The chip shortage has had a few strange effects on the automotive industry. With fewer new vehicles rolling off assembly lines, many consumers are turning to the used market. These inventory shortages have driven up the price of both new and used vehicles – making it much more difficult to get a good deal on a daily driver. This scenario has some motorists paying for costly repairs on their existing vehicle that they never would have previously – as well-known YouTube mechanic Car Wizard explained in a recent video featuring a customer’s worn-out 2015 GMC Acadia.
The GMC Acadia in this video was brought to Car Wizard’s shop by a used car dealership that was looking to get the vehicle sorted before they listed it for sale. The only problem is that this vehicle requires a lot of work to make it roadworthy again. Car Wizard had to replace the rear main seal, which is located between the engine and transmission, requiring the front subframe and the transmission to be completely removed from the vehicle. Car Wizard notes GM crossovers with the GM 3.6L LLT V6 engine often experience costly timing chain issues as well, but luckily for the dealer, this Acadia was not experiencing any such problems.
In years prior, it would not have been economically viable for the dealership to pay for a rear main seal repair in a vehicle like this, as the expense would have outweighed any profit they have made on the vehicle. Amid the current car sales boom, though, the dealer can pay thousands of dollars for repairs and still make a good profit on the vehicle – something Car Wizard says he’s never seen before in all his years of working in the car repair business.
Check out the video below to learn more about common problems with the GMC Acadia and how the car sales boom is impacting the car repair industry.
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Comments
Some issues with some of these and then like my Neighbor 100,000 plus miles and only tires, brakes and oil on their Acadia.
We have over 50K on a 2017 Acadia Limited and never had a problem or needed returning to the dealership. Same with prior 2015 Terrain 2.4l SLT AWD at similar mileage.
GM needs to do a better job on QDR.
Very knowledgeable but I wanted more info with problems on car not the state of the economy on cars.
That was the whole point of the video…why costly repairs make sense in the current economy of cars. The Wizard has made no secret of the fact that he thinks GM crossovers are garbage. His opinion is based on experience as a dealer tech prior to opening his own shop.
On any used vehicle buy an extended warranty that includes electronics. Payments is one thing but payments and paying for repairs is another.
Tell me again how Consumer Reports is biased and unfair with their poor ratings of GM vehicles for reliability.
I sure hope Car Wizard used AC Delco replacement parts. 😀
Great video
The wizard has a great channel to learn about what will break on your car and how much effort it takes to get to the part that fails.
Another big part of the national master plan for EV’s is to eliminate grease, oil, and fluid droppings on the roadways and parking lots. These droppings become hazardous in rain storms, and are slip, trip, fall hazards in parking lots and garages.
Make sure you turn your cruise control off when road conditions are wet, or icy, or snow packed.
No vendor ever made a perfect seal to last many years or several hundred thousand miles.
I currently have 509K+ on my 1998 diesel Suburban and had to do some seal work.
Looking forward to the electric and/or hydrogen powered Suburbans and Tahoes.
Glad that GM brought back the diesel in the Suburban and Tahoe. Diesel is a much more safer and efficient all around fuel than gasoline. Just ask any commercial or industrial user. Stay safe.
Wind turbines are big users of oils and lubricants . Leaks in lubricants have led to many wind turbine fires with the oils spilling to the earth below .
Ev tech just used different types of fluids not no fluids FYI
One huge problem I have experienced is the shift into park comes on even when its in park mode.
The park to shift harness was replaced. Still has same issue. I have seen this problem with many Acadia owners. Surprised there has not been a real fix and or recall.
There has been a real fix, the current TSP tells the dealership what to replace but many just skip it.
What happens is that the microswitch gets burnt out and it needs to be replaced. They also need to add a new jumper to the harness that reduces the inrush of current to the switch. If they don’t add the jumper the issue will come back.
Yes I have Acadia too and I just pay $3500 for timing belt and pay $1500 for A.C fixed and still have some issues on car and just run till die so yes big jobs and big money to keep running car but still not enough….
I had an issue with my 2013 Denali in the early part of this year.
Daughter has the lastest gen Acadia, no issues with 35k miles. They love it.
I suffered throught two traverses, both with less than 100,000 miles. This fella told us immediately that he did not reccomend buying the traverse and Acadia what more do you need to watch. I wish I found him two traverses ago. The traverse should be called the ” travisty” b/c thats what it is and GM knows it but continued to sell them and pass the problem on to the end user. All you happy Acadia people I suggest you put some money in the bank and have a second car ready to go. Your time in the barrel is coming.
what year was yours?
I hear 2016+ the Traverse… and the 3.6 engine is ALOT better… previous to 16, the oilers for the timing chain were pretty small and lack of oil changes caused the chain to overheat and stretch. They increased the oil channels with the 16+
I’d rather see more Car Wizard content than Scotty Kilmer lol
35000, really , of course no car will or should have a prob. Probs happen on Acadia between 80 and 120000 miles. Then watch the repaire cost mount up.
The way you and everybody on this thread that got hurt by gm it wouldn’t matter if it had 3,500 miles. Seeing all kinds of different gm vehicles getting blasted.
