wheels/tire related and the service manager told me he can't touch the car until i put at least 500 miles on it. Maybe it needs some break in? I don't know. Long story short i took the manager on a test run so he could experience the issue and the car made me look silly because it accelerated smooth the whole time which emphasizes my passenger theory.

I'm really not liking this issue at all. What do you guys think this could be? I'd love to get some feedback so that i may take it back to the service department.
 
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#2 ·
Vibration coming through the gas pedal is puzzling, since it's a throttle-by-wire system... Hmm. Perhaps the whole firewall is vibrating and that's what you feel in the pedal and steering wheel. Automatic or manual? Is it/are you downshifting or lugging top gear?
 
#5 ·
Thanks for the feedback so far guys. The coupe is auto. Yes, is more like the front/ firewall part of the vehicle vibrates, a bit like a hopping type of vibration, but i definitely feel it more on the gas pedal and a bit on the steering wheel. I will check my tire pressure as suggested. What do you recommend as optimal pressure on this car? No i have not had it balanced. Just drove it off the lot a few days ago. Am thinking the car is supposed to have been balanced? I guess i can request to have it balanced after i put another 200 miles on it. Trapspeed i agree with you, it sucks!
 
#8 ·
Hello vandammeskillz,

I did some research and the dealer is correct, if the issue is wheel alignment or balance related it would be after 500 miles before they were able to do anything under warranty. I am glad to hear that you love the car except for the issue you are experiencing with it. If you would like to discuss your concerns more, please private message us. If you are not able to private message us because you are new to the forum, you can also email us at socialmedia@gm.com. Be sure to include “ATTN GREG” in the subject line so that it gets delivered straight to me. Thank you very much for your time. I will be looking forward to assisting you with your concern.

Gregory W.
Cadillac Customer Care
 
#9 ·
I did some research and the dealer is correct, if the issue is wheel alignment or balance related it would be after 500 miles before they were able to do anything under warranty.
I'm trying to type this without it sounding like a joke, but I'm serious.

I can not figure out why the wait period is 500 miles. I can understand the car needs some miles to settle but what if ALL of the wheel weights fell off and the dealer says "Nope, can't put wheel weights on because you have to drive it 475 miles more to see if it really was the complete lack of wheel weights that is causing the problem.".

Or, "Nope. Can't tighten up your loose tie-rod because you have to drive it 475 more miles to see if you really needed that tie-rod tightened. Yeah the lock nut is completely loose but we need 475 more miles.".

So can someone tell me why the wait period is 500 miles.
 
#11 ·
Hello Club Malibu,

I apologize if the way I worded the statement made it sound like if the vehicle has an issue with the wheel that it can only be addressed after 500 miles. That is not the case. The wait period is 500 miles if the issue is alignment or balance related only.

Hello vandammeskillz,

Thank you for keeping us updated on the situation. I am sorry to hear that your passenger theory doesn’t stand, but I am glad that you are able to recreate the concern with a passenger in the vehicle consistently. Hopefully you will be able to recreate this with someone from the dealership in the vehicle as well. Have you looked into bringing it back to them now that you can consistently recreate it with someone in the passenger seat? Thank you very much for taking the time to respond.

Gregory W.
Cadillac Customer Care
 
#13 ·
Hi Gregory,

I will be bringing the car in to the dealer tomorrow morning. Hopefully i can recreate it and the issue could be looked into.

Regards,

----------

Sounds like the tranny lugging causing driveline rattle you are feeling right near the mounting areas.
Could be it. Right after work i took the car on an open, pretty deserted, road close to where i live to really experience this vibration. Here is the thing, i think the vibration manifests wayyy before hitting 70. When i said a few posts back "So, i drive the car to about 65, all is well no vibrations" i meant a prominent sputtering-like type of vibration does not manifest below 70 but i feel a small, consistent, cell-phone-in-your-pocket type of vibration all through the gas pedal and steering wheel at what is essentially cruising speeds! I've been thinking if is the road i've been driving on but it just can't be because this small vibration manifests at a very specific frequency and for a long time. Is this normal guys? I would expect a Cadillac to drive really smooth, even this V8 beast.

Now, if i take the car up to about 70 and then i give it considerable gas for about 8-9 seconds, long enough to feel it, then the car does a very weird sputtering-like type of vibration where it kind of jerks a bit. It almost reminds me back when i used to own a Buick that had a similar type of vibration/jerk and it was just a plug misfiring but am pretty sure this is not the case here because if i really step on the gas, supercharger comes on, and let it haul @$$ it does so well.
 
