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My wife's "American made" GMC Acadia...

Keitha

Keitha

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2014 GMC Acadia, Just under 100,000 miles. Troubleshooting Service Airbag, Service Stabilitrack, Service Traction Control messages and this is what I see everywhere in the car:
How can they keep saying "made in America" when every component is made in China and Indonesia?
Airbag problem turns out to be a connector under the passenger seat. I unplugged all the connectors, made sure the wires are firmly set in the plugs and reconnected them. The message went away.
Similar to the Stabilitrack error: I think it turns out to be bad connections on wire harnesses under the hood.
I'm really becoming anti- new GM. The quality and engineering of this car leaves a lot to be desired.

wire.jpg

wire 2.jpg
 
should be assembled in USA with globally sourced parts and components .

there is strict rules on specific % of each level of wording for made / assembled / manufactured / built in the USA tag rights to be on a item .
 
I understand your point @Keitha , but apparently this problem is rampant. I have found Cummins parts made in China for years, and they like to push their "genuine Cummins " idea. It is really bad to me when I pull an idler pulley off, is says Dayco on it, original to the engine as it's the original paint, and the Cummins replacement part is Dayco as well. However it's 3 times more money than one direct from Dayco.

New vehicles are getting to be like politicians, try to pick the best of the worst.

My wife's 2011 Acadia has 127,000 on it, and has been very good to us. We got it brand new and only had a couple of recalls. The wiring recall for the front side airbags hadn't given us any problems before they did it, but the tech who did it broke the tabs for the rear trim panels in the seats. Too bad it took a couple of years for them to fail after that. The damage was obvious after that from the white stress marks in the plastic.
 
Just so you know, GM isn't playing by themselves with globally sourced parts. They all do it. Not saying it's right, but going to Ford or Chrysler(FIAT) solely over where the parts came from is going to set you up for a letdown.
 
"Assembled In America" should be what they call it..
Most car makers have used parts from all over the world in "domestic" American vehicles since the 1980's...

I suppose GM is using the soybean based wiring insulation that mice and rats devour now like everyone else too..:surepal:
 
Another thing about car companies these days is they have the mentality of, "If it's not broken..........fix it anyways." This leads to more complexity, and i think less reliability.
 
vandelay industries said:
Another thing about car companies these days is they have the mentality of, "If it's not broken..........fix it anyways." This leads to more complexity, and i think less reliability.
Click to expand...
That's the planned obsolescence.
It's a term my dad learned from an an American ceo in 1976.
You keep changing things so older becomes obsolete
 
This is partly (mostly?) consumer-driven. New car buyers want the latest/"greatest". I've overheard people saying things like "but that's the same engine Chevy has been selling for years. I'd rather have the newer one in the Ford". For $30k-$80k people don't want the same car their neighbor has, they want something that looks newer. You might not even realize your car is getting "old" until you see the newer body style on the road.
 
Where are they advertising "made in the USA" cause I can't remember the last time I saw GM advertise that
 
Blue85 said:
This is partly (mostly?) consumer-driven. New car buyers want the latest/"greatest". I've overheard people saying things like "but that's the same engine Chevy has been selling for years. I'd rather have the newer one in the Ford". For $30k-$80k people don't want the same car their neighbor has, they want something that looks newer. You might not even realize your car is getting "old" until you see the newer body style on the road.
Click to expand...

For some folks with some mentalities, yes, but overall I’m thinking we are reaching a tipping point.

Many states have ramped up the requirements for vehicles to pass inspection. Sometimes they get repealed or toned down after a year of consumer complaints, while some get more strict. I’ve lived in several states recently where this has played out in different ways.

Some of those who think things through are fed up and going back to gently-used, older vehicles. A career mechanic I know has “retroverted” his family’s cars from modern ones to 1990s vintage completely over the last two years or so. He’s just had enough of the bells and whistles going wrong or being increasingly difficult to repair. That’s just one example. An older gentleman I know got rid of a newer pickup of some sort, bought a 98 Tahoe for snow and a tiny econobox for commuting and couldn’t be happier. That’s actually one of the newer vehicles I’ve heard of someone switching to! Heck I admit that I search my local Craigslist every single day looking for something older and simple that I’d consider selling my daily driver for.
 
GoGoGirl said:
For some folks with some mentalities, yes, but overall I’m thinking we are reaching a tipping point.

Many states have ramped up the requirements for vehicles to pass inspection. Sometimes they get repealed or toned down after a year of consumer complaints, while some get more strict. I’ve lived in several states recently where this has played out in different ways.

Some of those who think things through are fed up and going back to gently-used, older vehicles. A career mechanic I know has “retroverted” his family’s cars from modern ones to 1990s vintage completely over the last two years or so. He’s just had enough of the bells and whistles going wrong or being increasingly difficult to repair. That’s just one example. An older gentleman I know got rid of a newer pickup of some sort, bought a 98 Tahoe for snow and a tiny econobox for commuting and couldn’t be happier. That’s actually one of the newer vehicles I’ve heard of someone switching to! Heck I admit that I search my local Craigslist every single day looking for something older and simple that I’d consider selling my daily driver for.
Click to expand...

I traded in my beloved 05' D-max extended cab and got a 17' F-350 Powerstroke crew cab that's LOADED. It has so many features that I know it's only a matter of time until it needs dealer type work on some computer controled computer that work with a computer on the computer. That said it's hands down the nicest truck I've driven and I love it, I don't worry about my wife taking it and the horse trailer to shows etc as it just handles grossing 22,000# and performs flawless. But it also bugs me to no end to use it as a truck (muddy boots, clothes covered in hay, kids and clients eating in it etc.) It's such a big investment that it's hard to use as it should be used.

We have a 02' Dodge Cummins dually for the ranch that spends a lot of time sitting in the winter, I've adopted that as "my" truck for the winter and LOVE it. It's old, half the crap in the interior doesn't work, the seats are beat up, but I don't mind if it gets muddy going snowmobiling, it has a burly ass flat bed on it that holds snowmobiles perfectly, I toss my gear bag and boots in without care etc. It's nice to just have a damn truck.

I daily drive a company Ford focus that doesn't even have power windows or locks. It's so simple that it will probably last indefinitely. Ideally I would like to replace my old D-max with a nice Crew cab flat bed gently used truck that has the new taken off of it and has some ability to be easily tuned and turned up. Then I can leave the Ford to my wife and her horse business and have a truck again.
 
Keitha said:
2014 GMC Acadia, Just under 100,000 miles. Troubleshooting Service Airbag, Service Stabilitrack, Service Traction Control messages and this is what I see everywhere in the car:
How can they keep saying "made in America" when every component is made in China and Indonesia?
Airbag problem turns out to be a connector under the passenger seat. I unplugged all the connectors, made sure the wires are firmly set in the plugs and reconnected them. The message went away.
Similar to the Stabilitrack error: I think it turns out to be bad connections on wire harnesses under the hood.
I'm really becoming anti- new GM. The quality and engineering of this car leaves a lot to be desired.

View attachment 292413

View attachment 292414
Click to expand...


My wife has a 2012 Acadia Denali. And its having the same damn problems. Hate it!
 
My wife's 2009 Murano AWD had all the drive train lights come on and it was caused
by the rear breaks pads being very worn. Put new pads all around and all lights
went away. Hate new cars.
 
Both my 2015 GMC and my 2017 GMC have been trouble free. I had two small recalls on the 2015, and none so far on the 2017.

I had an Acadia as a rental once. Not a fan. I prefer my wife's 2002 Durango heads up, warts and all. I think the Durango could take it in a race too. lol

Even with the good experience with both my newer GMC's I'd rather have a decent older DD. A GMT 400, or even a decent mild square. I need to get the '17 paid down enough that selling it is an option before that happens though.
 
I won't buy another brand new vehicle, ever. That's saying a lots considering I work at a dealer. $50 grand for a low level LT half ton is beyond nuts. Low 40's for a Colorado? Again it's nuts. I'm not as concerned with the source of the parts, but the overload on complexity is too much.

My dd is a 97 S10 with 328,000 miles. Crank windows, manual locks, Kenwood stereo. 5 speed/4.3 and gets 24 mpg (2wd). Love it. I have a a love hate thing for my 04 trailblazer, but it's pretty basic too. They are easy to work on. Parts aren't an arm and a leg. Just keep up on the maintenance and they keep running.
 
ZooMad75 said:
I won't buy another brand new vehicle, ever. That's saying a lots considering I work at a dealer. $50 grand for a low level LT half ton is beyond nuts. Low 40's for a Colorado? Again it's nuts. I'm not as concerned with the source of the parts, but the overload on complexity is too much.

My dd is a 97 S10 with 328,000 miles. Crank windows, manual locks, Kenwood stereo. 5 speed/4.3 and gets 24 mpg (2wd). Love it. I have a a love hate thing for my 04 trailblazer, but it's pretty basic too. They are easy to work on. Parts aren't an arm and a leg. Just keep up on the maintenance and they keep running.
Click to expand...
So would you recommend that I keep the '11 Acadia as long as possible? My wife likes to have some nice options, but she wouldn't pay for even the navigation system when we got this one new. So she isn't completely blinded by the "toys" lure. She has 125K on it and it has been very good in my opinion.
And I have witnessed enough of the crap that others have been through with Chrysler and Ford products, HELL NO! And I have a buddy who works at a Dodge dealer parts department. He showed me the pile of wiring that had been replaced in vehicles, scary.
 
ZooMad75 said:
I won't buy another brand new vehicle, ever. That's saying a lots considering I work at a dealer. $50 grand for a low level LT half ton is beyond nuts. Low 40's for a Colorado? Again it's nuts. I'm not as concerned with the source of the parts, but the overload on complexity is too much.

My dd is a 97 S10 with 328,000 miles. Crank windows, manual locks, Kenwood stereo. 5 speed/4.3 and gets 24 mpg (2wd). Love it. I have a a love hate thing for my 04 trailblazer, but it's pretty basic too. They are easy to work on. Parts aren't an arm and a leg. Just keep up on the maintenance and they keep running.
Click to expand...

I bought the 2015 at a time when having the write off was something I needed. Shortly after I got it I ended up an hourly employee somewhere else, no ability to write off the pick-up payment anymore...except now I'm stuck with the payment. The '17 was a deal where they put me in a brand new truck, same loan term, better optioned for about $125 a month less.

Both the '15 and the '17 are mid level SLE models. Not terribly overburdened with stupid shit, but decent enough. The '17 was $48K out the door, took no hit on the '15 when I traded because the mileage was so low (traded in with 21,000 miles)

I like the truck, but it's a lot of money. If I could go back and have a "do-over" I'd still be driving my '96 BMW E36. Cheap fun, never let me down, super cheap on gas. As it is I'm on the fence now. Get the 17 paid off and keep it forever, or pay it down enough to be able to sell it and stay right side up in a year or two and go back to older stuff. Dunno yet...jury still out.
 
6872xtc said:
So would you recommend that I keep the '11 Acadia as long as possible? My wife likes to have some nice options, but she wouldn't pay for even the navigation system when we got this one new. So she isn't completely blinded by the "toys" lure. She has 125K on it and it has been very good in my opinion.
And I have witnessed enough of the crap that others have been through with Chrysler and Ford products, HELL NO! And I have a buddy who works at a Dodge dealer parts department. He showed me the pile of wiring that had been replaced in vehicles, scary.
Click to expand...

Loaded question. I get to see the best and the worst in that vehicle platform (Traverse/Acadia/Enclave and the Saturn Outlook nobody remembers). 11 is new enough not to have the 3-5-R wave plate failure in the 6 speed trans, so that's good. If it's been maintained well, it's worth keeping. However, the 3.6 is one hell of a sludge monster if the oil change interval gets pushed to 7,000 miles or more between services. I see the sludge really come in at 100k and later. Timing chains stretch and starts setting cam correlation codes like mad when the cam phaser actuators get plugged with debris/sludge. You could still see a water pump leak which is it's own issue. The earlier ones like yours could have a power steering issue develop where it whines or flat out looses power steering all the way. Fix is a pump, valve in the rack and changing fluid from normal P/S fluid to Dexron VI ATF. That runs about $1200-1400 to do if it's outside of a special coverage.

Bottom line, one that has been taken care of usually still keep ticking past 100k. The funny thing is those not maintained well seem to get much worse with multiple issues that I noted that seem to be higher than average.
 
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