Selling a junk Cadillac ATS
Any ATS sells for scrap or parts, running or not. Below: what owners report most often for each model year, the recalls on file, and which of those change the offer. Enter your ZIP for a buyer near you.
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What owners report about the Cadillac ATS
NHTSA has 558 owner complaints on file for the Cadillac ATS, model years 2013 to 2019, the 375th-most of the 423 models in our data. The most-reported components are transmission and drivetrain (103, 18%), electrical system (76, 14%), engine (71, 13%). 36 complaints involved a crash, 2 a fire, and 31 say the vehicle had to be towed. The median mileage when the problem was reported is 34,750 miles. The 2013 model year has the most complaints (255). Data as of 2026-10-12.
When the top complaint is transmission and drivetrain, the question for a seller is whether a buyer will resell the car, pull the parts or scrap it. Read our guide to selling a car with a bad transmission: it explains which offers assume the part works and how to describe the car so the price holds at pickup.
Cadillac ATS by model year
| Year | Complaints | Most reported | Crash | Fire | Recalls | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 255 | Engine | 16 | 0 | 6 | 35,000 |
| 2014 | 143 | Transmission and drivetrain | 11 | 2 | 4 | 32,500 |
| 2015 | 42 | Steering | 3 | 0 | 4 | — |
| 2016 | 45 | Transmission and drivetrain | 4 | 0 | 3 | 24,000 |
| 2017 | 42 | Steering | 1 | 0 | 2 | — |
| 2018 | 27 | Transmission and drivetrain | 1 | 0 | 2 | — |
| 2019 | 4 | Engine | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not confirmed defects. Median miles is the odometer reading owners gave when they reported a problem, shown only where 20 or more reports include it.
Cadillac ATS recalls
NHTSA lists 11 recall campaigns across these model years, most often for visibility and wipers (2), steering (2), seats (1). Recall repairs are free at a franchised dealer. Before you sell, check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls; a buyer who plans to resell the car will.
- 2015 model year, air bags (campaign 26V329000, May 2026): General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, XTS, 2015-2016 Cadillac ATS, CTS, and SRX vehicles. The front-driver air bag inflator may rupture during deployment.
- 2017 model year, steering (campaign 25V175000, Mar 2025): General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Cadillac CTS, 2017-2018 Cadillac ATS, Chevrolet Camaro, and Chevrolet Corvette vehicles. The electric power steering (EPS) assist may fail.
- 2017 model year, steering (campaign 19V086000, Feb 2019): General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Cadillac CTS, and 2017 Cadillac ATS, Chevrolet Camaro, and Chevrolet Corvette vehicles. The electric power steering (EPS) assist system may fail.
- 2018 model year, fuel system (campaign 18V358000, May 2018): General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2018 GMC Canyon, 2016-2017 Buick Envision, 2016-2018 Chevrolet Colorado and Malibu, 2017-2018 GMC Acadia, 2018 Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac ATS, Chevrolet Equinox, and GMC Te…
- 2013 model year, visibility and wipers (campaign 15V558000, Sep 2015): General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013-2016 Cadillac ATS sedan vehicles manufactured April 23, 2012, to September 2, 2015. In the affected vehicles, the coil antenna module that powers the rear defo…
What a Cadillac ATS is worth as a junk car
Buyers price a junk ATS on four things: its weight at today's scrap steel price (the floor), the parts still on it that can be resold, whether it starts and drives, and how far they have to tow it. None of those come from a complaint database, so use this page to describe the car accurately and our junk car value guide to work out a ceiling for the metal. Then get more than one offer.
Guides for selling this car
How to sell a car with a bad transmission 
How much is my junk car worth? 
How junkyards price cars 
Catalytic converters and junk cars 
How to prepare your car for the junkyard 
Junk car scams and how to avoid them Other Cadillac models
- Cadillac SRX 4,170
- Cadillac CTS 3,109
- Cadillac Deville 2,706
- Cadillac Escalade 2,041
- Cadillac Catera 826
- Cadillac Seville 784
- Cadillac DTS 731
- Cadillac STS 610
All Cadillac models · All makes · Cash for junk cars by state
Questions people ask
- What is a junk Cadillac ATS worth?
- What a yard can recover: the car's weight at the current scrap steel price, plus parts it can resell (the catalytic converter, engine, transmission and wheels if they're good), minus towing and processing. The same ATS gets different offers from different buyers, so compare at least two. Our value guide shows the public benchmark.
- Will a junkyard buy a Cadillac ATS that doesn't run?
- Yes. Junkyards and junk car buyers take cars that don't start, and most arrange the tow. Tell them honestly whether it starts, whether the engine and transmission are still in it, and whether the catalytic converter is on; those are what change the price.
- Should I fix an open recall before selling a Cadillac ATS?
- Recall repairs are free at a franchised dealer for as long as the car exists. If the car is going for scrap, the repair won't change the scrap price. If a buyer might resell it or pull parts, a completed recall can help. Check your VIN at NHTSA's recall lookup first.
- Where do these Cadillac ATS numbers come from?
- From the complaint and recall data NHTSA publishes for every make and model, counted by model year on 2026-10-12. A complaint is an owner's report, not a confirmed defect, and the count rises with how many of the model were sold.