2008 GMC Acadia problems, complaints & recalls
Updated from NHTSA data · How we count
Owners have filed 61 complaints with NHTSA about the 2008 GMC Acadia, most often about electrical system. There are 3 recalls for this model year.
- Complaints
- 61
- Recalls
- 3
- Crashes
- 2
- Fires
- 3
- Injuries
- 4
- Median mileage
- 153,245 mi at time of problem
Key facts
- Electrical System is the most-reported problem area, named in 27 of 61 complaints (44%).
- Airbags (20) and engine (17) follow.
- Half of the complaints that list mileage happened before 153,245 mi.
- Owners reported 2 crashes, 3 fires and 4 injuries.
- The 2008 GMC Acadia has 3 recalls on file.
- NHTSA has opened 2 defect investigations covering this vehicle.
- It ranks 10th of 20 GMC Acadia model years by our severity-weighted complaint score (1st = worst).
- That is 281% more complaints than the 2007 model year (16).
2008 GMC Acadia problems by category
- 27 complaints
- Airbags · 2 crashes20 complaints
- Engine · 1 crash17 complaints
- Other / Unknown13 complaints
- Driver Assistance & Safety Tech7 complaints
- Fuel, Hybrid & EV Propulsion · 1 crash6 complaints
- Transmission & Drivetrain6 complaints
- Visibility & Wipers3 complaints
- Lighting3 complaints
- Suspension2 complaints
- Steering2 complaints
- Body & Structure1 complaints
- Wheels & Tires1 complaints
- Brakes1 complaints
- Seats & Seat Belts1 complaints
- Acceleration & Cruise Control1 complaints
A complaint can mention more than one problem area, so categories add up to more than the total.
Most-reported components
| Component (as filed with NHTSA) | Complaints |
|---|---|
| Electrical system | 26 |
| Air bags | 20 |
| Engine | 17 |
| Unknown or other | 12 |
| Electronic stability control (esc) | 7 |
| Power train | 6 |
| Fuel/propulsion system | 6 |
| Exterior lighting | 3 |
When problems happen (mileage)
2008 GMC Acadia recalls (3)
- STRUCTURE:BODY:HATCHBACK/LIFTGATE
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2008-2012 Buick Enclave vehicles manufactured January 3, 2007, to February 29, 2012, 2009-2012 Chevrolet Traverse vehicles manufactured July 6, 2008, to March 9, 2012, 2007-2012 GMC Acadia vehicles manufactured September 15, 2006, to February 29, 2012, and 2007-2010 Saturn Outlook vehicles manufactured August 17, 2006, to March 18, 2010. The affected vehicles, equipped with the power liftgate option, have gas struts that hold the power liftgate up when open. These struts may prematurely wear and the open liftgate may suddenly fall.
Risk: If the open liftgate unexpectedly falls, it may strike a person, increasing their risk of injury.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will update the software for the power liftgate actuator motor control unit so that the motor will prevent the rapid closing of the lift gate, free of charge. The recall began on November 15, 2016. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782, and Saturn customer service at 1-800-553-6000. GM's number for this recall is 15240.
- AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW
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.
Remedy: 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.
- ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Gm is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 buick, lucerne; cadillac dts; hummer h2; model year 2008-2009 buick enclave; cadillac cts; model year 2007-2009 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, silverado, suburban, tahoe; gmc acadia, sierra, yukon, yukon xl; saturn outlook; and model year 2009 chevrolet traverse vehicles equipped with a heated washer fluid system (hwfs). A recall was implemented in 2008 to add a fuse to the control circuit harness to address the potential consequences of a printed circuit board (pcb) electrical short. However, there have been new reports of thermal incidents on hwfs modules after this improvement was installed. These incidents resulted from a new failure mode attributed to the device's thermal protection feature. The significance varies from minor distortion to considerable melting of the plastic around the hwfs fluid chamber.
Risk: It is possible for the heated washer module to ignite and a fire may occur.
Remedy: Dealers will permanently disable and remove the heated washer fluid module. An updated page for the owner manual will be provided and inserted in the owner manual to document that the feature has been permanently disabled and removed from the vehicle. The safety recall began on june 11, 2010. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080, cadillac at 1-866-982-2339, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, saturn at 1-800-972-8876, gmc at 1-866-996-9463 and hummer at 1-800-732-5493 or at the owner center at www.gmownercenter.com.
