Forum Discussion
Telematic Control Module Failure - No "Get Well Plan" from GM Corp and the CEO of GM, Mary Barra.
To the GM Executive Customer Care and Corporate Leadership and to my fellow GM product owners:
I am formally escalating a serious and unresolved issue regarding a Telematics Control Module (TCM) failure on my 2025 GMC Acadia Elevation, purchased in October 2025.
My authorized GMC dealership has confirmed that the vehicle’s TCM requires replacement. Based on discussions with dealership personnel and extensive owner reports, this failure appears to be systemic across multiple GM platforms and model years, not an isolated incident.
Despite widespread awareness of recurring TCM failures, GM continues to:
- Sell vehicles equipped with these modules
- Market and charge customers for OnStar services that may be partially or fully non‑functional
- Leave dealerships without sufficient replacement modules or clear remediation guidance
This raises serious concerns regarding customer safety, transparency, and corporate accountability.
Key Issues Requiring Executive Review
- Paid Services & Disclosure
- Why does GM continue selling OnStar subscriptions on vehicles known to suffer TCM failures that compromise emergency, location, and monitoring services?
- Why are customers not clearly informed of these known risks at the point of sale?
- Manufacturing & Parts Strategy
- Are newly produced GM vehicles equipped with updated or redesigned telematics modules, or are the same failure-prone units still being installed?
- If improved modules exist, why has GM not prioritized distributing them to dealerships to repair affected customer vehicles?
- Safety & Liability Exposure
- What safety systems are impacted when the TCM fails—specifically emergency response, airbag crash detection, vehicle tracking, and occupant monitoring?
- How does GM mitigate the risk of delayed or failed emergency response in accidents involving vehicles with known TCM failures?
- Corporate Oversight & Trust
- Why has GM not issued a formal service campaign, recall, or goodwill repair initiative to address this issue?
- How does GM intend to preserve brand trust while allowing a known electronic safety-related failure to persist?
- Broader Risk Implications
- Given GM Defense’s role as a supplier to the U.S. Department of Defense, unresolved systemic quality issues in consumer vehicles raise legitimate concerns about component reliability, governance, and risk discipline across the enterprise.
Expected Resolution
I am requesting executive-level intervention to provide:
- A clear acknowledgment of the systemic TCM issue
- Confirmation of whether redesigned replacement modules exist
- Immediate corrective action for affected customers
- Reimbursement or suspension of OnStar charges during periods of non-functionality
- A defined remediation or “get‑well” plan communicated to dealerships and customers
This issue is solvable, comparatively low-cost relative to major powertrain or structural problems, and represents an opportunity for GM leadership to demonstrate accountability and customer commitment.
I respectfully request a written response from GM Executive Customer Care or Corporate Leadership outlining next steps within a reasonable timeframe.
Thank you in advance for reading and responding to my posting/message.
4 Replies
The satisfaction of our loyal Members is very important to us, and our team can certainly understand your present dissatisfaction over being without the critical OnStar services that you depend on for unknown period of time. One of our top priorities is to get parts flowing to dealerships and we would like the opportunity to learn more about your Acadia's concerns. That said, we would like the opportunity to provide you with an additional layer of support throughout this process alongside your GMC dealer. To proceed, please send us a private message with your full contact information, VIN, current mileage, and involved GMC dealer. You can do this by selecting the envelope icon at the top right of your screen. We will keep an eye out for your outreach. By sending us a message, you consent to the information you provide being monitored and recorded by GM or those acting on GM’s behalf, subject to the GM Privacy Statement: https://www.gm.com/privacy-statement.
Thank you for the response, but are you kidding me? Important to your loyal members? Understand our present dissatisfaction? Are you kidding me? How can you post such a response? So did you recently buy a GM vehicle that is plagued with these issues? Are you making payments on a vehicle less than a year old where certain premium features and options are totally "NON FUNCTIONAL" ? Is GM going to compensate me for this inconvenience by not having the full functionality of the OnStar features to include GPS and my Infotainment system? Will GM also compensate me for my lost time and wages at work for bringing in my vehicle into a dealership due to a recall notice which couldn't even be repaired or corrected? Until I get a personal call or personal letter from the senior leadership at the GM Corporation, your responses are nothing more than corporate lip service.
So Hannah you mentioned in your message, "To proceed, please send us a private message with your full contact information, VIN, current mileage, and involved GMC dealer. You can do this by selecting the envelope icon at the top right of your screen. We will keep an eye out for your outreach." I see that the above statement has been given to quite a few disappointed and frustrated customers of GM products with this TCM issue, but not in one message I have read from an Advisor does the Advisor provide an address of the office or person we are to send the requested information. Well if the TCM was partially operational, GM could pull that information from OnStar.
Your feedback is heard and your comments are something we take very seriously. Our goal is to see you and all of our customers satisfied and confident when behind the wheel. We are part of GM's Social Care Team, and we work alongside Mary to address customer inquiries and concerns, assisting to the best of our abilities as an added layer of support alongside the trained technicians of our certified dealerships. To discuss your situation further and connect directly with a live advisor to explore opportunities for assistance surrounding your Acadia, please send us a private message with more details at your convenience. We will be on the lookout.