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Acceleration & cruise control

GMC Acadia Acceleration problems by year

157 complaints filed with NHTSA about the GMC Acadia's acceleration & cruise control. Unintended acceleration, surging, throttle problems and cruise or adaptive cruise faults.

Acceleration complaints by model year

YearAcceleration complaintsCrashesInjuriesRecalls
20253000
20242000
20232000
20221000
20217200
20204100
20193000
20185140
20179110
20162000
20158000
20148000
20136000
201210200
201113100
20108100
200911000
200836350
200719100

Latest Acadia acceleration complaints

2023 GMC AcadiaTransmission & drivetrainAcceleration & cruise control

I find the location of the lower gear shifters + and - to be physically far away from a driver's normal reach, making a driving hazard. If you want to change gears as is typical in mountain driving in steep descents, the driver has to lean awkwardly away from all mirrors and standard driving position making it a potentially hazardous situation for the driver and occupants to be in. It has nothing to do with comfort, but rather normal functionality, keeping the driver and their attention unadjusted on the road,...

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all surroundings with minimal, if any changes to their physical posture while in the drivers seat. The location of the gear shifters are in a totally unorthodox location, nearer to the passenger, rather than the driver.

Filed Incident Power train · Vehicle speed controlNHTSA 11753346
2017 GMC AcadiaElectrical systemAcceleration & cruise controlEngine & cooling

My Acadia went into limp Mode displaying low power mode on the screen and wouldn't start for a couple days after. Lights started illuminating on the dash as abs, traction control, and stanilitrack, then check engine light came on and my gmc app displayed code p2138. I have had since low power and extremely high gas consumption.

Filed Incident Electrical system · Vehicle speed control · EngineNHTSA 11751463
2025 GMC AcadiaTransmission & drivetrainAcceleration & cruise controlEngine & cooling

The vehicle has a serious transmission/drivetrain defect that repeatedly occurs when accelerating from a complete stop, especially onto an incline. The vehicle sometimes does not respond at all when the accelerator is pressed and fails to move, even though acceleration is being requested. In one recent incident, it remained stopped for about one minute before finally responding. During these events, the vehicle jerks and shakes severely and fails to gain speed as expected. This creates a major safety risk at stop...

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signs, intersections, and uphill starts because the vehicle may not move when needed and cannot keep up with traffic. The problem has worsened, and during one of these incidents the check engine light came on. I have video evidence showing the loss of response to accelerator input, severe jerking/shaking, and the check engine light illuminating during the same event. The issue has been reported to dealers and GM customer service but has not been properly resolved.

Filed Incident Power train · Vehicle speed control · EngineNHTSA 11728147
2025 GMC AcadiaTransmission & drivetrainAcceleration & cruise controlEngine & cooling

The vehicle experiences a transmission/drivetrain defect involving delayed gear engagement, hesitation, and apparent slipping. When accelerating from a complete stop (especially onto an incline) the engine RPM increases but the vehicle fails to accelerate as expected. The vehicle jerks and shakes violently and is unable to gain speed. This issue is intermittent but highly repeatable and occurs almost every time when there is a slope immediately after a stop sign. It results in loss of acceleration, violent...

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shaking, and inability to maintain or build speed, creating a serious safety risk in traffic. It first happened around 1 year (early 2026) after the new car purchase (Nov 2025). There are no warning lights or messages. The dealer claimed they were unable to reproduce the issue during a brief test drive without me present and incorrectly attributed it to a bulletin without performing a detailed diagnosis or repair or looking at the video we recorded on the issue. The issue persists and affects safe operation of the vehicle. No inspection has been done by police or insurance. In one instance, this occurred while other vehicles were approaching from behind, creating a dangerous situation where I could not accelerate to match traffic flow. This resulted in a high risk of being rear-ended due to the unexpected loss of acceleration. I am aware of other consumer reports describing similar transmission-related symptoms such as slipping, hard shifting, and hesitation in this model. Some complaints describe transmission issues occurring at low mileage without warning lights.

