What 389 owners told NHTSA about the 2018 GMC Acadia Denali

Shifting to park and vehicle stating the vehicle is not in park, won't let me turn the vehicle off. Transmission going out, brought to many shops letting me know that the transmission is not working properly but won't give an engine light if anything is wrong with vehicle, Wont show on readers what is wrong with vehicle. Electrical, Doors will automatically lock and unlock most times lock and locks me in the vehicle having me have to climb through the windows and having to leave my windows open or locks me out the vehicle and can only get in by climbing in the trunk. Testing has been done and brought to GM to figure out the issue, and they replace the computer in it but still has the problem. I have had shops tell me these are all huge issues that needs to have a recall because my vehicle is not the only GMC Acadia that does all this. How is any of this safe for me and my kids.

NHTSA ODI 11689335

The contact owns a 2018 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while shifted into park(P), the vehicle was unable to be turned off. The message "Shift to Park" was displayed on the instrument panel even though the gear shifter was in park(P). The gear shifter was shifted to park(P) and wiggled several times before the transmission was properly shifted into park and the vehicle was turned off. The contact stated that the failure had occurred once before, and the battery cables were disconnected to turn off the vehicle. The contact became aware of an undisclosed recall online; however, the VIN was not under recall. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 51,800.

NHTSA ODI 11687867

The contact owns a 2018 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while attempting to turn off the vehicle, the "Shift to Park" message was displayed, preventing the vehicle from turning off. After researching the failure, the contact linked the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V172000 (Power Train). The local dealer was contacted and informed the contact that a diagnostic test was needed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.

NHTSA ODI 11687899

The contact owns a 2018 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while parking the vehicle, the gear shifter was shifted into park(P); however, the “Shift to Park” message was displayed. The contact shifted the gear shifter back and forth and then shifted into park(P) before the proper gear was recognized. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

NHTSA ODI 11687520

SHIFT TO PARK WARNING. VEHICLE WILL NOT POWER DOWN.

NHTSA ODI 11686250

The shift to park in my 2018 GMC Acadia was faulty. On many occasions and randomly, the car would be in park but would not turn off, saying I needed to shift it to park in order to turn the car off. This has left me unable to turn my car off resulting in dead batteries and missed appointments and being late for work. This defect is well documented by GM in TSBs PIT5616A, 18-NA-297, and 19-NA-206, which describes the exact symptoms and repair that I had to have completed. This problem has been on going and as a teacher I cannot continue to be late for school because my car, though in park, would not turn off. Given GM’s prior acknowledgement of this defect, I believe reimbursement is warranted. I have never been notified of a recall on this.

NHTSA ODI 11686054

My 2018 GMC Acadia is having the shift to park error. Causing it to not park; or error it causing us not to be able to turn vehicle off or know if it's in park. It pops up multiple times.

NHTSA ODI 11683039

Rear right hand lower suspension control arm broke in half, after further inspection it looks to have been separated from its original factory form which then cause uneven load on the arm causing it to fracture in half. The factory form separation seems to have been ongoing for unknown time due to surface rust is visible at the factory mold separation, where it snapped in half there is no surface rust. Fortunately it happened when I was only moving the vehicle to make space for another, the broken arm cause the wheel to turn to the right as if it was making a right hand turn and I can't imagine if it would have happened while driving in the city of even worse on the freeways... It would be a certain crash and safety for us and those driving around us. Last photo is from Amazon listing, I did order the part from another source that is a factory GM part and I am doing the repairs of replacing this myself as I am mechanically inclined. Thanks

NHTSA ODI 11682397

Shift to park- recall on 2017-2018 Acadia’s Started having issues several months ago- was occasional note constant. I see there has been a recall at one time and it is ac known problem. I am on my 2nd battery!

NHTSA ODI 11682217

After shifting car to “P” park, it still says shift to park and drains the battery.

NHTSA ODI 11678035

The contact owns a 2018 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while parking the vehicle, the gear shifter was shifted into park(P), but the “Shift to Park” message was displayed. The vehicle made an audible chime. The contact shifted the gear shifter back and forth, then shifted into park(P) before the proper gear was recognized. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 107,000.

NHTSA ODI 11677436

The contact owns a 2018 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that upon shifting to park(P), the message "Shift to Park(P)" was displayed intermittently, and the vehicle failed to turn off. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to a dealer, where it was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the same dealer, where it was diagnosed that the shifter module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 129,573.

NHTSA ODI 11677534

When I put my vehicle in park, the message “shift to park” pops up. It has been doing this for well over a year. I have already had to replace a battery once due to this because I didn’t realize it was still on. It does not happen everytime I park but at random times. The more it happens, the longer it takes for it to go off. At this point, I can only hope my car is really in park. I jiggle the shifter, hit the “ +|- “ on the shifter and have to turn the vehicle off and on about five or six times. Eventually it will go off. It took me 20 minutes today for it to go off in 100 degree heat. The vehicle’s AC is not running when trying to get the shifter to go off. It keeps the electronics running but not the AC. I keep waiting to receive a recall on this vehicle because of this issue but still nothing. I have noticed there is a recall for this but not vehicle. I have already replaced one battery due to this issue and do not want to continue to replace batteries and worry if the vehicle is really in park or not.

NHTSA ODI 11677326

My 2018 GMC Acadia has had the "Shift T Park" alarm and indicator going off after my car is turned off and in "PARK" It only happens intermittently, but frequently enough to be annoying. The dealer and GM told me because my VIN wasn't in their recall range, they would not honor the recall. This has been happening since I purchased the car in 2018.

