Is the GMC Acadia more reliable than the Mazda CX-90?

Yes, by a large margin. The Acadia has a good reliability standing, while the CX-90 is rated mixed. The Acadia's main fault is transmission shudder. The CX-90 has hybrid shutdowns, sticking steering, and driver-assist systems that switch off, often with dealers unable to find the cause.

Which has more recalls, the Acadia or the CX-90?

The Acadia has more in total, with 17 recalls across 8 model years. The CX-90 has 13 across just 3 model years. Per model year, the CX-90 is recalled far more often. Check any car's VIN for open recalls before buying.

What goes wrong most often on the GMC Acadia?

The transmission leads, with 200 owner complaints. Owners report shudder, hard shifts, and unwanted downshifts, with shudder as early as 15,000 miles. Some report complete failure at roughly 74,000 to 80,000 miles. Electrical faults such as a black rear camera screen come next.

What problems have Mazda CX-90 owners reported?

Steering is the largest area, with 80 complaints. Owners describe a wheel that binds, sticks, or won't return to center. Others report the hybrid system shutting the car down with an "electrical leakage detected" warning, sometimes within the first miles, and a car that then needs a tow.

Which years of the Acadia and CX-90 should I avoid?

For the Acadia, avoid 2020 and 2023, the weakest years. For the CX-90, 2024 is among the weakest, and 2025 appears on both the strongest and weakest lists. Newer years have had less time to collect complaints, so a short complaint list does not prove a car is sound.

Last updated: 2026-10-10

GMC Acadia vs Mazda CX-90: Reliability Compared

More Reliable

GMC Acadia

Good

Mazda CX-90

Mixed

GMC Acadia comes out well ahead of the Mazda CX-90 on reliability. The CX-90 shows sticking steering and hybrid shutdowns in just three model years. The Acadia's main weak spot is its 9-speed transmission, and both models carry heavy recall counts.

How Do the GMC Acadia and Mazda CX-90 Generations Compare?

Most used Acadias a shopper will see belong to the second generation, which ran from the 2017 to 2023 model years and received updates for 2020, 2021, and 2022. That includes the weak 2020 and 2023 years. A third generation began with the 2024 model year. Those cars are a different design, but they have had less time to collect complaints. The CX-90 is a single generation that launched for 2024 and has covered only 2024 through 2026. Every CX-90 on the used market is early production, so there is no mature, late-run year to target yet.

Verdict

The GMC Acadia is more reliable than the Mazda CX-90, scoring 70/100 vs 58/100.

Reliability favors the Acadia, and the gap is large. Its worst problem is the 9-speed transmission, which shudders and in some reports failed outright. The CX-90 has only three model years on the road and already shows hybrid shutdowns, steering that sticks mid-turn, and cars sitting at dealers for weeks with no cause found. Both carry heavy recall counts, so neither is trouble-free. The Acadia is the safer bet.

Key Differences

1GMC Acadia scores 12 points higher in reliability
2Mazda CX-90 has 4 fewer total recalls

Category Scoreboard

1GMC Acadia

—

1Mazda CX-90

Reliability ScoreTotal RecallsSafety Rating

GMC Acadia vs Mazda CX-90: Which Is More Reliable?

GMC Acadia vs Mazda CX-90 at-a-glance reliability comparison
Metric	GMC Acadia	Mazda CX-90
Reliability Score	70/100	58/100
Years Tracked	8	3
Total Recalls	17	13
Total ComplaintsRaw count — varies with sales volume	770	280
Safety RatingNHTSA overall	2026 NHTSA	2026 NHTSA
Frontal
Side
Rollover
Year Wins	3	0

What Are the Common Problems With the GMC Acadia and Mazda CX-90?

Transmission trouble defines the Acadia: shudder at steady speeds, hard shifts, and a few reports of complete failure. Add rear camera blackouts and an electronic parking brake that sets itself while moving. The CX-90's complaints are harder to diagnose: hybrid systems that shut down with "electrical leakage detected" warnings, sometimes within the first miles, and steering that binds or locks at full lock. Crash-linked reports split by area. Only the Acadia has them for service brakes, and only the CX-90 has them for forward collision avoidance, where one report describes no warning before a rear-end impact. Steering has crash-linked reports on both.

