USED: 2017 GMC Acadia: The Perfect Complement to the HGTV Dream Home

2017 Gmc Acadia
The GMC Acadia in front of the Merritt Island HGTV Dream Home. Photo: Scotty Reiss

I have a confession to make: I’m addicted to HGTV.

From House Hunters to Fixer Upper to Rehab Addict to Beachfront Bargain Hunt, I love them all. HGTV is like wallpaper in my house: always in the background and coloring my view.

So recently I had the opportunity to tour the 2016 Dream Home in Merritt Island, Florida with a team from HGTV, including Dream Home designer Brian Patrick Flynn. Brian showed us around this amazing house, shared his design ideas and gave us insight to the trends we’ll be seeing in homes soon.

Part of our tour was the chance to drive from Orlando to the Merritt Island house in the 2017 GMC Acadia, which was recently re-thought and redesigned.

And it’s also a popular choice for GMC fans looking for a used car. Make sure you head to the bottom of this review to see how the GMC Acadia has coped with a few years of wear and tear.

2017 Gmc Acadia
The 2017 GMC Acadia parked at the Castle Hotel in Orlando, Florida and ready to sweep us off to the HGTV Dream Home in Merritt Island. Photo: Scotty Reiss

Redesigning the Acadia was a daunting task; the Acadia is a top seller and very popular among families and small business owners. Its capabilities for cargo, passengers and really nice finish details (leather seating, top technology, second row captains chairs and third row seating) give it that refined feel in a capable SUV.

2017 Gmc Acadia
The rear end of the GMC Acadia features a smaller size and a more elegant profile. Photo: Scotty Reiss

Taking a page from the HGTV Dream Home design project, GMC’s designers thought about how they could set trends in SUV design. They came up with a lot of great changes that made this great car even better; you can see our full tour of the Acadia here

Safety first: New features that look out for everyone in the Acadia

Probably the proudest new development is the Acadia’s rear door alert. If you open a rear door before you get into the driver’s seat, when you leave the car it will notify you with 5 audible beeps if you don’t open the rear door when you get out of the car. GMC’s designers and engineers hope that this will help parents and care givers to not forget a sleeping baby in the rear seat, which can have  tragic consequences and happens too often. (You can turn this feature off if you aren’t worried about leaving your blue prints or fabric samples in the back seat).

Amazing details and innovations add up to a dreamy design

To update the Acadia, the GMC team sought to refine its exterior lines, making it less boxy and more elegant. The front and rear ends are sleeker and rounder and the entire SUV has a sportier feel. They also took the size down a bit so it’s slightly smaller, but still has tons of passenger room and cargo capacity. On the road the Acadia didn’t feel overly large; it was easy to maneuver in and out of traffic, the car’s sight lines were clear, making it easy to see, and it had plenty of pick up for merging onto the highway.

2017 Gmc Acadia
Details like wood trip accent the interior; the drive type dial lets you set the transmission and suspension to handle driving conditions from snow and ice to gravel to towing. Photo: Scotty Reiss

On the interior they added some nice details like real wood accents and leather and aluminum trim to give an elegant feeling. But what I loved most were the little things:

A household plug, two USB ports and a storage drawer on the back of the center console. This lets rear seat passengers easily plug in and charge devices and the drawer, which you can reach from the front seat, pulls completely out for washing. Brilliant!

2017 Gmc Acadia
Maybe my favorite detail is the back of the center console, which has a household plug, two USB ports and a storage drawer that pops out for washing. Photo: Scotty Reiss

An umbrella storage spot in the front door: this small cubby is the perfect place to store a wet umbrella; just fold it up and tuck it in.

2017 Gmc Acadia
How about this great little detail: a cubby for a wet umbrella is part of the front door panel. Photo: Scotty Reiss

A kick-triggered lift gate: Just kick your foot under the left corner bumper of the GMC Acadia with the key in your pocket or purse and the lift gate will open. The kick trigger will also close the gate if you’ve just pulled things out of the cargo space and your hands are full.

2017 Gmc Acadia
Another great detail in the GMC Acadia is the kick-trigger that opens and closes the lift gate with the kick of a foot under the rear corner of the bumper. Photo: Scotty Reiss

A height adjustment setting for the lift gate; you can set the height the lift gate opens to; this will keep your lift gate from getting scratched in a low garage or let height-challenged people close the gate by pulling it down or pushing the automatic close button.