#15 ·
Ok, I just came back from the visit to the dealership. Took the car out with the service manager again, i think he's the manager forgot to ask him :). Anyways I was able to consistently replicate the issue with him. He agrees, there's definitely a, what he describes as almost like a "fluttering" under the circumstances i put the car in. Today i was able to pay even more attention to the parameters of the vehicle when it does this and these are as follows: I bring the car slowly up to 70mph then i step on the gas, not floored, as the supercharger comes on and boosts the car the car does this skipping, "fluttering" like type of vibration. This "fluttering", dissipates as the supercharger disengages. Here is the thing, I do not experience this when i give the car gas and the booster engages coming out of a stand still or going pretty slow, 30-40mph. It only happens when am around highway speeds which makes me thing it has to do with the booster giving the car torque on 6th gear.

Here is the more interesting part. We drove back to the dealer and him and I decided it will be a good idea to take another V Coupe on a test run and submit it to the same test. We did, and guys, the other CTS-V Coupe flutters under the same circumstances! What i did notice on the other V was the fact that i had no cellphone type of vibration the more speed i gave it, so my car might be suffering from many symptoms, maybe is also not balanced right.

But wow oh wow, this blows my mind. Does anybody out there with a 2013 CTS-V coupe experience the same thing? Wouldn't have guessed in a million years a $70k car would have such an issue. This has me really bombed out because i kind of see where this is going, this one might get written off as "just the way the car drives". If i have to live with this, it is really disappointing on the quality that Cadillac has put into this vehicle. I turned in a Benz to drive this caddy. This Cadillac is worth twice as much as what i was driving and it is miles away from the ride quality i had on the Benz. Unbelievable!

Anyways, the manager told me the CTS V expert is on vacation for a week and asked me if it was alright to bring it back when he's available. Obviously i agreed, i just want this car to drive as is supposed to. We'll, see what happens in a week :(
 
#16 · (Edited)
Hey Guys,

I found this thread here in the forum. http://www.cadillacforums.com/forums/2008-2013-cadillac-cts-general-discussion/254295-sigh-bad-transmission-shudder-new-2012-a.html

This sounds very much like the issue am experiencing. Does anybody know if the torque converter of a 2012 CTS Coupe is the same as the one on a 2013 CTS-V Coupe? This person was able to eradicate the problem for good by replacing the torque converter. GM even has a bulletin out for it!

Gregory, can you give us the details on this bulletin. And do you think the 2013 V model could be experiencing the same issue?

Regards,
 
#17 ·
vandammeskillz said:
Ok, I just came back from the visit to the dealership. Took the car out with the service manager again, i think he's the manager forgot to ask him :). Anyways I was able to consistently replicate the issue with him. He agrees, there's definitely a, what he describes as almost like a "fluttering" under the circumstances i put the car in. Today i was able to pay even more attention to the parameters of the vehicle when it does this and these are as follows: I bring the car slowly up to 70mph then i step on the gas, not floored, as the supercharger comes on and boosts the car the car does this skipping, "fluttering" like type of vibration. This "fluttering", dissipates as the supercharger disengages. Here is the thing, I do not experience this when i give the car gas and the booster engages coming out of a stand still or going pretty slow, 30-40mph. It only happens when am around highway speeds which makes me thing it has to do with the booster giving the car torque on 6th gear.

Here is the more interesting part. We drove back to the dealer and him and I decided it will be a good idea to take another V Coupe on a test run and submit it to the same test. We did, and guys, the other CTS-V Coupe flutters under the same circumstances! What i did notice on the other V was the fact that i had no cellphone type of vibration the more speed i gave it, so my car might be suffering from many symptoms, maybe is also not balanced right.

But wow oh wow, this blows my mind. Does anybody out there with a 2013 CTS-V coupe experience the same thing? Wouldn't have guessed in a million years a $70k car would have such an issue. This has me really bombed out because i kind of see where this is going, this one might get written off as "just the way the car drives". If i have to live with this, it is really disappointing on the quality that Cadillac has put into this vehicle. I turned in a Benz to drive this caddy. This Cadillac is worth twice as much as what i was driving and it is miles away from the ride quality i had on the Benz. Unbelievable!

Anyways, the manager told me the CTS V expert is on vacation for a week and asked me if it was alright to bring it back when he's available. Obviously i agreed, i just want this car to drive as is supposed to. We'll, see what happens in a week :(
I brought my car in last week with a slipping transmission. Dealer is working with Cadillac engineering people to figure it out, at this point they still don't know what it is. I have 7k miles on the car. $70k or $20k has nothing to do with it. Sometimes things just break. What is upsetting me is that they don't know what to do about it. I have a cas open with customer service, you should do the same just to get this on their radar.
 
