NHTSA recalls, safety ratings, and consumer complaints for the 2011 GMC Terrain.
| Overall Rating | |
| Frontal Crash | |
| Side Crash | |
| Rollover |
| Overall Rating | |
| Frontal Crash |
Component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Buick Verano and 2016 Chevrolet Malibu as the electronic park lock lever may allow the ignition key to be removed without the transmission being in PARK. Also, certain 2013 Buick Encore, 2011 Buick Regal, 2013-2014 Buick Verano, 2011-2016 Chevrolet Cruze, 2010-2013 Chevrolet Equinox 2013-2015 Chevrolet Malibu, and 2011-2013 GMC Terrain vehicles may have been serviced with similar defective replacement electronic park lock levers. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 114, "Theft Protection and Rollaway Prevention."
Consequence: If the key is removed without the transmission in PARK, the vehicle may rollaway as occupants are exiting, increasing the risk of injury.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and if necessary replace the key cylinder lock housing, free of charge. The recall began on October 14, 2016. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, Buick 1-800-521-7300, and GMC 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 50490 and 50491.
Component: SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:POWER ADJUST
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Buick LaCrosse, Regal and Chevrolet Camaro, as well as certain 2010-2012 Cadillac SRX, Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain vehicles, equipped with power height adjustable driver and passenger seats. In the affected vehicles, the bolt that secures the driver's and passenger's power front seat height adjuster may fall out causing the seat to drop suddenly to the lowest vertical position.
Consequence: If the driver's seat unexpectedly drops, the distraction and altered seat position may affect the drivers' control of the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the height adjuster shoulder bolts, free of charge. The manufacturer distributed interim letters to owners on September 11, 2014. The recall began on December 26, 2014. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1-800-521-7300 (Buick), 1-800-458-8006 (Cadillac), 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet), or 1-800-462-8782 (GMC). GM's number for this recall is 14271.
We have 2011 GMC Terrain. We bought it used so we have only had it a couple years. We noticed it seemed to be using a little more oil but then we were told to keep watch on it. My husband did. Then one day while I was driving it I thought I had heard a faint clicking noise. I said that car isn’t going anywhere until it’s fixed. Little did we know it wouldn’t ever start again. We didn’t know about a so call recall or not a recall. Still until we had to have it towed in to be fixed, I heard it mentioned. By then the car was repaired at our expense of $8000+. We are retired and don’t have or didn’t have money for that repair. The only reason we had a little money was because my husband got paid for back (lump sum) payment just a couple of days before this. We still owe on the car. Without it we only have an old 2001GMC SIERRA 1500. We live paycheck to paycheck. I called one of GMC’s phone numbers today and I was told if we didn’t have it done at a GMC FACILITY we get NO reimbursement. I cried. My husband is a real stickler when it comes to our vehicles and maintenance and logs and also keeps receipts.Please tell me there is some to help us.
Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2011 GMC Terrain. The contact discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy after the purchase. The vehicle was a private sale. At the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was 87,000, and at the time of registration, it was discovered that the mileage was 200,000.
The contact owns a 2011 GMC Terrain. The contact stated that the vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The contact stated that the vehicle was leaking engine oil. The check engine warning light was illuminated while driving at undisclosed speeds. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer who confirmed there was no warranty or recall coverage on the vehicle for the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who determined that the engine might be blown. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 110,714.
The 2011 GMC Terrain has 4 NHTSA recalls and 396 consumer complaints on file. It received an overall safety rating of 4 out of 5 stars in NHTSA crash testing. The high number of complaints suggests potential reliability concerns — review the complaint details above before purchasing. For the most detailed information about a specific vehicle, decode its VIN using our free decoder above.
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| Side Crash |
| Rollover |
Component: SEAT BELTS:FRONT:BUCKLE ASSEMBLY
GENERAL MOTORS IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2011 CADILLAC SRX, CHEVROLET EQUINOX AND GMC TERRAIN VEHICLES. THE DRIVER AND /OR FRONT PASSENGER SAFETY BELT BUCKLE ANCHOR MAY FRACTURE AND SEPARATE NEAR THE SEAT ATTACHMENT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
Consequence: THE SAFETY BELT SYSTEM MAY NOT RESTRAIN THE OCCUPANT(S) AS DESIGNED AND COULD INCREASE THE RISK OF INJURY.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL MODIFY THE PASSENGER AND/OR THE DRIVER SAFETY BELT BUCKLES AS NECESSARY. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN ON OR BEFORE JANUARY 18, 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT CADILLAC AT 1-866-982-2339, CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438, GMC AT 1-866-996-9463 AND AT THE OWNER CENTER AT WWW.GMOWNERCENTER.COM.
Component: EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2010-2017 GMC Terrain vehicles. A reflection caused by the headlight housings may illuminate areas above the vehicle and outside of the driver's view with excessively bright light. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
Consequence: The bright reflection may cause a glare for other drivers, reducing their visibility and increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will install headlamp appliques, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 8, 2022. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N222363740.
The contact owns a 2011 GMC Terrain. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to respond as intended. The contact pulled over to the right side of the roadway and waited for towing assistance. The contact stated that an independent mechanic was contacted. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic and two separate auto body shops, where it was diagnosed and determined that the engine was consuming engine oil, and the engine needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the second time the vehicle was driven to the independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 114,114.
SUV gets a slow down warning and it stops shuts off , it’s happened several times now I’m scared!!you wait few minutes it turns back on , mechanic said this a complain about this vehicle all the time , it has not been repaired I’m disabled with no money , I was on the highway and thank God I was on the slow lane if not I would have been killed by an eighteen wheeler. GMC is waiting for someone to die and probably address this issue
Two of the valves failed and the dealership told me it was likely due to a manufacturer’s defect.
Engine Failure: Timing chain had excessive slack causing guide to be sheared off. Timing chain guide bolt was completely stripped requiring both the timing chain and cylinder head to be replaced. Safety: The vehicle stalled while driving Problem: Problem was confirmed by a dealer Warnings: The check engine light came on as the vehicle stalled
continuous excessive oil issues burns and uses 3-5 quarts of oil every week to 2 weeks causing engine issues slow acceleration lurching and chugging issues with engine won’t downshift or upshift correctly transmission seizing issues have spent 1000s of dollars trying to fix this issue and mechanic has said it’s just a commen issues with this make and model and year range just have to keep pouring oil in each week which is costly and eventually will cause my engine and transmission to fail.
Transmission
Temperature actuator door is broken, this causes my windshield to fog up therefore I can't see to drive.
My car wouldn’t start, later found out it was due to timing chain issue which ended up blowing up my engine. I live 40 minutes from work and am consistently driving on the interstate for at least an hour a day. GM said there’s nothing they can do even though there’s been class action lawsuits for the engine. My car has also had oil consumption problems. I bought my car in March of 2022. The engine blew up by November 2022. I barely got my car back in September 2023. After the engine replacement, still wouldn’t turn on, over heated immediately when I did get it back. After paying $7440 for the engine replacement I had to fork over snother $650 to replace the fuel pump control module, and an engine control unit. My car overheated AGAIN just 2 weeks ago!!!!
The windshield wiper blades stopped working while driving at night in the rain. This was a dangerous situation as i had a hard time seeing where i was driving.
The contact owns a 2011 GMC Terrain. The contact stated that while stopped at a stop sign making a left turn, the vehicle started sputtering. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a dealer. The contact was informed that the failure was due to the timing belt being loose. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 175,000.
Transmission and control arms
Transmission failure
Showing 15 of 396 complaints