The contact owns a 2020 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that the doors failed to open from outside the vehicle while using the key fob or while attempting to open the doors manually. The contact entered the vehicle from the rear hatch door and discovered that the door lock and unlock buttons were inoperable. The contact pulled the door handle to manually open the door from the inside. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 68,140.
GMC Acadia key fob problems
26 of the 5,599 owner complaints about the GMC Acadia describe key fob or push-button start problems, most of them for the 2017 model year.
- owner complaints
- 26
- worst model year
- 2017
- typical mileage
- 37,507
By model year
- 20261
- 20213
- 20203
- 20194
- 20181
- 20178
- 20151
- 20142
- 20132
- 20111
Often reported together
Door locks 5Won't start 3Water leak 3Check engine light 3Headlights 2Stalling 1Rollaway 1Jerking 1
Trouble codes mentioned
U0422 1P0420 1
What owners say
My wife and child drove the car to the grocery store and parked the car l. When she returned to leave , the car would not start and flashed a warning with key fob not detected and some kind of security light warning. The instrument cluster told her to place the key in left console cup holder to crank the vehicle . This did not work either .I drove the second key fob to her to determine if it was a key fob issue and the 2 nd key did not work as well. Called dealership and service requested the car being towed. Tow truck didn’t feel comfortable with the removing the vehicle as it was sitting due to space in the parking lot. They dispatched a small tow truck , but in the meantime I disconnected the battery cable and waited about 15 min. The car cranked and I immediately drove it to dealership. There was no code shown at the dealership and this was the first time they have had dealt with this issue. The mechanic drove the car the next day and the same situation happened again , except this time the key fob worked after several failed attempts . I feel that this is a safety issue because the car failed to operate and had no manual ability to operate without the electronic system functioning properly and this could have happened anyway and stranded my wife and child . A few months before in an unrelated incident , the power trunk malfunctioned and had to be reprogrammed . It would not operate except manually . Car is currently at dealership still being evaluated .
After heavy rain or a carwash, the door locks and lift gate don't work from key fob. And the vehicle says no remote detected and has trouble starting. After a day or two they start working again. It caused U0422 (invalid data received from body control module). On forums it says it can be water leaking into the vehicle and shorting out the BMC from either the HVAC drain or a weatherstrip somewhere. Now my rear passenger door locks don't work at all. Dealer wants to replace the actuators but can't find the root cause of the problem. Issue has been going on for over a year now.
The car is in park & ignition button has been hit to turn vehicle off. When engine is turned off all interior, exterior, dash, & ignition switch lights remain on with a notification on the dashboard stating to "shift to park". The doors can not be locked when this message is on the screen. It can take anywhere from 30 seconds to 15 minutes for the lights & dash to go out, allowing you to exit & lock the car. If you exit the car while the message still appears on the dash, not only are the lights on & unable to lock the car, but if someone where to get into the car, without the key fob, they can start the car & drive off. My husband & I were in a shopping center parking lot in July 2025 where the "shift to park" error came on. We sat in the car, 110 degrees outside, for 10 minutes waiting for the car to shut down. Finally we had to exit the car because we could no longer take the heat. My husband went back to the car, 5 minutes late, while I was in the store to see if the car had finally shut down. To his surprise the lights and dash where still on. He noticed the start button light was also still on & thought if he hit the button the lights would shut off, but no, the car actually started & again he did not have the key fob with him. This is a serious issue & needs to be addressed & I do not feel that I should be paying for this repair. My husband unexpectantly passed away in Sept 2025 & now I am left to deal with this on my own. I have to get this issue fixed as I can not take the chance someone will take my car someday nor do I want to continue to sit in my car for 10-20 minutes waiting for it to shut down. The dealership I took it to diagnosed it as due to a faulty switch in the shifter which means its poor workmanship & not related to owner usage. Please add this to the recall list so that I can get it fixed quickly or if I have to get it fixed prior to being approved by you I can at least recoup my money. Thank you
After I put my car in park my daughter and I were still in the vehicle for a few minutes getting our things with the engine still running. I got out to get something from the back seat, my daughter got out the passenger door and made it to the driver side as I was closing the back passenger door. I was about to get back on the car to get the rest of my things and turn the ignition off but before I could my car was rolling backwards out of the driveway into the street. I was able to jump in the vehicle and put my foot on the brake and the put the gear into Park. There’s no way possible I didn’t put it in Park with me getting out already and my daughter couldn’t have accidentally shift the gear because she couldn’t have been able to get out, close the door and make it to the driver side before it started rolling away. Once I got the car stopped, I noticed the driver seat was now all the way to the steering wheel and completely to the floor with the headrest also tilting inwards and now the electrical for the seat will not work. There is a recall for this issue but my vin# is not included. I cannot even drive my car now because the seat is so far up and inclined. what if the seat moves up more while I’m driving and it has me pinned between the steering wheel and the seat. I don’t feel safe driving it, having my daughter as a passenger and it’s really not safe to be on the road. I’m still paying on this car and now i won’t even be able to drive to work. So I’ll probably lose my job. This car has multiple issues and I think is an electrical problem. It’s also a known major defect on this model but still not a recall for my vin #! None of my interior sound works. Speakers, blinkers, alerts, back up camera. The auto start won’t start, I have to press the key fob multiple times to lock and unlock. This car is extremely unsafe to drive and I strongly feel my cars vin# should be listed under the recall. Its going to really affect my daily life and means of income. Lemon!
