2016 Chevrolet Equinox
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Engine is the leading concern among 396 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 11th highest complaint count among 21 Equinox model years with reports.
Of the 2016 reports, 14 involved a crash and 3 involved a fire. 22 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Equipment, other, labelsJun 21, 2016
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2016 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain vehicles manufactured October 16, 2015. The certification labels may have incorrect tire/rim size and cold tire pressure information. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."
If the information on the certification labels is incorrect, the operator may install incorrectly sized tires or rims or may improperly inflate the tires, increasing the risk of a crash.
GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and replace the certification label, free of charge. The recall began on July 14, 2016. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1050, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 46600.
Campaign 16V449000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints
396 reports, newest first.
Electrical system, Engine, Mar 16, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving and accelerating the check engine warning light would illuminate. The vehicle was taken to an unknown dealer and the contact was informed that no fault codes were retrieved; however, the computer was reset. The contact stated that shortly after retrieving the vehicle the failure recurred and was taken back to the dealer. The contact was informed that the failure was due to the sensors in the main computer. The vehicle was repaired out of pocket. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 49,000.
Other or unspecified, Mar 14, 2022
Bought my equinox from CarMax last Feb. I am hearing a 'knock, knock, knock, knock' coming from the back. It been going on for a while now and no one seem to know why. The car also do a jerking when at stop
Visibility/wiper, Mar 14, 2022
Wiper transmission not working. The motor is fine but the transmission keeps disconnecting
Engine, Feb 23, 2022
Car kept stalling out on my daughter then just quit running. We had it towed to an engine shop and they said the timing belt came apart and now it needs a new motor. She has not even had the car a year and has routinely maintenanced it. We still owe over $10k on the car and a new motor is over $10k. This should be a recall from the manufacture. Stalling on her could have caused her to be in a wreck!!!
Engine, Feb 23, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, there was a knocking sound coming from the vehicle. The contact stated that an unknown warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed there was a gasket leak in the engine and the vehicle was leaking engine oil. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 73,000.
Service brakes, Feb 20, 2022
02/19/2022 WHILE DRIVING DOWN STEEP DIRT ROAD CLOSE TO WHERE WE LIVE THE BRAKE PEDDLE SUDDENLY WENT TO THE FLOOR. WE RAPIDLY DROVE DOWN THIS STEEP INCLINE WITHOUT ANY BREAKS THE CAR BOUNCED VILOLANTLY UNTILL WE GOT TO THE BOTTOM AT THAT POINT THE BRAKE PEDDLE RESUMED NORMAL OPERATION. DROVE STRIGHT HOME WITHOUT A REPEAT OF NO BRAKES. WILL CALL CHEVY DEALER ON 02-22-2022 TO COME AND GET IT AND CHECK IT OUT
Engine, Feb 11, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated while driving 50 - 55 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and diagnosed with continuously variable transmission (CVT) failure, which caused the oil to leak out of the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired and remained at the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that they would assist with the cost of the repair. The failure mileage was approximately 130,000.
Engine, Feb 10, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated and the contact continued driving to the local dealer to be diagnosed. The vehicle was diagnosed and the contact was informed that there was no oil in the engine and that the PCV valve was damaged and that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 84,500. THE CONSUMER STATED THE PCV FAILS WHEN THE OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE REACHES 0 DEGREES. THE MANUFACTURER OFFERED A PERCENTAGE OF THE REPAIR COST.
