2021 CADILLAC ESCALADE — Complaint #2120478
Open-data reference.
NHTSA Complaint about SEAT BELTS:FRONT:WARNING LIGHT/DEVICES filed August 14, 2025
NHTSA complaint #2120478 (ODI reference 11680600) concerns a 2021 CADILLAC ESCALADE and was filed on August 14, 2025. The owner reports the failure occurred on April 1, 2025. The vehicle had 82,000 miles on the odometer at the time of the incident. The report was geocoded to Florida based on the filer's self-reported location. The affected component is categorized as seat belts:front:warning light/devices, one of NHTSA's standardized taxonomy codes used to group defect patterns across make, model, and year.
The filer flagged the following severity indicators: crash: yes, fire: no, injuries: 1, fatalities: 0. A complaint that flags a crash, fire, or fatality is escalated on NHTSA's internal review queue and factors more heavily into any Preliminary Evaluation decision on this make and model. Because a VIN was supplied, this complaint is tied to a specific vehicle and not just a model-year cohort.
Individual complaints are consumer-submitted and unverified by NHTSA engineers — the agency's role at this stage is to collect, index, and make them searchable. What matters for federal action is the pattern: when many owners of the same CADILLAC ESCALADE cohort independently describe similar seat belts:front:warning light/devices failures, defect investigators have grounds to open a PE and request manufacturer data. Related filings for the same vehicle and component appear below, and the detail page for the full 2021 CADILLAC ESCALADE shows the complete component-level complaint distribution alongside any active investigations or recalls.
Complaint Description
The contact owns a 2021 Cadillac Escalade. The contact stated that while driving at 35 mph on the highway, a knocking noise emanated from the engine compartment, and the vehicle suddenly stopped and stalled. The contact head struck the steering wheel, and he sustained a head injury. The vehicle failed to restart. The safety restraint light was illuminated. The contact was going in and out of the vehicle to direct traffic around his disabled vehicle. A 2018 Ford Escape crashed into his vehicle, which was stranded on the side of the highway. The contact sustained a broken leg, and medical attention was provided at the hospital. There was no reported fire or airbag deployment. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to the body shop. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, who determined there was no recall coverage. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, who suspected the dealer was being misleading but no further assistance was provided. T
Complaint Details
| NHTSA Complaint ID | 2120478 |
| ODI Number | 11680600 |
| Date Filed | August 14, 2025 |
| Failure Date | April 1, 2025 |
| VIN | 1GYS3FKL0MR |
Source: NHTSA Vehicle Complaints Database. Component taxonomy and severity codes are standardized by NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.