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Comments
Doing CDN to US conversions can be misleading; I just look at it this way: if someone in Canada makes $100k and someone in the US makes $100k, the guy in Canada will have much less left over at the end of the year after buying his Acadia.
I wonder if other people have found that fitting child seats in either the Arcadia or the Outlook is pretty difficult to virtually impossible. We tried our car seat in the GMC "captains" chair seats - it was impossible to make it work, as the head restraints interfered with the child seat... Things were not much better with the bench seat (but we want the captains chairs for easy access to the 3rd row!)... On the Outlook the head restraint design is marginally better and different. We just about managed to fit our seat in.
These second row seats on both the Arcadia and the Outlook do not allow the removal of the head restraints! Aghhh! Making it impossible for us to fit our car seat ($300 Britax) into the GMC vehicles...
We can just about force the car seat in the Outlook by reclining the seat, but the Arcadia is a no go... Bad, bad design for vehicle that is meant to fit some part of the family friendly spectrum...
Hopefully GM will fix this in 08...
Anyone else had this problem?
Steve, CA, USA
Comparing taxation becomes a treacherous game so I'm back on topic.
Your point is that high end loaded vehicles aren't as common in Canada because of the high price along with VAT.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Exactly. I was in Ottawa a few months ago and noticed that there are very few large, high end SUVs are compared to, say, Charlotte NC. Canada does have federal and provincial tax, as well as sales tax (although, funny enough, people pay less per capita for health care in Canada than we do here in the US).
We're very lucky here: $40k gets you one heck of a nice Acadia with tons of options (sunroof, rear DVD, leather, NAV, basically everything I want). That's why I had to semi-laugh at my dad. I've now pointed him to an Outlook, which is cheaper than the Acadia. I'll see what prices he comes back with.
We tried to remove the second row headrests on both the Outlook and the Arcadia... We tried with some force, and in both cases the second row headrests felt pretty solidly fixed. It's hard to even create enough space to see between the headrest and the seat top...
The dealers didn't know how to remove these second row headrests and they checked the manual/handbooks, where it said nothing about being able to remove these second row headrests, for either the bench or captains chair configurations.
Overall it's a sad fault on a so called family friendly cross-over. I bet people (Mothers) will get the vehicle home only to find their car seat doesn't fit!
If you (or anyone else) knows the "trick" or "method" for there removal I'd love to hear about it...
Steve
However, I have found I don't have to take out the headrest completely in my car: I just set it on the highest setting, and the top of the car seat just fits right under. Have you tried doing that in the Acadia/Outlook?
On both the Outlook and the Arcadia, the front seats (driver and Passenger) have such a button to remove the seat head rests, but on the second row the headrests are buried deep in the shape/top of the seat top unit...
See:
See this picture...
For the molding/situation...
Steve
IMHO, cars haven't been made for years to comfortably drive with the windows down. Back in the 70s, sure. But now engineers assume you are using the A/C on the highway and structure them for that. (yes I am old enough to remember the cars without A/C when I was a kid)
You can usually tweak it by allowing a good crosswind to flow by opening some other windows.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
and on a $40,000 vehicle I didn't want to butcher the thing!
With a screwdriver and a box cutter they'd come out easy, but the vehicle would then look like crap.
Apologies for the Acadia (not Arcadia, place or games venue)
owners for the misspelling...
Anyone got a telephone number for the engineering staff on both the Outlook and/or the GMC Acadia :-) ...?
Still, this seat issue is going to make or break our purchasing decision...
Steve
Russ
We found, with our Britax (Wizard) on the Outlook, if we put the seat back all the way we could make the seat fit... So it's not quite a bust on the Outlook, but on the Acadia, for us and our (toddler friendly Britax Wizard) seat it is a bust... as it just won't fit.
For infant seats, then there won't be any issue, it's just when the kids get to toddler size, then people may have issues fitting their seats... YMMV, ours did.
For now the Acadia is not going to be an option, but we maybe able to *make* the Outlook work...
Thanks to all who have thought about this and tried to see what may work...
Steve
fwd or awd
However, on long trips (600klms) I can tell you that the vehicle actualy blows around the road. It is NOT a set and forget driving. You CONSTANTLY correct when you are on the highway doing 75MPH. My previous Durango would not FLOAT around the roadway like this. I love love the interior and confort and looks and mileage compared to the Durango, but this CUV is NOT NOT NOT a good towing vehicle in my mind.
