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2018 GMC Terrain

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2018 GMC Terrain do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 182.

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When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

91 reports with mileage · 129 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Service Brakes. Review the 68 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine. Review the 53 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 41 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

14 crash reports1 fire reports7 injury reports

Service Brakes complaints

68 reports
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Mileage unknown · May 31, 2022
Service Brakes

I was driving out of town (2 hrs from home) with my 2 small children and my mother, when I tried to slow to come to a stop my breaks did not work and I almost rear ended someone. It was sudden, there were no signs that my breaks were going to mess up. When I tried to look up recalls, there were none for my vehicle BUT there were…

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I was driving out of town (2 hrs from home) with my 2 small children and my mother, when I tried to slow to come to a stop my breaks did not work and I almost rear ended someone. It was sudden, there were no signs that my breaks were going to mess up. When I tried to look up recalls, there were none for my vehicle BUT there were MANY statements of people who drove gmc or gm vehicles that had the same issue with the vacuum boost for the brakes around 50k miles where the breaks just quit or were hard to use. It seems to be a common issue and is VERY unsafe. I cannot afford to fix the issue and I don't feel as though I should have to if other terrains have been recalled, except mine which I do not understand.

NHTSA ODI #11466812

69,000 miles · Mar 21, 2022
Service Brakes

The contact owns a 2018 GMC Terrain. The contact stated that while her husband was driving 50 MPH, the brake pedal was depressed and went to the floorboard. The service brake assist warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer nor independent mechanic to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was noti…

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The contact owns a 2018 GMC Terrain. The contact stated that while her husband was driving 50 MPH, the brake pedal was depressed and went to the floorboard. The service brake assist warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer nor independent mechanic to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 69,000.

NHTSA ODI #11457661

Mileage unknown · Feb 9, 2022
Service Brakes

The brakes are extremely hard to engage while driving. All 4 rotors are pitted with less than 30k miles. Doing some online research this is a common problem and should be addressed. I just did my first set of brakes at 100,000 miles on my truck.

NHTSA ODI #11451293

Mileage unknown · Oct 17, 2021
Service Brakes

The vehicle experienced a sudden loss of braking and displayed a “brake assist “ fault message. The check engine light has illuminated. The sudden loss of braking was in a residential neighborhood traveling at 35 mph. I was turning during the loss of braking and was able to narrowly avoid collision with the cars at the intersect…

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The vehicle experienced a sudden loss of braking and displayed a “brake assist “ fault message. The check engine light has illuminated. The sudden loss of braking was in a residential neighborhood traveling at 35 mph. I was turning during the loss of braking and was able to narrowly avoid collision with the cars at the intersection because I could not slow to a safe speed. The fault codes have not been read by the dealership yet nor has the repair been completed.

NHTSA ODI #11437064

Mileage unknown · Jun 1, 2021
Electrical SystemForward Collision AvoidanceService Brakes

The "Service Brake Assist" issue in other 2018 GMC SUVs is happening in the 2018 GMC Terrain, but it is not part of the recall. Our brakes became EXTREMELY difficult to press right as we were turning onto the on ramp of an expressway. Thankfully we were smart enough to pull over and not get on the highway. Had we done so, I may …

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The "Service Brake Assist" issue in other 2018 GMC SUVs is happening in the 2018 GMC Terrain, but it is not part of the recall. Our brakes became EXTREMELY difficult to press right as we were turning onto the on ramp of an expressway. Thankfully we were smart enough to pull over and not get on the highway. Had we done so, I may not have been here to type this complaint. The brakes be come extremely difficult to press and that message shows. Dealership is going to charge me $400 to replace a vacuum pump - they were not interested in the information I have around this issue in other GMC SUVs since it isn't a formal recall on the Terrain. I could have died yesterday due to this braking issue. I've owned this car for 3 months.

NHTSA ODI #11419173

19,000 miles · Mar 21, 2021
Service Brakes

BRAKING ASSIST MESSAGE IS APPEARING AND BRAKING IS EXTREMELY HARD AT LOW SPEED. YOU HAVE TO PUSH DOWN HARD ON BRAKE TO GET CAR TO STOP.

NHTSA ODI #11404085

34,000 miles · Feb 25, 2021
Electrical SystemService Brakes

WHEN RESTARTING AFTER VEHICLE "AUTO STOP" I AM GETTING "SERVICE BRAKE ASSIST" AND OCCASIONALLY "SERVICE ESC" WARNINGS. THESE WARNINGS WERE ASSOCIATED WITH BRAKE FAILURE IN GM SUV'S AND PICKUPS AND WERE SUBJECT TO A RECALL. NO SUCH RECALL EXISTS FOR THE TERRAIN. I HAVEN'T YET EXPERIENCED A BRAKE FAILURE BUT GM SEEMS TO WANT…

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WHEN RESTARTING AFTER VEHICLE "AUTO STOP" I AM GETTING "SERVICE BRAKE ASSIST" AND OCCASIONALLY "SERVICE ESC" WARNINGS. THESE WARNINGS WERE ASSOCIATED WITH BRAKE FAILURE IN GM SUV'S AND PICKUPS AND WERE SUBJECT TO A RECALL. NO SUCH RECALL EXISTS FOR THE TERRAIN. I HAVEN'T YET EXPERIENCED A BRAKE FAILURE BUT GM SEEMS TO WANT TO WAIT UNTIL I DO TO FIX THE PROBLEM.