Engine, Feb 10, 2022
Entered vehicle and smelled exhaust inside. Checked tail pipe and it was clear and blowing out exhaust. Pulled out of driveway and got sudden smell of oil. About 200 feet down the street smelled burning oil. Turned around and went home, car was dying and would not start after. Had to be towed to be checked and was told engine was flooded along with other issues from driving that short distance the way it was. NOT ONE ALERT SHOWED OR IS NOW SHOWING ON DASH OR DISPLAY. Nothing about oil, no check engine, no warnings of any issues. Has been maintained and just had an oil change. Is driven daily and had no alerts or issues. Now we are stuck paying over $6k to replace the entire block when there was no notification that any maintenance was needed. Any notification that pops up, we check and fix immediately. In the shop still and techs say no lights or warnings are coming on still when they turn the car on. Not even check engine when it’s blown! We bought a newer vehicle to avoid these issues and now we are stuck dropping that much or more to replace engine block or buy a new suv all together. Seeing as the economy is horrible right now, we really can’t afford to do either!!
Engine, Feb 3, 2022, fire
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated while driving 32 MPH, the contact was veering off the highway exit ramp and noticed in the rear-view mirror that there was black smoke coming from the rear of the vehicle. The contact got off the exit ramp and became aware that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact activated the hazard light and drove to the residence. Upon inspection, the contact became aware that the engine oil was extremely low. The contact had the vehicle towed to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the rear main seal had blown out and that the engine needed to be repaired or replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 86,000.
Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Feb 3, 2022
Problems with oil leaking on rear seal. No notice given until light came on that said stop engine now. Upon inspection all oil was gone. My mechanic said this is an unfortunate issue with this engine because the pressure release hole is so small that any dirt can block it and but a lot of pressure on the back seal until it bursts and leaks out oil. This could have blown my engine and it only has 67000 miles. Definitely a manufacturers defect.
Power train, Engine, Jan 28, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while her daughter was driving 45 MPH, the vehicle started making abnormal sounds and then stalled. The warning message “Low Engine Pressure” was displayed. The contact’s daughter was able to veer to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to the contact’s residence. The contact’s husband, a Ford mechanic diagnosed that the PCM valve had frozen, built-up pressure in the engine, and blew out the pressure which ruptured the rear main seal. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact’s husband that it was a known failure. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 116,000.
Engine, Jan 27, 2022
Drove to work 1/26/22 and heard my engine knocking. During my 10 minute commute there were no warnings, messages or any active dashboard light(s), especially none regarding the engine or oil pressure . Once I parked, my engine seized and began leaking/smoking. The engine needs replaced due to excessive oil consumption and a faulty oil pressure warning.
Engine, Jan 24, 2022
Our car was parked outside for the weekend and we were planning to return home. It was around 14°F outside and starting to snow. Approximately 10 minutes into the trip home, the 2016 Chevy Equinox started to make some faint abnormal sounds. Shortly after the instrument cluster displayed a Stabilitrak Warning. I presumed an issue with the traction control and continued to drive. Shortly after the Equinox went into a failsafe/power limiting mode. We (my wife and young daughters were with me) were within a few miles of a gas station so we decided to try to drive there to not be in the cold weather. Before reaching a gas station, the car stalled and needed to be towed to a service shop. The car was diagnosed with a blown rear main seal causing catastrophic engine failure. It was determined the PCV valve froze causing excess crankcase pressure, blowing the rear main seal. The Equinox had 89,277 miles on it at the time. "Tow" costs: $149.18 Engine Replacement Cost: $6504.30 At no point did any oil related (level, pressure) indicator appear.
Visibility/wiper, Dec 16, 2021
I was driving on the highway in the rain and my windshield wiper stopped in the middle of my windshield.
Visibility/wiper, Oct 26, 2021
Wipers just stopped working in the middle of driving during a rainstorm. Visibility while driving was severely diminished in an unexpected manner.