#21 ·
Hello vandammeskillz,

Thank you for keeping us updated on your visit to the dealership on Saturday. I am glad that you were able to recreate the concern you were experiencing for the manager there. I apologize that their CTS-V expert was on vacation this week. I don’t have any access to the service bulletins that our dealerships receive, so I cannot provide any of that to you. I would be happy to open a case for you with this concern, could you private message me your name, contact info, VIN, mileage and name of the dealership you are working with so I can contact them regarding this concern. If you aren’t able to private message me, you can send me an email at socialmedia@gm.com. Be sure to include “ATTN GREG” in the subject line so that it gets sent straight to me. Thank you very much for keeping us updated. I hope to hear from you soon.

Gregory W.
Cadillac Customer Care
 
#22 ·
Hey guys,

Been too focused on the ride quality issue of this car to not notice a definite wind noise issue at highway speeds also. The wind noise manifests on the driver side and is significant the more speed the car gets. Has anybody noticed this? I think this is a known issue on previous models, not sure. I just don't see the light at the end of the tunnel with this car :rant2:
 
#25 ·
Hi, I have read through the entire string and just wanted to share my experience. I have a 2011 CTS-V Wagon with auto and from day one at 70-72 mph there is a very light vibration just like you explained. I thought it was tire tread vibration. But new tires (different brand) and a different set of stock GM wheels and the same vibration is still there. So, I was thinking that it was a 1/2 shafts or rotor that is out of balance. Not a big concern but it is definitely there. I now have 30k+ miles on it and still happens and I do a lot of highway driving. Let me know if you ever figure it out.

Two other issues right now for FYI:
- rear end has a very slight drip and anytime I turn left under load from a dead stop, I get a slight grinding noise from rear. I think the posi plates are chattering.
- Driver's side carpet will not stay put. The top left keeps pulling out and hanging in. Quality issue.

Otherwise, love the car. Fastest car I have owned to date and I have had a lot of different race cars.

See ya,
Chris
 
#26 ·
Hello Chris,

I apologize for any trouble you are experiencing with your vehicle. I understand you are interested in hearing from other forum members on possible solutions to the situation. However, if you would like to take your vehicle into the dealership to be diagnosed for the vibration, rear end issue and driver's side carpet I am more than happy to assist you locating a nearby dealer. If you want to further discuss anything, please reach out to me via private message. Other than these issues I am glad you love your CTS-V Wagon and enjoy its speed!

Sincerely,

Laura M.
Cadillac Customer Care
 
#28 ·
Hey guys here the latest update on the issue(s).

I just came back from picking up my car. If rage and disappointment could kill i'd probably be dead my now. The car is in exactly the same condition i dropped it off as. Needless to say I'm very frustrated.

I explained all the problems the car is having including vibration at highway speeds, car bucking when giving the car gas at highway speeds and excessive wind noise on the driver side.

So all those problems that i reported got written off as characteristics of the CTS V Coupe in the following way and i quote...

In regards to car bucking and vibrating at highway speeds: "Mostly related to line c. Some engine harmonics will be felt when accelerating low rpm under load. Compared to another CTS-V, normal operation."

ARE YOU SERIOUS? What kind of engine harmonics will make your car buck and flutter when stepping on the gas? This stuff happens constantly because it falls under very normal daily driving; you are going 60+ then step on the gas to pass traffic!!!! How is this garbage normal???

In regards to wind noise: "Wind rush heard over frame-less window which is normal. No wind noise coming inside car. Compared to another CTS Coupe, normal operation"

I drove the ATS 2.0T as the loaner vehicle while mine was getting serviced. I got to say wow oh wow. How can their lower-end vehicles drive so damn flawlessly and their top tier vehicles drive like sh**??? WTF????? Not even wind noise!!!!

When i dropped off the car Wednesday I had Todd, the service manager, agreeing with me that the car, and i quote, "Drives like sh**" that he will do everything he could to get to the bottom of it. Today I go pick it up and Todd tells me that everything i reported is.... "NORMAL OPERATION"!!!! The dude was telling me he "asked some customers with V's" about the problem and they all said they experience it! Are you f***** kidding me?

He went on and on trying to convince me that a lot of those characteristics of the V is the result of its big engine and its supercharger. I was like what????? So in order to drive a fast and powerful car i must settle for a garbage ride quality???

He even went on to add that, and i quote again, "Maybe the V is not for you!". I couldn't make this stuff up even if i could guys. The one car i always dreamed of driving and it has become the only one car in my driving history i already so desperately want to get rid off.

UN F****** BELIEVABLE!
 
#31 ·
Mine has what feels like a lean surging when moderately accelerating from 60 to 80 range but it doesn't seem to do it or maybe less so when in sport mode ( Trans issue?) but since i don't trust dealership mech's not to make it worse or screw up something else unless it starts getting worse i'll just let it ride till the warranty expiration is closer.
 
