Overview & Reviews

The base 3.2-liter V6 engine has been dropped; a 2.8-liter V6 will become the base engine later in the model year. A six-speed manual transmission is now standard regardless of engine choice. Package contents have been shuffled, and "synthetic leather" will be added to the options list later this year.

• Excellent handling, spacious cabin, wide array of available features, alternative look.

User Reviews:

Showing 1 through 10 of 155.00

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  Fun to drive but... - 2005 Cadillac CTS
  By Paul Shorts - December 18 - 10:40 am

  Jumped into this after 4 years of driving a Buick Century. Couldnt resist the feel and performance, and fun of the 6 speed manual. Had great luck with the cheap old Buick so I figured Id be safe purchasing another GM product. Purchased the car with 92,000 miles and it looked and drove like new. Had all dealer service records so I thought Id be safe. Whoops! Pros - The car handles amazing, and is extremely comfortable and fun to drive. Cons - At 105K a grommet on the gear shift went out. Could still get 1st - 6th gears fine, but couldnt put it in reverse. $300 part, but Cadillac was out of them, and nothing aftermarket was available. Had to drive for 2 months with no reverse while waiting for the part. Sortly after purchase I noticed I was having fairly high oil consumption. Never had a car do this so I contacted Cadillac. Told them I was burning 2.5 quarts per 5000 miles. I was told by a mechanic at a Cadillac dealer that "thats really low consumption for the 3.6 motor". Now with 170K miles on it, its using 1.5 - 2 quarts every 1000 miles. At 126K the motor broke a valve. Needed a full valve / upper motor job. $3500! At around 125K the traction control / ABS started acting up. Traction control engages when not needed, and occasionally the ABS engages when stopping, which can be a little scary. Transmission started leaking at about 125K. Too expensive to fix, so just keep adding oil to the MT when I change the oil. At 150K the brake lights quit working. Turns out its a problem with the wiring loom. Repair was ridiculous so I just re wired it myself direct from the relay to the brake lights. Right catalytic converter now needs to be replaced. Cant get an inexpensive aftermarket cat in California. Going to be dumping this "beauty" as a non-op when its time to get it smogged. Still cant believe that my cheap old Buick ran so well and never had a problem, and the sweet Caddy has literally been a piece of junk.

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  ownership and it woes - 2005 Cadillac CTS
  By linda lawson - December 1 - 10:40 pm

  bought my 2005 cts and drove it 3800 miles and it used 5 quarts of oil just about ruined the engine had I not decided to do an early service the engine would have been shot. I have been around cars and worked on them all my life and I have yet to understand this excessive oil consumption as being normal. I have owned several gm products and this is the first one I have had with this problem. would I buy another one no way. gm needs to man up and fix this problem and not charge the consumer who spent their hard earned money to buy a car they thought was going to be reliable. no wonder people are turning to Honda and other cars

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  I dont know what you guys are talking about. - 2005 Cadillac CTS
  By bigsim - January 7 - 6:52 pm

  Bought my CTS 4.ago and I love it, had a oil leak which was repaired under warranty. It does use a little oil so I keep an eye on it, this is a sports car I dont think a lot of people understand that so you have to be vigilant on upkeep I love this car and would recommend it to anyone ...Again this car is not for the person that doesnt take care of their car all the blown engine problems I bet can be traced back to some kind of abuse.

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  291,000 and still going strong - 2005 Cadillac CTS
  By twee2 - August 1 - 3:02 pm

  I bought my 2005 CTS brand new in Oakland at the Cadillac dealer on Broadway. (Name changed years ago). I have 291,456 miles on my car and it is still running great for me. Most of the reviews talk about all the oil it drinks, this has not been the case for me. I get my oil changed between 5,ooo-7,000 miles faithfully. I did need to replace the transmission at 110,000 miles ($3500) but other than that it has been just the usual brakes, tires, and oil changes. I have had some minor things go wrong when it got in the 200,000 miles but other than that, this has been the BEST CAR EVER! People cant believe how many miles I have on my car. I keep waiting for something to happen but it hasent.