Air bags, Engine, Oct 2, 2021
The air bag light keeps coming on intermittently as I’m driving saying service airbag but when you check the code nothing specific comes up. I’ve had mechanics look at the car and for them to guess it will cost me Thousands. And I noticed my truck is also hesitating to drive and almost feels like it’s going to shut down as I’m driving with a constant check engine light the light came on about a day after the service air bag light
Air bags, Sep 23, 2021, crash
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that his vehicle had been involved in two accidents and that the airbags failed to deploy as needed in both accidents. In the first accident, the contact stated that while driving at a low rate of speed, a tree had fallen right in front of his vehicle. The contact was not able to stop the vehicle in time which caused him to run over the tree. The contact stated that the airbags did not deploy. The contact did not suffer any injuries and a police report was not filed. The contact had the vehicle towed to the dealer where they repaired the damage to the vehicle. The second failure occurred while the contact was at a stoplight and another vehicle on the opposite side of traffic had hit his vehicle's driver side at a high rate of speed. The air bags again did not deploy upon impact. The contact and his wife were both taken to the hospital where he was treated for whiplash to his neck and arms. After months of chronic pain, the contact also had back surgery. The contact's wife was treated for injuries to her left knee and stomach, as well as whiplash to her neck. A police report was filed at the scene. The vehicle was towed to an independent body shop for repair. The manufacturer had yet to be notified of the failure. The vehicle had been repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 1,000.
Visibility, Sep 14, 2021
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while his wife was driving 65 MPH, the windshield wipers failed to operate during a rainstorm without warning. His wife pulled off to the shoulder of the road and waited for the storm to subside before she resumed driving. Once the contact's wife made it home, the contact inspected the vehicle and stated that an abnormal, clicking noise was coming from the windshield wiper motor. The dealer nor the manufacturer had yet to be notified of the failure. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 110,000.
Engine, Sep 10, 2021
2016 Chevy equinox Engine has to be rebuilt due to a faulty 2.4 GM motor with excessive oil consumption which led to timing chain breaking which caused other internal damage to engine! Known issue for this vehicle
Visibility/wiper, Aug 22, 2021
Both windshield wipers stopped working at the same. Can still here motor wiper working when selected but no wiper movement at all.
Visibility/wiper, Jul 29, 2021
The front windshield wipers quit working while I was driving home from work during rush hour on the freeway. It was during a very heavy rainstorm and left me with no visibility in heavy traffic. There was no warning signal or system notification. They just stopped working.
Engine, Jul 27, 2021
I filed an complaint about my Equinox stalling when it stops. I had the oil changed on 07/16/2021 not 07/23/2021(I went in on a separate matter on that date.) But I'm still worried about the car stalling so many times. Because it can be a danger with stalling out on the road and at stoplights.
Engine, Jul 27, 2021
I went to pick up my child from school and when we were leaving my check engine light came on and my car stalled out. I got it started and drove about 20 feet and it stalled again. Got it started again and drove another 20 feet, stalled again. I made it to the stoplight at the school and it stalled again. I had to stop for gas and as I was leaving from the gas pump it stalled in front of an oncoming car. I made it to the stop light and it stalled at the light. I managed to make it home. I just had an oil change on 07/23/2021. I'm regular with maintenance and at the dealership but the reason I file a complaint is because I'm finding out this is an issue Chevrolet has known about for awhile. And people are talking about how its an expensive fix that is short term before returning. Plus, it can't its not safe stalling on the road. I have around 66000 miles on it. I mainly drive locally. I hasn't been inspect yet. I called and I'm waiting to hear from the dealership as I type. I had to wait almost 2 weeks to get in for the oil change. The only thing I've notice was the check engine light before it stalls. I have had issue with air conditioning going in and out and it does accelerate that well but neither does my 2008 Equinox. You can reach me at (cell) [XXX] or (home) [XXX]. INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Electrical system, Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Jul 5, 2021, crash, fire
My 2016 Chevrolet Equinox caught on fire about 10 minutes after my accident. I rear ended a pickup truck going about 5-10 miles an hour. Although nobody was hurt, I don't think SUVs should catch on fire. I'm unaware if this problem is frequent in 2016 Chevrolet Equinox, but there wasn't any warning of the sudden fire that appeared from the engine, i.e. sirens, sounds from within the car. I'm unaware if Chevrolet, law enforcement or the insurance company has inspected the vehicle after the accident?