#32 ·
I have a 2012 manual. I had tons of drive train issues in the beginning. But I got it with about 600 miles on it. The drive train needs to be broken in for 1500 miles. I'm pretty sure some of you folks on this forum got to my car before I did. So I had some issues but cadillac fixed it. They replaced everything from the fly wheel to the rear end. It drives awsome now. I have none of the issues you mentioned here. After I cleared up the issues I put about another 150hp into it and it runs lime a beast. I even beat one of those $200, 000 MB SLS AMG the other day. I think you have an odd issue that may be simple or complicated. But either way your dealer doesn't know how to handle it. I know this sounds stupid but go to a different dealer. Get a GM engineer involved. Have him tell you its normal. That's what I had to do.

A different dealer may have someone that knows what the hell he is talking about. I think your dealer is plain ol'fashioned stumped. So they are telling you horseshiit to get you to go away and stop making them look like they don't know their jobs. Sorry man. But I will tell you this. I stuck with mine. It took me months to get it right. But when it was done... Well lets just say I'm obviously not the fastest car on the road but blowing away cars that over $200, 000 puts a smile on my face and makes me giggle like a 12 yr old girl. :)

Good luck.
 
#34 ·
I totally understand why you don't want to drive it when its acting weird. I got the same way cause I was pissed that I was one of the few that had to get a new car fixed but I decided that the problem was Cadillac's not mine. I would trust them to fix it. So if it is really something bad then some hard driving might make it more obvious to what the problem is. Go out and have some fun in it. That will do two things. It will show you why you bought the car. And maybe you can break it a little more so the guys at your dealership can be capable of identifying the problem. Seriously go out and try to break it Break It. I know it doesn't sound fair to Cadillac or honest to your character but essentially Cadillac is going to repair this anyway. You are just helping them to find the problem. If its truly a problem then it should present itself more. If its something small then cool you have some fun and start realize why you bought this bad ass M5 killer. Dont worry drive the crap out of that car. Its what it is made to do. Just don't modify it until you have resolved the issue. Cheers
 
#37 ·
vandammeskillz said:
Will do for sure, thanks for the heads up. My case will be taken care of by the district specialist. Hopefully this road will lead somewhere.
The other thing to do is to keep this thread at the top of the list. I made at least one update per day to keep it fresh. Once it falls off the first page, people stop caring.
 
#44 ·
UPDATE: Today I test drove the car with the engineer. Verdict: Is characteristic of the vehicle! lmao All i can do is laugh at this point what can i say... The "engineer" describes this car-bucking-type-of-fluttering as normal. He says that when am about 70mph and i progressively give the car gas having the booster engaging, am at 6th gear so the car downshifts. Is this downshift he attributes to this bucking. We test drove another exact same vehicle and it does the same thing so he says nothing could be done because comparing to another exact same vehicle we get the same results. Here is what's wrong with he's analogy. We had the car put in manual mode and kept it in the 6th gear and the car did the same thing. He made it sound like the car actually downshifted even though we had it in manual mode. Really? Is this true? When in manual, the car still downshifts on its own? The other fallacy with he's explanation is the fact the car bucks a few times, so it is not consistent with what a downshift is. The other vehicle we test drove is actually even worse. I was able to keep it bucking like that for wayyyyyy longer!

This is beyond ridiculous. Everybody agrees the car drives like shit and the trans is the one to blame and no one cares to do anything about it! Beyond words! I see no one here saying they are experiencing this. I'd love to test drive a previous year model to see if this shit was introduced to the 2013 model. I tell the engineer other comparable cars from other manufactures have no such issue and all he can say about that is "we're not comparing apples to apples, they are different cars" ahhhhh yea they are different yet comparable so i asked him "Are you telling me then that Cadillac's flagship car's drive-ability sucks compared to the competition and i just gotta live with it?" He had no response to that... Good f****** job Cadillac!
 
#47 ·
Is not something you can catch on video, is felt. Is not like the car shakes so violent like an earthquake and can be video recorded. What am experiencing is exactly what this person on another thread experienced http://www.cadillacforums.com/forums/2008-2013-cadillac-cts-general-discussion/254295-sigh-bad-transmission-shudder-new-2012-a.html

The problem in that link was quickly resolved with a simple torque converter swap because the it came with was bad. As a last effort attempt i forwarded this link to the GM engineer so they can seriously consider this as a possible solution. Even though there might not be a bulletin out for my year model on this issue, they did have a bulletin for it for the 2012 model this person had. Is it too far fetched to think outside the box and look into the torque converter?
 
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