general problems of the 2012 GMC Acadia - part 1

Vehicle producing code p2138 then goes into limp mode stating to service stability, traction control off and engine reduced power. Replaced throttle body and acceleration pedal position sensor and error was still present.

This 2012 GMC Acadia denali with close to 160k has been in the shop several times due to it randomly stalling out it kept basically locking me out from starting the car a "service anti-theft system" would flash across the dash followed by a flashing check engine light along with a lock and key symbol. A local gm repair shop had it in 3 times for them to tell me they couldn't figure it out or get the vehicle to "act up" they cut me two new keys and tightened up what they claimed to be loose battery cables just for the vehicle to die/stall with a no crank no start happen literally 10 minutes down the road after paying almost 600$ for repairs and that it was towed back 3 times for the same issue spanning over two months of them not being able to figure out the issue. Salvador ended up replacing the anti-theft control module after the 3rd time having to tow it back and forth just to leave the shop and I couldn't start the vehicle the next day after handing over almost another 400$ and less than 15/20 miles of drive time. Gm needs to get this issue figured out!!! there anti-theft system locks people out from starting their vehicles more than it does actually preventing actual theft. This will eventually end up causing a major crash at an intersection or highway if the anti-theft system keeps failing it just randomly cuts out power to the engine while driving.

The power lift gate suddenly comes down.

Back up camera when in reverse the backup camera screen is black or shows very little light making it unusable. Unable to see objects or persons behind vehicle. Despite cleaning camera. No visual damage noted. * it is available for inspection upon request. * has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? no * has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? no *were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? no , first appeared over a year ago.

We have had this recall fixed twice but it still reflects in the NHTSA database as an open recall. The first time we had this fixed was in 2017. We had it fixed again on may 19, 2023 and yet it still reflects as open in NHTSA. I am active duty military and require proof of clean vehicle recall history to ship this vehicle to hawaii as part of a permanent change of station move. Please assist ASAP with clearing this recall requirement.

Unsure of cause, but just lost our 2012 Acadia slt2 awd to a fire! driver & passenger jumped out. Fire dept rolled two trucks to extinguish. Parts melted onto the pavement. No prior warning.

My air conditioning stopped working and the power steering line got so hot that it melted a pinhole in my ac line so all the freon would leak out. The power steering hose is so close that when it gets hot it melts the aluminum air conditioning line. The only way to fix it is to buy a aftermarket line and splice it together with the damaged a/c line. And the safety hazzard is that if you're in hot car,you'll be more tempted to pull out in front of someone because you need to get some air. If you look at the setup you will see the engineer made a mistake, that's why they changed the design in later years,I think they should be responsible for making such a preventable mistake.

When the rear lift gate gets to the full open position, it immediately falls down causing a safety hazzard. Luckily no one was in the way when this happened. I haven't had it inspected yet and there are no warning lights or messages. It is available for inspection upon request.

Every single GMC I have ever ran into there is an Acadia, the air conditioner never works. Maybe you guys should reconsider the assembly of your air-conditioning it’s exhausting spending money having air for all of five minutes and then it’s right back to the heat.

Engine light came on. Turns out to be Cadillac converter.

My vehicles hatchback/ trunk lifts up but will not stay open. After opening it makes a horrible noise and falls. It actually fell on me.

The torque converter is failing per dublin GMC. That is the cause of the stuttering. In addition, the rear lift gate has failed and will not stay open in either power or manuel mode. Apparently my vehicle manufactur date is out side the recall months for this recall (per dublin GMC and self check on this website) recall # 5420 and nhst #15v415000. How do I get the mfg to pay for this potentially lethal failure (it almost got me when it failed as I was taking groceries out of back).

Transmission stutter.

A/c system - on our dual control temperature setting, the driver's side constantly blows heat no mater how cool the setting may be. The passenger side cooling works properly but the driver's side is always hot.

Rear lift gate slams down when you try to open it. Started about two weeks ago 11/01/2019. My pregnant grand daughter could have been injured. We had just returned home from shopping when we opened the lift gate to remove packages when this happened.

