How many miles can a GMC Acadia last? When you’re in the market for a new or second-hand GMC Acadia, that’s a very reasonable question to ask. After all, you’re probably looking to get the most bang for your buck. In this blog, we’ll look at this question in great detail but first, let’s start with a quick answer:
On average, a GMC Acadia lasts between 220.000 – 240.000 miles. An Acadia needs to go to the garage for unscheduled repairs about 0.37 times per year, with a 19% chance of the problem being severe. Furthermore, Acadia owners spend an average of $734 per year on repair costs.
Having said that, we’re certainly not done. Below, we’ll explain in more detail how many miles a GMC Acadia can last. After that, we’ll also show you how much an Acadia costs annually and which production years are the most and least expensive. Furthermore, we also discuss the common problems that the car can have. Read on!
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Also read: Types Of Gas A GMC Acadia Takes (All Generations)
How Many Miles Can A GMC Acadia Last?
Knowing how many miles your potential next buy will last is essential. We have done extensive research, gone through the database of autotrader.com, and analyzed the results we retrieved.
Our research showed that out of 10.497 American-made Acadias for sale on autotrader.com, 5.39% had crossed the 150k mile mark. This is a higher-than-average number, given that, after analyzing more than 100+ models on this blog, we expect a percentage between 3 – 5%. The Acadia ends up slightly above this range which is a good initial signal that the Acadia is capable of higher mileage.
| Amount Of Miles | Percentage Of Cars |
| Cars With 150.000+ | 5.39% |
| Cars With 100.000 – 149.000 | 14.53% |
| Cars With 45.000 – 99.999 | 26.87% |
| Cars With 0 – 44.999 | 53.21% |
However, this number merely gives us an initial understanding of the reliability of the Acadia. It’s also essential to compare the Acadia to other vehicles to see how reliable it is and how many miles you can expect.
How Reliable Is A GMC Acadia Compared To Its Competitors?
We also have to compare the Acadia to its rivals to understand how this vehicle performs. In the table below, we’ve recorded the expected and highest mileage of several SUVs available on the North-American market. Keep in mind, for almost all these vehicles, we’ve written a separate article, so we’re confident about the results of this table.
We see that the Acadia performs decently compared to the other SUVs. However, there’re certainly vehicles that have a much higher expected mileage. These include the Toyota Highlander, Sequoia, and the Ford Expedition. The Acadia knows how to hold its ground, but these competitors seem to have one or two more years in them.
| Model | Sample Size | Expected Mileage | Highest Mileage |
| Buick Enclave | 5.978 | 210.000 | 270.000 |
| Chevy Traverse | 10.876 | 240.000 | 360.000 |
| Toyota Highlander | 12.777 | 270.000 | 329.000 |
| Ford Explorer | 22.876 | 230.000 | 397.000 |
| Honda Pilot | 10.095 | 240.000 | 376.000 |
| GMC Acadia | 10.499 | 230.000 | 295.000 |
| Chevy Blazer | 1.891 | 210.000 | 260.000 |
| Mitsubishi Outlander | 1.550 | 210.000 | 250.000 |
| Chevy Tahoe | 11.515 | 240.000 | 340.000 |
| Ford Expedition | 4.642 | 250.000 | 290.000 |
| GMC Yukon | 6.311 | 215.000 | 280.000 |
| Toyota Sequoia | 1.243 | 275.000 | 380.000 |
However, this data seems to suggest the Acadia is a reliable vehicle that will last a substantial number of miles. However, it is also worth looking into competitors if high mileage is of the utmost importance to you.
How Reliable Is A GMC Acadia Compared To Other GMCs?
After discussing the GMC Acadia its performance in terms of reliability when compared to its competitors, it’s also necessary to look up its reliability when compared to other GMC models, as this will give a clearer understanding of the car’s potential and also give us an insight into the quality standards of GMC.
| Model | Sample Size | Expected Mileage | Highest Mileage |
| GMC Terrain | 10.693 | 210.000 | 255.000 |
| GMC Acadia | 10.97 | 230.000 | 295.000 |
| GMC Yukon | 6.382 | 215.000 | 295.000 |
| GMC Sierra | 32.121 | 280.000 | 330.000 |
| GMC Canyon | 2.697 | 210.000 | 250.000 |
Our research shows that GMC does seem to build cars that last quite a while. As expected, the Sierra, a pickup truck, will last you the longest. However, in second place, we find the Acadia, which indicates its one of the most reliable vehicles GMC makes.
