2009 Cadillac Escalade ESV recalls and problems

5 recalls and 6 owner complaints on file with NHTSA for the 2009 Cadillac Escalade ESV.

5
recalls
6
owner complaints
1
complaints mentioning a crash
0
mentioning a fire

Recalls apply to specific production ranges. To see whether a particular car still has an open recall, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Repairs for safety recalls are free at authorised dealers.

2009 Cadillac Escalade ESV recalls

Air bags: frontal, passenger side, inflator module

NHTSA campaign 21V050000 · reported February 5, 2021 · General Motors, LLC · 2,641,272 vehicles potentially affected

The problem
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2007-2011 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Yukon, Yukon XL, and 2009-2011 Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, GMC Sierra 2500 and Sierra 3500 vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2007-2008 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Yukon, Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." These vehicles are equipped with non-desiccated passenger frontal inflators containing phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate (PSAN) propellant. These inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, high temperatures, and high temperature cycling.
The risk
An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
The fix
GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 22, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on March 1, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020; Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006; and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N212328760.

Air bags: frontal, passenger side, inflator module

NHTSA campaign 21V052000 · reported February 5, 2021 · General Motors, LLC · 557,023 vehicles potentially affected

The problem
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2009 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500, Sierra 3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2007-2008 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C." These vehicles are equipped with non-desiccated passenger frontal inflators containing phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate (PSAN) propellant. These inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, high temperatures, and high temperature cycling.
The risk
An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
The fix
GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 23, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on September 20, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N212328780.

Air bags: frontal, passenger side, inflator module

NHTSA campaign 21V053000 · reported February 5, 2021 · General Motors, LLC · 692,526 vehicles potentially affected

The problem
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2013 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500/3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2010 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500/3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2009 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500/3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C."
The risk
An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
The fix
GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 24, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 11, 2021. Owners may contact Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006; Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020; and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N212328790.

Electrical system

NHTSA campaign 10V240000 · reported June 4, 2010 · GENERAL MOTORS CORP. · 1,365,070 vehicles potentially affected

The problem
Gm is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 buick, lucerne; cadillac dts; hummer h2; model year 2008-2009 buick enclave; cadillac cts; model year 2007-2009 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, silverado, suburban, tahoe; gmc acadia, sierra, yukon, yukon xl; saturn outlook; and model year 2009 chevrolet traverse vehicles equipped with a heated washer fluid system (hwfs). A recall was implemented in 2008 to add a fuse to the control circuit harness to address the potential consequences of a printed circuit board (pcb) electrical short. However, there have been new reports of thermal incidents on hwfs modules after this improvement was installed. These incidents resulted from a new failure mode attributed to the device's thermal protection feature. The significance varies from minor distortion to considerable melting of the plastic around the hwfs fluid chamber.
The risk
It is possible for the heated washer module to ignite and a fire may occur.
The fix
Dealers will permanently disable and remove the heated washer fluid module. An updated page for the owner manual will be provided and inserted in the owner manual to document that the feature has been permanently disabled and removed from the vehicle. The safety recall began on june 11, 2010. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080, cadillac at 1-866-982-2339, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, saturn at 1-800-972-8876, gmc at 1-866-996-9463 and hummer at 1-800-732-5493 or at the owner center at www.gmownercenter.com.

Fuel system, gasoline

NHTSA campaign 09V154000 · reported May 6, 2009 · GENERAL MOTORS CORP. · 27,188 vehicles potentially affected

The problem
Gm is recalling 27,188 my 2009 cadillac escalade, escalade hybrid, escalade esv, and escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, suburban, tahoe, tahoe hybrid, and colorado; and gmc yukon, yukon hybrid, yukon xl, and canyon vehicles. The fuel system control modules may have a condition in which an adhesive separation of the room temperature vulcanizing (rtv) seal between the seal and the housing may allow water to seep into the module.
The risk
Water in the module could cause a short or open circuit, illumination of the service engine soon lamp, setting of diagnostic trouble codes or the engine may be hard to start, may not start or may stall increasing the risk of a crash.
The fix
Dealers will install a new fuel system control module free of charge. The recall began on may 18, 2009. Owners may contact cadillac at 1-866-982-2339, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438 and gmc at 1-866-996-9463 or at www.gmownercenter.com.

Most reported problems

Areas named in owner complaints to NHTSA. One complaint can name several areas.

What owners report

Recent complaints filed with NHTSA, shortened. These are unverified accounts from owners, not findings.

Nov 27, 2020 · Electrical system · 162,000 miles

INITIALLY MY FUEL GAUGE STOPPED WORKING. I ASSUMED IT FAILED AND WAS GOING TO HAVE IT REPLACED. THE FOLLOWING DAY WHEN I STARTED THE CAR THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON, AND I THOUGHT IT MIGHT HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH THE FUEL GAUGE ISSUE. I WAS ON MY WAY TO DROP THE CAR OFF AT THE DEALER THE SAME DAY AND WHILE DRIVING A…

Sep 1, 2020 · Air bags

AIRBAG LIGHT STAY ON AND IT WILL NOT GO AWAY. I AM UNABLE TO PASS SAFETY INSPECTION BECAUSE OF THAT. 07/06/2016 MANUFACTURER SAFETY RECALL ISSUED NHTSA #16V381 RECALL #2049151 PASSENGER AIRBAG INFLATORS STATUS: REMEDY NOT YET AVAILABLE

Oct 6, 2016 · Service brakes · 79,200 miles

STUCK THROTTLE AT 4000+ RPMS: WHILE PASSING A CAR ON A STRAIGHT TWO LANE HIGHWAY, THE ENGINE STAYED AT 4000 RPMS OR GREATER AFTER THE THROTTLE PEDAL WAS RELEASED. NO CARPET OR FLOOR MAT WAS IMPEDING THE THROTTLE PEDAL. THE PEDAL WAS PRESSED HARD AND RELEASE SEVERAL TIMES TO TRY TO DISENGAGE THE THROTTLE BUT RPMS STAY…

Aug 4, 2016 · Air bags

TL* TAKATA RECALL. THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 CADILLAC ESCALADE ESV. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 16V381000 (AIR BAGS). THE PART TO DO THE RECALL REPAIR WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE MANUFACTURER WAS…

Feb 18, 2015 · Fuel/propulsion system · 60,000 miles

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 CADILLAC ESCALADE ESV. AFTER STARTING THE ENGINE, THE VEHICLE SHOOK, VIBRATED, AND STALLED. THE DEALER DIAGNOSED THAT THE FUEL MODULE AND FUEL PUMP WERE FAULTY AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 60,000.

Escalade ESV model years compared

YearRecallsComplaintsCrashesFires
2006 1510
2007 43912
2008 41710
2009 5610
2010 3400
2011 51300
2012 3300

Across all years, the 2023 Escalade ESV has the most complaints (91). All Cadillac Escalade ESV years →

Questions

Does the 2009 Cadillac Escalade ESV have any recalls?
Yes. NHTSA lists 5 recalls for the 2009 Cadillac Escalade ESV, the most recent reported on February 5, 2021 (Air bags: frontal, passenger side, inflator module). Check a specific car by its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
What are the most common problems with the 2009 Cadillac Escalade ESV?
Owners have filed 6 complaints with NHTSA. The most frequently reported area is air bags (3 complaints), followed by fuel/propulsion system (3).
How many 2009 Cadillac Escalade ESV complaints mention a crash or fire?
1 of 6 complaints report a crash and 0 a fire; 1 injuries were reported in total. Complaints are unverified reports from owners.

Source: NHTSA recall and complaint data, updated October 27, 2026. Latest complaint received November 27, 2020.