NHTSA ODI #11397836

44,950 miles · Jan 31, 2021
Service BrakesCrash

MY 2018 GMC TERRAIN BRAKES DID NOT WORK WHEN COMING TO A STOP AT STOP LIGHTS WHICH CAUSED ME TO REAR END THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME. THERE WAS NO WARNING ON MY SUV NOR DID I RECEIVE A RECALL ON THIS MATTER. THIS HAPPENED TWICE TO ME IN THIS SAME VEHICLE WHERE THE BRAKES DID NOT RESPOND AT A LOW SPEED CAUSING AN ACCIDENT. THIS ACCIDE…

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MY 2018 GMC TERRAIN BRAKES DID NOT WORK WHEN COMING TO A STOP AT STOP LIGHTS WHICH CAUSED ME TO REAR END THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME. THERE WAS NO WARNING ON MY SUV NOR DID I RECEIVE A RECALL ON THIS MATTER. THIS HAPPENED TWICE TO ME IN THIS SAME VEHICLE WHERE THE BRAKES DID NOT RESPOND AT A LOW SPEED CAUSING AN ACCIDENT. THIS ACCIDENT JUST HAPPENED TO CAUSE DAMAGE TO MY VEHICLE AND THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME.

NHTSA ODI #11390858

96,500 miles · Sep 13, 2020
Service Brakes

THE VACUUM PUMP FAILED FOR THE SECOND TIME IN LESS THAN TWELVE MONTHS. BOTH TIMES THERE WAS NO BRAKES AT ALL WHEN THEY FAILED. BOTH REPAIRS WERE PERFORMED BY GMC DEALERS. FAILURES HAPPENED WHILE THE TERRAIN WAS BEING DRIVEN.

NHTSA ODI #11354769

39,600 miles · Sep 3, 2020
Electrical SystemEngineService Brakes

MY 2018 GMC TERRAIN HAS MAJOR ISSUES THAT ALMOST CAUSED ME TO HIT A WALL ON THE EXPRESSWAY DUE TO A BRAKE ASSIST ISSUE THAT OTHER OWNERS HAVE A ISSUE WITH AND GMC HAS DONE NOTHING TO HELP THE BUYERS , WHERE CAN WE THE BUYERS GET HELP WITH ISSUES GMC IS WELL AWARE OF??

NHTSA ODI #11353073

Official recalls

5

20V668000 · Power Train:automatic Transmission

Oct 29, 2020

General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Chevrolet Cruze and Buick LaCrosse, 2018-2020 Chevrolet Equinox, Chevrolet Traverse and GMC Terrain, 2018 Chevrolet Malibu, 2019-2020 Buick Encore, Buick Enclave, Cadillac XT4, Chevrolet Blazer and GMC Acadia, and 2020 Cadillac XT6 vehicles. The start/stop accumulator endcap may have missing bolts.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: Missing bolts on the start-stop accumulator endcap could result in a transmission oil leak and may progress to a loss of propulsion, increasing the risk of a crash. A transmission fluid leak in the presence of an ignition source may increase the risk of fire.

Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the start-stop transmission accumulator and replace it if any bolts are missing, free of charge. The recall began December 15, 2020. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267, Buick Customer service at 1-866-608-8080, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. GM's number for this recall is N202313440.

18V576000 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:disc:caliper

Aug 30, 2018

General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Chevrolet Equinox, Impala, Cruze, Volt and Bolt EV vehicles, GMC Terrain vehicles, Buick Lacrosse and Regal vehicles, Cadillac XTS and XTS Professional vehicles and 2018 Chevrolet Malibu vehicles. The rear brake caliper pistons may have an insufficient coating causing gas pockets to form, potentially reducing rear brake performance.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A reduction of braking performance can increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will bleed the vehicle's brake system, free of charge. The recall began October 11, 2018. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 18279.

18V358000 · Fuel System, Gasoline:delivery:fuel Pump

May 31, 2018

General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2018 GMC Canyon, 2016-2017 Buick Envision, 2016-2018 Chevrolet Colorado and Malibu, 2017-2018 GMC Acadia, 2018 Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac ATS, Chevrolet Equinox, and GMC Terrain vehicles. The high pressure fuel pump may detach from its mounting flange, possibly resulting in the pump damaging the high pressure fuel line.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A damaged fuel line can create a fuel leak, increasing the risk of a fire.

Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the high pressure fuel pump, and high pressure fuel pipe, free of charge. The recall began July 2, 2018. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 18188.

18V340000 · Air Bags: Air Bag/restraint Control Module

May 24, 2018

General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018 GMC Terrain vehicles. The sensing diagnostic module (SDM) that senses a crash and deploys the necessary air bags may not power down correctly when the vehicle is shut off, causing it to be inoperative when the vehicle is restarted.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If the SDM becomes inoperative, it will not detect a crash or command the necessary air bag deployment, increasing the risk of injury in the event of a crash.

Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the SDM with updated software, free of charge. The recall began June 29, 2018. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 18179.

17V516000 · Power Train:driveline:driveshaft

Aug 22, 2017

General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain vehicles and 2017-2018 GMC Acadia vehicles. The right front intermediate driveshaft may fracture and separate while driving.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If the front right intermediate drive shaft assembly separates while driving, the vehicle will lose propulsion, increasing the risk of a crash. If the assembly separates while parked on a grade, without the park brake engaged, the vehicle may move unintentionally, increasing the risk of a vehicle roll-away.

Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the right front intermediate drive shaft assembly, free of charge. The recall began August 25, 2017. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 17329.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.