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2020 GMC Terrain

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2020 GMC Terrain do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 182.

About this comparison →

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

Limited mileage data: 40 of 195 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.

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 63 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine. Review the 57 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 27 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

7 crash reports2 fire reports3 injury reports

What owners actually said

195 reports
28,830 miles · Mar 27, 2021
Service Brakes

SERVICE BRAKE ASSIST MESSAGE CAME ACROSS SCREEN AFTER I WAS UNABLE TO PUSH DOWN BRAKE PEDAL.

NHTSA ODI #11405166

1,000 miles · Mar 17, 2021
Visibility/wiper

I AM A MALE OF 6'1" HEIGHT AND FIND IT VERY HARD TO SEE OUT THE REARVIEW MIRROR WHEN I DRIVE MY WIFE'S GMC TERRAIN. BECAUSE OF THE LIMITED MOBILITY OF THE MIRROR, I AM UNABLE TO SEE OTHER CARS BEHIND MY VEHICLE WITHOUT LOWERING MY HEAD AND RECLINING MY SEAT BACKWARDS, BOTH OF WHICH CAN BE VERY DANGEROUS TO DO WHILE DRIVING. I WO…

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I AM A MALE OF 6'1" HEIGHT AND FIND IT VERY HARD TO SEE OUT THE REARVIEW MIRROR WHEN I DRIVE MY WIFE'S GMC TERRAIN. BECAUSE OF THE LIMITED MOBILITY OF THE MIRROR, I AM UNABLE TO SEE OTHER CARS BEHIND MY VEHICLE WITHOUT LOWERING MY HEAD AND RECLINING MY SEAT BACKWARDS, BOTH OF WHICH CAN BE VERY DANGEROUS TO DO WHILE DRIVING. I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE MIRROR ADJUSTED TO BE LONGER, OR ABLE TO BE ADJUSTED FURTHER UPWARD TO IMPROVE VISIBILITY FOR TALLER PEOPLE, LIKE MYSELF.

NHTSA ODI #11403615

3,000 miles · Mar 5, 2021
Unknown Or Other

WHEN EVER I GO TO TURN MY STEERING WHEEL AND I GO TP PUCH IN THE GAS PEDDLE THERE IS A VIBRATION DURING MOTION.

NHTSA ODI #11399393

2,400 miles · Feb 16, 2021
Power TrainSteeringSuspension

THIS VEHICLE IS UNSAFE DUE TO A VIOLENT SIDE TO SIDE WOBBLE IN THE FRONT END MUCH LIKE THE JEEP DEATH WOBBLE. THIS HAPPENS CONSTANTLY ANYWHERE FROM 30MPH - 70MPH USUALLY AFTER HITTING A SMALL BUMP OR WHEN TURNING HARD. THE TURNING ASPECT IS WHERE IT HAS BECOME VERY DANGEROUS ON SLIPPERY SURFACES AS THE CAR THEN SLIDES OUT. I …

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THIS VEHICLE IS UNSAFE DUE TO A VIOLENT SIDE TO SIDE WOBBLE IN THE FRONT END MUCH LIKE THE JEEP DEATH WOBBLE. THIS HAPPENS CONSTANTLY ANYWHERE FROM 30MPH - 70MPH USUALLY AFTER HITTING A SMALL BUMP OR WHEN TURNING HARD. THE TURNING ASPECT IS WHERE IT HAS BECOME VERY DANGEROUS ON SLIPPERY SURFACES AS THE CAR THEN SLIDES OUT. I LIVE IN THE MOUNTAINS WHERE THIS IS A NORMAL OCCURANCE. I AM ACTUALLY AFRAID TO DRIVE THIS VEHICLE ANY LONGER. THE DEALERS HAVE CONFIRMED THE ISSUE, BUT STATES THAT GM DOES NOT HAVE A FIX FOR THIS AS OF NOW. I HAVE HEARD THIS IS AFFECTING ONLY THE AWD TERRAINS AND EQUINOX PLATFORMS. GM HAS BEEN UNRESPONSIVE TRYING TO GET AN ANSWER OR GETTING THIS FIXED. THE CAR HAS BEEN INTO MULTIPLE DEALERSHIPS SEVERAL TIMES FOR THIS SAME ISSUE AND HAS BEEN HAPPENING SINCE THE CAR TURNED ABOUT 2400 MILES AND HAS BEEN HAPPENING MORE FREQUENTLY SINCE THEN FOR THE PAST 6000 MILES.

