2015 GMC TERRAIN — Problems, Recalls & Safety Data
4/5
Safety Rating
375
Owner Complaints
3
Recalls
31
Service Bulletins
0
Investigations
Overview of the 2015 GMC TERRAIN
The 2015 GMC TERRAIN has received a total of 375 safety complaints filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). It earned an overall safety rating of 4 out of 5 stars in NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program crash tests. There have been 3 recall campaigns affecting this vehicle, covering issues with VISIBILITY:WINDSHIELD WIPER/WASHER:MOTOR, EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS, AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW. 31 technical service bulletins have been issued by General Motors, LLC for this model year. The most commonly reported problems involve the Visibilitywiper (101 complaints), Engine (78 complaints), and Electrical System (31 complaints).
Recalls for the 2015 GMC TERRAIN
NHTSA has recorded 3 recalls for the 2015 GMC TERRAIN, potentially affecting up to 1,422,485 vehicles.
Recall 22V165000 — VISIBILITY:WINDSHIELD WIPER/WASHER:MOTOR
| 681,509 vehicles affected
Defect: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2014-2015 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain vehicles. The ball joints in the windshield wiper module may corrode, causing one or both windshield wipers to fail.
Consequence: Inoperative windshield wipers can reduce visibility in certain driving conditions, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect the wiper module, and repair or replace it as necessary, free of charge. Interim owner notification letters informing owners of the safety risk were mailed on April 21, 2022. Owner notification letters were mailed on October 25,...
View full details →Recall 22V137000 — EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS
| 740,581 vehicles affected
Defect: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2010-2017 GMC Terrain vehicles. A reflection caused by the headlight housings may illuminate areas above the vehicle and outside of the driver's view with excessively bright light. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
Consequence: The bright reflection may cause a glare for other drivers, reducing their visibility and increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will install headlamp appliques, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 8, 2022. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N222363740.
View full details →Recall 15V666000 — AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW
| 395 vehicles affected
Defect: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2015 Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac XTS, Chevrolet Camaro, Equinox, Malibu, and GMC Terrain vehicles. The affected vehicles have front seat-mounted side impact air bags whose inflator may rupture upon its deployment.
Consequence: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of one or both of the side impact air bags, the air bag's inflator may rupture and the air bag may not properly inflate. The rupture could cause metal fragments to strike the vehicle occupants, potentially resulting in serious injury or death. Additionally, if the air bag does not properly inflate, the driver or passenger is at an increased risk of injury.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the side impact air bag modules, free of charge. The recall began on October 19, 2015. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, Cadillac customer service...
View full details →Owner Complaints for the 2015 GMC TERRAIN
375 complaints have been filed with NHTSA for the 2015 GMC TERRAIN. Below is a breakdown by vehicle component.
Most Recent Complaints
The radio dead out randomly. Which means the back up camera is non working. I wasn’t able to see a stump and hit it. Doesn’t seem safe. Like what would has happened if it was a person instead and they like the stump was in my blind spot while backing up. I feel like this is a safety issue. I have looked it up online and found out this is a common issue with these vehicles.
First occurrence in September 2015. Rear lift gate acted abnormally, when I was parked,y son opened the lift gate using the normal door handle button, it raised, but as he was loading it lowered onto him. He is small, I had to get out and pull it off of him, it went up and down a couple times and then closed. You cannot stop it from closing down on you if you are trying to load or unload into that compartment. We have had to stop using altogether.
I own a 2015 GMC Terrain, 4D. Vehicle started displaying error P0016 during the evening of 07/27/2025, the following day the vehicle stopped working. I towed the vehicle to three different mechanics. All three mechanics indicated that the engine needs to be replaced. Two of the mechanics indicated that this was a common issue with this GMC SUV and I wanted to reported. P0016 states, "crankshaft position camshaft position correlation Bank 1". I am disappointed that this issue has not been reported or recall. There are multiple youtube videos and online chats regarding this issue.
The rear hatch would open but then start to slowly drop. The local dealership diagnosed the problem and told me the pump needed to be replaced but quoted $1000. I chose not to have the repair done at that time but recently the hatch opened and then dropped suddenly hitting me on the head. There were earlier model recalls for this problem but not on the 2015. This is a potentially dangerous condition.
Liftgate strut malfunctioned. Yes vehicle is available for inspection upon request. I activated the trunk with the key fob, while retrieving items out of my trunk, the trunk began closing on me without any warning. The liftgate sensor failed to recognize an object (ME), was in the trunk and nearly caused a severe crush injury which could have been fatal. Yes the problem was reproduce by an independent service center as well as a dealership. No the part was not inspected. There were no known warning lights or messages. Apparently as per consumers this is known problem with the 2010-2017 GMC Terrain and Chevy Equinox.
