How are the Acadia's holding up?

sunliner

Original poster
Member
Mar 25, 2012
365
Hey guys.
To get to the question: Those of you with older Acadias, how are they holding up? Do ya have to put a lot of money in to keep them running?
Going to be getting a new vehicle later this year. Currently in an 06 Trailblazer.
Been my experience with this rig and the Blazer that I had before it, I've had a good first 3-4 years, then stuff starts failing (water pump, alternators, starters etc). It was fun and games when I was younger but I'm tired of working on my truck all the time. I would love to get a 4Runner or Highlander but don't know if I can afford those. A one or two year old Acadia seems to be in my price range, but I don't want to start having to pump money into it about the time I get the payments out of the way.
 

Mounce

Member
Mar 29, 2014
13,667
Tuscaloosa, AL
All I know from working on them daily is they eat oil, feed oil directly into the intake tube through the nonexistent pcv valve and often are ticking like a mofo due to internal damage because everyone let's them run low on oil.

Think I've seen one alternator issue and one ac issue for sure. Besides the motor all else seems to be solid.

Have heard of trans issues but haven't seen in person.
 

northcreek

Member
Jan 15, 2012
3,310
WNY
If this is in reference to the 3.6L V6, I have had/have two of them with no oil issues, same with my 5.3 which is supposed to eat oil. I always use Mobil 1 which may or may not be the reason.
Oil consumption is a recent phenom and it is reported in all makes, supposedly due to less ring tension designed to decrease friction and improve mileage.
I don't think that you can totally escape this oil consumption feeling of impending doom, no matter what vehicle you buy.
 
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sunliner

Original poster
Member
Mar 25, 2012
365
Ah.... so pretty much a trailblazer by another name. That's what I needed to know. The I6 on my Trailblazer has always sucked oil in just the manner you mentioned (including that 'tick'). I've learned to keep at least two qts in the garage to top off. I don't remember my old Blazer eating oil like that. I will say that I've never had an engine issue with either vehicle (hope I didn't just jinx myself...), but just about everything else starts going after a few years, even with regular maintenance. Appreciate the information...I'm proceeding my plan to get away from GM.

All I know from working on them daily is they eat oil, feed oil directly into the intake tube through the nonexistent pcv valve and often are ticking like a mofo due to internal damage because everyone let's them run low on oil.

Think I've seen one alternator issue and one ac issue for sure. Besides the motor all else seems to be solid.

Have heard of trans issues but haven't seen in person.
 

Sparky

Member
Dec 4, 2011
12,927
The 3.6L and the 4.2L have zero in common aside from being 6 cylinders and made by GM. Totally different engines, designs, etc. And the Acadia is a totally different platform as well, so no, it is not "a trailblazer by another name."

Sucks about some people's experiences, but my 02 Trailblazer - a first year model no less - had 215k miles on it and used 1 qt or slightly more between 10k mile oil changes. It had some issues, yes, but it was a high mile 14 year old vehicle by that point.

Are you really going to get mad that an alternator failed on a 12 year old vehicle? Somehow I doubt that alternators, water pumps, and everything starts blowing up at the 4 year mark. Not discounting some things may fail early, but come on.

Don't be surprised if the highlander or whatever you think may be far superior actually has issues too. Any vehicle can, I don't care who makes it. I know a guy who has a highlander, and it is very "trailblazer-ish" where overall a solid vehicle but just has some level of stupid built into it or something that breaks. Because they're made by people, and people aren't perfect.

Anyway... rant mode off.
 

sunliner

Original poster
Member
Mar 25, 2012
365
All good, I've been having a good rant or two myself
On the ol Blazer,,,by the time it was 3 years old, had already replaced intake manifold, alternator and water pump. Next few years saw various seals,starter, transmission, etc. On the Trailblazer the alternator went when the vehicle was 6 years old, not 12 (I wasn't clear on that).
Now I realize that out of MILLIONS of vehicles out there by dozens of manufacturers, the 5 that we've owned over the last 20 or so years isn't a fair sample size. But all I know is that the two Toyotas that we had that were >10 years old combined, cost less than $800 in repairs by the time we traded (the 3rd seems to be doing well but it's only a 2014, so too soon to tell). Each Chevy has run me way more than that individually, by their 5 th years of life. And yeah, I know that I could buy a 'yota tomorrow and it *could* blow up the next month-anything could. But gotta play the odds....and why I asked about the Acadia....pretty obvious that I'm biased but I like to entertain other's experience and opinion. Including yours.
 

littleblazer

Member
Jul 6, 2014
9,265
Disclaimer: I was very drunk when I wrote my first response than drank more and decided that it was bad. So this is what I replaced it with.

I have and know people with lots of different vehicles. Basically what it comes down to is how well you take care of it and beat on it. The gm vehicles we have that get the living snot kicked out of them have lasted north of 200k. (The 3500 didn't have an oil change for 60k miles and made it to 208...) GMs for whatever reason seem to like being matted for their entire life. That being said my friend had an Acadia for 100k and besides the oil consumption (pretty much every vehicle seems to have this issue now for God knows what reason) it went through the lease with no issue.

