2019 GMC Terrain Complaints

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE — Filed 09/21/2026

While driving on an interstate, vehicle became sluggish when accelerating. Took off on exit, engine was reduced to 50% power, attempted to drive to large parking lot, lost brakes, got the vehicle stopped in an intersection, would not shut off, go into neutral. Finally shut off, had to call tow truck, holding up traffic in a busy intersection. Was told it would be just $900 to fully diagnose problem, but it appeared the vacuum pump failed, threw broken metal into engine and now will have to be replaced at my cost. NO advanced warning of any type of problem, no warning lights, etc.

POWER TRAIN — Filed 09/22/2026

The contact owns a 2019 GMC Terrain. The contact stated that after pulling into a parking lot, the vehicle failed to shift into park. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where the contact was informed that three fault codes were found. The dealer informed the contact that the transmission needed to be disassembled for a full diagnostic test. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was scheduled for the transmission to be disassembled for the diagnostic test. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.

SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE — Filed 09/15/2026

On 9/15/2026, my wife drove her car, a 2019 GMC Terrain, to a doctor's appointment. She reported no known issues with the way the car operated during her drive nor had she or I experienced issues prior to this event. After she finished her appointment, she attempted to start her car and was unable to get the car to start. She also noticed that the brake pedal was stiff and hard to depress. When I arrived, I tried to assist her, thinking that an electrical issue was the fault. However, I was still unable to start the car and I had to have it towed after I couldn't start her car. I had it towed to a mechanic who initially thought the car had a bad starter, however, after attempting to manually turn the engine, he found that the engine was completely seized. He also confirmed that the oil in the car appeared to be without fragments in it and that the oil level was adequate for normal operation. This car is only seven years old, has had routine maintenance, and is about 60 miles over 100,000. No prior issues were noticed before this happened. I'm currently waiting on an engine for the car so we can start using it again.

SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE — Filed 08/24/2026

While driving my 2019 GMC Terrain with three children as passengers, the vehicle developed a braking/engine problem. The brake pedal became very hard, and the vehicle subsequently became undrivable and would not start. I received no advance warning through the GMC app indicating that the vacuum pump was failing. The vehicle was towed to a GMC dealership. The dealership diagnosed a failed vacuum pump and advised that the engine requires replacement, with an estimate of approximately 11,238. I purchased this vehicle new. I am very concerned that a vacuum-pump failure can result in reduced brake assist/increased brake-pedal effort and major engine damage without adequate advance warning. Three children were in the vehicle when this occurred, and the sudden change in braking created a serious safety concern for everyone in the vehicle. The vehicle is currently at the GMC dealership. I have requested that relevant parts be preserved and am requesting GM Policy Assistance with the repair.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE — Filed 08/15/2026

On Saturday, August 15th we were driving on the freeway when with no warning the check engine light came on and the vehicle began to run poorly, and then the vehicle lost electrical power and it became difficult to steer and the brake pedal became stiff, making it difficult to stop and pull over. The vehicle would not start on command but kept running very poorly, it also became impossible to shut the vehicle off until it seized. It was later towed to a local repair shop, and today, Friday August 21st the shop confirmed that the vacuum pump on the brake assist failed and it would need a total engine replacement.

STRUCTURE,VISIBILITY/WIPER — Filed 08/20/2026

This is the second time I have noticed storm heavy rain that my car is taken on water. We had an extremely heavy rain in June and no windows was left open. I did not know water had gotten into my car for an entire month when I heard a solution sale when I came to a break, what I did realize is that there was condensation buildup is inside of my car, but it was not sure why. After searching, I was able to locate and discover thatI had at least 3 inches of water standing water in my spare tire, section of my trunk. There was also an extreme amount of water on my floors in the back row once I took out my mats, I found there to be mold back there.Still unsure of how t the water got into the car I used my shop vac to suck out the water. We just had an extreme amount of heavy rain again. We are now in August. We just had extremely heavy amounts of rain and once again there’s water in the well trunk of my car where the spare tire is. I actually made sure to sit outside in my car during this heavy rain storm to see where the water was coming from. It appears that the water is coming from the sunroof, which then leaks to the back on the right hand side where the outlet socket is. I watched it dripped down into the back of the trunk into the spare tire well. I do not understand why this issue has not triggered a a recall yet as I’m noticing this is not just with my car. This is apparently the sixth or seventh car that has experienced this issue and GMC has yet to do a recall on it. This is very alarming and concerning God forbid I’m driving to work or I have one of my children in the car during a heavy rain storm and it hits the electrical wires or electrical panel with something else bad happens.

SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE — Filed 05/20/2026

The car’s brakes hardened on the highway, posing a life-threatening danger, right before the engine died. Following a tow to the dealership’s service center, an initial inspection revealed a broken vacuum pump and broken camshaft. The dealership stated that there was evidence that camshaft debris may be scattered throughout the engine. No further inspection has been done at this time due to the probability of major engine damage and/or potential repairs.

SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE — Filed 08/08/2026

While driving my 2019 GMC Terrain on local roads, the vehicle suffered a sudden and complete failure of the braking system. The brake pedal became extremely hard to press, and the dashboard displayed a critical error message stating 'Engine Power is Reduced.' during this frightening safety incident i felt lucky to bring the car to a stop without an accident. The vehicle had to be flatbed towed to a repair facility. This sudden loss of power braking is a known, documented defect matching the engine-driven brake vacuum pump failures currently subject to federal class-action litigation (Thieme v. General Motors). I am requesting a formal safety investigation into why the GMC Terrain was excluded from previous GM vacuum pump recalls despite posing an identical, life-threatening risk to occupants."

UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE — Filed 03/27/2026

While driving the vehicle became extremely difficult to stop I was advised that the Vacuum booster pump was broken and it needed to be replaced. This was first completed 09/24/25 by Gateway tire and service center. I was advised that there was a service bulletin for the issue. Then I have had the same thing happen and I returned the vehicle to the same repair shop and I was advised that the Vacuum booster pump was broken and it caused the exhaust camshaft to break, as well as the timing was out. The shop had to replace several things in order to repair and I was responsible for the cost. There was no warning before either of the incidents.

POWER TRAIN — Filed 07/03/2026

No engine lights are on. When at stops it starts chugging and when I accelerate sometimes it does not go like it should. It idles high and feels like it is slipping. I have almost been hit in the rear several times when this happens. One lady did rear end me but the damage was so little that I did not call the cops. This vehicle has not been inspected and it is available for inspection at any time.

POWER TRAIN,ENGINE — Filed 03/04/2026

The turbo went completely out at around 105k miles while I was driving to work. I had to coast into a repair shop because it was smoking and wouldn’t go over 20mph and then have it towed to the place that repaired it. Since then, the transmission is having trouble shifting gears. The car struggles to accelerate and I have to go abnormally slow after coming to a complete stop in order for the car to get into gear. The onstar diagnostic says everything is fine but it is clearly not fine.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER — Filed 01/01/2026

My 2019 GMC Terrain has a faulty back up camera system. It shows a blue screen that says Service rear view camera system, This has been a faulty system for years until it finally stopped working completely. I have researched the issue and have discovered this is a known problem. There was a Service Bulletin 19-NA-076 dated April of 2019. Why has there not been a recall for this safety issue?

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC,ENGINE — Filed 05/10/2026

The contact owns a 2019 GMC Terrain. The contact stated that while stopped and attempting to turn to exit a highway ramp, he observed a loud banging noise emanating from the engine compartment. An "engine reduced power" message appeared. The vehicle then went into limp mode, and when the brake pedal was depressed, it was stiff as a rock. The vehicle coasted while he continued attempting to depress the brake pedal, and it eventually slowed down. The vehicle was steered to the side of the road and turned off. When the vehicle was turned back on and he attempted to depress the accelerator pedal, the vehicle did not accelerate. The vehicle was taken to his mother's residence approximately 100 miles away in limp mode and parked. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that his brother, during an inspection of the vehicle, removed the vacuum pump and noticed that it was broken with numerous pieces that had gone into the engine. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 76,000.

SUSPENSION — Filed 09/09/2025

Recently experience rear differential binding with vehicle resulting in an accident.

ENGINE — Filed 05/20/2024

I bought a car from Boone Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram dealership in North Carolina on [XXX] and by [XXX] my engine was out before I purchase my car I made sure they serviced my vehicle at a GMC Dealership and there's a warranty on the service of my engine I did not buy the warranty on my car because they couldn't guarantee that the warranty transferred over to West Virginia shop's and that they would cover issues they stated they could deny service cuz it was out of state. So my car went to Moses Cadillac GMC in downtown Charleston on [XXX] they literally just randomly dropped it back off to me two Wednesdays ago. I've been working with GMC to try to purchase a new vehicle and get mine bought back, but it's been a whole process but I'm trying to work with Moses so I can purchase a new vehicle but they won't call me back and i feel like its because they know something is defective. The engine had a Regen done before i purchased it and now all of a sudden the cars engine is Done. Now when this happened the battery got so hot my car started smoking we originally thought it was the starter. Because when it stopped working we were at a Toll booth and pressed the break and the stop start kicked the engine off and it never came back on. Even now if you try to start it the battery gets hot and the starter smokes. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

SERVICE BRAKES — Filed 06/07/2024

The contact owned a 2019 GMC Terrain. The contact stated that while the wife was driving at approximately 60 MPH, the brake pedal was depressed and it felt stiff. The vehicle failed to decrease in speed and as a result, the driver merged to the shoulder of the road however another vehicle crashed into the front driver side of the vehicle. The driver was able to merge to the shoulder of the road where the road bumps were able to decrease the speed of the vehicle. The ABS warning light was illuminated. The driver, front passenger, and rear driver's side passenger all sustained headaches and received medical attention via an ambulance on the scene. No occupants in the second vehicle were reported injured. A police report was taken at the scene and the vehicle was towed away. The cause of the failure was not determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were not contacted. The failure mileage was 40,000.

