2023 GMC Acadia Reviews, Pricing & Specs

The GMC Acadia is one of the more expensive midsize crossovers on the market for 2023. It gets new colors and control layouts to sweeten the deal.

The Acadia is GMC’s entry to the midsize, three-row crossover space, up against rivals like the Jeep Grand Cherokee L and the Ford Explorer. It was last fully redesigned for 2017 and was refreshed last year.

What’s New for the 2023 GMC Acadia

The Acadia carries into 2023 almost entirely unchanged. GMC has added three new colors to the exterior palette: Volcanic Red Tintcoat, Ultra Blue Metallic, and Sterling Metallic. A new premium steering wheel design with audio and cruise control switches now comes standard on SLT, AT4, and Denali trim levels. This keeps things simple after the 2022 model added new features but took away the base trim and powertrain.

Design

The Acadia is most distinguished by GMC’s bold, square, truck-like front end, with a massive grille flanked by squared-off headlights. Black cladding abounds, too, along the wheel arches and rockers. On some configurations, a generous hit of chrome trim brightens up the dark plastic. The overall effect is very… square. The two base trims come standard with 18-inch wheels, upgraded to 20-inchers on the Denali, while the AT4 gets 17-inch wheels with all-terrain tires.

Powertrain

Most trims of the 2023 Acadia come powered by a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine paired with a nine-speed automatic transmission. These Acadia models are rated for 228 horsepower and 258 lb-ft of torque. While front-wheel drive (FWD) comes standard, all-wheel drive (AWD) is available across the lineup. The Acadia AT4 and Denali models get a 3.6-liter V6 with the same transmission, ratings of 310 horsepower and 271 lb-ft of torque, and maximum towing capacity of 4,000 pounds. The AT4 also gets standard AWD. The turbo-four with FWD is the most efficient of the bunch, with EPA ratings of 22 mpg city and 29 mpg highway; with the V6 and AWD, ratings drop as low as 19 mpg city and 26 mpg highway.

Interior

The Acadia seats six people in its standard configuration, but the second-row chairs can be swapped out for a bench to increase capacity to seven. Despite the Acadia’s high price, its interior quality falls a bit short of rivals. While the first two rows of seats are comfortable and offer plenty of space, the third row is cramped. Meanwhile, while there are some soft-touch materials found in the cockpit and throughout the rest of the cabin, there are also a lot of hard plastic surfaces. Cloth upholstery comes standard, though leather upholstery, power front seats, heated and cooled front seats, and heated second-row seats are all available. The Acadia holds just 12.8 cubic feet of gear in the cargo area, though that opens up to a maximum of 79 cubic feet with the seats folded.

Technology

The cabin features an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, Amazon Alexa, a Wi-Fi hotspot, and a six-speaker audio system. SLT, AT4, and Denali models add navigation and upgrade the stereo to a Bose system with eight speakers. Other options include wireless charging and a rear-row entertainment system.

Safety

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) awarded the 2023 Acadia the top score of Good in all six crash tests, while the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) awarded an overall safety rating of five out of five stars. The GMC Pro Safety Plus package comes standard and includes automatic emergency braking, forward-collision alert, front pedestrian braking, lane-keep assist, and automatic headlights. The Acadia also gets lane-change alert, rear park alert, rear cross-traffic alert, and the Teen Driver safety settings system. Upgrades include adaptive cruise control, a rear camera mirror, a surround-view camera system, front park assist, and a color head-up display (HUD).

Pricing

The GMC Acadia is one of the most expensive midsize crossovers on the market for 2023. As of this writing, the base SLE trim has an MSRP of $36,500, and AWD is a $2,300 option (though on other trims that come standard with FWD, AWD costs $2,000). Packages on this trim easily push the price up to the SLT’s MSRP of $39,600. The off-road-focused AT4 starts at $41,900, and finally, the Denali starts at $47,100.