When driving my car and holding the speed at 50-60mph the rpm begin to fluctuate and the car shudders. Also when going up hills it does them same thing and and feels as if it has a harder time shifting. My car only has 97944 miles on it.

Power liftgate closes unexpectedly after opening completely both when vehicle is on or off but parked.

My 2012 GMC Acadia was recalled regarding the liftgate falling. I took my Acadia in to be serviced as part of this recall in 2017. Now, in 2019 my liftgate falls. While my Acadia was in "park" I pressed the button to open the power liftgate, the liftgate closed while I was unloading the trunk. I was wedged between the bumper of the Acadia and the liftgate. I had to push against the liftgate (while it continued to try and close) in order to dislodge myself. After getting the liftgate open I let go and it fell quickly and slammed shut. Had my children been present and were helping unload this could have caused serious injury and even death. I am extremely concerned for the safety of my children and no longer allow them to go near the rear of the "family" vehicle. I did take my Acadia in to be serviced per the recall and my liftgate falls. I write this complaint to warn other parents that even though you may have had your vehicle serviced as part of the liftgate recall it does not guarantee that your liftgate will not fall.

I've started having issues with the vehicles last year. The vehicle will shudder while going up hill or driving on flat surface. I had the pcv replaced spark plugs. No codes, fluid is good.

Car is in park when button is pushed for power lift gate. Power lift gate will open, stays open briefly, then will begin close. It �catches� itself momentarily before slamming shut. It has slammed shut on me several times, causing the hatchback door to hit my heading one occasion.

Takata-the lift gate will raise up but immediately closes. If a person is under the lift gate it will seriously injure them. For some reason it's not staying open. Read the recall info back in 2016 regarding this issue. Everything described in that recall is what my vehicle is doing.

The power lift gate isn't working properly. When I press the button, it goes up and then goes down right away.

Evaporator core leaking and therefore sending toxic freon chemicals/particles into the air including an order that reminds me of farm waste. Many complaints on Acadia, traverse, and enclave. There is a bulletin out there for mechanics on how to fix, but yet no recall. Cost to repair $1,300+.

Purchased the vehicle from the gm authorized dealer in saudi arabia. No one is able to give a certification as to whether the vehicle meets/does not meet the us dot fmvss and epa standards.

Lift gate would not open, tried to open my driver door to open it from there and it still would not work. Tried to crank car and it made a lot of clicking noises and looked as if the battery was dead but then all of my doors started making clicking noises. Won't start. Won't release key.

Vehicle shudders and engine surges if engine rpms drop under 22oo. Car does not drive smoothly. Has tripped into "limp home mode" while driving on 4 lane highway at 60mph. Vehicle had to be towed. Dealer "said there was not error code to repair", have taken it in on 4 different occasions with a repair to fuel relay repair, motor mount, and twice with no repair before warranty was up, now outside of warranty in mileage. This vehicle is not safe. Problem has been going on since August 2017.

Back in January 2017 I took my car in to have the power liftgate recall work done at my dealer. On 3/1/17 in the evening, while loading groceries in the back of my car the power liftgate fell full-force right onto my head and pushed down onto my neck (and it is a very heavy liftgate!). Thankfully I did not pass out. I immediately called my service guy to let him know what had happened. I also brought the car in to the dealer the very next day. After not feeling well the night before, I went urgent care, who in turn sent me to the er for a CT scan of my head. I suffered a concussion. I do not believe that the problem with the liftgate has been solved and think it is a very dangerous situation since there was no indication or signs of a failure. I contacted gm who has opened a case and said they will be contacting me. Quite frankly I want to get rid of the car because of this situation. I think all Acadia owners should be aware of how serious in fact this issues is. I was totally unaware until I read articles and other materials on the web. I am in the process of gathering all of my paperwork to be scanned and will be filing a lawsuit if gm cannot resolve the issue with me. I will be happy to forward to you any documentation you desire. Sincerely, jennifer bodenhamer - 305-298-3160.

The hydraulic rod that holds the engine hood open failed at 35,000 miles.