Filed Incident Power train · Vehicle speed control · EngineNHTSA 11726103
2019 GMC AcadiaTransmission & drivetrainAcceleration & cruise control

The contact owns a 2019 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled unexpectedly. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was able to be restarted. The contact also stated that while coming to a stop and attempting to depress the brake pedal, the vehicle lost motive power but unexpectedly lunged forward. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was restarted after the failure. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with...

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transmission failure. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 85,695.

Filed Incident Power train · Vehicle speed controlNHTSA 11713932
2021 GMC AcadiaElectrical systemAcceleration & cruise control

The electronic dashboard goes black while driving. I was driving to work on the highway at highway speeds and the entire electronic dashboard went black including the hud display and the radio screen. The radio screen turned back on and auto reconnected to my phone and android auto. I was able to safely get to an exit and park, turn off the car and restart and the dash did come back on to then go black about 5 minutes later this time the hud stayed on and I was able to get to work where the car sat off for 8 hrs ,...

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when leaving work the dash stayed on. The radio screen would turn off randomly and unable to connect to a programmed cell phone via Bluetooth or data cable. I brought the vehicle in for a service and this issue plus the concern of the transmission shuddering. The dealership found the problem and both the dashboard and radio needed service updates and both were charged to fix. A service update should not be charged for the dash as you have no speedometer when it goes out. There was no warning or alert that the dash or radio needed an update.

Filed Incident Electrical system · Vehicle speed controlNHTSA 11709819
2025 GMC AcadiaAcceleration & cruise controlBrakesDriver assistance

I have the little feature that will brake for me if it thinks ima get in a wreck. However it's glitchy!! I can be the only vehicle on road in BOTH directions, cruise set at 60 when out of nowhere the car slams on the breaks. We go down to like 52 then like nothing ever happened we are back to 60. This has happened several times. I have brought the car into my dealership tomorrow have the software updated and the camera recalibrated. Even after these steps were made this issue is still occurring. Happens about one to two times a week, so pretty often. My worries that I will be rear ended one day if this is not corrected.

Filed Incident Vehicle speed control · Service brakes · Forward collision avoidanceNHTSA 11695923
2024 GMC AcadiaAcceleration & cruise controlDriver assistance

I'd like to report a safety issue related to the frequency of the adaptive cruise control system on my 2024 GMC Acadia. In multiple instances while traveling at highway speeds (55+ mph), the system will brake heavily when no vehicle or impediment is in visible range. This failure can cause safety issues due to sudden braking at highway speeds potentially leading to traffic accidents and/or fatalities. This failure has happened multiple times, but most recently on 7/21/25, 7/25/25, 10/9/25, 10/21/25, 10/22/25, and...

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10/23/25. The vehicle was taken a GM dealer on 8/1/25, 8/15/25, and 8/26/25 and they dealership failed to diagnose the problem or indicated all systems were working as intended. The vehicle does not provide any warning lamps, messages, or other symptoms of the problem.

Filed Incident Vehicle speed control · Forward collision avoidanceNHTSA 11695262
2014 GMC AcadiaElectrical systemAcceleration & cruise controlEngine & cooling

Got onto the interstate and suddenly my car stopped but didn't kill. My traction control light said off and then it said reduced engine power and my fuel went down to E. I couldn't go but my car was still running. I killed it then waited a minute and started it again and it started moving slowly. Then it said service stabliltrak and traction system but since the light have went off. Around the same time I started hearing popping and crackling sounds from my speaker and now I have no interior sound at all just popping sounds no matter if my car is started or not. I'm scared it's going to catch on fire or something

Filed Incident Electrical system · Vehicle speed control · EngineNHTSA 11687331
2021 GMC AcadiaAcceleration & cruise controlBrakes

The Vacuum pump on my 2021 GMC Acadia failed causing my breaks malfunction. This Problem was confirmed by a certified mechanic that repaired it. this is in conjunction with the NHTSA recall issued under N192268490.