If I only tow a few times per year long distance, I pray it is not too much for the vehicle. If it is, I will be taking my truck back. That is how concerned I am.
As I have only towed 1000 pounds before with 500 pounds of material INSIDE truck, can someone give me a take on towing 4000+ pounds long distance?
towing 1500 lbs is like towing a heavy jon boat... not good.
does anyone know what the "towing" button is for? change the rpm range for gears?
However, on long trips (600klms) I can tell you that the vehicle actualy blows around the road. It is NOT a set and forget driving. You CONSTANTLY correct when you are on the highway doing 75MPH.
I have never thought of swaying as having much to do with the towing vehicle (though it would be more exaggerated if your towing vehicle is light, as these CUVs are), but more with the type of trailer and hitch. A one-axle trailer with a lot of wind resistance will sway the most, and usually needs a sway bar to control it. We have always had sway bars for our campers, but hardly need it when we pull the dual-axle with the Denali.
On the other hand, when we pulled a single-axle old trailer with an S10, the camper could nearly swing the S10 around the road and into the next lane.
1) Get a sway bar; at least use it on the interstate , but unhook it if driving on 2-lane roads with a lot of turns.
2) If you really tow heavy vehicles that much, you need a heavy towing vehicle. Putting a vehicle at its max towing capacity might be OK for a short, slow trip, but not on a regular basis.
Enclave Rolls
Pictures too
Also I saw a post awhile back about the Enclave having a narrower rear hatch and it would not take a 4X sheet of plywood. This does not make a lot of sense since that would seem to be an area of major structure that GM would not change. Any ideas on this?
Follow this link to see pictures of a Britax roundabout ($300) installed on a bench seat in an Acadia.
http://www.acadiaforum.net/forum/index.php?topic=813.0
Just in case the mod here removes it below are some pics.
I find most of the people here are quite misinformed about the Acadia and cause widespread panic about issues that are easily resolved.
The headrest doesn't come out but it doesn't nedd to.
I have had my acadia for only ten days but have some observations. Since many have reviewed the car extensively.....I'll concentrate on the areas that I think need improvement.
Overall I am very impressed with the vehicle. There isn't a sharper looking car on the road. I have been driving explorers for many years and find the acadia's cross-over design very refreshing. While the tranny is a little sluggish in the low end...it zooms above 30mph. Did I say it has a quiet ride....extremely. No suv here....it is a car. Btw, it is huge. Even though I test drove the car several times....I was not prepared for its size...especially its width. It barely fits through my driveway. Weird looking mirrors make it even wider.
Suggestions-
1)This car is not for short people. The windows are high so you will have difficulty seeing over the windows. The rear window is especially high so you can barely see a sports car behind you. Backing up will take time getting used to. Order the backup camera when it becomes available. Peace of mind. (btw...I am 5 foot 9 and have the seat raised as high as possible so I can see the front end of the car)
2)If you just recently purchased an acadia...make sure they reprogram the transmission. Before this was done, mine seemed to take 5 seconds to slip into gear. While the reprograming has improved the tranny a lot...I still don't think it engages each gear as easily as it should.
3)Don't shine up your dashboard unless you want to see everthing reflected in the windshield. Normally it is not a big deal but I would keep the armour-all away.
4)A split rear window would be nice. It takes a little time opening the entire tailgate to drop in a bag a groceries . I didn't order the power lift option because it seemed to take even more time to open than to open it manually.
5)If you do a lot of city driving , don't expect 18mph.
6)If you have a narrow garage or driveway....strongly consider the power window option. Sometimes I fold my drivers mirror when things get tight.
Everyone I show the car to is impressed....especially when I tell them I got my slt-1 for about 31k. It is a lot of car for the money
p.s. I am in the process of installing a wireless backup camera/monitor. It is made by roadmaster. Consumer reports gave it a positive review. For about $100 you get a wireless camera that attaches to your licence plate bracket and an lcd monitor that you can plut into the power outlet . The only hard part is getting power to the camera...they suggest tapping into the backup light circuit so it engages when you backup. Without having a Haynes manual I am trying to figure out how to get to the backup light wires. I think I will have to remove the back panel. I'll tell you how this works out.
