A mechanic recently posted a video blasting GMC Acadia’s unexpected design. TikToker Victor Shack (@victorshack) expressed what most people are feeling lately: Cars aren’t built to last, and they definitely aren’t meant to be fixed on the cheap. The video garnered over 21,000 views as of publication.
“It’s Tuesday, our special day for pile of [expletive] jobs,” Shack began. “We have a ’19 Acadia here …pretty [expletive] GM product. It’s got about 10 miles on it. No, probably about 60,000 on it.”
The issue needing repair was a fluctuating temperature case, but the real problem for Shack was how to reach it.
“Look how GM decides to install the [expletive] sending unit. They decide to stick the [expletive] sending unit down underneath the [expletive] fuel rail. You got to remove half your engine if your temp sensor takes a [expletive].”
GMC Acadia on blast
According to Shack, the design of the GM Acadia forces people to take their vehicles into the shop for repairs. He claims that every car manufactured after 2015-16 is a “nightmare to deal with.” It isn’t just the placement or design of the engine that irks Shack. He also believes that sensors are designed for failure, so owners have to spend more money.
“There’s no way you, as a novice mechanic, is going to fix this [expletive] on a Satuday morning with your son,” he said. “They want you to have to take the car to them…”
To prove his point, Shack points his camera toward a pile on engine parts behind him.
“Look at the nightmare of [expletive] you’re going to have to pay somebody to do. That’s about 12-15,000 bucks… to get all this [expletive] off… this is another one that I would not recommend you buy.”
Making repairs harder on the average person isn’t isolated to GMC. According to a report from the Federal Trade Commission, manufacturers have made everything from cars to smartphones harder to repair. This report adds to the push by consumer advocates for new “right to repair” legislation. This would give consumers more options for getting things fixed, instead of being forced to take it to the specific company for repairs. Currently, 30 states have enacted “right to repair” laws.
Issues with GMC Acadias isn’t new. The first generation of GMC Acadia’s was introduced from 2006-2017, and was the company’s “first unibody-type design,” according to Automotive Links, with current models coming from the second-generation design. Though the first-gen models had some issues, they were still comparable to other vehicles of the time like the Jeep Patriot and 2015 Chrysler 200. However, reviews got worse over time. The 2020 model, for example, received poor reviews from J.D. Power and Consumer Reports. These reviews encompassed not only the vehicle’s reliability but their warranty service, which according to both sites, is severely lacking.
Many users joined him in bashing GMC Acadia’s unexpected design.
“Wait until the brand new part your installing is bad out of the BOX,” one said.
“I have done quite a few of tune ups on those. definitely a turn off. those transmissions break like glass too,” a second added.
“Just wait till you try to put a socket on it. It gets even worse you almost 100% need the special tool or some real crafty thinking,” a third added.
“Wife’s Acadia same thing. they also found a cracked radiator……$3k,” another added.
Others added their own complaints about the difficulty of fixing newer vehicles.
“Getting to the spark plugs on my 2017 Chrysler Pacifica is a 60 minute job. Absolutely ridiculous,” a user shared.
“I’m going to keep fixing my 2010 5 speed Forester for life, cause I can fix everything on it myself,” a user said.
@victorshack Just another day in the junkyard working on piles of shit that everybody buys I love it
♬ original sound – Victor Shack
GM vehicles have gotten some bad PR lately, like how a GM truck got stuck on the beach in Texas and needed a Ford Ranger to pull it out of the sand. Unfortunately, poor design choices and cheap parts seem to be the name of the game in recent years, so it’s likely that older models will become more valuable in the future.
Daily Dot reached out to Shack via TikTok Comments and GMC via email.
