2013 GMC Acadia Problems, Complaints & Recalls
- Compared with other Acadia years
- Fewer complaints than other years 14th of 20 for complaints
- Safety recalls
- 3 recalls: check your VIN
- NHTSA crash rating
- 5 out of 5 stars
Owners have filed 135 complaints with NHTSA about the 2013 GMC Acadia. That ranks 14th out of 20 Acadia model years for complaints. The most reported problem area is electrical system (38 complaints, 28%), typically at around 65,000 miles. Complaints mention 5 crashes, 8 fires, 4 injuries. There are 3 safety recalls covering this model year. NHTSA has opened 2 defect investigations involving it.
- 135owner complaints
- 3safety recalls
- 2NHTSA investigations
- 5complaints mentioning a crash
Complaints are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume.
Most common 2013 GMC Acadia problems
Complaints grouped by the part of the car owners reported, with the median mileage when the problem happened.
| Problem area | Complaints | Share | Median miles | Owners mention most | Typical repair cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical System | 38 | 28% | 65,000 | — | — |
| Air Bags | 29 | 21% | 95,000 | — | — |
| Power Train | 27 | 20% | 99,250 | — | — |
| Engine | 21 | 16% | 77,697 | — | — |
| Unknown or Other | 21 | 16% | 52,360 | — | — |
| Exterior Lighting | 10 | 7% | 111,000 | — | — |
| Steering | 8 | 6% | 89,000 | — | — |
| Electronic Stability Control (esc) | 6 | 4% | 69,890 | — | — |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 6 | 4% | 57,800 | — | — |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 5 | 4% | 80,004 | — | — |
| Structure | 5 | 4% | 85,250 | — | — |
| Lane Departure | 4 | 3% | 54,740 | — | — |
| Seat Belts | 4 | 3% | 72,000 | — | — |
| Service Brakes | 3 | 2% | 94,000 | — | — |
| Seats | 2 | 1% | 124,000 | — | — |
| Back Over Prevention | 1 | 1% | 51,500 | — | — |
| Equipment | 1 | 1% | 250 | — | — |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 1 | 1% | 98,000 | — | — |
| Suspension | 1 | 1% | 8,000 | — | — |
| Traction Control System | 1 | 1% | 92,000 | — | — |
| Visibility | 1 | 1% | 30,000 | — | — |
| Visibility/wiper | 1 | 1% | 25,000 | — | — |
One complaint can list several problem areas, so shares can add up to more than 100%.
Complaints by year received
2013 GMC Acadia recalls (3)
Tap a recall to see the problem, the risk and the fix.
Air bags:critical fasteners
Problem: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2010-2015, 2017 Buick Enclave, 2010-2019 Chevrolet Traverse, and 2011-2016 GMC Acadia vehicles. The side curtain air bags may not be properly attached.
Risk: Unsecured side curtain air bags may not perform as intended, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, realign or replace the weld nuts, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 24, 2021. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N202321200.
Seat belts
Problem: General Motors is recalling certain model year 2009-2014 Buick Enclave vehicles manufactured April 14, 2008, through May 14, 2014, Chevrolet Traverse vehicles manufactured June 6, 2008, through May 14, 2014, and GMC Acadia vehicles manufactured April 9, 2008, through May 14, 2014, and 2009-2010 Saturn Outlook vehicles manufactured April 14, 2008, through March 18, 2010. In the affected vehicles, the flexible steel cable that connects the seatbelt to the front outboard seating positions may fatigue and separate over time.
Risk: If the steel cable becomes fatigued and separates, the seatbelt may not properly restrain the seat occupant increasing the risk of an injury in a crash.
Fix: General Motors will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, repair and replace the lap pretensioner, free of charge. Parts are not currently available. An interim notice will be mailed to owners in July 2014. A second notice will be mailed to owners once parts become available. The recall for the 2009-2010 model years began on July 11, 2014. The interim letter for the 2011-2014 model years were distributed on July 11, 2014. Owners may contact General Motors at 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet), 1-800-521-7300 (Buick), 1-800-462-8782 (GMC), 1-800-553-6000 (Saturn). General Motors recall number for this campaign is 14187.
