CarComplaints.com Notes: Ahh, the ole' sophomore slump. The 2008 Acadia suffers from widespread transmission failure around 75,000 miles.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 3
Injuries / Deaths:
7 / 0
Average Mileage:
143,621 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.

2008 GMC Acadia electrical problems

electrical problem

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2008 GMC Acadia Owner Comments (Page 5 of 8)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #67

Oct 082014

Acadia 6-cyl

  • 85,000 miles

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

It started as a very rare incident. When we heard about the heavy key chain problem we took everything off our fobs but two keys. When the key was turned, the ignition would make a strange clicking noise and all of the electronics would turn off. The key would have to be removed, reinserted, and the car started before everything could be reset. On one other occasion besides it's final meltdown did it refuse to release the key and run the battery down. Last week, on 12/10/14, I drove thee car and it acted up 3 times. We decided it was time to put it in the shop. It opened with the fob that night but refused to re-lock 2 hours later - everything dead. New battery so shouldn't be dead. Tried to start - ate key and refused to release until late next day after trickle charge put to it. Since then - all electronics work now and then but car will not start. Warranty ran out 2 days ago. Sucks!!!

- Orange, TX, USA

problem #66

Dec 012014

Acadia

  • 54,000 miles
Vehicle leaked causing fuse box to short out.

- Camden, SC, USA

problem #65

Nov 192014

Acadia

  • 80,000 miles
2 drilled holes in the sunroof are allowing water to flow throughout vehicle wiring harnesses. Water has settled in engine and harnesses. In my case, the water shorted out the amplifier. Worried that this could also create electrical fire or other malfunction(s).

- Hinckley, OH, USA

problem #64

Nov 282014

Acadia

  • 94,000 miles

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

When driving through recent rainstorm I turned around to grab a toy for my son and water was dripping on my head. I looked up and it was literally pouring out of the light fixture and each light was filled like a pool. Completely unacceptable!

- Pasco, WA, USA

problem #63

Dec 032014

Acadia

  • 127,000 miles
The bose system in my 2008 GMC Acadia stopped working. I was unable to use the onstar system because there was not sound coming out of the speakers. Today we removed the wiring harness in the rear doors of the car and found water.

- Kenosha, WI, USA

problem #62

Jul 132007

Acadia

  • 20,881 miles
Severe water damage to vehicle due to manufacture defective roof drains.

- San Jose, CA, USA

problem #61

Nov 222014

Acadia 6-cyl

  • 143,000 miles

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

While I was driving my light buttons under my radio went out for a minute. They was going on and off when I hit the gas or brakes. The next day I drove it my signal light was not showing that it was on or working but it was working from the outside. My hand gauge would drop to 0 and then go back up to my correct speed. My radio screen went out my mute button on steering wheel does not work anymore. When I cut my car off and I open my drivers door the radio would automatically cut off but now it takes a minute for it to do so. Today I was going to go out for lunch but when I cut my truck on I think it cut right back off. So I cut it back on and it stayed on a while I was just too scared to move. I am scared all these electrical problems will have me on the side of the road soon. This is not good.

- Lena, MS, USA

problem #60

Jul 302014

Acadia 6-cyl

  • 98,000 miles
I'm logging these issue as I have now come to realize that the issues we have had with our 2008 GMC Acadia are very widespread among owners. Very early on in the life of the vehicle approx Oct 2008 we began seeing small amounts of water inside the cabin. Water would drip along the windshield occasionally, no action was taken as it was not consistent or so we thought. On multiple occasions my wife would complain that the vehicle would "cutoff" or "die" generally at slow speed in areas such a parking lots when turning, however the dealer was unable to re-create the issue so no repairs were made. One day this summer (2014) my wife was unable to start the vehicle, it just would not crank. On taking it to the dealer the vehicle was diagnosed with a corroded battery cable that ran from the middle of the vehicle to the starter in the engine bay. Cost to repair $1,200. In approximately June 2014 the vehicle began experiencing a slight rollback when placed into drive. At first we didn't think it was an issue as it didn't get worse with time. However by October 2014 we got a check engine light, diagnosis transmission failure cost to repair $4,890 after a $200 discount.

