Problems with 2009 GMC Acadia STEERING

Sudden loss of power steering assist, close call as i veering to avoid oncoming traffic thru an intersection. dealer acknowledged the failure and repaired at the time. car had 2 additional steering component failures requiring major repair. most recently, august 4th, 2014 my 18 year old daughter was driving and lost power assist. she was able to coast to a stop without incident luckily. dealer confirmed another pump failure. this isn't the radio, or tire noise or a normal wear and tear item. power steering pump and system needs to last the lifetime of the car as it's a critical item central to safety and controllability of the vehicle. i am available for any additional information i can provide as needed. thank you *tr

2009 gmc acadia; steering rack failure. this is the third failure since taking delivery of the vehicle in january 2009. dealer will repair under warranty however, the replacement parts are clearly not fixing the problem. possible loss of vehicle control when the rack fails completely and suddenly. more often, the rack will leak internally giving owner "time" to repair. nhtsa needs to investigate as the cars affected are numerous. they include the acadia, the saturn outlook, buick enclave and a similar chevrolet model (lambda chassis) that utilizes the same component. additionally, what happens to consumers once the warranty expires and the repeated failure occurs once again? this is my third failure in only 32,500 miles. *tr

The headlight went out and gmc quoted me at approximately $120 to replace. husband attempted to replace it but you had to take off the wheel in order to get to the actual light. i gave gmc the go ahead to replace and they called me back and told me that the wiring had melted and that it would now be over $300 to do it. i told them no and made a complaint. they called me a few days later telling me they would do it but i had to pay $50 deductible (assuming they went through some type of warranty). it eventually became a recall and i am now looking into getting reimbursed for my $50. noticed my car started over heating and took it into a mechanic friend, let us know that the water pump needed to be replaced this was at approx 45,000 miles. i did my research and the gmc warranty covered the cost. at approximately 56-57,000 miles the car started making a whining noise when driven slow or first thing in the morning when it was cold. took it in to gmc to get it checked out and it turns out that the steering rack had a leak on each side of the wheels and pinions, and power steering pump needed to be replaced. quote almost $1500 dollars. i could not afford that price so took it back to my mechanic to see if it would be cheaper. he ended up replacing the pinions and rack but said the pump did not need to be replaced and ended paying $600 out of pocket. i'm hoping that gmc will see that many of us are having the same problem and will make it a recall. i will not be buying anymore gmc vehicles. all i want is a reliable car that won't break the bank. *kb

Bought used 2009 acadia in 2011 with 55000 miles and nothing but headache 1) 60k miles: liftgate came crashing down my wife's back while getting the groceries. they should have some safety measures to stop the gate from crashing. 2) 70k miles: truck wont start in drive way. towed truck to dealer and they changed fuel pump. 3) 70k miles: engine misfire code. replaced one coil. 4) 76k miles: coolant always low. dealer changed water pump. 5) 76k miles: truck hesitate and feel a misfire between 45 and 55 mph. took truck to dealer and they quoted me over $3300 to replace all coils, spark plugs, steering wheel column and steering rack busing. 6) since we bought the car we cant even drive it with the windows down or the roof open. the truck shakes roughly with both roof and windows open. *tr

Power steering stopped working while turning at red light if you rev up engine you can turn at idle no power steering pump jerks and spits fluid out ordered new pump call gm they say they know but its not there problem when are going to fix there problem when some one gets killed this vehicle only has 43,000 on it. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2009 gmc acadia. while driving approximately 5 mph, the contact heard a squeaking sound coming from the steering. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostics. the technician stated to the contact that the rack and pinion would have to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 43,000. updated 02/01/12 *bf the consumer stated the problem has become more intense and the rubbing noise is more pronounced, the steering wheel made a noticeable click when returning to neutral from both the left and the right at slow speeds. the consumer stated the power steering pump has been replaced three times. the consumer also stated he would be having the steering rack and pinion gear box replaced. updated 02/08/12

I own a 2009 gmc acadia fwd slt-1, the vehicle was purchased new. we had minor issues with the vehicle and until recently, were very satisfied with the build quality, performance, and the vehicle overall. while en-route to pick up our kids, the power steering appeared stiff. there was no power assist of the steering at low / idle engine speeds, which made slow maneuvering extremely difficult, if not impossible. the performance of the power steering became worse and worse, to the point where my wife felt unsafe driving the vehicle. she was uncomfortable turning at intersections, and maneuvering in slow-speed conditions such as parking lots. we immediately scheduled a service appointment with our local dealership. the service team advised us that the steering pump needed to be replaced. the dealership declined to repair the vehicle at their cost because it was no longer under warranty. the vehicle was purchased on 9/30/2008; it is only two and half years new with 46,491 miles. it is disappointing that the vehicle would require such a repair. you may or may not be aware that this defect with the power steering pump is being reported by many acadia owners. in addition, there is an issue with the steering rack that was documented in a service bulletin. we informed the service area of the unusual noises but they stated that there is no clear connection with this repair. at this time, they recommended replacing the steering pump at a cost of $522.16. this is clearly a design/manufacturing part issue; gm should publish a service alert to warn owners of this known issue that can lead to serious injury if failure occurs. *tr

First problem was the timing chains needing to be replaced at 18000 miles. after that repair was made the gas mileage was averaging 11 mpg. it was a one year old car! after that, it was a multitude of problems. steering rack/power steering replaced and 'fixed', electric stabilitrak lights going on and off, dvd player not playing properly. all things the dealer had said they fixed (after they whispered that i should not have bought an american car.) now the transmission is acting up. rolling down an incline when i was trying to back out of a parking spot. the dealer told me it was fine and they could not duplicate the issues i was having. i've written two letters to gm corporate to complain about the sub-standard vehicle. they were helpless and will not assist in any replacement of the car. they even told me that this would be a difficult car to trade in considering the problems i have had with it. who is kidding who? i would never recommend this car and hate to continually put my family in it .it is unsafe. period. *tr