GMC Acadia: which years to buy, and what breaks on them
Best and worst years of the GMC Acadia
Of the 19 model years of the GMC Acadia that carry enough owner reports to score, 2025 comes out best at 63 out of 100 and 2023 worst at 85. The scores rank each year against other cars of the same model year, so an older one is not penalised for having had longer to break.
7,777 owner reports across 20 model years, 4,552 of them carrying an odometer reading. 19 years carry enough reports to score.
The year to buy, and the year to avoid
Both figures are ranks against other vehicles of the same model year, so the two are comparable even when the years are a decade apart. Each links to that year's full report.
2025 GMC Acadia
Best of 20 years on 107 owner reports, its own worst problem being other driver assistance problem. Evidence behind the score: moderate confidence.
2023 GMC Acadia
Risk 85 of 100 from 67 reports, worst problem other engine problem.
Severe High confidence confidence
How much the year actually matters
The gap between the best and worst year is 22 points on a 100-point scale, which is wide enough to be worth acting on when two cars are otherwise comparable.
Across every year of the GMC Acadia, owners have filed 7,777 reports with NHTSA. The 2008 accounts for the largest share at 1,297, which can mean a genuinely troublesome year or simply the year that sold best and has been on the road longest.
What tends to break across the GMC Acadia
Taking the most-reported failure from each model year, the recurring problems on the GMC Acadia are other powertrain problem (worst mode in 5 years), other engine problem (worst mode in 3 years) and airbag inflator rupture (worst mode in 3 years). A fault that heads the list in most years is characteristic of the design; one that heads a single year is usually a batch or a supplier.
Every model year, scored
Shorter is better, and the outlined row is the best year of the line. A year with too few reports to score is shown without a bar rather than as a zero, because no data is not the same as no problems.
| Year | Reports | Per 1,000 | Median report | Most reported problem | Recalls | Risk | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 GMC Acadia | 641 | 21.3 | 75k | Complete transmission failure | 5 | 73 | High confidence |
| 2008 GMC Acadia | 1,297 | 27.6 | 83k | Other powertrain problem | 5 | 73 | High confidence |
| 2009 GMC Acadia | 486 | 9.4 | 77k | Timing chain, belt or tensioner failure | 7 | 73 | High confidence |
| 2010 GMC Acadia | 436 | 8.5 | 75k | Timing chain, belt or tensioner failure | 4 | 71 | High confidence |
| 2011 GMC Acadia | 373 | 7.2 | 70k | Other engine problem | 5 | 70 | High confidence |
| 2012 GMC Acadia | 401 | 7.8 | 75k | Liftgate, tailgate or trunk failure | 5 | 68 | High confidence |
| 2013 GMC Acadia | 196 | 3.8 | 82k | Other powertrain problem | 3 | 66 | High confidence |
| 2014 GMC Acadia | 603 | 9.7 | 62k | Airbag inflator rupture | 6 | 70 | High confidence |
| 2015 GMC Acadia | 313 | 5.0 | 50k | Airbag inflator rupture | 4 | 65 | High confidence |
| 2016 GMC Acadia | 280 | 4.5 | 49k | Airbag inflator rupture | 4 | 65 | High confidence |
| 2017 GMC Acadia | 957 | 15.4 | 35k | Other powertrain problem | 4 | 74 | High confidence |
| 2018 GMC Acadia | 529 | 910.5 | 32k | Other powertrain problem | 2 | 78 | High confidence |
| 2019 GMC Acadia | 543 | 100.7 | 37k | Other powertrain problem | 2 | 76 | High confidence |
| 2020 GMC Acadia | 164 | 10.3 | 10k | Backup camera failure | 6 | 79 | High confidence |
| 2021 GMC Acadia | 216 | 13.6 | 25k | Fuel pump failure | 2 | 76 | High confidence |
| 2022 GMC Acadia | 74 | 302.0 | 18k | Other engine problem | 3 | 83 | High confidence |
| 2023 GMC Acadia | 67 | 61.3 | 13k | Other engine problem | 4 | 85 | High confidence |
| 2024 GMC Acadia | 81 | 1.3 | 1k | Other driver assistance problem | 0 | 69 | Moderate confidence |
| 2025 GMC Acadia | 107 | 1.7 | 71k | Other driver assistance problem | 0 | 63 | Moderate confidence |
| 2026 GMC Acadia | 13 | 127.5 | 120k | Airbag warning light or occupant sensor fault | 1 | not rated | Unrated |
What each column means
Reports counts owner complaints filed with NHTSA against that model year. Filing is voluntary and unverified, so the count is a floor on how often something went wrong, never a census. It also rises with how many cars were sold, which is why the next column exists.