- Miramar, FL, USA

problem #59

Aug 252012

Acadia 6-cyl

  • 73,730 miles
I purchased my 2008 GMC Acadia on 9/22/11. The following summer on August 25, 2012 the transmission went out while on vacation. It was towed to a dealership where they told me the wave plate and snap ring were broken. They replaced the clutch housing, all pistons, all fibers, replaced side cover and pistons and seals and springs. They replaced control valve body spacer plate and tom solenoid gasket screen. The vehicle had 73,730 miles on it. Since then I have also replaced the headlights twice, the battery once. My dash lights only work when they want to and my windshield sprayer stopped working. To top it off my transmission went out again just the other day!!!! it's November 10th 2014 with 119,000 miles and I'm already needing to have another transmission!"!" this vehicle is junk, and I still owe a ton of money.....something needs to be done about this!

- Lansing , MI, USA

problem #58

Oct 152014

Acadia 6-cyl

  • 173,000 miles
I just purchased a 2008 GMC Acadia one month ago. We live in Washington state and it rains alot. The first couple days of driving the vehicle, we experienced water dripping all over our seats, floor, and in corners of windows when we drove it getting my 3 children and myself wet. I didn't think it was such a big deal at first since I figured it was a minor leak I could easily fix. Over the next 2 weeks, I noticed my front headlight would flicker on and off and sometimes not work at all. I also figured it was a typical vehicle issue. Up until a week ago I tried to start up the vehicle and it wouldn't start, I knew it was the battery. I took it to get checked only to discover the battery, which is located under the floor board on the passenger back side, was submerged with water. The battery was taken and checked out good out of the vehicle. I researched online that there plenty of others experiencing this same issue and there are no recalls in place now. What am I supposed to do? this is a definite safety issue as its affecting the electrical system. I have a 2 year old,4 year old, and a 5 year old. My 5 year old has health issues and my husband and I bought this vehicle in hopes to have a reliable and most importantly safe vehicle because he is in the U.S. navy and is away alot on deployments and underways. The rain draining inside also causes mold which is dangerous for my children. The dealership wants to charge us almost 1,000$ to repair this. They were unsure how to fix this permanently so they referred me to the body shop.

- Lake Stevens, WA, USA

problem #57

Apr 152011

Acadia

  • 28,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2008 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while driving approximately 45 mph, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was towed to the dealer. The technician diagnosed that the water pump had failed. The vehicle was repaired.in addition, the contact stated that the transmission failed and she was not able to exceeded more than 10 mph. The dealer repaired the fuel kit, housing, sensor and cover. However, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was aware of the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 28,000.

- Cathedral City, CA, USA

problem #56

Sep 112014

Acadia 6-cyl

  • miles
There is a potential fire hazard with the daylight running lights overheating before they burn out on both driver and passenger side. The bulb gets so hot that they melt the bulb socket causing an electrical fire hazard. The heat also has made the headlight housing brittle and cracked to where the socket wont stay in place inside the headlight housing thus causing the bulb to lay on the plastic causing a fire hazard. General Motors knows about this fire hazard because I have called it to there attention and because they have a customer satisfaction program #13135. They have also recalled some 2007 and 2009 to 2011 vehicles but not 2008 with the same problem.

- Imperial, MO, USA

problem #55

Jan 012013

Acadia

  • 50,000 miles
The contact owns a 2008 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while driving at an unknown speed, the instrument panel and the air bag warning light would shut off independently. Also, the contact mentioned that the vehicle would provide false readings like door ajar when all doors were closed. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The approximate failure mileage was 50,000.

- Ferdinand, IN, USA

problem #54

Aug 132014

Acadia

  • 80,000 miles
The contact owns a 2008 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced several electrical failures. The rear doors would not unlock, the liftgate failed to open, the check engine indicator illuminated intermittently, and the battery failed while the key was stuck in the ignition. When the battery was replaced, the key was removed; however, the engine was still operable. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for diagnostic testing where it was stated that the body control module needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified. The approximate failure mileage was 80,000.