NHTSA ODI 11676988

Battery saver ignited comes on and and the entire dash flickers and turns off ! This happened in a middle of an intersection and I could move my car. We jumped it and went to the nearest auto zone replaced the battery . It was pulling 89 amps . The next day it popped up again and we replaced the alternator. Upon replacing this there was oil everywhere! And we don’t know where it is coming from . Now shift into part light comes on !

NHTSA ODI 11675562

There is a current recall on the 2018 GMC Acadia for a "Shift to Park" issue. It clearly states that GMC is aware of this issue and my vehicle is having this issue but for whatever reason, I am being told we are not part of the recall. My VIN is not coming up with it either but we are having the same issue.

NHTSA ODI 11675335

Component/System: Transmission selector / electrical system (“Shift to Park” defect) Yes, vehicle is available for inspection upon request. I own a 2018 GMC Acadia. Since I purchased the vehicle used in June 2019, the car has frequently displayed a “Shift to Park” message even when the vehicle is in park and the gear shifter is fully engaged. This message prevents the car from turning off completely, leaving electrical systems running, the ignition on, and draining the battery. This issue has persisted nearly daily for the past five years. I brought the vehicle to a GM dealership in September 2020, while it was still under factory warranty, but the problem was not diagnosed or repaired at the time. The dealership could not reproduce the issue, but it continued regularly afterward. I am now paying nearly $900 out of pocket to have it repaired. Safety Risks: The vehicle does not fully shut down, increasing risk of electrical malfunction or battery failure. I am often unsure whether the car is truly “off,” which could pose a fire hazard or lead to the car rolling unexpectedly if the system misreads the gear position. This defect has also caused me to get stuck in unsafe areas, repeatedly turning the car off and on, jiggling the shifter until the system registers park. The constant battery drain has left me stranded with a dead vehicle multiple times. Reproduction / Confirmation: The issue has been reproduced by an independent repair shop and will be fixed at my expense next week. A GM dealership inspected it in 2020 but failed to diagnose or confirm the issue at that time. Inspection: The vehicle has been inspected by a GM-authorized service center. Not inspected by police or insurance representatives. Warning Messages or Symptoms: The “Shift to Park” message appears on the dashboard even after the vehicle is correctly shifted into park. This began shortly after purchasing the vehicle in June 2019, worsened over time, & still has the inability to turn off properly.

NHTSA ODI 11674396

The contact owns a 2018 GMC Acadia C1. The contact stated that his wife was parking in the driveway and upon shifting into the park gear, the vehicle sensor would not register that it was in park, therefore not allowing the engine to be shut off. The contact stated that his wife proceeded to turn the vehicle on and off while continuously shifting the gears until finally placing the shifter into park, and successfully turning the vehicle's engine off. The contact noted that his wife exited the vehicle; however that moments after a loud bang could be heard, and upon inspection, the contact noticed that the vehicle rolled into the garage with the entire front bumper. No property damage was reported. The vehicle came to a stop upon impact. The vehicle was going 3 MPH at the time of the crash. The vehicle did not need to be towed. No warning lights were illuminated however, the "Shift to Park" message will display on the instrument panel. A police report was not filed. The vehicle was not destroyed. The local dealer was contacted however, the vehicle was not diagnosed as the contact was advised that the vehicles VIN was not included in any open recalls. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 90,000.

NHTSA ODI 11673986

Faulty shifter assembly (shift to park) car stays on while in park because of this issue

NHTSA ODI 11672805

Shift To Park appears on the dash display also with a chime warning, when the car is physically in park and the engine is cut off. The shift to park display and the chime stays on causing a complete drain of the battery.

NHTSA ODI 11672035

When placing the gearshift in park a warning on the dashboard says the vehicle is not in park and I get warning bells when shutting the engine off. This has been happening for almost a month.

NHTSA ODI 11668460

When putting my GMC Acadia in Park and shutting off the push start ignition the alarm goes off saying it’s not in park when it is clearly in park so I have to continuously start the car and try to keep putting it in park and shut ignition off. I googled it and saw there was a recall so took it to dealership but my vin was not included. I feel my safety is at risk as my battery also went dead stranding me in another city with my young grandkids on February 23rd, and I had a large bill to get a jump as well, I believe due to this same electrical issue! We are waiting on estimate now to get it fixed which is ridiculous as it is the same issue that is covered on many other of the same model vehicles! You should really look into this and maybe other electrical safety concerns costing consumers thousands of dollars on all these GMC vehicles it doesn’t seem fair. Thank you.

NHTSA ODI 11663228

The shift to park notification keeps coming on everytime we go to put the car into park. It takes about five to ten minutes shifting back and forth to get the car to shut off.

NHTSA ODI 11662533

"Shift to park" warning error when vehicle is in park. Although I have heard there was a recall, I am not seeing any when I've entered my vin #. The issue has happened multiple times over the last 6 months

NHTSA ODI 11662634

For the past two weeks, when the Acadia is put into park and the engine is turned off, the warning bell chimes nonstop and a dashboard message appears to put the vehicle into park even though it is already in park. The vehicle needs to be restarted and then put into drive or reverse and then back into park. With irregularity it may or may not work. Sometimes the car must be turned on and off 5 or 6 times before it recognizes that the transmission is truly in park.

NHTSA ODI 11661712