Took our Acadia to the dealership where it was purchased, for liftgate recall, worked fine before the work was done, now it pops and jerks at the the top of the lift. Dealership told us it was normal. . . I don't feel like it is.

Sunroof leak driving during rainstorm water began pouring in on the driver side from the parking brake. Caused moldy smell, park brake on/off indicator light and brake on warning alarm now not working. Advised by glass CO. And dealership that sunroof is causing leak from clogged drain lines and faulty seals. No recalls or TSB's but hundreds of other owners have had the same issue from 2008-2013 models. Ntsb should demand that GMC address this faulty product. Problem re-occurred during car wash following rain storm. Vehicle has only 30,000 miles, original owner, now out of warranty. GMC will not cover repairs.

After my liftgate opened, it shuddered and came crashing 3/4's of the way down. Had I been in the way, I would have been hit and undoubtedly injured. Very dangerous situation which has caused me to be unable to use my vehicle for which it is intended - I cannot access the cargo area for loading and unloading heavy and large items. ! I purchased this vehicle explicitly for it's large cargo area and easy accessibility. I now have a very difficult time loading and unloading heavy and bulky items from the backseat of my car.

I pressed the power lift gate button it opened & I was placing a bag in back of car when the lift gate went down without warning & hit me in the head. Causing a head injury that required medical attention 2 head lacerations that required 7 staples.

1. The power lift gate on my vehicle failed on 7/23/15. When it opened, it went all of the way up automatically and then came crashing back down and nearly hit me in the head. 2. The failure from that point on happens each and every time so I had to turn the feature off. 3. I contacted both gm directly and spoke to a local dealership twice (hare Chevrolet in noblesville, in) and both told me that there is a recall on this item but no solution and subsequently no parts have been manufactured to correct problem. I was told that I could fix it out of my own pocket (with the same suspected faulty parts) but there was no guarantee I would be reimbursed as a result I have not been able to use my power lift gate in four months now. I received a recall notice in August with no updates in three months. I spoke to the dealership on 10/31/15 and was told there was no update on this recall.

Automatic tailgate was activated and it preceeded to the top and stopped. I leaned into the back to get something out and the tailgate came crashing down with no warning, hitting my back and did not rebound. If my child had been standing there next to me he could have been killed. The force from the supports giving out dropped the door with full force. I am just thankful it didn't hit my neck or head. There should be a secondary catch for the door to prevent this from happening. Someone could easily be killed.

On 03/07/15 at approximately 1715 at tyler state park our vehicle was backed into the parking space on a slight incline at cabin one. Our 3 year old daughter was in our 2012 GMC Acadia in the driver seat and our friend’s 9 year old son was in the passenger seat; with the vehicle in park the ignition turned off and the keys in my husband pocket. Our 3 year old daughter was able to get the vehicle out of park and into drive, causing the vehicle to roll forward down the incline, across the street and hitting two trees. This caused damage to the bumper and right quarter panel causing the passenger door to catch on the metal frame when opening the door and the front end of vehicle shakes when driven between 65mph-70 mph. Both children were ok with just bumps on their heads. I called the gm dealer in tyler, TX and was advised by tim to contact a gm dealer when I returned home since the vehicle was drivable and we were on vacation. On Monday March 16, 2015 at approximately 0715 I called texan GMC and spoke with tony and advised him of what has happened with the vehicle while on vacation. Tony advised me I could bring the vehicle in to have the recalls fixed but I would need to call GMC customer service @ 800-222-1020 and get and incident report started with them and see when they would like to have a technician take a look at the vehicle. I called GMC spoke with cheryl and she gave me a claim #71-1451210965 I then took the vehicle to have diagnostic testing done on Monday 03/16015 and was called on Monday 03//23/2015 advising me that there were no finding of a malfunction with the vehicle and that gm will not be fixing any damage to my vehicle that was a result to this incident. No matter their findings there is a malfunction somewhere and I feel that gm does not want to admit to there being a malfunction. I just want the issue fixed so this does not happen again.