2017 Gmc Acadia
This little dial lets you set the height that the lift gate will open. Photo: Scotty Reiss
2017 Gmc Acadia
The lift gate opening at the mid-point setting, which is great for garages with low ceilings or for kids to be able to get their things out and easily close the gate. Photo: Scotty Reiss

Apple CarPlay and Android Auto: just plug in your phone and the Acadia’s touch screen becomes an extension of your phone.

2017 Gmc Acadia
GMC has added Apple CarPlay and Android Auto to all its vehicles making the GMC Acadia an extension of your phone. Photo: Scotty Reiss

HGTV’s Dream Home winner gets an Acadia too

Probably the coolest thing about the HGTV Dream Home is that they give it away. With 127 million entries, it’s a long shot, but lucky David Rennie of Shelton, Connecticut won the house. Along with the house he will get one of these lovely GMCs when he takes possession of the house. It looks nice parked in front but he’ll probably park it in the three-car garage.

Oh, yes, the Dream Home.

We got a look around and here is our video.

And I took a bunch of photos but since I was with a group of design and decorating influencers who take much better photos than I do, here are some of their Instagram posts:

I was so inspired that when I got home, I did a little redecorating, too. I bought a new rug and raided the living room for one of my favorite chairs, putting it next to my bed. When I bought the rug I found myself wishing I had a GMC Acadia to drive it home in. If I had, I probably would have bought a few more design details, too!

How Does the 2017 GMC Acadia Fare As A Used Car?

If you’re looking for a practical luxury SUV that can get you where you need to go, you’ll do no wrong with the 2017 GMC Acadia — but it may not be your first option. Out of 12 luxury SUVs for 2017, the Acadia ranks near the bottom — but that could be because beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and the Acadia balances the fine line between luxury and standard.

Market Value

Depending on the location, trim, and wear on the 2017 GMC Acadia, you can expect the used version to run between $20,000 through just over $32,000.

Trouble Spots

Owners saw some trouble with reliability on their GMC Acadia, seeing issues with driveline noise, shifter modules, AWD, and body integrity.

There are also a handful of recalls on this car:

  • The fuel line is prone to damage.
  • The right front driveshaft can separate while driving or parked in a garage.
  • Brake fluid is prone to leaking.

Remember that recalls are repaired for free and therefore should be repaired before you buy your vehicle.

What Owners Are Saying

  • “This is a 2017 Acadia Limited, and thus is really a 2016 in physical configuration, not the downsized 2017. This vehicle is a bargain if you need three rows of seats that can accommodate 8 passengers and want to travel in reasonable comfort with current amenities. The storage space is limited with all three rows of seats up, but there is enough room if you can pack well. The alternative is moving up to a Tahoe with a bit more space, but you will pay for it.” – Anonymous, CA

  • “When I would park in my garage, I would attempt to put in park but I could not until I kept changing gears. A couple of times we thought the car was off but would go back later to find the battery totally discharged. The radio and sound electronics would not work well after that. In fact the radio screen is totally balk today and am taking it back to GMC garage to have it repaired. The service writer told me they were backed up with so many recall work right now.” – Anonymous, TX

Disclosure: I was GMC’s guest for the Dream Home tour and Acadia drive; GMC provided my transportation and accommodations. Opinions expressed here are all my own.

Scotty Reiss
Scotty Reiss

Journalist, entrepreneur and mom. Expertise includes new cars, family cars, 3-row SUVs, child passenger car seats and automotive careers and culture. A World Car Awards juror and member of the steering committee, Scotty likes to say the automotive business found her, rather than her finding it. But recognizing the opportunity to give voice to powerful female consumers and create a voice to match their spending power, her mission became to empower women as car buyers and owners. A career-long journalist, she has written for the New York Times, Town & Country, Adweek and co-authored the book Stew Leonard, My Story, a biography of the founder of the iconic grocery company Stew Leonard’s. Her love of cars started when her father insisted she learn to change the oil in her MG Midget, but now it mostly plays out in the many road trips taken with her family.

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