Compare the2024 GMC AcadiaVS 2023 Tesla Model X

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Acadia are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Model X doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Acadia has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The Model X doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Acadia has standard Reverse Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Model X doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Acadia AT4’s standard Hill Descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The Model X doesn’t offer Hill Descent Control.

The Acadia has a standard HD Surround Vision to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Model X only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Acadia’s standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert uses sensors in the rear to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side and Rear Cross Traffic Braking automatically engages the brakes to help avoid a collision. The Model X doesn’t offer a rear cross-path warning system.

The Acadia has standard OnStar®, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to get turn-by-turn driving directions, remotely unlock your doors if you lock your keys in, help track down your vehicle if it’s stolen or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The Model X doesn’t offer a GPS response system, only a navigation computer with no live response for emergencies, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.

Both the Acadia and the Model X have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive and driver alert monitors.

There are almost 9 times as many GMC dealers as there are Tesla dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Acadia’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that GMC vehicles are better in initial quality than Tesla vehicles. J.D. Power ranks GMC above average in initial quality. With 90 more problems per 100 vehicles, Tesla is rated below average.

For better traction, the Acadia Denali’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Model X (275/45R22 vs. 265/35R22).

The GMC Acadia’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Tesla Model X only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The Acadia has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Model X doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Acadia has a standard space-saver spare tire so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire isn’t available on the Model X; it requires you to depend on roadside assistance and your vehicle will have to be towed.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Acadia’s wheelbase is 4.2 inches longer than on the Model X (120.9 inches vs. 116.7 inches).

For better maneuverability, the ’s turning circle is 40.8 feet tighter than the Model X’s ( feet vs. 40.8 feet).

The Acadia has .9 inches more front headroom, 3.2 inches more front legroom, 3.5 inches more front hip room, 1.3 inches more front shoulder room, 2.8 inches more rear legroom, 5.1 inches more rear shoulder room, 1.1 inches more third row headroom, 2.3 inches more third row legroom, 9.9 inches more third row hip room and 17.2 inches more third row shoulder room than the Model X.

The Acadia’s cargo area provides more volume than the Model X.

The Acadia’s standard rear seats fold to accommodate long and bulky cargo. The Model X 6-Passenger doesn’t offer folding rear seats.

Pressing a switch automatically lowers the Acadia Denali’s second row seats and pressing a switch automatically lowers or raises the third row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Model X doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the Acadia’s cargo door can be opened just by waiting momentarily behind the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Model X doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

An Oil Life Monitor is standard on the Acadia to save the owner time and money by calculating maintenance intervals for oil changes, air filter replacement, and brake pad replacement, based on actual driving conditions. This takes the guesswork out of keeping your vehicle in top condition and helps it last longer. Tesla doesn’t offer a maintenance reminder on the Model X.

The Acadia’s entire steering wheel hub sounds the horn, facilitating hitting the horn in an emergency. The Model X has a small, single button on the steering wheel spoke that can be hard to find quickly in an emergency.

The Acadia offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed, tachometer, navigation instruction and driver assistance information readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Model X doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Acadia has a standard rear wiper. The Model X doesn’t offer a rear wiper.

The Acadia’s standard side window demisters help clear frost or condensation from the side windows in the winter. The Model X doesn’t even offer side window demisters, so the driver may have to wipe the windows from the outside to gain side vision.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Acadia has standard extendable sun visors. The Model X doesn’t offer extendable visors.

The Acadia’s sun-visors swivel front-to-side to block glare from the side windows. The Model X’s visors are fixed into the windshield header.

The Acadia has a standard center folding armrest for the middle row passengers. A center armrest helps make middle row passengers more comfortable and it can provide a boundary between children. The Model X doesn’t offer a middle row seat center armrest.

The Acadia has a 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Model X doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Acadia is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Model X doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

The GMC Acadia outsold the Tesla Model X by almost three to one during 2023.