- Atpleboro, MA, USA

problem #53

Jul 152014

Acadia

  • miles
Water leaking after rain storm down to floor mats on both the driver and passenger side. We had our windshield recently replaced back in may of this year, so I thought that this was maybe the issue and took back to the glass repair shop. Upon investigating further, they found that the issue was happening to many of the GMC vehicles on the electrical recall. I went to GM's website and entered my VIN and nothing about this issue on our personal vehicle. In our small community there have been two house fires, major damage caused by the electrical system ignition etc on GM vehicles. We do not want to be the next victim.

- Marshall, MN, USA

problem #52

Aug 052014

Acadia

  • 80,000 miles
My GMC Acadia 2008 constantly stalls on me the issues started August 5 and has continue up to last night August 17th. While I'm driving the car would shut off on me and the check engine light would appear. I wont be able to restart the car so I had the car towed to the nearest GMC dealer. After paying for a diagnostic report the mechanic told me they could not find any codes indication the check engine light even came on. Last night I was scared because I left work at midnight after driving about 10 minutes the car started jumping then turned off and the check engine light came on in the middle of the street. I called on-star and they were dispatching a tow truck because the car would not come on. After 45 minutes I tried to turn the car on and it came on so I cancelled the tow truck service. This is a issue that's been happening for the last 2 weeks. I cant get the issued fixed because the last 2 diagnostic reports that were ran states no issues. I also had on-star run a diagnostic report right when the issue happened and they also told me they don't see any issues. I took a picture with my cell phone when the check engine light came on but no one seems to know the issues the SUV is facing. Everything stays on the radio the lights just the car shuts off and wont start for like 45 minutes to an hour. I've looked on different GMC Acadia forums and it seems I'm not the only person having this issue with this same make model and year car. Someone on the forum suggested I make a compliant at the ntsa.

- Bronx , NY, USA

problem #51

Aug 032014

Acadia

  • 83,000 miles
The vehicle refused to shift out of first gear and the check engine light became illuminated upon pulling out into the roadway. At 25 miles per hour the rpms were 4000 and it just would not shift. We pulled over, called for help and were stranded on the side of the road with two small children. We were hours away from home, and had to call family from hundreds of miles away to come help. The vehicle after being turned off and sitting for a while did then return to normal operation when restarted. Vehicle was driven home and two days later the very same problem recurred. Going to trade in this pos before someone gets hurt.

- Wyoming, PA, USA

problem #50

Jul 112014

Acadia

  • 62,450 miles
When the ignition switch was turned on, the car started, but rather than return to the "on" position, the switch returned to the "off" position and the motor turned off. This has happened numerous times, but only one time when the vehicle was actually in motion.

- Baton Rouge, LA, USA

problem #49

Mar 082011

Acadia 6-cyl

  • 48,001 miles
When first starting engine a loud pop would occur. Signals, clock, stereo, dome light, battery gauge stopped working. Chevrolet dealer replaced the stereo and amplifier ($1500 ). then if I left Acadia in the rain I would find a small puddle of water on the floor under the emergency brake and a drop of water on the air bag on the driver side in front of the vehicle. Was told it could be the sun roof tubes were blocked so I took it to the auto glass place and had the tubes cleaned out. Very concerned about the water because I do not want to loose power in vehicle again. Just went on a trip and had to park outside in parking area and had a real puddle on my mat and underneath the mat. Today I called an auto windshield repair shop to see if the windshield could be leaking and was told that if the car was not in an accident or if it has not had the windshield replaced, they didn't think it would be the windshield leaking, that GM was good about installing and sealing the windshield. My car is kept in the garage and I am the only driver. It has never been in an accident and I am afraid that the wiring will short out, cause a soft spot in the floor, or start a fire. This automobile has only 69,285 miles and has been very well taken care of by only General Motors dealerships. Serious problem involving wet elements and electrical problems here. Please let me know what to do!

- Willis,, MI, USA

problem #48

Jul 092014

Acadia 6-cyl

  • 35 miles
Driving at 35mph, touched brake to slow down for a stoplight, vehicle stopped running. I placed in park and turned ignition to restart vehicle, stabiltrack light came on, and drove home with no other incident.had a full tank of gas.

- Aurora, IL, USA

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