GMC Acadia vs Mazda CX-90 common problem areas comparison
Component	GMC Acadia	Mazda CX-90
POWER TRAIN	200	21
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM	139	44
STEERING	55	80
UNKNOWN OR OTHER	106	22
SERVICE BRAKES	70	7
ENGINE	37	17
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE	8	29
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM	23	—
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL	5	16
AIR BAGS	12	—
VISIBILITY/WIPER	2	10
STRUCTURE	4	4
EXTERIOR LIGHTING	6	—
SEATS	6	—
SEAT BELTS	6	—
FUEL SYSTEM	4	—
SUSPENSION	4	—
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)	4	—
WHEELS	3	—
LANE DEPARTURE	2	—

Raw complaint counts aggregated across all tracked model years from NHTSA owner reports. Counts vary with sales volume.

How Does GMC Acadia vs Mazda CX-90 Reliability Compare by Year?

GMC Acadia vs Mazda CX-90 year-by-year reliability scores
Year	GMC Acadia	Mazda CX-90	Edge
2026	76/1000R / 0C	72/1000R / 0C	GMC Acadia
2025	76/1000R / 51C	63/1002R / 21C	GMC Acadia
2024	76/1000R / 51C	38/10011R / 259C	GMC Acadia

Best years to cross-shop: The 2024 GMC Acadia scored 76/100 and the 2024 Mazda CX-90 scored 38/100 — the strongest shared model years that have been on the road for at least two years, where available.

Who Should Buy the GMC Acadia vs the Mazda CX-90?

Pick the Acadia if you want the lower-risk used purchase and can live with a known transmission weak spot. Skip 2020 and 2023, the weakest years. The 2024 model is among the strongest, but it is also recent, so check its recall history by VIN. On any Acadia, test drive at steady speeds and feel for shudder, and test the rear camera in reverse. Pick the CX-90 only if you want its hybrid powertrain and accept the risk. The 2024 model is among the weakest years, and 2025 appears on both the strongest and weakest lists, so judge each car on its own record. The 2026 is listed as strongest, but it has had little time to collect complaints, so do not read that as proof. Turn the wheel through full lock and out of turns, ask whether the hybrid system was ever serviced for warnings, and confirm every recall was completed.

GMC Acadia vs Mazda CX-90: Common Questions

Is the GMC Acadia more reliable than the Mazda CX-90?: Yes, by a large margin. The Acadia has a good reliability standing, while the CX-90 is rated mixed. The Acadia's main fault is transmission shudder. The CX-90 has hybrid shutdowns, sticking steering, and driver-assist systems that switch off, often with dealers unable to find the cause.
Which has more recalls, the Acadia or the CX-90?: The Acadia has more in total, with 17 recalls across 8 model years. The CX-90 has 13 across just 3 model years. Per model year, the CX-90 is recalled far more often. Check any car's VIN for open recalls before buying.
What goes wrong most often on the GMC Acadia?: The transmission leads, with 200 owner complaints. Owners report shudder, hard shifts, and unwanted downshifts, with shudder as early as 15,000 miles. Some report complete failure at roughly 74,000 to 80,000 miles. Electrical faults such as a black rear camera screen come next.
What problems have Mazda CX-90 owners reported?: Steering is the largest area, with 80 complaints. Owners describe a wheel that binds, sticks, or won't return to center. Others report the hybrid system shutting the car down with an "electrical leakage detected" warning, sometimes within the first miles, and a car that then needs a tow.
Which years of the Acadia and CX-90 should I avoid?: For the Acadia, avoid 2020 and 2023, the weakest years. For the CX-90, 2024 is among the weakest, and 2025 appears on both the strongest and weakest lists. Newer years have had less time to collect complaints, so a short complaint list does not prove a car is sound.

More GMC Acadia comparisons

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More Mazda CX-90 comparisons

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How we score the GMC Acadia and Mazda CX-90

Scores weight complaint severity at 35%, repair costs at 30%, recall impact at 20%, and the spread of complaints across systems at 15%, with complaint counts adjusted for US sales. Read the full methodology.

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