Enclave Article
For the record, I've no affiliation with Sendstation. YMMV
Steve
grey
I think lighter colors are harder to see on the road, so its easier to pull out in front of one
Just my thought.
It does have XENON or HID's though...
I think the Enclave is just the best looking thing to come out from buick since harley earl. THe attention to detail in this car is unmatched by most cadillacs (Upcomming CTS and Escallade excluded).
7073 - Lubricate "I" Shaft and inspect liftgate
7074 - Inspect console mounted switches
These should also apply to the Acadia.
A note on the review from the Acadia owner. I too find the windows/tailgate high (and I am tall). It's interesting that many cars are switching to the higher windows. To me it creates some visibility concerns and makes ATMs more interesting to drive up to.
Follow this link to see pictures of a Britax roundabout ($300) installed on a bench seat in an Acadia.
The roundabout is an infant/toddler seat. I believe the previous poster was trying to fit in a booster seat, which has a straighter higher back with its own headrest.
My kids have outgrown car seats, but it is dumb not to have a removeable headrest anyway. There are various reasons that people like to remove them.
Does anyone know if those prices are out there yet? I know that Edmunds and KBB are showing invoice prices and MSRP but when our dealer goes through the GM dealer online process we get "W/A" where the invoice prices should be.
Out seat is the Britax Wizrard (now the link Boulevard) and it's rated to 65lbs (fwd facing). As you maybe able to see in the Britax pictures the seat is considerably taller, and has the side impact restraints.
It is this extra height on the Boulevard that interferes with the head rests in the Acadia to a greater extent, and to a lesser extent in the Sat. Outlook.
Either way our preference would be to remove the head rest so the seat fits well and tightly into the seat.
Many thanks to you for taking the pictures, but without removable head rests the Acadia is crossed off our list (shame, as we loved it)... Maybe we can make the Outlook work with its slightly different head rest design.
I do hope you are not in for a surprise when you have to replace the Britax Roundabout for a larger seat...
Steve
Honestly, if you really like the Acadia, why not buy a different car seat? I have a 3 yr old and an infant, and researched tons of seats, and came to the conclusion that there are many well rated car seats that are much cheaper than the Britax, if replacement cost is what is bothering you. The Acadia has received an excellent crash report, so the vehicle itself is "safe", so to disregard it because of a car seat is a bit foolish.
Of course, maybe many other booster seats won't fit well in the Acadia...
For California, the rules are
(1) Six years of age or older.
OR...
(2) Sixty pounds or more.
Hence my concern that the headrests in the Acadia don't appear to be removable (ie. problem solved all round).
If anyone out there has successfully removed a headrest without butchering the seat (either bench or captains-chair) I'd love to hear from them...
Steve
Many operational questions, but I am here to help you all with the unsolvable car seat dilemma. Actually Saturn Rep figured it out and salesman told me over the phone, did not bring kids in to pick-up.
Sorry no photos for you. Can be done with one set of hands, but two are nice. One mini maglite helps too. Ear plugs for little kids help too. First side took 2 minutes the other side 20 seconds.
1) under headrest are two metal posts each shaft goes into a black plastic grommet.
2) Easier with cloth, but can be done with leather if nervous try on dealer demo and teach them as well. Facing the headrest tackle one post then another.
3) Gently push fabric/leather down metal shaft till you can see a tiny metal c-clip. One might have to tug it side to side to get the clip trough the hole cause clip is larger than the hole. It fits into an indent on the "left edge only" of each post. The clip can spin freely. It is hard to push fabric/stuffing down all this way maybe 3". Use free hand if you have one to open up c-clip with one finger and prop the side up slightly over indent. Now the other side is done with slightly less room to get in there. When you release the other shaft the rest should easily pop out. The flashlight helps you see what is happening unless you got the dual sunroofs.
4) now you can store it in the back or turn it around but it does not now firmly affix because the indents are on the wrong side and the padding doesn't let it insert all the way in. The car seat fits much better now.
I left them in backwards cause we will use then as seats as well. GOOD LUCK to all!!
I wonder if the same C-Clip trick works on the Acadia? :-)
Too bad it's so hard on a $40,000 vehicle, maybe the GM engineers will fix this for '08.
Steve