NHTSA ODI #11396428

8,500 miles · Dec 21, 2020
Air Bags

MY AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT/DASHBOARD MESSAGE HAS COME ON 7 TIMES IN THE LAST 3 WEEKS, ALONG WITH 4 OTHER TIMES IN THE 2 MONTHS PRIOR, BUT THE GMC DEALERSHIP WILL NOT INVESTIGATE SINCE IT DOES NOT STAY ON. AT THE MOST RECENT EVENT THIS WEEKEND, I PRESSED ONSTAR, AND THEY RAN DIAGNOSTICS AND EMAILED ME THE "B0085" DETECTED ERROR CO…

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MY AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT/DASHBOARD MESSAGE HAS COME ON 7 TIMES IN THE LAST 3 WEEKS, ALONG WITH 4 OTHER TIMES IN THE 2 MONTHS PRIOR, BUT THE GMC DEALERSHIP WILL NOT INVESTIGATE SINCE IT DOES NOT STAY ON. AT THE MOST RECENT EVENT THIS WEEKEND, I PRESSED ONSTAR, AND THEY RAN DIAGNOSTICS AND EMAILED ME THE "B0085" DETECTED ERROR CODE, BUT MY DEALERSHIP WILL STILL NOT INVESTIGATE, SINCE THE LIGHT WENT OUT. THE LIGHT HAS COME ON AT STARTUP AND WHILE DRIVING. WARNINGS HAVE COME ON 8/27/20, 10/5, 10/8, 10/12, 111/28, 12/2, 12/8(X2), 12/11, 12/14, AND 12/19/20.

NHTSA ODI #11384441

5,000 miles · Nov 18, 2020
Fuel/propulsion System

VEHICLE WAS ON 1/8 OF A TANK,I TRIED TO FILL, IT WOULD ONLY TAKE ON 5 GALLONS OF FUEL, GAS GAUGE READ FULL. REPORTED TO DEALER, THERE IS A 'BULLETIN' ON THE VEHICLE, FUEL TANK WAS REPLACED. AFTER SUCCESSFULLY FILLING TANK 3 TIMES, IT HAPPENED AGAIN, RETURNED VEHICLE TO DEALER, THEY COULD NOT REPLICATE, BROUGHT VEHICLE HOME, DEAL…

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VEHICLE WAS ON 1/8 OF A TANK,I TRIED TO FILL, IT WOULD ONLY TAKE ON 5 GALLONS OF FUEL, GAS GAUGE READ FULL. REPORTED TO DEALER, THERE IS A 'BULLETIN' ON THE VEHICLE, FUEL TANK WAS REPLACED. AFTER SUCCESSFULLY FILLING TANK 3 TIMES, IT HAPPENED AGAIN, RETURNED VEHICLE TO DEALER, THEY COULD NOT REPLICATE, BROUGHT VEHICLE HOME, DEALER WAS ABLE TO FILL TANK WITH APPROX 13 GALLONS, I RAN IT TO 1/8 OF A TANK TRIED TO FILL AND IT CONTINUES TO ONLY FILL WITH 2-6 GALLONS, AND RECORD ON THE GAUGE A FULL TANK. VERY DIFFICULT TO TELL HOW MUCH FUEL IS ON BOARD. MEETING WITH GMC DISTRICT REP 11/19/2020. THEY SUGGESTED I DRIVE IT TILL IT RUNS OUT OF FUEL AS TO SEE WHAT THE GAUGE READS! REALLY? HELP PLEASE! I HAVE PHOTOS OF THE PUMPS AND DASHBOARD TO RECORD AND TIME STAMP. I NEED HELP PLEASE! THE FIRST OCCURRENCE WAS SEPTEMBER 28, 2020 , SECOND OCCURRENCE OCTOBER 16,2020 AND THIRD WAS NOVEMBER 15,2020. THE VEHICLE WAS RETURNED TO THE DEALER ON OCTOBER 16, THEY TRIED TO REPLICATE WITH NO LUCK, VEHICLE WAS RETURNED TO ME NOVEMBER 11,2020! 26 DAYS LATER. HELP!

NHTSA ODI #11375306

5,000 miles · Nov 17, 2020
Power TrainWheels

ONLY A MONTH AFTER PURCHASING MY VEHICLE I STARTED TO FEEL A WOBBLE IN THE FRONT END WHEN ACCELERATING UP HILLS AND TURNING WHILE ON THE GAS. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER AND THEY CHANGED OUT THE FRONT TIRES STATING THAT THE PROBLEM HAD BEEN FIXED. ONCE AGAIN WHILE DRIVING THE PROBLEM PERSISTED. I TOOK THE CAR BACK TO THE DEALER AGAI…

