What 374 owners told NHTSA about the 2019 GMC Acadia Denali

As previously reported by other owners of a 2017, 2018, 2019 Acadia- the “shift to park” message appears once I have put my car in park and turned it off. I have to restart my car, move the shifter to reverse, back up a tad bit, and put it back in park for the message to go away so I am able to turn my car off.

NHTSA ODI 11611968

My radio is going crazy. Like going through every radio station, calls people. Its a distraction. And after researching how to fix I noticed thousands of people have the same problem. Almost cause an accident because of the distraction and this is obvious problem in GMC.

NHTSA ODI 11611767

Purchased this vehicle with 49,000 miles on it. Currently, it has 55,000. When I shift the car into park and turn it off. I am met with a consistent ding and error messages displaying “Shift to Park.” With this error message I am unable to fully turn my car off, it drains the battery and I cannot lock my car door. I have to turn the car back on and mess with the shifter which sometime takes a longtime. I cannot just leave my car on and drain the other components; it’s frustrating. I called my local GMC dealer. I told them about the current issues with these cars as it isn’t a secret that this is a common problem. I pointed out the TBS on this make and model and I’m expected to pay for this out of pocket because my powertrain warranty ended June 30th 2024.

NHTSA ODI 11611427

Last week I parked in a large public parking lot and attempted to turn my car off. I received a notification in my dash to “shift to park” even though my car was already in park. I was unable to turn the car off or lock the doors. I ended up having to leave. I have now gotten this message six times in the past week. It can take up to twenty minutes to get the car to turn off so I can exit. Yesterday upon returning to the car I showed an error message as soon as I started it that the parking brake needed service, stabilitrak is disabled and steering assist is disabled- drive with care. As I tried to exit the parking lot, I found it almost impossible to turn the steering week. I pulled over and restarted the car, releasing the steering wheel so I could get home. This morning, all of the service lights were on and periodic warnings flashed on my dash throughout my drive to work. I contacted the dealership and was told that there is a recall for this exact issue on the 2015-2018 models of my car. I have a 2019. This is certainly a dangerous issue that should be proactively fixed and is clearly still present in years that are not being included in the recall. I was told my car was one month past its warranty and told I could pay 250$ for the issue to be assessed and then they could quote me on a fix. The dealership acknowledged that this is an issue they regularly fix.

NHTSA ODI 11610953

See attached document for complaint.

NHTSA ODI 11610224

See attached document for complaint.

NHTSA ODI 11609964

My car will not shut off as I am parked and “shift to park” is alerting me. The car keeps beeping. I have to re-start it multiple times and shift it in and out of park for it to finally go off. This last time it took 25 min to shut my car off.

NHTSA ODI 11609061

Shift to park sign appears and doesn’t disappear until I turn and off the car multiple times. It’s been retuning problem for the past two months.

NHTSA ODI 11608819

The contact owns a 2019 GMC Acadia. The contact stated after shifting to park(P) and attempting to turn off the vehicle, the message "Shift to Park" was displayed. The contact stated that upon shifting out of park(P) and shifting to park(P) several times, the vehicle responded as needed. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the "Shift to Park" switch had failed and needed to be replaced. The dealer provided an estimate for the repair; however, the vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to an unknown recall. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 72,000. The VIN was not available.

NHTSA ODI 11608170

The contact owns a 2019 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while shifting to park and turning off the vehicle, the message “Shift to Park” was displayed. The parking brake failed to engage as needed. The contact continued to depress the brake pedal, and after ten minutes, the vehicle shut off. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed, and it was recommended that the shifter assembly be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and filed a case. The failure mileage was approximately 59,000.

NHTSA ODI 11606998

The contact owns a 2019 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that the battery, the steering, and the brake warning lights were illuminated. The contact contacted Triple A, who tested the battery, the starter, and the alternator and jumpstarted the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was determined that the battery had discharged and needed to be replaced. The dealer informed the contact that diagnostic testing could be performed after the battery replacement. The contact stated that the battery was replaced four times; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 3,000.

NHTSA ODI 11606738

When vehicle is shifted to park, the “Shift to Park” warning illuminates and the vehicle is unable to shut off. Have to play around with the gear selector for several minutes in order to be able to be shut off. Looks like GM has known about it for a while and has done nothing. Has been occurring on ours for about a year now.