On numerous occasions the key fob is not detected and locked out of vehicle. Key fob notice on panel saying it’s not detected while driving. Took it to Jim Causley GMC dealer several times and then they kept vehicle for a week unable to duplicate and sent me on my way. This is still happening with no help.
The contact owns a 2021 GMC Acadia. The contact stated that the door locks failed to lock and unlock while using the key fob or the buttons on the outside or inside the vehicle. The locks failed to operate as needed until after the vehicle was driven. The contact had to manually lock the door; however, after locking the door, the contact was unable to unlockthe vehicle. The contact had to climb through the trunk of the vehicle to enter the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure only occurred while it was raining. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who was unable to duplicate the failure because it was not raining at the time. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and confirmed that the vehicle was not included in GMC Special Coverage: N22378380. The manufacturer referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 37,000.
I was traveling at the posted speed limit of 80 mph on [XXX] in South Dakota at [XXX] and the GMC Acadia was working without any issue when all of a sudden various warnings flashed on the dashboard with one of them being power saver mode engaged. Within about 3 minutes various other warnings flashed and the vehicle motor turned off along with all of the electrical systems. Luckily, I was able to maneuver the GMC Acadia to the shoulder of the highway safely. The vehicle would not start and for about a minute or so we were trapped in the Acadia. We could not unlock the doors or wind down the windows until I pressed the start/stop bottom several times. Onstar did not work either. Once we could get out of the Acadia, my wife called 911 and in roughly 20 minutes or so, a police officer arrived at our location. We also called AAA and had a tow truck take the broken down GMC Acadia to a garage for repairs. It turns out that the alternator went bad and rendered our GMC Acadia useless in roughly 3 minutes from the initial warning. There was absolutely none of the tell tale warnings of a bad alternator. We did not see or observe any dim lights, hesitating starts or any other things associated with a bad alternator prior to the 3 minute warning before the vehicle completely was inoperable. We are very lucky to be alive. If [XXX] was more congested with traffic at the time of this incident, we might have been serious injured if not killed. IMO this GMC Acadia is a death trap. This vehicle warns the driver when the key fob’s battery is low many weeks before it needs to be replaced. It should warn you more than 3 minutes if not several hours prior to the vehicle being completely immobilized. It should be noted that the check engine light came on several hours before this incident and I called Onstar and they ran the diagnostics and returned a P0420 code which is related to emissions. The check engine light turned itself off about 1 hour before incident. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMAT
I have many problems with this vehicle, numerous times. Inaccurate Fuel Gauge Reading- It has resulted in my vehicle running out of fuel and stalling, while on road. I have 4 children who are at risk of danger while in vehicle.The fuel warning light has illuminated when the gauge needle says I still have more than plenty of amount (a quarter of a tank or more at times. It differs). It was diagnosed with an electrical and fuel system failure. Electrical shorts and problems- Having electrical shorts on and off. Check engine light comes on/off Vehicle randomly failed to start. My vehicle was difficult to start and would require several attempts before starting. Power lock/unlock key fob doesn't work, replaced battery multiple times.windows and sunroof power windows do no work. Radio and dash turn off and restart. Check airbag light has been coming on and off. Power Train intermittently, the transmission shifts with a loud thump, at various speeds. Vehicle starts shaking and jerking while shifting gears and going different speeds. My vehicle slows down, power reduce engine and steering difficult at times. Other/ water leak- Found water in all of my tail light assemblies, headlight assemblies, sunroof and windows leaking. There is no proper seal or has worn off, causing leaks in and repairs for many replacements, which are expensive temp fixes with no permanent solution. Causes accidents by not having necessary working equipment for driving conditions. Other:Hood doesn't latch and stay open so difficult to even check fluids properly alone. Multiple dealers have inspected problems, and needs to be fixed. There are recalls out for many of these problems and my vehicle needs to be on the list for serious safety issues.