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  Oil Burner!!! - 2005 Cadillac CTS
  By mabyn66 - February 16 - 7:47 pm

  I had a 2005 CTS, but traded it in on a reliable car, a Honda. I loved my CTS. It was a beautiful car, but at about 60,000 miles it started burning oil. It had no drips or blue smoke. They car was sounding weird and I had my husband check it. It needed 5 quarts of oil. There was no warning, or light. The catalytic converter went out in it twice in a year and a half and then I started having a misfiring problem. Whenever I was going up a hill, or had to accelerate fast, my whole car would jerk and then my engine light would start flashing. Beautiful looking car, but looks only get you so far. It was a major lemon and Id never buy one again!!!!

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  Disappointed - 2005 Cadillac CTS
  By natural_99_99 - June 1 - 11:19 pm

  I have been a proud owner of my CTS until recently. I have made sure the oil was changed every 3,000 to 6,000 miles as needed. Just with in the last month my CTS started cutting back when my wife was driving it. I checked oil in car & it was fine. dealership did a diagnostic test on the car and contacted me that same day and advise that the CTS had no issues & everything checked out fine. Within two weeks she was experience same problem I checked oil level & it was no oil at all. Went to pick up some oil put in car. Then I test drove the CTS next day & had no problem until I picked up some speed then it cutback some and engine light came on. When I went out to leave on tuesday it would not start out all & had to have it towed to dealership. Thats when I was told that i need a new engine. The repairs would cost $6200. I have recommended Cadillac CTS to numerous people never again. I am disappointed I had a chrysler sebring before this car that I traded in with 230000 miles on it. Cadillac is suppose to be a step above that. Its wrong how this economy is set up to bail out GM but I cant even get a $6200 repair covered by the company that should have failed.

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  Where did all the oil go? - 2005 Cadillac CTS
  By joez34 - May 16 - 9:13 am

  I love or should I say "loved" this car for the many years I have owned it. The car performed perfectly until 55,000 miles when it began drinking up a qt of oil every 1,000 miles. No leaks, and No Smoke, just a quart of oil gone. The worst part about it was I didnt figure this out until the car was down 4 qts and started to make lots of noise. No LOW oil level or pressure indicator. Sorry GM, I traded in the CTS for a NEW Lexus ES350. Maybe Ill be back in a few years, but for now Im gone.

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  Hate too! but we have to part ways! - 2005 Cadillac CTS
  By hitman_cardino - April 30 - 12:01 pm

  My wife and I bought a new 2005 CTS sport pkg. with all the bells and whistles! At 20k the water pump went out! and needed brakes! Next, everything goes good til the warranty ended at 4 years. Then a clunking sound, couldnt be a month after we got our last free oil change, drive it to a shop, no oil! 1 HID xenon flickered and upgraded both for 200+ now the ballast died 2 weeks later. That will be 150.00 to replace. I need rear differential bushings and front one of two is cracked. 750.00 Hydraulic motor mounds need replacing (1 said no, 1 said yes, getting a 3rd opinion soon). Tht will cost 600.00 I only have 68,000 miles! How about a Honda accord? Im testing one today!

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  2005 Oil consumption issues - 2005 Cadillac CTS
  By gades - January 19 - 12:13 pm

  I have 2005 CTS with 68000 miles that has been drinking oil like a drunk sailor for the past 1 1/2 years at the rate of 2 qts every 1000 miles! The dealership tried to charge me in excess of $5500 to fix the problem which included new piston rings and an assortment of other "fixes". Since my warrenty of 6yr/100000 was no longer valid the dealership will now "only" charge me about $1400. I stated my disappointment to them about how can a "high" quality GM car have such problems at such a low milage to which their reply was: "not all the vehicles that cadillac produces will be flawless...every now and then you might get a flawed one"... Never again will I be a cadillac buyer.

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  This Vehicle Might Become Your Casket - 2005 Cadillac CTS
  By nothappy2010 - December 14 - 11:38 am

  My Navy son was involved in a serious 5 car collision involving my 2005 CTS. The AT-FAULT driver hit my son from the rear, causing him to hit 3 more cars. ALL safety features failed, causing injuries to my son. NONE of the airbags inflated and the seat belt failed to restrain my son. General Motors will not return emails and/or calls-after spending countless hours with my car. They are skirting the accident, which is why I filed a formal complaint with the Consumer Safety Division. Now GM will be required to supply my family with answers. Had my son been hit a mere 10mph faster - he may have suffered severe injury, maybe even death! Thank God he is okay.