Cadillac has issued a recall for all Vistiq electric vehicles over a defective third-row seat that can trap occupants, particularly children. The problem affects the newest three-row EV in Cadillac's lineup, which launched for the 2024 model year as the brand's answer to competitors like the Tesla Model X and BMW iX xDrive50.
The issue centers on the third-row seatback mechanism, which can fail to latch properly or release when intended. This creates a genuine entrapment hazard for passengers trying to exit the vehicle, with children facing the highest risk due to their smaller size and strength limitations. Cadillac issued a concurrent stop-sale order directing all dealerships to halt sales of affected inventory until repairs are completed.
This recall represents a significant safety lapse for the Vistiq, a vehicle positioned as a premium three-row EV commanding prices in the mid-70,000 dollar range. The third-row functionality serves as a key selling point against competitors, offering families additional seating capacity that single-row or dual-row EVs cannot match. A defective seat mechanism undermines that value proposition entirely.
The recall timing could complicate Cadillac's EV expansion strategy. General Motors allocated substantial resources to launch the Vistiq as part of its commitment to electrify the entire Cadillac lineup by 2030. Early production-quality issues like this invite scrutiny of GM's manufacturing processes during the rapid scaling-up of EV production.
Owners will receive notification from Cadillac with repair instructions. Dealership technicians will inspect the third-row seatback assembly and replace defective components as needed. The exact number of vehicles affected remains undisclosed, though the stop-sale order suggests the problem appeared across recent production batches.
This marks another instance of EV