Reliable Auto DB

2020 GMC Acadia reliability

Is it reliable?

NHTSA's file on the 2020 GMC Acadia holds 104 complaints after 7 years, a rate of 9 per year. That is fewer complaints per year than most Acadia years here — under the median of the other years, which is 15. NHTSA has 6 recalls on file, including Camera, Tires, and Automatic transmission.

2012 GMC Acadia
Photo by Kevauto, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
Complaints

104

Per year

9

Recalls

6

Years on the road

7

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (28 of 104), then Engine (28) and Powertrain (22). Those filings include 4 that report a crash and 1 that reports an injury.

Next to 2019 and 2021

The 2019 Acadia has 386 complaints, 17 per year, and the 2021 has 149 complaints, 17 per year. The 2020 has fewer complaints per year than the 2019. The 2020 has fewer complaints per year than the 2021.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2020 GMC Acadia. How we count. Data as of .

Recalls (6)

Recall back-over prevention, sensing system, camera 2022-09-22 · NHTSA campaign 22V709000
Summary General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Cadillac XT5, XT6, and GMC Acadia vehicles equipped with the optional Surround Vision feature. The rearview camera coaxial cable connectors may have been crimped improperly, causing the rearview camera to fail or function intermittently.
Remedy Dealers will replace the coaxial cables, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 18, 2023. Owners may contact Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N222378380.
Recall Tires 2021-02-25 · NHTSA campaign 21V115000
Summary General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020 Buick Enclave, Cadillac XT4, XT5, Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, Traverse, GMC Yukon, Yukon XL, 2018-2021 Chevrolet Express, GMC Savana, 2019-2020 Chevrolet Blazer, Silverado 1500, GMC Acadia, Sierra 1500, and certain Continental tires sold to the aftermarket for various model year 2018-2021 vehicles. The affected tires were cured for too long during production.
Remedy GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the tires, replacing them as necessary, free of charge. The recall began March 22, 2021. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267, Buick customer service at 1-866-608-8080, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. GM's number for this recall is N212329050.
Recall Tires 2020-11-05 · NHTSA campaign 20V684000
Summary General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020 Buick Enclave, Cadillac XT5, GMC Acadia and Chevrolet Traverse vehicles and 2020-2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, GMC Sierra 1500 vehicles. The vehicles may have been manufactured with Continental tires that were overcured.
Remedy GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect vehicles and replace tires that have DOT number and production mold number combinations identified by Continental, free of charge. The recall began December 17, 2020. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267, Buick customer service at 1-866-608-8080, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. GM's number for this recall is N202319030.
Recall powertrain, automatic transmission 2020-10-29 · NHTSA campaign 20V668000
Summary General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Chevrolet Cruze and Buick LaCrosse, 2018-2020 Chevrolet Equinox, Chevrolet Traverse and GMC Terrain, 2018 Chevrolet Malibu, 2019-2020 Buick Encore, Buick Enclave, Cadillac XT4, Chevrolet Blazer and GMC Acadia, and 2020 Cadillac XT6 vehicles. The start/stop accumulator endcap may have missing bolts.
Remedy GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the start-stop transmission accumulator and replace it if any bolts are missing, free of charge. The recall began December 15, 2020. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267, Buick Customer service at 1-866-608-8080, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. GM's number for this recall is N202313440.
Recall Fuel pump 2020-10-15 · NHTSA campaign 20V639000
Summary General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020 Buick Enclave, Cadillac XT5, Cadillac XT6, Chevrolet Traverse, and GMC Acadia vehicles. The fuel pump's jet nozzle may have a plastic burr remaining from the manufacturing process, possibly causing a blocked nozzle and an insufficient fuel supply to the engine.
Remedy GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump module. The recall began November 16, 2020. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267, Buick Customer service at 1-866-608-8080, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. GM's number for this recall is N202314760.
Recall air bags, side and window, curtain, inflator 2020-07-30 · NHTSA campaign 20V446000
Summary General Motors, LLC. (GM) is recalling certain 2020 Buick Enclave, Cadillac XT5 and XT6, Chevrolet Blazer, Silverado 1500, 2500 and 3500 and Traverse and GMC Acadia and Sierra 1500, 2500 and 3500 vehicles. The diffuser component of the Roof-Rail Air Bag (RRAB) inflator may not have been properly crimped to the inflator and could separate from the inflator during air bag deployment.
Remedy GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the suspect RRAB modules, free of charge. The recall began September 3, 2020. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-630-2438, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-333-4223, or Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300. GM's number for this recall is N202305380.