Per 1,000 divides those reports by an estimate of how many of that model year are on the road, so a common car and a rare one can be compared. The estimate comes from the vehicle counts in recall campaigns covering the same model year, which is the only per-model fleet figure published free of charge; where no recall covers a year, this column is blank rather than guessed.
Median report is the odometer reading at the midpoint of that year's reports: half of the readings owners gave were below it. It is a description of when problems get reported, not a prediction of when this car will break, and it needs at least eight readings before it is shown at all.
Risk is a 0–100 score combining how often reports arrive relative to fleet size, how serious they are, and how early they land, ranked against other vehicles of the same model year only. Confidence says how much evidence sits behind it: a low score on thin evidence is a shrug, not a clean bill of health. Both are defined in full on the methodology page.
Generations, and why the boundary matters
The GMC Acadia splits into generations: 2007–2013 (best 2013, worst 2009), 2014–2016 (best 2016, worst 2014), 2017–2019 (best 2017, worst 2018), 2020–2023 (best 2021, worst 2023) and 2024–2026 (best 2025, worst 2024). Comparing years inside one generation is the fair comparison — same body, same engines, usually the same suppliers.
Generation boundaries here are inferred from the pattern of model years in the data rather than taken from manufacturer documentation, so they are occasionally a year out. Where a boundary matters to a purchase, check it against the build date on the car.
| Generation | Years | Best year | Worst year | Spread |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007-2013 | 2007–2013 | 2013 GMC Acadia 66 | 2009 GMC Acadia 73 | 7 |
| 2014-2016 | 2014–2016 | 2016 GMC Acadia 65 | 2014 GMC Acadia 70 | 5 |
| 2017-2019 | 2017–2019 | 2017 GMC Acadia 74 | 2018 GMC Acadia 78 | 5 |
| 2020-2023 | 2020–2023 | 2021 GMC Acadia 76 | 2023 GMC Acadia 85 | 9 |
| 2024-2026 | 2024–2026 | 2025 GMC Acadia 63 | 2024 GMC Acadia 69 | 6 |
How to use this page
The honest way to read a table like this is worst-first: rule out the years with high scores and heavy complaint volume, then choose among the rest on condition, history and price. A low score is not a promise, and a high one is not a verdict on the specific car in front of you.
Every figure comes from owner complaints filed with NHTSA and from recall records, both voluntary in the sense that nobody audits them for completeness. Counts are floors. The AtWhatMileage methodology page sets out each formula.
Questions this page answers
What is the best year for the GMC Acadia?
Of the model years we can rate, 2025 GMC Acadia scores best at 63 out of 100, based on 107 owner reports. 2023 scores worst at 85.
Which years of the GMC Acadia should you avoid?
2023 has the highest risk score in this model line at 85 out of 100. The scores compare each year against other vehicles of the same model year, so they are not affected by age alone.
How the generations are drawn. NHTSA does not publish generation boundaries, so ours are inferred from breaks in the recall and complaint record and from the model's own year range. They are close to the enthusiast consensus but not authoritative — if a boundary looks wrong for a car you know well, tell us and we will fix the table rather than argue with you.
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed