10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
3 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
2 / 0
Average Mileage:
21,208 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2018 GMC Acadia drivetrain problems

drivetrain problem

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2018 GMC Acadia Owner Comments (Page 3 of 6)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #69

Sep 282020

Acadia

  • 64,160 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Car would shutter on acceleration. RPM gauge would jump when accelerating or downshift to pass/climb hill. Dealer found problem with torque converter. Metal through out transmission (see attachment for specifics as noted by mechanic)

- Hardy, VA, USA

problem #68

Nov 032020

Acadia

  • 47,000 miles
Car displays 'shift to park' message after transmission gear selector has been placed in park. Car will not turn off and the tires roll freely. After numerous attempts of shifting in and out of park the car will finally recognize that it is in park and allow you to turn off the vehicle as well as lock the transmission.

- Sidney, MT, USA

problem #67

Feb 052020

Acadia

  • 32,000 miles
Every time I put the car in park position the car doesn't sense that it's on park and error message keeps appearing in the screen saying 'shift to park' and the car refuses to turn off and it roll away from the drive way and I have to shift it back to drive and again to park again and again multiple times till the sensor feels it. It's a safety hazard. I looked up the issue online and found out that most of this car owners experience the same problem and there's multiple lawsuits against GMC for this issue. This car is driven by my wife most of the time and she has my kids with her in the car. It's a life threatening issue! I took the car last month to the dealership and they refused to fix it for free because the car went out of warranty by only 2K miles, and I couldn't take the car to the dealership when this issue started because of the covid. By the time we could visit the dealership we already drove over 5K miles and that puts the car outside the warranty limit.

- Oviedo, FL, USA

problem #66

Sep 132020

Acadia

  • 53,262 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Left front half shaft fractured. Was making a turn on highway. Vehicle has 53262 miles.

- Wellsville, NY, USA

problem #65

Feb 262020

Acadia 4-cyl

  • 38,000 miles
The contact owns a 2018 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while the vehicle was in a stand still and turning off the vehicle, the vehicle would start to bing, lights would stay on, and doors would not lock. The shift to park message displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to get repaired where the manual transmission mode switch was replaced, however the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer (chesrown Chevrolet Buick GMC located at 1701 columbus pike, Delaware, oh 43015) where it was diagnosed that the shiftier assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired as of yet. The manufacturer had been informed of failure, however no assistance was offer. The failure mileage was approximately 38,000. The consumer stated the vehicle display "shift into park" error. When placing it in park. The vehicle's headlights and interior lights remained illuminated, as well as the radio. Also, the doors would not lock. The consumer stated the section of the shifter that bolts into the floor needed to be replaced. Vehicle was repaired.

- Cardington, OH, USA

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problem #64

Jul 062020

Acadia

  • miles
Vehicle does not recognize when it is in park. At times vehicle will not go into park and makes me concerned for my family's safety. My understanding is that GM is aware of this issue.

- Georgetown, KY, USA

problem #63

Oct 072019

Acadia

  • 25,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

When trying to put in park won't shut off says shift to park, started around 25,000 miles have to be sure vehicle is level and not on an incline. Vehicle also surges at times loosing power when you're going down the highway. Also, at times when you go to start vehicle it will hesitate and disconnects from battery thus resetting everything. Had to replace battery at 25,000. The rear wiper will go on it's on without turning it on.

- Camden, AR, USA

problem #62

Jul 082020

Acadia

  • miles
The transmisduon shifter when shifted into park, the information center said vehicle not in park and it will not let me shut the car off it was a 400$ repair at the GM dealership not covered under any of my warranty

- Waterford, MI, USA

problem #61

Aug 142020

Acadia

  • 22,000 miles
Whenever the vehicle was put in park and I attempted to shut it off, it would give me the shift to park error code and would not let me cut the car off completely. It would happen just about every time I drove it. I just got it out of the shop for the third time and was told this time they replaced the assembly. So far it has not happened again but it has only been a week. It started back in January 2020.

- Pooler, GA, USA

problem #60

Apr 022019

Acadia

  • miles
2018 GMC Acadia shown 'shift to park' message even car is stopped/ parked.

