Open and Start GMC
Open and Start GMCWe have updated our video on our YouTube channel demonstrating how to open and start GMC trucks and SUVs with a dead key fob battery, covering procedural changes in 2021 through 2024 models.
These include are the Acadia, Canyon, Hummer, Sierra, Terrain, and Yukon.
The update is necessary due to changes in the back up start procedure in the Acadia SUV and the Sierra pick up with bucket seats in 2024. The Acadia now uses the left cup holder, while the Sierra now has a spot alongside the cup holders (right).
You can see the new video on our YouTube channel here, or on our GMC page here.
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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.
These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.
Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph’s College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY
To start a GMC model with a dead key fob, a pocket to place the transmitter will need to be identified. Once the fob is properly placed, the vehicle will recognize the fob and the vehicle can be started as normal. In the new Hummer EV, the pocket is the rear cup holder, as shown to the right. Place the key fob in the cup holder with the buttons facing up and start the car as normal, pressing the brake pedal and the POWER button while in park or neutral.
The large SUV’s from GM, including the GMC Yukon, feature a transmitter pocket located in the face of the front of the inside of the center console, as shown to the right. Slide the transmitter into the pocket with the key ring facing out, buttons forward (in a Chevrolet Suburban we had on hand, the engine started with the buttons facing either way). It is a loose fit, but don’t be concerned. With the vehicle in Park or Neutral, press the brake pedal and the Start / Stop ignition button as normal. Check out the 
In an all to common inability to leave well enough alone, this is changed in the Yukon with bucket seats for the 2021 model year. Its changed again in 2023 (below). This will also cover the 2020 and newer GMC Sierra. There are now three back up locations for the transmitter. Again if the vehicle has bucket seats, the transmitter is dropped between the two cup holders (right). In the Sierra in 2022, the cup holders are one in front of the other (far right). In this case, drop the transmitter in the space between the cup holders and the shifter.
In both the Sierra and Yukon models in 2021 and beyond without bucket seats, the back up transmitter pocket is a slot at the back of the lowest storage bin (there are two of them) in the center area of, and beneath, the front seat. In all cases, once the transmitter is in place, press the brake pedal and the Start / Stop button together, starting the vehicle as normal.
The Terrain small crossover SUV got its first taste of keyless ignition in the 2018 model. It has bucket seats and the back up location is in a cup holder, nearly identical to the Yukon above, and exactly what the Yukon with bucket seats uses beginning in 2023. The cup holders are side by side (right) and the left side cup holder is used. As always, face the buttons up and with the vehicle in Park or Neutral, press the brake pedal and the Start / Stop ignition button as normal.
In the Acadia crossover, the pocket for the transmitter is located in the face of the rear of the inside of the center console. Slide the transmitter into the pocket with the key ring facing out, and the buttons up (or however it will fit!). With the vehicle in Park or Neutral, press the brake pedal and the Start / Stop ignition button as normal. And we have a 
The location is changed in the Acadia for the 2020 model year, though 2023. For those years, the back up slot is at the bottom of the center console, as shown to the right. The console liner must be lifted away to expose what is a fob-shaped depression. Once again, with the transmitter in place, press the Start / Stop button and the brake pedal together to start the vehicle.
In 2023, the Canyon gets its first look at keyless start. In this case however, the back up spot is in the right cup holder (right image). Evidently, just to be different. And again, with the transmitter or key fob in place, press the Start / Stop button and the brake pedal together to start the vehicle as normal.
Note: If you have made an attempt to start the vehicle without success, there may be residual pressure in the brake system and a new warning light may appear (left) or text message to Step on the Brake. Press the brake pedal very, very hard when trying to start the vehicle again to be sure that the release switch behind the pedal is engaged. Or wait a few minutes and try again.
Keyless or push button start GMC models use the third of three GM key styles. A mechanical key is held inside the fob and is needed to get into the vehicle.
Acadia and Terrain. To remove the cap, pull the door handle out to the open position. Insert the key into the slot on the bottom of the cap (3, right).
GM Now Uses 17 Differing Back-up Pockets
Too Many Back Up Start Locations
GM Now Uses 17 Differing Back-up Pockets! While putting together a review of 2018 push button start models, we discovered that the new GMC Terrain and Acadia had been added, and that this was introduced in the Acadia in 2017.
In addition, these two models have hidden key holes, like those used by Chevrolet. But what struck us was that the cars did not use the same back up start process, and that the spots are only similar to other General Motors made cars and SUVs.
The result is we now have 17 distinct images of back up start key fob pockets. We keep asking and hoping for standardization, but instead…
Similar, Not the Same
The Terrain uses a cup holder.
But because they are side by side, it is the first to use a left side cup holder. The Chevrolet Camaro uses the back one while the Buick Encore and Envision use the front. The Verano, Regal and Lacrosse also use the front, but the cup holder itself needs to be removed! And so on.
Standardize!
The point is, there is no standardization and unfortunately the company does not seem to be headed anywhere near selecting a single back up location.
Why not? Seriously, why not??? Following the key cylinder debacle GM announced it would move all their vehicles to push button or keyless start, eventually, and we suggested then that they use the opportunity to standardize the process. They didn’t, not that they were listening to us.
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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.
These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.
Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph’s College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY