2013 GMC Acadia

Showing the 2013 Acadia SLE 2. We haven't verified this trim's engine; the numbers below cover every version of this model year. Every version

Owner complaints, recalls, fuel economy and safety ratings from public NHTSA and EPA data, updated Oct 17, 2026.

Fuel economy
18–19 mpgcombined; city 16–17, highway 23–24; every version of this model year
Five years of fuel
$17,100–$18,050U.S. average; Ohio $15,280–$16,120 at local prices; every version of this model year; fuel only, not other costs of owning it; 15,000 miles a year, at EIA fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026
NHTSA overall safety rating
5 starslowest across the versions NHTSA tested
Recall campaigns
3over its history; check a VIN for open ones
Owner complaints
135filed with NHTSA; not adjusted for sales

Trims

NHTSA's VIN data lists these trims for the 2013 Acadia. A trim's engine and numbers are shown as its own only where EPA names versions after the trim and no other version could be it; "seen with" means a source shows that engine on the trim, not that it was the only one. Recalls and complaints cover the whole model year: whether a recall applies to a car depends on its VIN, on NHTSA's recall lookup.

Problems owners report

Owners have filed 135 complaints with NHTSA about the 2013 Acadia. These are unverified owner reports, counted by the part of the car they name; one complaint can name several parts. Counts aren't adjusted for how many were sold, so they don't show how reliable a car is.

Complaints by part of the car
PartComplaintsCrashesFiresInjuries
Electrical system38050
Air bags29303
Power train27101
Engine21040
Unknown or other21030
Exterior lighting10000
Steering8000
Electronic stability control (ESC)6010
Vehicle speed control6010
Fuel/propulsion system5010
Structure5020
Lane departure4000
10 more parts
Seat belts4202
Service brakes3000
Seats2100
Back over prevention1000
Equipment1000
Fuel system, gasoline1000
Suspension1000
Traction control system1000
Visibility1000
Visibility/wiper1000

Complaints by model year

Newer years have had less time to collect complaints, and counts aren't adjusted for sales, so a shorter bar doesn't mean a more reliable year.

  1. 2007428
  2. 2008854
  3. 2009331
  4. 2010343
  5. 2011269
  6. 2012296
  7. 2013135
  8. 2014463
  9. 2015243
  10. 2016236
  11. 2017705
  12. 2018396
  13. 2019387
  14. 2020106
  15. 2021152
  16. 202249
  17. 202346
  18. 202461
  19. 202567
  20. 20269

Every Acadia year side by side

Recalls

NHTSA lists 3 recall campaigns for the 2013 Acadia over its history. Campaigns are matched by model and year, so each one may apply to a given car, and its repair may already be done: check a VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup for the open recalls on that exact car.

Air bags: critical fasteners

NHTSA campaign 21V246000 · reported Apr 8, 2021 · 108 vehicles potentially affected

General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2010-2015, 2017 Buick Enclave, 2010-2019 Chevrolet Traverse, and 2011-2016 GMC Acadia vehicles. The side curtain air bags may not be properly attached.

Risk: Unsecured side curtain air bags may not perform as intended, increasing the risk of injury.

Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, realign or replace the weld nuts, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 24, 2021. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N202321200.

NHTSA's record and documents

Seat belts

NHTSA campaign 14V266000 · reported May 20, 2014 · 1,339,355 vehicles potentially affected

General Motors is recalling certain model year 2009-2014 Buick Enclave vehicles manufactured April 14, 2008, through May 14, 2014, Chevrolet Traverse vehicles manufactured June 6, 2008, through May 14, 2014, and GMC Acadia vehicles manufactured April 9, 2008, through May 14, 2014, and 2009-2010 Saturn Outlook vehicles manufactured April 14, 2008, through March 18, 2010. In the affected vehicles, the flexible steel cable that connects the seatbelt to the front outboard seating positions may fatigue and separate over time.

Risk: If the steel cable becomes fatigued and separates, the seatbelt may not properly restrain the seat occupant increasing the risk of an injury in a crash.

Remedy: General Motors will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, repair and replace the lap pretensioner, free of charge. Parts are not currently available. An interim notice will be mailed to owners in July 2014. A second notice will be mailed to owners once parts become available. The recall for the 2009-2010 model years began on July 11, 2014. The interim letter for the 2011-2014 model years were distributed on July 11, 2014. Owners may contact General Motors at 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet), 1-800-521-7300 (Buick), 1-800-462-8782 (GMC), 1-800-553-6000 (Saturn). General Motors recall number for this campaign is 14187.

NHTSA's record and documents

Air bags: side/window

NHTSA campaign 14V118000 · reported Mar 17, 2014 · 1,176,407 vehicles potentially affected

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.

NHTSA's record and documents

Service bulletins and investigations

Carmakers sent NHTSA 1,694 service bulletins and notices that cover the 2013 Acadia, the latest on Sep 26, 2026. They tell dealers how to fix known issues.

The parts they mention most: equipment (742), electrical system (327), engine and engine cooling (184), engine (139), power train (122).

NHTSA defect investigations

Opening an investigation isn't a finding of a defect. Outcomes are as NHTSA's summary states them. A recall is shown as an investigation's outcome only where NHTSA's summary names it; other recalls NHTSA's file lists with it are marked as listed, not caused.

InvestigationPartOpenedStatus
Engineering analysis EA20002
Outboard Front Seat Belt Anchor Cable Failure · covers 4 makes
Seat beltsAug 31, 2020Closed Aug 30, 2024
NHTSA's summary names recall 14V266000
NHTSA's record and documents
Recall query RQ19003
Seat Belt Anchor Cable Failure · covers 4 makes
Seat beltsMay 28, 2019Closed Aug 31, 2020
NHTSA's summary names recall 14V266000, 15V269000, 16V209000, 16V518000
NHTSA's record and documents

Maintenance

Oil

The owner's manual gives the oil and how often to change it. We show oil facts only once we've checked them against the manual, and we haven't yet for the 2013 Acadia.

Oil change near you: Jiffy Lube · Take 5

Used ones for sale

See used 2013 GMC Acadias for sale on: Autotrader · CarMax

These are searches on those sites; we don't copy or check their listings. Your ZIP is used for these links and never kept.

Specs

EPA class: standard sport utility vehicle. EPA greenhouse gas score: 4 out of 10. Each version EPA tested:

VersionEngineTransmissionFuelCity / hwy / comb
Acadia
Front-Wheel Drive
3.6 L, 6 cylAutomatic 6-spdRegular Gasoline17 / 24 / 19
Acadia
All-Wheel Drive
3.6 L, 6 cylAutomatic 6-spdRegular Gasoline16 / 23 / 18

Sources and dates

Fuel cost: EPA mpg with fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026 and electricity prices for Jul 2026. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (Oct 2026). Complaints are unverified reports owners filed with NHTSA. About the data