Filed Incident Vehicle speed control · Unknown or other · Service brakesNHTSA 11670283
2017 GMC AcadiaElectrical systemAcceleration & cruise controlFuel system

I'm just reporting several known issues. First, with code P2138, which I got today at Oreilly after my car started throwing warnings. I used my parking brake briefly and afterwards got the following warnings on my car: "Steering Assist is Reduced, Drive with care", "Engine power reduced" , "Propulsion Power is reduced" , "Service Parking Brake". I've never even had one of these warnings. I've only gotten "shift to park" which is another known & common issue. With this P2138 code, it can affect acceleration and...

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essentially loss of control over it, but seems I suddenly have several issues. Recently the infotainment system is possessed, touch screen stops working, it calls people by itself, beeps and scrolls by itself and is essentially useless. Might as well be driving at 1997 something or other, at least I could play a tape or CD. This is Denali trim at 87K miles. Primarily though I'm concerned with this code, if it's legit, it is very dangerous. How unreliable and unsafe to not know.

Filed Incident Electrical system · Vehicle speed control · Fuel / propulsion systemNHTSA 11658720
2018 GMC AcadiaFuel systemAcceleration & cruise controlEngine & cooling

The contact owns a 2018 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while driving at 60 MPH, the reduced engine power message was displayed. The RPM increased to high, and the engine revved. The accelerator pedal was depressed, but the vehicle failed to respond as needed. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V358000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was determined that the high-pressure fuel pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 98,000.

Filed Incident Fuel system, gasoline · Vehicle speed control · EngineNHTSA 11649181
2019 GMC AcadiaSteeringAcceleration & cruise controlFuel system

Im a travel nurse and I was working in Vermont. As I was driving on the highway in New York on my way back home a shift to park light came on, a stabilitrak light came on, power steering light came on, ABS light came on, and my check engine light also came on. My vehicle started slowing down as I was driving and my lights on my dashboard were turning on and off and my speedometer was not working. I was able to pull to the side off the highway so I could get out of harms way. I made a call to OnStar for help and...

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they asked to if I made it to a safe location. As the car was still on I was able to take the next exit and ended up in an auto zone parking lot. As I made it in the parking lot I turned the vehicle off but only the engine turned off but everything else stayed on and the shift to park light kept coming on when the vehicle was in park. I was in the parking lot for 3-4 hours freezing in my vehicle until onstar came to tow my vehicle. By the time onstar came my battery in my car had drained and it was a new battery. I was told that I would have to contact auto transport to transport my vehicle to Louisiana at the dealership where the vehicle was purchased. I paid $1600 to transport my vehicle back home and I had to find a way to make it back to Louisiana. I didn't have a credit card so a friend of mine was able to rent me a vehicle to get home and I paid a total of $1700 on a rental because the dealership in Louisiana couldn't give me a time or date the vehicle would have been finished. I have been to the dealership 3 times now for the same problem in less than a week. I have paid $1500 altogether to fix damages on my car that I noticed other vehicles with the same make and model had the same issues. I never had a problem with my vehicle before everything just started happening all at once. I'm currently having to pay for car rentals to get to and from work and to make sure my kids get back and forth to school. My vehicle in at the dealership again for the 3rd t

Filed Incident Steering · Vehicle speed control · Fuel / propulsion systemNHTSA 11648452
2018 GMC AcadiaAcceleration & cruise control

The contact owns a 2018 GMC Acadia. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the cruise control feature failed to function as intended. The contact stated that the vehicle exceeded the set speed. The contact deactivated the cruise control feature; however, the vehicle failed to decelerate. The contact depressed the brake pedal, however the vehicle failed to stop as intended. The contact had to repeatedly depress the brake pedal before the vehicle finally stopped. The vehicle was taken to an...

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independent mechanic; however, the failure was not duplicated. The vehicle was not repaired or diagnosed by the independent mechanic or the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The contact was advised to take the vehicle to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The failure mileage was approximately 94,000.

Filed Incident Vehicle speed controlNHTSA 11639188

Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaints and recalls, checked daily. Complaints are owners' own reports and are not verified. How we use the data

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