NHTSA defect investigations
- DP12003Opened Jun 4, 2012Closed Jul 24, 2014
Loss of Headlamp Illumination
As of July 16, 2014, out of a population of 248,453 subject vehicles, NHTSA received 473 consumer complaints of inoperative head lamp. Many of these complaints indicated that the head lamp harness suffered damage from overheating. After reviewing the complaints, ODI found: -69% (328) alleged that a single head lamp was inoperative. -18% (86) alleged that both head lamps were inoperative but not at the same time. -9% (41) alleged that both head lamps were inoperative but the complaints did not indicate whether the failures had occurred at the same time. -4% (17) alleged that both head lamps wer…
Non-crash engine compartment fires
In a letter dated august 27, 2008, general motors corp. (gm) notified nhtsa that it will conduct a safety recall (nhtsa recall number 08v-441) to address a safety relateddefect that can result in engine compartment fire in approximately 850,000 vehicles equipped with a heated windshield washer fluid option.the subject vehicles of this investigation comprise over three-quarters of the recall population. According to gm, a short circuit on the printed circuit board for the windshield washer fluid heater module may overheat the control-circuit ground wire. This may cause other electrical features…
Recent 2008 GMC Acadia complaints
Excerpts of the newest owner complaints, lightly cleaned of personal details. Complaints are unverified owner reports.
- Filed Jul 27, 2026200,000 miKSAirbags
The contact owns a 2008 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the driver’s side air bags deployed; however, the vehicle was not involved in a crash. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the contact attempted to start the vehicle and the starter was inoperable. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle remained at the residence, and the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the…
NHTSA complaint #11753151 · source - Filed Mar 14, 2026PAEngineOther / Unknown
The car would not shift causing me to pull over on the side of a highway to restart the car this happened 5 times in a row b4 the car would shift into proper gear
NHTSA complaint #11724309 · source - Filed May 29, 2025TXAirbagsElectrical SystemWheels & Tires
Lift gate closes by itself I have to put a pole to hold it up and it won’t hit me, it says the air bags needs to be serviced, stabilitrak keeps going off, ball bearing needs work. Radio won’t turn on no sound on air signals, the body chasis something popped while driving, the tracking control keeps turning off, the seats move while driving, catalytic converter are moving car only go 12 mpg.
NHTSA complaint #11663793 · source - Filed Oct 8, 2024CAEngineOther / UnknownAcceleration & Cruise Control
The traction control turns on and then the shifts don’t work and I can’t drive since there is no speed also the rpm and the gas the speed and the battery gages start flickering up and down then I turn off the truck and it continues to work fine but after 40 miles or so it does it all again
NHTSA complaint #11618622 · source - Filed Apr 30, 2024150,000 miMOFireTowedElectrical SystemOther / Unknown
The contact owns a 2008 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while her daughter-in-law was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle made a popping sound, and then the fuse box near the passenger's side headlight caught fire. No warning light was illuminated. The contact's daughter-in-law was able to exit the vehicle. There were no injuries, and medical attention was not received. Bystanders called the police and fire departments. The fire department arrived and…
NHTSA complaint #11586104 · source - Filed Apr 30, 2024PATransmission & Drivetrain
Transmissions will not shift out of 1st gear. And puts out a 752 code. This can happen at anytime. Vehicle will suddenly lose power at any time.
NHTSA complaint #11586024 · source - Filed Feb 7, 2024160,000 miALElectrical SystemVisibility & Wipers
The contact owns a 2008 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that the battery had previously been replaced; however, the battery failed to retain a charge. The contact had to recharge the battery every day to start the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed that water had leaked from the windshield and cowl to behind the glovebox, causing the battery to fail; however, no repair was recommended. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was…
NHTSA complaint #11570596 · source - Filed Dec 1, 2023INOther / Unknown
UNKNOWN 2008 GMC ACADIA back lift starts to open and then shuts right back down. try to raise it manually and it falls right back down. It can really hurt someone. would like to know what causes it to do that and if there is a recall.
NHTSA complaint #11558005 · source
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Other 2008 GMC models
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Office of Defects Investigation public data, as of Oct 10, 2026. Complaints are submitted by owners and are not verified by NHTSA or by us; a complaint does not prove a defect exists. View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov Methodology