AIR BAGS — Filed 10/04/2020

The contact owned a 2019 GMC Terrain. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, another vehicle crashed into the passenger side of the contact's vehicle. The air bags deployed; however, metal fragments from the air bag hit the contact's face, causing severe injuries. The contact received medical attention. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard. A police report was filed. The vehicle was deemed totaled by the insurance company. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 20,000.

VISIBILITY — Filed 05/21/2023

The contact owns a 2019 GMC Terrain. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 75 MPH, the panoramic glass sunroof shattered, causing shards of glass to enter the cabin of the vehicle. The contact stated that the panoramic sunroof was in the closed position when the failure occurred. During the failure, the front passenger sustained lacerations to the back, leg, and shoulder. The eleven-month-old child seated in the rear passenger’s side seat sustained lacerations to both legs. The rear middle seat occupant sustained a laceration to the rear head area, while the rear driver’s side occupant sustained lacerations to both arms. No injuries required medical treatment. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 58,000.

ENGINE — Filed 10/27/2021

My wife was driving the car, about 70 mph on route 84 passing danbury ct. She was traveling in the middle lane, some kind of oil light went on the dashboard, car shut down while traveling 70 mph on the highway, and caught on fire under the hood. She managed to pull over, and got out of the car with my daughter. This is a 2019 car with 14K miles. This car was packed with milwaukee cordless tools, complete Festool set, complete golf bag with all the clubs, two suitcases of best clothes for me and my daughter, her laptop, etc. We were driving to our new home in south carolina, and on the way the car burned.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER — Filed 03/22/2019

Carfax report showed that Air bag deployed in the accident on 3/22/2019. Which is wrong information. The car was repaired through state farm authorize body shop. The effect part was front bumper, grill , left side head ligh and left fender.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM — Filed 01/14/2020

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2019 GMC TERRAIN. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHEN THE AIR CONDITION WAS ACTIVATED, THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL CHEMICAL BURNING ODOR COMING THROUGH THE VENTS, CAUSING HE AND HIS WIFE TO GET HEADACHES. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO MEADOWLAND OF CARMEL GMC (1952 US-6, CARMEL HAMLET, NY 10512) HOWEVER, WAS NOT DIAGNOSED FOR THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS FIRST PURCHASED AND THE ODOR WAS FIRST EXPERIENCED, THE DEALER REFUSED TO REPLACED THE VEHICLE WITH ANOTHER VEHICLE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 24,000. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

BACK OVER PREVENTION — Filed 10/09/2019

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2019 GMC TERRAIN. WHILE REVERSING AT 3 MPH, THE VEHICLE CRASHED INTO A TELEPHONE POLE DUE TO THE BACK UP CAMERA BEING INOPERABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE CAMERA DID NOT DETECT THE OBJECT THAT WAS LOCATED ON THE REAR PASSENGER SIDE OF THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE SUSTAINED DAMAGE TO THE LIFTGATE AND THE REAR WINDOW WAS SHATTERED. THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THERE WERE NO INJURIES. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO A DEALER OR INDEPENDENT MECHANIC FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING OR REPAIRS. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 7,681.

AIR BAGS — Filed 07/01/2019

I WAS IN AN ACCIDENT AND WAS HIT IN THE DRIVER ON THE DRIVER SIDE OF THE VEHICLE ON THE STREET. THE AIRBAGS DIDN'T DEPLOY DURING THE ACCIDENT.

ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) — Filed 04/02/2019

STOP AND GO TRAFFIC ON I-75. THE VEHICLE JUMPED FORWARD. DRIVER TRYING TO PUSH THE BRAKE PEDAL BUT IT WAS NOT WORKING, AUTO SENSORING HAD TAKEN OVER THE VEHICLE AND CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO REARENDED THE VEHICLE AHEAD OF IT PUSHING THAT VEHICLE INTO THE VEHICLE AHEAD OF THAT ONE.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER — Filed 11/30/2018

LIFT GATE ON THIS VEHICLE OPENS TO A HEIGHT OF 69 INCHES . AT 74 INCHES I AM CONSTANTLY BANGING MY HEAD ON THE LIFT GATE. MY 2017 MODEL OPENED TO AT LEAST 76 INCHES WHICH IS MORE REASONABLE. I CONSIDER THIS A SAFETY ISSUE, AS THIS IS A FLAW IN THE DESIGN OF THE VEHICLE. THE MODEL THAT HAS A POWER LIFT GATE OPENS TO AROUND 76 INCHES.. A FULL 7 INCHES HIGHER THAN THE MANUAL ONE.. THE DEALERSHIP NEVER POINTED OUT THIS PROBLEM TO ME SEEING THAT I AM 74 INCHES TALL.