Rob
Differential Frustrations
By Scott Evans | Photos By Motor Trend Staff | September 04, 2014
With Mike Floyd taking over as editor-in-chief of our sister publication, Automobile, I’ve assumed responsibility for Motor Trend’s Car of the Year-winning, 420-hp, twin-turbo, long-term CTS Vsport. Poor me.
Unfortunately, Floyd’s transition to the corner office went a little more smoothly than my transition into the CTS. Before I’d even taken possession of the keys, we hit a snag. In the middle of a road trip, creative director Alan Muir got an odd warning message: “Rear Axle System Off.” While that certainly sounds bad, Muir reported no change in drivability or performance, and the warning quickly went away.
Once in my possession, I found that any good romp on the gas brought the warning back, but as Muir said, the car didn’t behave any differently. Clearly, the rear axle was not disabled, so I figured it had to be something to do with the trick electronically controlled limited-slip rear differential. The car was due for an oil change anyway, so to the dealer it went.
“We’ll have it done by tomorrow” quickly turned into a week-and-a-half at the dealer, which provided a 2014 CTS as a free loaner. Most of that time wasn’t spent working on the car, though. It was spent waiting.
Read more: 2014 Cadillac CTS Vsport Long-Term Update 3 – Motor Trend