NHTSA ODI 11604207

The contact's wife owns a 2019 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that while parking the vehicle on several occasions, the park gear was not recognized. The vehicle was restarted and shifted from neutral to park several times before the gear was recognized. On one occasion while parking on a slight incline, the vehicle was restarted and shifted from neutral to ark several times before the gear was recognized and the vehicle rolled backwards. The brake pedal was depressed several times before the vehicle came to a stop. Additionally, the contact observed a warning chime and the “Shift to Park” message was displayed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

NHTSA ODI 11604102

When shifting into "park", the vehicle displays a warning that vehicle failed to shift into park. Thr vehicle will not shut off and continues to run

NHTSA ODI 11603770

When attempting to park vehicle, the alert "Shift to Park" populates and the car will not completely shut down. This happens sporadically and can take up to 15 minutes to get vehicle in the right position to completely park and shut off. If it's not in the proper park position, the car can continue running, battery drainage and possible roll out of place. This also causes issues with the transmission not shutting off. I have not had this particular vehicle inspected, but contact with dealer service departments confirms continued complaints of this issue and it has not been addressed by GMC/General Motors. Problem has been occurring at various times over last 3 years.

NHTSA ODI 11602377

When shifting to park and turning car off I get notification saying “shift to park” even when the car shows it is parked on the gear shift and dashboard screen.

NHTSA ODI 11601310

During a routine oil and filter change the technician noted that the "rear tow links are excessive play in them." Several GMC vehicles have had numerous recalls to tow links over the years. Dealership suggested the repair and confirmed services were not covered under warranty. After further research into the repair there are countless forums and complaints about GMC vehicles needing tow link replacement. Photos of the original tow links show minimal wear and tear.

NHTSA ODI 11600523

The contact owns a 2019 GMC Acadia. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, she noticed that the engine caught on fire with no warning light illuminated. The fire was put out by the Chicago Fire Department and after the vehicle was inspected the cause of the fire was determined as a failure with the electrical system. A police report was filed with the Chicago Police Department and a report was provided. No injuries occurred and no medical attention was needed. The vehicle was not towed. The dealer was contacted, and the vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 65,000.

NHTSA ODI 11596514

Backup camera stays on while driving forward

NHTSA ODI 11596207

When attempting to Shift To Park, the Power Train does not respond, an error message is displayed, and am unable to turn off the ignition or park the vehicle. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE.

NHTSA ODI 11595642

the 2019 GMC Acacia with 54,000 has begun to not recognize when the car has been shifted into Park. Front dash reports shows it is in "P" but upon attempting to turn-off the car, Warning Message comes on to "Shift to Park". The car is not in park and will roll. I need to restart car, reverse and go-forward once or twice to finally be able to turn-off the car with it in Park.

NHTSA ODI 11595332

The contact owns a 2019 GMC Acadia. The contact stated while parking the vehicle, the transmission failed to shift into park(P) with, the vehicle not in park(P) message displayed with an audible alarm sound heard. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the diagnostic test result was undisclosed. The contact was informed that the parking gear needed to be repaired. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacture was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 22,000.

NHTSA ODI 11592580

The contact owns a 2019 GMC Acadia. The contact stated after parking and turning off the vehicle, an alarm sounded and the message "Shift to Park" was displayed. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring. The contact stated that on several occasions, the failure required that the vehicle be turned off and restarted to remedy the issues. Additionally, the contact continuously shifted to park(P) until the vehicle responded as needed. The dealer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 62,000.

NHTSA ODI 11592094

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? The Infotainment system continuously changes screens without being touched. No matter what screen is displayed, it will change on it's own to various other screens. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? While I was driving I was using my GPS via CarPlay and the directions were displayed on the Infotainment screen. The screen started changing to other screens and at one point changed to the back up camera. I was almost in an accident because I was unable to see the directions and frightened and confused when the back up camera appeared while I was going forward on the highway. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Yes, I took the car to the dealership while it was still under warranty and they told me it was due to me using CarPlay and that my iPhone just needed to be updated. I updated my phone and the problem never went away. So now I've stopped using CarPlay and the problem is still occurring. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? Only the dealership. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? No warnings. The problem first appeared in late 2020 early 2021. I have a video recording of the issue as well. Also when I Google the issue lots of other owners are complaining of the same issue.

NHTSA ODI 11591590

My vehicle didn't shift into park all the way or the ADAS didn't register it. I would have to hit it quite hard with my palm to make it register. This happened for 3 months straight and finally stopped as sudden as it started. I tried to report it to GMC and was told there wasn't such an issue.

NHTSA ODI 11590795