Furthermore, the Terrain, Yukon, and Canyon all have similar potential lifespans, above or equal to 210.000 miles. These are respectable numbers. However, we do have to keep in mind that GMC mainly builds SUVs and a pickup truck and that these vehicles typically last much longer than smaller crossovers or sedans. Overall, still, GMC seems to have no problems with the potential mileage of their vehicles.
How Much Does Maintenance Cost Per Year?
Knowing how much you are supposed to spend annually on maintenance is essential. GMCs are relatively expensive to maintain because these are sizeable vehicles that have to withstand quite a workload. For this reason, simple repairs like replacing brake pads and changing the oil can add up quickly.
In the table below, we’ve compiled data from repairpal.com and caredge.com. On average, you will have to spend $727 annually to keep a Sierra 1500 on the road. This is much less than the average $963 for full-size trucks.
| Model Year | Annual Maintenance Cost |
| 2011 | $829 |
| 2012 | $781 |
| 2013 | $778 |
| 2014 | $638 |
| 2015 | $558 |
| 2016 | $515 |
| 2017 | $650 |
| 2018 | $574 |
| 2019 | $510 |
| 2020 | $397 |
| 2021 | $326 |
| 2022 | $282 |
We see that most Acadias seem quite affordable for some model years, whereas the older model years drive up the average quite quickly. Models manufactured between 2015 and 2019 have very reasonable maintenance costs. Older models are much higher and are best to be avoided. Furthermore, newer model years will always have lower maintenance costs because problems have yet to manifest themselves.
Also read: The Complete Cost Of Maintaining A GMC
Owners’ Reviews Of The Acadias Reliability
Besides knowing all the data, it’s, of course, also essential to see how owners experience the Acadia. For this, we went to Kelley Blue Book, Edmunds, and Truecar.com. All three platforms have gathered hundreds of reviews from actual car owners. We summarized our findings in the image below.
These ratings apply to the second generation of the Acadia (from 2017 onwards). We see here that the Acadia seems to be a decent vehicle, but owners don’t think it’s without its flaws. Especially owners on Edmunds believe some model years of the Acadia to be below average. Especially the 2017 – 2019 and the 2021 model years seem to be quite criticized. The two most heard complaints are its size (the second generation is much smaller than the first one) and its transmission.
Decent vehicle. Drives great and has the amazing GMC quality one should expect. But, it is not an Acadia. An acadia is a mid to large sized SUV such as the 2014 Acadia I previously owned. I wanted to try the new one but it was the wrong move.
This vehicle is more of the new Terrain than it is an Acadia. If I wanted a smaller vehicle I would have bought a terrain. I don’t quite have the room, money, or need for a Yukon or Yukon XL. There needs to be a happy medium and GMC shouldn’t have downsized it.
Source
GMC Acadia Common Problems
You should know about the common problems the Acadia might have; it will help you find a good deal when you are looking for one in the used market. With all of this data, you will be better equipped with the essential diagnostic eye, and if you find any of these issues in your potential next buy, you know what to stay away from or what to haggle about.
NOTE: Before buying a used car, I always like to make sure the vehicle isn´t having any problems that you should be aware of. The easiest way to do this is by buying an OBD2 scanner. These scanners can easily be plugged into any car you’re interested in, and they’ll give you a rundown of potential problems.
Second Generation (2017 – Present)
The second generation has had two main problems. The first one is that models built between 2017 – 2019 had issues with the shifter assembly. The vehicle wouldn’t recognize that it was shifted into park, which wouldn’t allow the engine to shut off and displayed a ‘shift to park’ message. This was fixed with the introduction of the push button in the 2020 model year.
