2021 Cadillac Escalade Problems, Recalls & Reliability
88 owner complaints sit in the federal file for the 2021 Cadillac Escalade, alongside 9 recall campaigns and 4 defect investigations. It scores 21/100 on the trouble index — a middle-of-the-pack year for this model. Engine leads the reports, typically around 53,500 miles.
Typical
Where 2021 sits among all Escalade years
What owners report
“I have been waiting for GM to send authorization for the dealer to inspect and remedy the engine, as per the open recall, but have heard nothing since May 2025, when GM stated parts were not available.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2021 Escalade
Recalls (9)
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2021 Cadillac Escalade, 2021, 2023-2024 Chevrolet Tahoe, and 2022 and 2024 GMC Yukon vehicles equipped with a 6-cylinder diesel engine. The original fuel tank may have been replaced with an incorrect fuel tank,…
Fix: Dealers will inspect for the correct fuel tank and replace it, if necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 5, 2025. Owners may contact Cadillac customer service at…
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2021-2024 Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Silverado 1500, Suburban, and Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles equipped with a 6.2L V8 gas engine. The connecting rod and/or crankshaft…
Fix: Dealers will inspect the engine, and as necessary, repair or replace the engine. For vehicles that pass inspection, dealers will add higher viscosity oil, install 6 oil fill cap, replace the oil…
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, 2500, 3500, GMC Sierra 1500, 2500, 3500, 2021 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Tahoe, Suburban, GMC Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles equipped with diesel engines. The…
Fix: Dealers will install new transmission control module software, free of charge. GM will provide a special coverage program to cover the repair of transmissions that are identified by the remedy…
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2021 Yukon, Yukon XL, Chevrolet Tahoe, Chevrolet Suburban, Cadillac Escalade, and Cadillac Escalade ESV vehicles. The daytime running lights (DRLs) may not deactivate when the headlights are on. As such, these…
Fix: Dealers will provide an over-the-air (OTA) update for the Body Control Module software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 15, 2022. Owners may contact GM customer…
General Motors, LLC (M) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles equipped with third-row seats. The rivet that retains the buckle to the mounting bracket in the left or right…
Fix: Dealers will inspect the rivet head formation on both the left and right side third-row seat belt buckle assemblies and replace seat belt buckle assemblies, as necessary, free of charge. Interim…
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2021 GMC Yukon, Yukon XL, Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Suburban, and Chevrolet Tahoe vehicles. The rear wheel driveshaft assemblies may have internal components that were not heat-treated properly,…
Fix: Dealers will replace the left and/or right rear driveshaft assemblies, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on March 14, 2022. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at…
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2021 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles. The fuel pump power control module may cause the fuel pump to fail or operate intermittently, which can interrupt…
Fix: Dealers will replace the fuel pump power control module, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on October 14, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020;…
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2021 Buick Envision, Cadillac CT4, CT5, Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Tahoe, Corvette, Suburban, GMC Yukon, Yukon XL vehicles. The communications gateway module incorrectly processes a loss of communication…
Fix: The communications gateway module software will be updated by a dealer, or through an over-the-air (OTA) update, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on July 1, 2021. Owners may…
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2021 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, GMC Yukon, Yukon XL, Chevrolet Suburban, and Tahoe vehicles with third-row seating. The third-row outboard seat belts may have been entrapped or misrouted behind the outboard…
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the third-row outboard seat belts, replacing any damaged seat belts, and rerouting them if necessary, free of charge. The recall began on April 21,…
Federal defect investigations
Still open as of the last data refresh. An investigation is not a recall; it may close with no action. All open investigations →
Component: ENGINE
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received 36 Vehicle Owner Questionnaires (VOQs) alleging engine failure in vehicles subject to Recall 25V274. In each VOQ, the engine had the recall remedy completed prior to the reported failure incident. Recall 25V-274 addresses vehicles equipped with…
Component: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:HARD PARTS INTERNAL/MECHANICAL
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received 1,157 reports of engine bearing failure failures in the L87 6.2L engine produced by General Motors (GM). Of the 1,157 reports received, 173 are outside of the scope of recall 25V-274. These engines are installed in Model Years (MY) 2019–2024…
Led to recall campaign 25V274.
Technical service bulletins
806 manufacturer communications — service bulletins, the biggest share on engine and electrical — are on file for the 2021 Cadillac Escalade. A TSB is factory repair guidance, not a recall — the repair is not automatically free.
See the 2021 Escalade TSB list →
Complaint history for this model year
When owners filed their reports — a long tail means problems kept surfacing for years.
Questions buyers ask
Is the 2021 Cadillac Escalade reliable?
The 2021 Cadillac Escalade drew 88 complaints in federal safety records — a middle-of-the-pack year for this model. Its trouble index is 21/100, scored against the model's worst year (2007).
What are the most common 2021 Cadillac Escalade problems?
The top reported problems for the 2021 Cadillac Escalade are engine (44 complaints), electrical (9), and driver assistance (8).
Does the 2021 Cadillac Escalade have recalls?
9 recall campaigns apply to the 2021 Cadillac Escalade. Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer.
Every number on this page is a count of records in the federal complaint, recall, and investigation files published by NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation. Check any specific vehicle's open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.