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Looking at 2015 XTS - opinions please

8.6K views 35 replies 11 participants last post by  ccclarke  
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Hey All,

Been a long time since Ive been on and lost my old account.

Have owned a few DTS's in the past and loved them. Looking at a 2015 XTS with round 50,000 kilometers on it. Car is in nice shape and all but was wondering what common problems are, if they are reliable etc.

Any feedback is appreciated

Thanks

LJ formerly Big ****** lol
 
#2 ·
Hey All,

Been a long time since Ive been on and lost my old account.

Have owned a few DTS's in the past and loved them. Looking at a 2015 XTS with round 50,000 kilometers on it. Car is in nice shape and all but was wondering what common problems are, if they are reliable etc.

Any feedback is appreciated

Thanks

LJ formerly Big ** lol

I guess W h i t e y is a bad word these days? Lol what a world!
 
#3 ·
Welcome back! I have found my 2014 XTS to be quite reliable. I am just over 95K miles. The tires from the factory suck if 20". The CUE screens tend to fail but are easily replaceable. My screen and tires have been replaced. I also had to replace a torn sunroof weatherstrip. All in all great cars!
 
#35 ·
To all of you with automatic leveling system problems … take the car to specialists , have him take bags off and dunk them in bucket , check for leaks ..
If no leaks in bags , bags good , disconnect compressor and module , lead an air line to rear bumper , drill small hole in it and mount tire valve … Voila !
you just backtracked from automatic to manual
My guy in LA charged me $250
1/2 hour job ..
and if you are on the way to pick 3 heavy people , stop by tire shop and give it a puff , to raise it a little , so it can handle the load
When you drop them off , push the needle in the valve , bring it down to level
( must go to tire shop , pressure in system is high , gas station compressors don’t pump that high )
 
#4 ·
On a style note, I prefer the 2016 and newer. I believe CUE is far more responsive in 2016+ as well, although the screen can still crack/delaminate/whatever (I got a small crack in mine, still under warranty fortunately). I greatly prefer the 2016+ grille. But if you have a great deal on a 2015, with evidence of regular oil changes, then good for you. My car has been low maintenance compared to my LS430. no timing belt, no brake pads needed yet at almost 6 years/63k miles. Just oil every 6-7k as indicated, coolant at 5 years, transmission fluid at 45k since I got car used at 25k, brake fluid every 3 years. And 1 dead battery at < 4 years (warranty covered!). No other mechanical repairs (yet...).

Shocks damaged in bad pothole were exorbitant at dealer ... $1200 for one, not even a pair!!! I was robbed. Magnetic ride control shocks are relatively pricey even at an independent, so make sure they are in good shape or that will be a sizable bill. Twice car has started "wrong" with hesitation and check engine light and unable to go above 20 mph. A restart fixed immediately both times. Headlights are poor IMO -- others disagree. Good, decent car overall. Some love it. I like it... it has grown on me. Find the engine a bit gruff but rest of car is quiet. I did not like original tires, currently have Vredestein Quattrac Pros. Many others dislike original tires for noise/wear... make sure you like the ride and noise on various roads.

Finally, some claim 20" tires are worse-riding and platinum-trim wheels degrade due to 2 metals... If you are getting premium with 20s or platinum trim, check out ride and wheel "health" (on the Platinum) for corrosion, etc.

Good luck.
 
#6 ·
I picked up a 2016 in November last year. Car had 84K miles on it at the time, I'm around 88K now, not driving a lot. But, it is by far the nicest car I have ever owned. So far, I'm still loving it.

I did some research prior to buying, and this seemed to be a pretty reliable model, outside of some of the items mentioned above. One thing I had on mine, the weld on teh front CAT cracked and I had an exhaust leak on start up. I swapped the CAT out and all is good, was actually really easy to swap.

I can't complain about the V6, seems to have plenty of power, but there are times I wish I would have searched for a V-sport, but I don't need the power :)

Overall, I'm still really pleased. Just need to get the windows tinted and I'll be all set.
 
#7 ·
'19 XTS here. Owned it for 1.5 years so far and no complaints other than the OEM tires which wore very quickly. Replaced them with Pirelli 245 45R19 P& Plus ll recently. The EPB had a fault internal to the switch, and the sunshade was replaced due to material buckling. Both done under warranty, and no complaints about the work done. I put a new grille on black honey comb, and my gas mileage increased and so did my performance - by my butt dyno, and the fact it takes pretty much anyone off the line without me even trying. Unlike the other poster, I like the exhaust note. See video below for a '13.

The '15 MY has very few issues according to carcomplaints.com:
 
#11 ·
2019 no issues other than the CUE not recognizing the USB with music on it sometimes. The Cadillac App. says not to shift from park until it recognizes the USB. Which has been true for the most part. The car has surpassed my expectations except paint, body gaps, door handles, and the antenna. All very minor but surprising since this is a Cadillac.
 
#12 ·
You have all those issues Whoelse...geez, sorry to hear that. Guess I hit it right as I don't have any of those issues, and the car fits the definition of Luxury imo. I did have the USB issue, but that was corrected in the last CUE update (22.10).
 
#14 ·
You should see all the hits the xpel pp on the front bumper has taken with over 99% highway driving I do, but with xpel they don't stand out unless you inspect it close with a light. There is one good hit on the headlight - that one on the xpel can be seen without a close inspection.
 
#19 ·
So I find the backup camera image very poor and hard to see....not really useful at all. I didnt notice when I got it. Is this commom, I cant imagine it could be.

He mentioned he did replace the radio screen with the "American" one ( good ol Canada here lol) could that have something to do with it?


Thanks!
 
#20 ·
I think the resolution on the earlier MY's was lower than recent model years...I have no complaints about mine, so that may be part of it. Also, have you checked the lens out...maybe it's hazed or dirty. Other's with the same MY you bought will be able to give you more info.
 
#21 ·
A quick wipe of the rear camera lens will check out if the problem is on the inside or on the outside. I had your problem with my front camera lens: blurry and pretty well useless. It took the service dept at my dealership two "remove half the front end of the car to get at the camera" sessions to find that there was some sort of goop that was in the same area for some unrelated purpose, that was dripping down over the lens. Once they fixed it the second time they managed to stop the goop from drifting down my lens, and I haven't had the problem since.
 
#30 ·
That reminds me. As we know, black is deemed hard to keep clean, but I found a product that keeps it clean (dust free) in-between washings - the California Duster. So now I only wash if the car was out in the rain, or I want to get some dust out of hard to get to places (once a month). The product works great and does not scratch or leave swirls when used correctly ie. lightly just touching the surface - which should be cool. If used on a hot surface, there may be a few wax smudges (the product has wax embedded in it) that can easily be taken off with a detailer. I've been using it for about two months now on my Black Raven XTS and the paint is in the same condition it was after I did a three step paint correction on it.
 
#32 ·
You're welcome Morganga. I think you'll love it...saves me so much work. I can go over the entire car in 5-10 minutes and looks freshly washed. One thing...shake it out between swipes, and do not use on anything on the car that is gritty, soft dust is what it is meant for.