Safety Rating for the 2015 GMC TERRAIN
The 2015 GMC TERRAIN received an overall safety rating of 4 out of 5 stars from NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program (NCAP).
| Test Category | Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall Rating | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Frontal Crash | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
| Side Crash | ★★★★★ (5/5) |
| Rollover | ★★★★☆ (4/5) |
Safety ratings are based on controlled crash tests conducted by NHTSA. A 5-star rating indicates the highest level of occupant protection.
Technical Service Bulletins for the 2015 GMC TERRAIN
General Motors, LLC has issued 31 technical service bulletins (TSBs) for the 2015 GMC TERRAIN. TSBs are notices sent by manufacturers to their dealers describing a known issue and the recommended repair procedure.
18NA358 — EQUIPMENT ADAPTIVE/MOBILITY
This service bulletin provides a procedure to replace the upper and lower valve body housings to correct customer concerns of launch shudder, 2-3 Upshift or 3-2 Downshift concerns.
N192266180 — VISIBILITY
N192266180 - Special Coverage - On some 2010-2012, and 2014-2017 model year Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain vehicles, a link ball socket in the wiper transmission may separate. If this were to occur, the driver would experience a sudden loss of wiper function. Dealers are to replace the front wiper...
PIT5625 — EQUIPMENT:APPLIANCE:AIR CONDITIONER
This preliminary information is to alert the service technician of a potential A/C evaporator freezing concern , engineering is investigating.
PIC5953D — EQUIPMENT ADAPTIVE/MOBILITY
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about vehicles that may have an issue when using Bluetooth voice recognition with an iPhone. Technician should work with the customer to insure the phone contacts to not have any Emojis loaded to any contact.
PIT5391C — ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician on how to diagnose and repair vehicles that have a no crank or a start and then immediate stall, Service Engine Soon Malfunction Indicator lamp may not be on when the ignition is in the run position. Technician may find Diagnostic...
PI1010A — EQUIPMENT
THIS PRELIMINARY INFORMATIONAL BULLETIN ADDS 2015 - 2017 MY'S TO REPAIR INFORMATION FOR A CUSTOMER CONCERN OF ROUND DARK CIRCLES OF PAINT DISCOLORATION ON CENTER REAR AREA OF ROOF.
PI1023D — EQUIPMENT:OTHER:OWNERS/SERVICE/OTHER MANUAL
THIS PRELIMINARY INFORMATIONAL BULLETIN PROVIDES INFORMATION REGARDING THAT THE FLOOR FILLER TRIM PANEL WILL NO LONGER BE STANDARD EQUIPMENT.
PIP-5389-B — ENGINE
THIS PRELIMINARY INFORMATION COMMUNICATION PROVIDES INFORMATION TO THE TECHNICIAN REGARDING VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH ENGINE REGULAR PRODUCTION OPTION CODE LEA, LCV, AND LKW MAY HAVE A SERVICE ENGINE SOON LAMP WITH DIAGNOSTIC TROUBLE CODE P015A SET. IF THE SERVICE INFORMATION FOR DIAGNOSTIC INSTRUCTION FOR DIAGNOSTIC TROUBLE CODE P015A WAS COMPLETED INSPECT...
16-NA-146 — STRUCTURE
THIS TECHNICAL BULLETIN PROVIDES A PROCEDURE TO INSPECT ALL FOUR OF THE LIFT GATE MOUNTING BRACKETS AND REPLACE BRACKETS IF NECESSARY TO CORRECT A CUSTOMER CONCERN THAT AFTER OPENING THE POWER LIFT GATE, IT WILL NOT STAY IN THE FULL OPEN POSITION AND MAY DRIFT DOWN A FEW INCHES BEFORE...
PI1356H — EQUIPMENT:ELECTRICAL:RADIO/TAPE DECK/CD ETC.
This preliminary informational bulletin provides information on when the radio screen is blank, locked-up or is frozen. However, the radio audio may still be heard. This may have led to a battery drain at one point in which the issue is resolved afterwards. No OnStar® interaction is required to get...
Showing 10 of 31 technical service bulletins.
NHTSA Investigations for the 2015 GMC TERRAIN
There are no NHTSA defect investigations on record for this vehicle.
Other Model Years of the GMC TERRAIN
- 2010 GMC TERRAIN — 425 complaints
- 2011 GMC TERRAIN — 556 complaints
- 2012 GMC TERRAIN — 496 complaints
- 2013 GMC TERRAIN — 483 complaints
- 2014 GMC TERRAIN — 385 complaints
- 2015 GMC TERRAIN (current)
- 2016 GMC TERRAIN — 174 complaints
- 2017 GMC TERRAIN — 176 complaints
- 2018 GMC TERRAIN — 305 complaints
- 2019 GMC TERRAIN — 269 complaints
- 2020 GMC TERRAIN — 250 complaints
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- GMC ACADIA — 7,420 total complaints
- GMC YUKON — 6,108 total complaints
- GMC SIERRA — 4,896 total complaints
- GMC JIMMY — 3,778 total complaints
- GMC ENVOY — 3,269 total complaints
- GMC YUKON XL — 2,820 total complaints
- GMC SUBURBAN — 2,323 total complaints