Sorry about this.
 

Mooseman

Moderator
Dec 4, 2011
25,257
Ottawa, ON
Just a little background. We have been seeing a few "ranters" lately knocking on GM trucks in general and it is tiresome to see that here. It's discouraging for us enthusiasts who are trying to keep our and other's trucks going and modding them to our liking when someone comes along and "I'm fixing this POS just so I can sell it".

The 360/370's are basically on the endangered species list with the last ones rolling out in Dec. 2008. Except for the SS, Aero and those that have been modified to the hilt, they will disappear into oblivion as they are just SUV's to most people. My 02 EXT died mostly of rust cancer and wasn't worth replacing the tranny. I bought another low mileage '07 and it might wind up being one of the last ones on the road around here.

Getting back a bit more on-topic :smile:. I think climate also has a lot of influence on how long a vehicle lasts. Our resident Frenchy @trailblazer075 has an '02 with over 325k km (200k miles) and still going strong. Sure he's had issues but rust isn't one of them and hasn't had any major issues. They do have some sort of rule that they can't even have surface rust on the frame during safety inspections and he has had to repaint the entire undercarriage of his truck. Anyway, guys in the southern states can probably attest that they see a lot more old vehicles down there than the rust belt. 80's vehicles are basically non-existent here, 90's are rare, 00's are making way for the newer ones. Look at Cuba where they have been preserving '50's vehicles forever because of the embargo.

:rant:
 

HARDTRAILZ

Moderator
Nov 18, 2011
49,665
3 of the 4 I know of...mine, mother in law, two cousins had the trans wave plate issue. It is a standard at my buddys dealership and not cheap. I am glad we dumped ours honestly as the MILs has problems monthly
 

shovenose

Member
Apr 24, 2016
318
SF Bay Area, CA
Trailblazers and related were much more reliable than Acadias and related. I would not recommend a modern FWD GM SUV to anybody if you wanted to make it to 200K miles, which you could do in a Trailblazer with some maintenance. The Acadias and related have crappy transmissions and crappy engines. Compare that to something like a Ford Escape, the transmissions are garbage but the rest is OK. Yes, I know, the Escape is smaller, but my point is, GM isn't getting it right with the newer small stuff - come on, when your choices are an oil-burner 2.4 or a timing-chain-tossing V6, what is better? Neither. Now, full-size trucks and SUVs, GM is still the leader in reliability and lower cost of ownership.
 
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Sparky

Member
Dec 4, 2011
12,927
The 3.6 has not had timing chain tossing problems for several years now. The first few years of that engine were problematic though.
 

shovenose

Member
Apr 24, 2016
318
SF Bay Area, CA
The 3.6 has not had timing chain tossing problems for several years now. The first few years of that engine were problematic though.
Up til 2011 it was an issue, after that, who knows...
 

Sparky

Member
Dec 4, 2011
12,927
Apparently there have been multiple versions of the 3.6L. LY7, LLT, LFX, LCS, LF3, blah blah. The older ones were problematic, newer ones (post 2011) have a new chain design (and the newer you get, you get newer block and head designs also).

If it was me, I'd avoid the 3.6L from before 2012-ish. Past that, I wouldn't be too worried about it.
 

Eric04

Member
Dec 3, 2014
392
West Michigan
The 2.4L had a redesign at about the same time as the 3.6L, in part to address oil consumption issues. Hey, it's a 4 banger so it's never going to be special, but the complaints I've seen from the earlier years have lines like, "The DIC said the oil is 30% good but the dealer said I was nearly two quarts low". And even better, "Why should I have to get dirty and check fluids in a modern engine?" ... ... Really man, a lot of problems can be mitigated by people being less lazy /or stupid. Gas -n- go ain't gonna get it no matter what you're rolling in.

That aside, I've put 40K on my 04 TB and haven't had to do anything beyond the routine. I love the truck. Like Moose said, only the rust cancer is a concern.

As for the Acadia in particular, I've not known any owners who didn't get nickle and dimed by it. Though TBF, none were recent editions so IDK if they've improved.
 
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Dec 17, 2011
323
LAGNY SUR MARNE FRANCE
yes, in France, the weather conditions are not as harsh, and technical controls do not accept rust, so every year I pass a product of protection. my truck is washed regularly especially below. I'm also lucky to have a very good quality that gives me no pronleme
 

brianlibby791

Member
Feb 25, 2017
239
New Jersey
My mom has the Cadillac SRX (Same 3.6 v6 in the Acadia) never a problem. As well as a traverse before that with no problems. I really don’t see an issue with the new mid size suv’s besides certain body designs *cough cough 2012 traverse cough cough*.
 