Complaints by component (104 total)

Electrical system
28
Engine
28
Powertrain
22
Steering
18
Fuel and propulsion system
9
Forward collision avoidance
8
Service brakes
8
Speed control
4
Air bags
3
Back-over prevention
3
Lane departure
3
Seat belts
3
Visibility and wipers
3
Fuel system, gasoline
2
Structure
2
Carry handle, shell, and base
1
Engine and engine cooling
1
Exterior lighting
1
Latches, locks, and linkages
1
Seats
1
Wheels
1
Show 13 more Show less
Crash-flagged

4

Fire-flagged

0

Injury reports

1

Death reports

0

Complaints filed per year

220198202082021102022112023112024222025322026
Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings
  • "Receive error message about Power steering that shuts off AC and Temperature gauges. Happens constantly when vehicle is driven on freeway. Requires the battery to be disconnected and it resets until the next time."
    Electrical system · filed 2026-09-21
  • "2020 GMC Acadia bucks/hesitates when I take off or slow down and speed back up. Mechanic looked at it can see engine is having random misfires. We have tried plugs, transmission fluid, looked at everything we could…"
    Powertrain, Engine · filed 2026-09-21
  • "Engine thermostat not functioning properly, opening too early and not allowing engine to operate at proper engine temperature. Check engine light comes on, reduce power steering assist error message comes on, engine…"
    Engine · filed 2026-09-21
  • "The rear camera does not operate 100% of the time. This has happened multiple times over the year."
    Back-over prevention · filed 2026-09-21
  • "While driving my 2020 GMC Acadia SLT AWD Turbo with my young daughters in the vehicle, the brake pedal suddenly and sporadically lost all hydraulic pressure and sank nearly all the way to the floorboard. The vehicle…"
    Service brakes · filed 2026-09-10

NHTSA crash ratings

Version Overall Front Side Rollover
2020 GMC Acadia SUV AWD 5 stars 5 stars 5 stars 4 stars
2020 GMC Acadia SUV FWD 5 stars 5 stars 5 stars 4 stars

Stars are how this vehicle did in NHTSA crash tests. They are a safety result, separate from the complaint record. Not rated means that test was not run for this version.

Fuel economy

Trim Engine Transmission Drive City Hwy Combined Annual fuel cost
Acadia all-wheel drive 3.6L, 6-cyl Automatic 9-speed All-wheel drive 18 25 21 MPG $3100
Acadia all-wheel drive 2L, 4-cyl Automatic 9-speed All-wheel drive 21 27 23 MPG $2800
Acadia front-wheel drive 2.5L, 4-cyl Automatic 9-speed Front-wheel drive 21 27 23 MPG $2800
Acadia front-wheel drive 3.6L, 6-cyl Automatic 9-speed Front-wheel drive 19 27 22 MPG $2950
Acadia front-wheel drive 2L, 4-cyl Automatic 9-speed Front-wheel drive 21 28 24 MPG $2700

Specs and fitment

2nd generation (C1XX), 2017–2023
Body styles SUV
Oil dexos1 5W-30 (V6 per manual) , 6 qt capacity
Tire size 235/55R20, 235/65R18 (trim dependent)
Towing capacity 4,000 lbs

Known issues for this generation

NHTSA safety recall 21V702000 covers affected vehicles after the agency found that general Motors, LLC. (GM) is recalling certain 2022 GMC Acadia vehicles. The sensing diagnostic module (SDM) may have been left in "manufacturing mode" and not activated at the assembly plant prior to shipment. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection.". The air bags will not deploy with an unactivated SDM, increasing the risk of injury in a crash. Remedy: The vehicles will be returned to the assembly plant for SDM activation. Both affected vehicles are still in dealer inventory and therefore no owner notification letters will be mailed. Owners may contact GMC 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N212344261. When NHTSA lists multiple GM nameplates in one campaign, the published unit count is shared across them.

Compare

Previous year 2019 GMC Acadia Next year 2021 GMC Acadia See every GMC Acadia model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2020 GMC Acadia reliable?

NHTSA's file on the 2020 GMC Acadia holds 104 complaints after 7 years, a rate of 9 per year. That is fewer complaints per year than most Acadia years here — under the median of the other years, which is 15. NHTSA has 6 recalls on file, including Camera, Tires, and Automatic transmission.

What are common problems with a 2020 GMC Acadia?

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (28 of 104), then Engine (28) and Powertrain (22). Those filings include 4 that report a crash and 1 that reports an injury.

Is the 2020 GMC Acadia more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2019 Acadia has 386 complaints, 17 per year, and the 2021 has 149 complaints, 17 per year. The 2020 has fewer complaints per year than the 2019. The 2020 has fewer complaints per year than the 2021.

Has the 2020 GMC Acadia been recalled?

The 2020 GMC Acadia has 6 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2020 GMC Acadia?

Owners have filed 104 complaints about the 2020 GMC Acadia with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2020 GMC Acadia get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2020 GMC Acadia is 22.6 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What engine oil does a GMC Acadia use?

US Acadia manuals specify dexos-approved oil viscosity for your engine.

What does NHTSA recall 15V-609 cover on the GMC Acadia?

NHTSA safety recall 15V609000 covers affected vehicles after the agency found that general Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2016 Chevrolet Traverse, GMC Acadia, and Buick Enclave vehicles manufactured August 18, 2015 to September 24, 2015.

What generation is the 2013 GMC Acadia?

1st generation (Lambda) (2012-2016).