I owned other brands I didn’t like and saw I was going to pay out of the whazoo, I simply got rid of them so I didn’t have to – simple…
Look, these internet mechanics only fix…they don’t teach you how to take preventive ways from paying them… ahhh that’s why they’re in business.
IMO, just take care of your cars…they do last longer…
Yes they are telling preventive measures not to pay! DONT BUY GM! I live in a small town and this is my 3rd timing replacement on 3 GMC Acadia’s BUY Honda if you like your money!
Lease and dump. Done.
This is why we LEASE
Honest repair shop.G-D Bless America.
My GMC has been trash after 124,000. After a lot of repairs, the engine blew. Smh. Problem after problem with this truck.
My Chevy has 180000 on it and it is still tuning well , no major problems
My 2015 GMC Acadia has 138000km
And already replaced the side mirror detection module 2x and the battery harness . GMC tells me it’s because of weather in Canada that causes issues of these parts. I beg to differ. The module is in a stupid spot and should be replaced or on recall. Another issue is the throttle sensor. I have a vacuum leak now.
that is why i told my MIL to get a RAV4, they sell like 600,000 of those a year in the US year after year, and they are still the highest in quality and resale. otherwise just lease. most stuff out there is designed to fail.
All brands have some flaws, my friend is a mechanic and I am responsible about what I m saying he deals with jap and Korean vehicles and I saw a lot of frequent terrible breaking down , Prius and it’s water pumps , Kia under 5 years with engine problems
Most of them average in mileage , there is no brand without some issues and no major problems in your car
Things happen , that’s why dealers have shops
How is this guy gonna get any reaction, aka views, if he says everything’s great? It’s telling that he says that he thinks they’re junk based on his experience at the dealer. I have a friend that works at a Ford dealership. Guess what, he says they suck. I’m sure it goes pretty much the same with any dealer mechanic, because the reason is that they only see the broke one’s. If you put twenty water pumps on an Impala, you’re gonna pretty much think Impalas suck. It’s just human nature. I also have a friend who sold cars at a local Mercedes dealership, and was great at it, but quit because he said that he would sell a $100K car, and then within a few days he would get a call from the owner that this or that didn’t work, etc., or he’d walk through the service bays and see that brand new car torn apart tracing wires or whatever, and it was a huge hassle. Have a buddy who works at a Chrysl… Daiml… err… Stellantis dealer as a tech, and he told me that when the Dodge Neon came out that by the time the car was unloaded off the truck to the dealer that there was something like, no kidding, 120-ish service bulletins and updates that had to be done before they could be sold. That’s just insane to me. I pulled wrenches for 36 years before retiring, ten years at a GM dealer and 25 at an independent, and we worked on absolutely everything bar none. I have seen pretty much every brand torn down to the firewall, and engines torn down to the crank and pistons laying on the table. I and my family drive GM’s. Wouldn’t die if I had to drive a Ford, but GM’s engineering is as good or better than any. If there’s a problem with a part or a redesign they don’t just run through old stock sitting on the shelf before you get the redesigned piece. I think everybody in America should have driven a Ford Taurus back in the day because I paid for my house by fixing on ’em. For years their power steering pumps leaked like a sieve, and they were mounted right over the front motor mount, whose rubber just dissolved in power steering fluid. The thing is that you got the same pump, and same exact motor mount for years, no changes. The spring and ring A/C connectors on all Fords leaked freon so bad, and for so long, that Uncle Sam was rumored to be looking into the situation due to the amount of CFC’s released in the air. But, it was really quick to snap together which saved assembly time. Most warranty claims are the result of some guy that couldn’t be fired for not tightening the bolt or plugging in the connector all the way, or a part supplier who skimped slightly on materials to save a couple of pennies. That situation is changing for the better thank goodness. Some people that get on here to just leave a one sentence comment that is akin to generally “GM sucks, others don’t” without any real experience should just be discounted to basically no value. Every, and I do mean every, manufacturer has their great and awful moments, because they’re so huge it’s just bound to happen.
Best comment I have ever read
Wonderfully said!
Never trust a mechanic who’s wife drives a Land Rover……………
L O L hahaha
Never drove a GMC because I don’t believe they are “Murican Made. Mary Barra never sent me the new Presidential Limo that she promised.
Dude !They are Americans
Shift into park issues? Has this been fixed? If so what is the fix?
Look up TSB 19-NA-206
At 80,000 miles an Acadia is a time bomb waiting to fall apart like the blues brothers car at the end of the movie
Do your homework before you buy any brand of vehicle! GM AC Delco parts are mostly made in China as well as a lot of their transmissions. China makes inferior parts and the material China uses is inferior and only designed to last to warranty! A lot of quality issues with the big three right now. The big three parking thousands of new vehicles because they don’t have chip boards due to relying on overseas production is not very smart in my view! What ever happened to good ole fashioned Common Sense?
How do I know when the ECM ( main computer) on my 2011 GMC Acadia needs to be replaced. My car just died out on me. Won’t turn on or do nothing. Just kept giving me different display messages. I had never experienced this kind of problems
When was the last time you replaced your 12V?
Refreshing to see and listen to an honest and knowledgeable mechanic. I would take my vehicle to him in a heartbeat!
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