Secondly, the 2017 – 2019 model years (especially the earlier ones) had recurring electrical problems which caused the electrical system to function strangely. Symptoms included the radio turning off/on by itself, losing the backup camera, and the horn honking on its own.
Thirdly, many people were quite unhappy with the fact that this Acadia is much, much smaller than the first generation Acadia. Some thought this wouldn’t be a problem, but after owning it for a couple of months, they learned it did.
First Generation (2007 – 2016)
As with most generations, the problems in the GMC Acadia were the worst in the earlier models (2007 – 2010) but became less significant after that (although some owners still perceived them).
The earlier model years of the Acadia had problems with two primary components of the vehicle: the transmission and the engine. The Arcadia transmission had severe issues, and some owners had complete transmission failures below 100,000 miles. This problem was caused by a fractured wave plate, although some transmissions also had metal shavings.
The engine was another major problem for the 2007 – 2010 Acadia. Timing gas cover gaskets would fail, resulting in oil leaks, the timing chain would fail, resulting in hefty repair bills or engine failure, and the engine would stall due to moisture in the throttle body.
All of these problems carried on in later versions of the Acadia (2011 – 2012), although they were much less substantial. The 2013 – 2016 model years were reasonably pain-free, although some owners still had some problems with the transmission.
Is a GMC Acadia A Smart Buy?
If you’re in the market for an Acadia, there’re some things to consider at this point. First of all, there’s the fact that Acadias do get very decent mileage. We expect them to last around 230.000 miles which is more than adequate. However, some vehicles, such as the Toyota Highlander and Ford Expedition, do better, which is worth taking into account.
Secondly, the maintenance costs of an Acadia are on the higher end of the spectrum ($734 per year on average). However, this is mainly because the 2007 – 2010 model years were quite problematic, significantly increasing average maintenance cost. Later model years have much less of a problem and end up in the $500 – $600 per year range.
If you’re set on getting an Acadia, it’s also worth noting that the 2007 – 2010 model years are best to avoid. Ideally, you would also avoid the 2011 – 2012 model years. The 2013 – 2016 model years have the least problems, lower maintenance costs, and the highest reliability. As a bonus, these model years were built on the older platform, meaning they’re much larger than the second generation.
If you want a newer Acadia, it’s best to skip the 2017 – 2019 model years because of their electrical problems and head over to the 2020 model year. However, remember that this is still a relatively new model, and more significant issues may not have manifested themselves yet. Finally, this model is also much smaller than the first-generation one.
GMC Acadia Maintenance Schedule
Below is the maintenance schedule that describes what should be done and at what mileage. This will give you a more thorough understanding of what owning an Acadia is like.
Before/On Every 5,000 Miles
- Check the oil level
Before/On Every 10,000 Miles
- Replace the oil filter.
Before/On Every 20,000 Miles
- Replace the passenger compartment air filter
- Inspect the tires
- See if there’s any prevailing rust
- Check for any fluid leaks
- Tire replacement if necessary
Before/On Every 40,000 Miles
- Replace the air intake filter
- Replace the transfer case fluid
- Inspect the evaporative control system
- Change the automatic transmission fluid
Before/On Every 60,000 Miles
- Inspect the spark plugs
- Inspect the ignition coils
- Have an engine diagnosis with a scanner tool and see for any abnormal reading.
- Inspect the electronics system
- Inspect the brake pads and rotors
- Drive belt replacement
- The manufacturers recommend changing the first coolant at 60k miles and the later ones after every 30k miles. It depends on different factors; you should check the color of the coolant to tell which one it is. If it’s the silicated one, you would have to change it after every 30k miles, and if it’s the extended drain coolant, you can change it after 100k miles.
Before/On Every 100,000 Miles
- This is where the suspension components start to wear, and you might have to replace the worn-out ones.
- Service the radiator core
- Service the AC condenser
Hi! My name is Stefan; I’m the owner and lead writer at TheDriverAdviser.com.
I’m an active writer on this blog myself, as well as a novice car mechanic. For the really technical stuff, I find writers with experience as a mechanic or who have studied mechanical engineering.
Read more about our fantastic team on our about page!