- San Francisco, CA, USA

problem #59

Jul 052020

Acadia 6-cyl

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Gear shifter moves to park position but indicators and engine off switch will not switch to park state without jiggling shifter handle tip.

- College Station, TX, USA

problem #58

Jun 252020

Acadia 4-cyl

  • 38,000 miles
Shift to park. Would not shut down or could not lock vehicle. Warning light & beeping sound.

- Mineral Wells, WV, USA

problem #57

Jun 172020

Acadia 6-cyl

  • 43,617 miles
The car would not turn off when put in park when the car was stopped. The engine would turn off, but the electrical devices (lights, radio, odometer readings, etc.) would remain engaged. The warning indicator said the vehicle was not in park and it would take 5-10 minutes of turning the engine on and off, and shifting back and forth in and out of gear before the car would turn off completely. A search on line indicated several people complaining of the same issue. This car is 2 yrs old with less than 40K miles. It was maintained as a company leased vehicle by us before being purchased by us, so we know it has been properly maintained. We ended up having to have the shift column replaced.

- Chesapeake, VA, USA

problem #56

May 132019

Acadia 6-cyl

  • miles
My car keeps giving notice of it not being in park, when its clearly shifted into park. It wont shut down, let you lock doors. Just beeps until it finally realizes its in park. Even after continuously re shifting into park. Worse in the summer months. It needs to be fixed as many others are having the same issue!

- Abilene, TX, USA

problem #55

Jun 112020

Acadia 4-cyl

  • 44,000 miles
When I shift the to park and try to turn off my car the shift to park lights up and I have to down shift and then shift to park again to get my car to shut off also the air compressor has already quit working with less than 40K miles on it.

- Alicia, AR, USA

problem #54

May 162020

Acadia 6-cyl

  • 34,500 miles
My vehicle was stationary. I stopped the vehicle and placed the shift lever into the park position. When I pressed the start/stop button, the button's amber warning light came on, an audible warning began sounding and all instrument lights stayed on. When I looked at the driver's display, it stated, "shift to park". (the shift lever was already in the park position. I could not shut the vehicle down and could not leave the vehicle in that condition. I continued to move the shift lever from drive to park and after 8-10 shifts, the vehicle finally recognized that it was in park. Then, the start/stop button functioned correctly. Upon investigation, I found that this is a very common problem with 2017-2018 GMC Acadias (there is even a class action law suit pending). Some owners even report their vehicles rolling when in this condition. As of this date (5/19/2020) GM has not recognized this as a design problem and has not issued a recall. This is obviously a design issue since it happens within and out of the 3yr/36,000 mile warranty. If it happens at 36,500 miles the vehicle owner is out of luck! this is also, obviously, a safety issue. Thanks for your time and help.

- Corinth, MS, USA

problem #53

Apr 012020

Acadia

  • 41,000 miles
The contact owns a 2018 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that after stopping the vehicle and placing the gear shifter in park, a message displayed to shift the vehicle into park. The contact shifted through the gears and the vehicle operated as intended. The vehicle was not taken to be diagnosed nor repaired. Neither the manufacturer nor the dealer were notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 41,000. The VIN was invalid.

- Oroville, CA, USA

problem #52

Apr 062020

Acadia

  • 37,000 miles
When gear lever is shifted into park and you try to turn of the engine a notice comes on telling you to put your car into park. I can not turn off the car until this message disappears. Sometimes it takes 7 or more tries to finally be able to shut off the car. If I leave it with the message then all electrical seems to stay on.

- Crete, IL, USA

problem #51

Feb 152020

Acadia

  • 37,000 miles
When attempting to turn the vehicle off after shifting to park and then pressing the start/stop button, the vehicle gives an error message that says "shift to park" even though the shift lever is in the park position. The error message prevents the vehicle from shutting down. This occurs when the vehicle is stopped, put into park, and then when attempting to shut down the vehicle.

- Phoenix, AZ, USA

problem #50

Apr 012020

Acadia

  • miles
Shifter assembly went out, known issue and GM won't cover part

- Unionville, TN, USA

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