The 2014 GMC Acadia may not be anything like its stable mates but is a car that promises you lots of space, excellent ride quality, and a decent set of powertrains. This year itself sees a total of 235 complaints according to the NHTSA, along with 5 recalls from the brand. The main problems are associated with the transmission, steering, and air-conditioning system. We are happy to see that most of them have been rectified in one way or the other by GMC. However, the car is priced at a premium when compared to its competition and we can see that it starts from an MSRP of $35,410. It competes against the Toyota Highlander, the Nissan Pathfinder, and the Chevrolet Traverse. Let us find out more about GMC Acadia problems through this article.
2014 GMC Acadia User Complaints and Problems
Mechanical problems:
- Many cars have reported a vibration and a tendency to stall. A large number of cars have also come to an abrupt stop due to engine stalling.
- Even though the car is fitted with a sophisticated systems such as oil life monitoring, many engines have suffered from seizures due to oil starvation.
- In some cars, the air conditioning hose rubs against the engine frame and melts because of the heat. This will disable the air-conditioning system and the vents only bring the heat.
- GMC Acadia transmission problems are extremely common and have affected a large number of owners. The torque converter can lock up and the car will stop shifting altogether. The clutch can also fail. Many owners have experienced problems with jerking, gears refusing to shift, and other problems that arise from the transmission. This has later been taken up in a recall and the problems are largely fixed.
- The brake system of the car has also produced faults like a clunk noise as well as some resistance felt in the brake pedal. And because the car is prone to brake booster failures, some cars may not respond to driver input while braking at all.
- The steering system of this car is also known to fail and will start by showing reduced power steering assistance. It is one of the most common issues with the car. The repair is expensive and usually requires the replacement of the steering gear assembly or power steering pump.
- A few owners have suffered from tire blowouts and the problem seems to be coming from the tires fitted from the factory.
Electrical system problems:
- The driver’s-side seat control panel is prone to becoming detached and the window winders are also prone to failure.
- The electronic liftgate is another system that commonly fails in many cars. It can open and close on its own when this happens.
- The traction control, as well as the stability control systems, has also affected the driving of several owners because they are very intrusive.
- Several cars have also had the issue of the key getting stuck in the ignition and draining out the electrical system. This is connected to the transmission problem because sometimes the issue is that the car does not recognize when it is placed in Park.
- The car is prone to getting issues with the electrical system such as the airbags, ignition, blinkers, backup camera, front crash detection, and so on.
- The fuel gauge readings have been known to be notoriously inaccurate and have led to many drivers being stranded on the side of the road.
Safety problems:
- A large number of people have reported airbag-related warnings despite the cars not being involved in any accidents.
- The side detection system is another common area of failure. It can detect objects that are not there when this failure occurs.
2014 GMC Acadia Recalls
|
S. No. |
Date |
NHTSA Campaign Number |
Issues Noticed |
Additional Remarks |
Remedy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1 |
April 8, 2021 |
21V246000 |
Side curtain airbags may be unsecured |
The side curtain airbags may not have proper attachment and hence will fail to operate as designed |
Dealers will realign or replace the weld nuts as necessary |
|
2 |
October 1, 2014 |
14V614000 |
Contamination of chassis electronic module |
The chassis electronic module may be contaminated under certain electronic short |
Dealers will replace the chassis electronic module |
|
3 |
May 20, 2014 |
14V266000 |
Flexible steel cable for seatbelt can fail |
The steel cable that connects the seatbelt to the front outboard seating positions can fatigue and separate over time. |
Dealers and replace the lap pre-tensioners |
|
4 |
April 30, 2014 |
14V223000 |
Inaccurate fuel gauge reading |
The fuel gauge reading may be inaccurate due to a problem with the engine control module |
Dealers will reprogram the ECM |
|
5 |
February 21, 2014 |
14V092000 |
Broken transmission adjuster cable |
The driver may not be able to shift the car into the right gear due to a broken transmission adjuster cable |
Dealers will replace the transmission shift cable adjuster |
Should you buy the 2014 GMC Acadia?
The GMC Acadia is a car that plans to hop onto the legacy of the brand and sell large numbers without having any real off-road ability or the build quality of its siblings. But when you look at it, it plans to cater to the segment of crossover SUVs and this is very much the strength of every other competitor. In terms of reliability, the car has done a pretty decent job. Even with a total of 235 complaints, we can see that the manufacturer has issued enough recalls to address most of them. As a result of this, we can now say that the Acadia is a decent option despite having its share of faults back when it was introduced.