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mntegra01

Member
Mar 26, 2018
86
Virginia
As a parts counter guy at a GM dealer, I think all the Traverse, Acadia, Enclave vehicles are trash. The only thing we don't replace on those are steering wheels and cup holders. Maybe if you get a 14 or 15 and newer, you might be ok.
things we stock and or replace often are...
  • timing chains
  • cylinder heads
  • entire engine
  • rebuild the trans from broken wave plate
  • power steering pumps
  • P/S racks
  • P/S hoses
  • front control arm bushings
  • wheel speed sensors
  • Air bag lights (seat connectors)
  • Rear upper links
  • Radios
  • Headlights, whole assembly from melted bulbs in housing
  • Taillights, while assembly on newer LED units
  • Door Latches
  • Trunk Latch
  • Throttle Bodies
  • water pump
  • starter
  • alternator
  • Front AC evaporator
  • Rear evaporator
  • discharge AC hose
  • AC line set that runs under entire car to rear.
I guarantee that anyone with 80k miles on that type of vehicle will have replaced half of that part list. A LOT is already covered by special policy and bulletins, because they know its junk.

Had a customer who just got one of these and came into the shop and asked what we think of them, well I looked around and we had 4 Acadia/Travy/Enclaves in the air all torn apart including his own.
 
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mntegra01

Member
Mar 26, 2018
86
Virginia
And basically what brought me here (to GMT Nation) was buying a 2003 Trailblazer base base base as basic as you can get 2WD LS. No tint, No cruise control, no steering controls, 3.73 gear, but apparently by VIN it has the 25 gallon tank but light comes on and I fill it at with 19-20 gallons. I bought it for $240 with no movement in the trans, I rebuilt the trans, it was a cracked rotor in the pump (added a corvette 2-4 servo). Then worked from there fixing it all back, of course labor was free, but I will have close to $4,000 in it soon. It had 182,000 miles on it and I think everything was original to it. The spark plugs had a part number on them that were discontinued in 2006. So there were a lot of things I have done, Weather Tech Mats, found an OE cargo cover on Ebay, airbag coil, LR window regulator, suspension all around, control arm brackets, upper arms, front sway links, PCM tune from PCM of NC. But I honestly thing everything was OE from the factory line, no rust under it either. Came from Georgia originally.

Having said that, I am certain to get another 150,000 miles out of the trailblazer, if I lived more that 5 miles from work.

Most of us are on here for help and to work on our own vehicle instead of paying someone else to work on our car. But on an Acadia, unless you have a lift and extra special tools, working on it yourself is nearly impossible. ..... But let's not bash GM too hard, government regulations and requirements are harsh all across the board on all car makers, and each has their own faults. Too many creature comforts and electronics in newer vehicles can go wrong and it sucks paying $1000 for a module and then it HAS to be programmed by dealer. Anyways, sorry for long rant, I'm just a parts guy with a little knowledge here to help and share.
 

hockeyman

Member
Aug 26, 2012
726
I have an '11 Acadia and have had the water pump replaced, twice, by GM. I also had to remove the intake plenum to replace the # 1 coil due to it having a small leaking issue and letting water into the spark plug tunnel causing a misfire.
I did the coils myself and while the intake was off, I went ahead and just replaced all of the Coils & AC Delco 'plugs along with a new intake gasket. Not a hard job at all, just time consuming. Overkill, yes, but "peace-of-mind" for me.

I did buy an extended GM warranty when purchasing it. It currently has around 41,xxx on the odometer.

I like it, other than not having nearly as much interior room as my old '03 Envoy XL. I say it all the time when typing here, but I miss my Envoy!! There were too many issues that kept appearing though and I needed something that was a bit more, uhh, ... reliable. :eyebrowhuh:
 

mntegra01

Member
Mar 26, 2018
86
Virginia
... I forgot about coils failing.

But yeah, it is 'nice' and comforting having a new vehicle. They (Acadia/Enclave/Traverse) are nice luxurious comfortable modern cars. But for me going from a 2 door coupe Integra for 14 years to a mid-size SUV (03 Trailblazer 2WD), I'm super happy.
 

hockeyman

Member
Aug 26, 2012
726
... I forgot about coils failing.

The problem with the #1 coil was that the rubber boot wasn't seated properly. Rain water was coming from the rad area, entering the kinked boot which was getting down into the spark plug tunnel. Do not know who removed/installed the coil, but it definitely wasn't done properly. The coil was actually working fine. The #1 plug was in bad shape and in need of replacing. I already purchased all new coils, plugs and an intake gasket, so I just kept with the game plan and put all new parts in.

If and when possible, I like to do any and all maintenance myself just so I know it was done properly. I've seen some (not all) of the work by GM dealerships here in Southwest Florida and it makes me cringe. I'd almost swear that some dealerships here hire high school kids without any previous training!

Since I have your attention, are there any known problems with these Acadia's pulling a 1,500lb trailer? Mine is a FWD SLE.

Thank you!
 

mntegra01

Member
Mar 26, 2018
86
Virginia
Since I have your attention, are there any known problems with these Acadia's pulling a 1,500lb trailer? Mine is a FWD SLE.

I honestly don't know. I do know that if you find one the has the trailering provisions, you are lucky, other wise it is not an easy plug and play setup, from what I know.

I'd almost swear that some dealerships here hire high school kids without any previous training!

I know, I wish they would fire an oil changer here, he has experience but he is lazy and doesn't care. But seems management doesn't see or understand.
 
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