Air bags:side/window
Problem: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2008-2013 Buick Enclave and GMC Acadia and 2009-2013 Chevrolet Traverse and 2008-2010 Saturn Outlook vehicles. In the affected vehicles, increased resistance in the driver and passenger seat mounted side impact air bag (SIAB) wiring harnesses may result in the SIAB and seat belt pretensioners not deploying in the event of a crash.
Risk: Failure of the side impact air bags and seat belt pretensioners to deploy in a crash increase the risk of injury to the driver and front seat occupant.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the affected harness connections with soldered connections, free of charge. The recall began on June 16, 2014. Buick owners may contact the owner center at 1-800-521-7300, Chevrolet owners at 1-866-694-6546, Saturn at 1-800-553-6000, and GMC owners at 1-866-996-9463. GM's number for this recall is 14030. Note: Vehicles repaired as part of Customer Satisfaction Campaign 10085 and special coverage 10335 have already had the subject condition repaired and therefore are not included in the safety recall.
To see whether a specific car still has an open recall, enter its VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup. You can also decode a VIN here.
NHTSA defect investigations
- Outboard Front Seat Belt Anchor Cable Failure (EA20002) — opened Aug 31, 2020, closed Aug 30, 2024, led to recall 21V245.
- Seat Belt Anchor Cable Failure (RQ19003) — opened May 28, 2019, closed Aug 31, 2020.
Recent owner reports
Short excerpts of the latest complaints filed with NHTSA, with personal details removed. Full reports can be searched on NHTSA.gov.
Sunroof shattered driving on the interstate. Never saw a rock or anything. I think it shattered due to pressure and temperature changes.
I think my vehicle is apart of this recall: March 17, 2014 NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V118000 Side Impact Air Bags Wiring Connections Failure of the side impact air bags and seat belt pretensioners to deploy in a crash increase the risk of injury to the driver and front seat occupant.
Transmission causes problems in can be on interstate and be switching lanes and it loses power and wont go takes forever to shift out. It will cut out and you can barely get pulled off side of rd in time. Electrical the battery voltage goes crazy up and down causing vehicle to power surge bad or at…
The windows stopped working. Only the driverâs window still goes down and if it does go down, it often wonât go back up. If there was an accident and windows were the only escape option, you would probably be trapped in the vehicle. It has not been looked at, because I cannot afford to fix it…
The contact owns a 2013 GMC Acadia. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V118000 (Air Bags); and requested to be removed from the recall distribution list. The local dealer was contacted but the manufacturer was not contacted.
Other GMC Acadia years
| Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 Acadia | 9 | 1 |
| 2025 Acadia | 67 | 0 |
| 2024 Acadia | 61 | 0 |
| 2023 Acadia | 45 | 4 |
| 2022 Acadia | 49 | 3 |
| 2021 Acadia | 151 | 2 |
| 2020 Acadia | 106 | 6 |
| 2019 Acadia | 387 | 2 |
| 2018 Acadia | 396 | 2 |
| 2017 Acadia | 705 | 4 |
| 2016 Acadia | 236 | 4 |
| 2015 Acadia | 243 | 4 |
| 2014 Acadia | 463 | 6 |
| 2013 | 135 | 3 |
| 2012 Acadia | 296 | 5 |
| 2011 Acadia | 269 | 5 |
| 2010 Acadia | 343 | 4 |
| 2009 Acadia | 331 | 7 |
| 2008 Acadia | 854 | 5 |
| 2007 Acadia | 428 | 5 |
See all GMC Acadia problems by year, every GMC model, or the GMC VIN decoder.
Similar GMC models
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Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 2013 GMC Acadia?
Owners most often report electrical system, air bags, power train problems. The top one, electrical system, accounts for 38 complaints.
Was there a recall on the 2013 GMC Acadia?
Yes, 3 safety recalls. Enter your VIN at NHTSA.gov to check whether the repairs were done on your car.
Was the 2013 GMC Acadia a good year?
Complaint data can't fully answer that, because counts aren't adjusted for sales. Compared with other Acadia model years, the 2013 has fewer complaints than most years, and NHTSA rates it 5 out of 5 stars overall in crash tests. Always get a pre-purchase inspection and check the VIN for open recalls.