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ONLY A MONTH AFTER PURCHASING MY VEHICLE I STARTED TO FEEL A WOBBLE IN THE FRONT END WHEN ACCELERATING UP HILLS AND TURNING WHILE ON THE GAS. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER AND THEY CHANGED OUT THE FRONT TIRES STATING THAT THE PROBLEM HAD BEEN FIXED. ONCE AGAIN WHILE DRIVING THE PROBLEM PERSISTED. I TOOK THE CAR BACK TO THE DEALER AGAIN AND THEY SAID THAT THEY COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG AND SUGGESTED THAT I MAKE AN APPOINTMENT TO GO FOR A DRIVE WITH THE MECHANIC TO SHOW THEM WHAT IS HAPPENING. I MADE AN APPOINTMENT. A DAY BEFORE THE APPOINTMENT I RECEIVED A CALL FROM THE DEALERSHIP STATING THAT AN EMPLOYEE RECENTLY PURCHASED THE SAME CAR AND THEY ARE HAVING SIMILAR DIFFICULTIES. THEY FOUND ONLINE THAT GMC WAS REQUESTING INFORMATION FROM DEALERS ABOUT THE PROBLEM AND WAS TOLD THAT I NOW NEED TO WAIT FOR GMC TO COME UP WITH A SOLUTION. MY CAR SHAKES EVERY TIME THAT I DRIVE IT, IT'S AWFUL, AND IT ONLY HAS AROUND 6,000 MILES ON IT. I'M NOT SURE WHAT TO DO BECAUSE THE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME THAT I HAVE TO WAIT FOR A SOLUTION. THEY ARE NOT EVEN TRYING TO FIX ANYTHING AT THIS TIME. PLEASE HELP.

NHTSA ODI #11375056

5,600 miles · Nov 12, 2020
Electrical System

TWICE WITHIN THE LAST TWO MONTHS MY ENTIRE RADIO SHUT OFF, MY SCREEN WENT BLACK AND SO DID MY GAUGES FOR AT LEAST 20 SECONDS. THEN THEY JUST CAME BACK ON AND PICKED UP WHERE IT LEFT OFF.

NHTSA ODI #11374234

27 miles · Nov 9, 2020
Unknown Or OtherVehicle Speed Control

PURCHASED NEW 2020 GMC TERRAIN W/7MILES. LEFT DEALERSHIP ON MY WAY HOME, AND WITHIN 20 MILES, RECEIVED A MESSAGE ON DASH-> SERVICE - ESC - DISMISS. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT FLASHED SEVERAL TIMES, AND THE SUV SLOWED DOWN AT LEAST 10 MILES FROM 65MILES PER HOUR. AFTER ENGINE LIGHT STOPPED BLINKING, I CONTINUES HOME AROUND 30 MILES MO…

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PURCHASED NEW 2020 GMC TERRAIN W/7MILES. LEFT DEALERSHIP ON MY WAY HOME, AND WITHIN 20 MILES, RECEIVED A MESSAGE ON DASH-> SERVICE - ESC - DISMISS. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT FLASHED SEVERAL TIMES, AND THE SUV SLOWED DOWN AT LEAST 10 MILES FROM 65MILES PER HOUR. AFTER ENGINE LIGHT STOPPED BLINKING, I CONTINUES HOME AROUND 30 MILES MORE WITH NO MORE PROBLEMS. CALLED MY SALES PERSON THE NEXT DAY, AND HE DID NOT KNOW WHAT ESC WAS. (ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL) HE CALLED ME BACK AND INDICTED THE VEHICLE MAY NEED A SOFTWARE UPDATE. I TOLD MY WIFE, WHY WOULD A DEALERSHIP NOT CHECK ON VEHICLE SOFTWARE UPDATES BEFORE RELEASING VEHICLES TO THE NEW OWNERS, PRIOR TO LEAVING THE DEALERSHIP. THIS IS CALLED, "BEING PROACTIVE." WE WERE ON THE HIGHWAY LEAVING THE DEALERSHIP AFTER PURCHASING THIS NEW SUV.

NHTSA ODI #11373835

457 miles · Sep 19, 2020
Service BrakesWheelsCrash

WHEN REVERSING OUT OF A PARKING SPOT, BRAKES FAILED CAUSING ACCIDENT. MULTIPLE ATTEMPTS TO DEPRESS BRAKE PEDAL WITH NO BRAKING. HIT A PARKED CAR. AFTER SHUTTING CAR OFF AND ATTEMPTING TO MOVE VEHICLE BRAKES DID ENGAGE AND RESPOND CORRECTLY. REAR DAMAGE TO TERRAIN OCCURRED REQUIRING TOWING.

NHTSA ODI #11359950

Official recalls

2

23V339000 · Child Seat:vehicle Latch Anchor

May 11, 2023

General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020-2023 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain vehicles. The four rear-seat lower child seat LATCH anchorage bars may have excessive powder coating, which could prevent a child seat from being installed with the anchorage bars. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 225, "Child Restraint Anchorage Systems."

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: The inability to install a child seat with the LATCH anchorage bars could result in an unsecured child seat, increasing the risk of injury in a crash.

Remedy: Owners are advised to install child seats using the vehicle's rear seat belts until the remedy is complete. Dealers will inspect the latch anchorage bars, and remove and replace the finish, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 2, 2023. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N232403240.

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.

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.