Cadillac Allante Problems by Model Year
NHTSA recorded 196 consumer complaints across the 7 model years of the Cadillac Allante (1987–1993) that have at least 5 complaints. 1990 has the most, with 40. Across all years, the part named most often is brakes (175 mentions). Pick a model year below to see its parts, mileage, recalls and service bulletins.
Best and worst Allante years →
All Allante model years
Years with fewer than 5 complaints are not listed. The score compares years of the same model, allowing for the era and for how long each year has collected complaints: 50 is a typical year, lower means fewer complaints. It is not adjusted for sales volume.
| Year | Complaints | Median mi | Recalls | TSBs | Score (50 = typical) | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | 9 | 60,772 | 1 | 1 | — | Not enough data |
| 1992 | 23 | 53,137 | 0 | 1 | — | Stable |
| 1991 | 32 | 132,668 | 0 | 1 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1990 | 40 | 71,500 | 0 | 1 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1989 | 37 | — | 0 | 0 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1988 | 21 | — | 1 | 0 | — | Stable |
| 1987 | 34 | 130,000 | 0 | 0 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
Parts named most often, all years
Counts add up complaint mentions across the listed years. A complaint can name several parts.
- Brakes175 85%
- Body and structure8 3.9%
- Electrical system6 2.9%
- Transmission and drivetrain5 2.4%
- Other or unknown4 2.0%
- Equipment3 1.5%
- Steering2 1.0%
- Interior lighting2 1.0%
Example complaints
One per model year, chosen for length and detail. Personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
1992: “These vehicles have bosche braking system that is activated by a relay. That and several other things, about this system, can cause these brakes to malfunction or to fail completely any time the car is in motion. This generally known to anyone who owns one of these cars, and to general motors. This is a very serious situation that can very easily cause serious injury or death to anyone close to these vehicles. I was blessed that this happened in my driveway and did not cause an accident, but could have been on the highway in heavy traffic at 65 or 70 MPH.”
NHTSA complaint #11113417, filed 2018-07, 86,147 miles1990: “Over the last month, while braking the driver info display would show antilock-traction disabled, then would flash antilock ok, traction ok. Vehicle seemed to brake just fine and since the display said it was ok I didn't think it was a problem, then on 9/20/2014 while driving home down my street the car would not stop and the red brake light came on the dash. This happened all without warning. The last time the brakes were applied it showed no signs of trouble. From what I hear this is a very common problem for Cadillac Allante from 87-92. …”
NHTSA complaint #10637771, filed 2014-09, 88,000 miles1987: “This past weekend the brakes on my 1987 Allante completely failed leaving me with only the parking brake and down shifting. Further investigation reveled that the high pressure hose from the pump to the brake unit on the firewall developed a pin-hole; this allowed the system to pump all of the brake fluid overboard in a matter of seconds. From the time the brake light illuminated until I lost all brakes was a matter of a few seconds. Had I been on a different road or had my daughter been driving the car there is a very good chance there would have been an accident.”
NHTSA complaint #10164725, filed 2006-08, 130,000 milesOther Cadillac models
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About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 27, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate. Methodology