After raining door locks on every door will not work. Won't lock or unlock, manually or by using the key fob. Something seems to be getting damp and shorting out . After a day or 2 the locks will work just fine when everything dries out.Seems to be a safety issue if I can't exit the vehicle. The rear hatch is the only door that works when this happens. What is the problem and the solution? This happens every time it rains. Had it to the dealer and they couldn't find the problem.
Related recalls
Electrical system
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Cadillac CTS, Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Yukon, and Yukon XL, and 2014 Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Express, Impala, Silverado HD, Traverse, GMC Acadia, Savana, and Sierra HD vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the chassis electronic module may be internally contaminated, resulting in an electrical short.
- Risk
- If the module experiences an electrical short, the vehicle could stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the chassis electronic module, free of charge. The recall began on December 26, 2014. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1‑800‑521‑7300 (Buick), 1-800-458-006 (Cadillac), 1‑800‑222‑1020 (Chevrolet), and 1‑800‑462‑8782 (GMC). GMs number for this recall is 14515.
Recall number 14V614000 · Recall details
Electrical system: software
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2014 Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse, and GMC Acadia vehicles manufactured March 26, 2013, through August 15, 2013. In the affected vehicles, the engine control module (ECM) software may cause the fuel gauge to read inaccurately.
- Risk
- An inaccurate fuel gauge may result in the vehicle unexpectedly running out of fuel and stalling, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the ECM to correct the fuel gauge reading, free of charge. The recall began on June 27, 2014. Owners may contact General Motors at 1‑800‑521‑7300 (Buick), 1‑800‑222‑1020 (Chevrolet), and 1‑800‑462‑8782 (GMC). GM's number for this recall is 14007.
Recall number 14V223000 · Recall details
Electrical system
- What is wrong
- Gm is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 buick, lucerne; cadillac dts; hummer h2; model year 2008-2009 buick enclave; cadillac cts; model year 2007-2009 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, silverado, suburban, tahoe; gmc acadia, sierra, yukon, yukon xl; saturn outlook; and model year 2009 chevrolet traverse vehicles equipped with a heated washer fluid system (hwfs). A recall was implemented in 2008 to add a fuse to the control circuit harness to address the potential consequences of a printed circuit board (pcb) electrical short. However, there have been new reports of thermal incidents on hwfs modules after this improvement was installed. These incidents resulted from a new failure mode attributed to the device's thermal protection feature. The significance varies from minor distortion to considerable melting of the plastic around the hwfs fluid chamber.
- Risk
- It is possible for the heated washer module to ignite and a fire may occur.
- Remedy
- Dealers will permanently disable and remove the heated washer fluid module. An updated page for the owner manual will be provided and inserted in the owner manual to document that the feature has been permanently disabled and removed from the vehicle. The safety recall began on june 11, 2010. Owners may contact buick at 1‑866‑608‑8080, cadillac at 1‑866‑982‑2339, chevrolet at 1‑800‑630‑2438, saturn at 1‑800‑972‑8876, gmc at 1‑866‑996‑9463 and hummer at 1‑800‑732‑5493 or at the owner center at www.gmownercenter.com.
Recall number 10V240000 · Recall details
Electrical system
- What is wrong
- Gm is recalling 857,735 my 2006-2008 buick lucerne; cadillac dts; hummer h2; my 2007-2008 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, silverado, suburban, tahoe; gmc acadia, sierra, yukon, yukon xl, saturn outlook; and my 2008 buick enclave vehicles equipped with a heated wiper washer fluid system. A short circuit on the printed circuit board for the washer fluid heater may overheat the control-circuit ground wire.
- Risk
- This may cause other electrical features to malfunction, create an odor, or cause smoke increasing the risk of a fire.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install a wire harness with an in-line fuse free of charge. The recall began on september 12, 2008. Owners may contact buick at 1‑866‑608‑8080; cadillac at 1‑800‑982‑2339 or http://www.cadillac.com; chevrolet at 1‑800‑630‑2438; saturn at 1‑800‑972‑8876 or http://www.saturn.com, gmc at 1‑866‑996‑9436; or hummer at 1‑800‑732‑5493; or through their website at http://www.gmownercenter.com .
Recall number 08V441000 · Recall details
Questions about the GMC Acadia key fob
Which GMC Acadia years have key fob or push-button start problems problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2017 (8 complaints), 2019 (4 complaints) and 2020 (3 complaints).
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