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.
Visibility/wiper, Jan 18, 2023
Driving on a major highway with pouring down rain, wiper blades suddenly stopped. I couldn't see anything, it was very dangerous and nerve racking, especially with a 5 year old. Luckily I was in the right lane and able to maneuver over. Had I been in the left lane, I'm not sure how I would have safely handled the situation. There was no warning or indication they were about to give out. They stopped on the driver's side, I've noticed this is common in the forums. This should already be a recall. They are putting a lot of lives in danger. I replaced the fuse, that did not solve the issue. I'm having the motor replaced tomorrow.
Power train, Jan 15, 2023
Engine lost power while exiting highway. Engine noise and loss of oil and oil pressure. Glided car into repair shop off the highway exit. Repair facility was aware of the GM 2.4 liter frozen PCV valve issue. Car was taken to a Chevrolet dealership where a fix with no guarantee that the engine was good was over $3000.00 to repair. Suggested new engine at approx. $9000.00 was quoted. This is a safety issue as the problem occurs in very cold weather and when the engine stops, it can very well leave the occupants stranded in freezing weather.
Engine and engine cooling, Jan 12, 2023
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed with the accelerator pedal depressed, the vehicle failed to respond. The contact heard an abnormal sound coming from the hood and the vehicle started to hesitate. The contact stated that her son pulled the dipstick, and the pressure blew his hand back and oil splattered throughout the engine. There was no warning light illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated that her son replaced the valve cover gasket however, oil was leaking onto the ground. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the PCV Valve was burnt and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that the vehicle was out of warranty. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that the vehicle was not covered under warranty. The failure mileage was approximately 156,000.
Engine, Jan 9, 2023
Car would not start one morning. The battery was replaced about a month ago. Had a mechanic come and check and had error code P0016. The mechanic ran through what he could but he could not get it started and suggested we tow to a shop. We towed the vehicle to the nearby Chevy dealership. They stated the engine failed and will need to be replaced and was quoted 6500-8000 to replace. This car is only 6 years old and has 84,000 and is maintained. Chevy is selling cars with bad engines.
Engine, Jan 6, 2023
First noticed my car had a slight rattle when accelerating. I was driving about 35 and then the engine cut out on me. I got it restarted but when I did, check engine light came on, my stabilitrack light came on, and my car went in what the shop called “limp mode.” Towed the car to the shop where they reported the engine was short 3.5 quarts of oil (last oil change was approximately 3500 miles prior to issue). Codes the vehicle was throwing were camshaft exhaust performance and fuel pressure regulator performance. Aforementioned rattling noise was the timing chain kit. Shop noted high oil consumption with no oil leaks at the time of inspection. Shop recommended replacing camshaft actuators and solenoids, as well as timing chain kit. Shop noted it wasn’t an entirely uncommon issue that they’ve seen with these vehicles.
Engine, Jan 6, 2023
I was driving my vehicle after a few minutes it shut off on me and I was able to get it restarted. Later that day, the engine leaked out 3 quarts of oil so we towed it to the shop. Shop said the rear main seal was busted, and shop reported that the pcv orifice in the intake manifold gets plugged and freezes when cold, cause crank case pressure to increase. Shop recommended the change of both the intake manifold and the rear main seal.
Steering, Vehicle speed control, Fuel/propulsion system, Jan 5, 2023
My vehicle went into "limp mode" in a dangerous intersection due to the garbage design of the PCV. The "valve" is simply a hole that gets clogged by cold climates, and it allows the oil pressure to build up in the crankcase and then without warning, oh boy, my engine had a catastrophic failure and needs to be replaced. Blown rear main seal. There are multiple lawsuits against GM for this. They can't continue to get away with knowing about this flaw and not fix it. I only put 37,000 miles on this car (108K total). Changed the oil myself religiously. I came in, and they told me there was no oil on the dipstick despite the fact that I had just changed the oil 2 days prior.
Engine, Jan 4, 2023
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated while driving 50 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact was unable to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the rear main seal was cracked, which caused the engine failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 100,002.
Visibility/wiper, Jan 3, 2023
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the front windshield wipers stopped operating, without warning. The contact was able to stop the vehicle and the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the windshield wiper motors were repaired; however, the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was diagnosed by an independent mechanic and the contact was informed that the connection from the motor to the wiper motors was not functioning properly. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 139,000.
Engine, Jan 3, 2023
My 17 yr old daughter drives a 2016 Equinox and this car was purchased brand new in 2016. There has been no issues with the car until this past Christmas eve when the car started to make a rattle noise and completely stopped while she was driving down the road (that in itself could have been a whole other issue if someone would have wrecked into her). The current mechanic said that the rear main seal blew on the car and it has been a huge problem with this make and model. He has fixed several. He told me I need to find out if Chevy is going to do a recall since so many others have had the same problem. Chevy was contacted and they said no recall has been issued and I need to contact Department of Motor Vehicles to get info. I did some research and came across a Class Action Lawsuit where 7 plaintiffs are suing General Motors filed on April 12, 2022 (Kiriacopoulos et al. v. General Motors LLC - 2:22-cv-1078) for this exact issue and there is more than just Equinox on the Lawsuit. Can we please get this recalled. The amount to fix this design issue with the car is starting $2,000-$4000 and could be more if it damaged the engine.
Engine, Jan 3, 2023
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that after parking the vehicle, it was discovered that oil was leaking underneath the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the local mechanic who diagnosed that the rear main seal was leaking oil between the engine and transmission. The vehicle was later towed to the local dealer. No additional information was available. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 85,000.
Power train, Engine, Dec 29, 2022
This is my second submission hoping someone contacts me [XXX] Thanks INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Engine, Dec 28, 2022
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who determined that the PCV valve was clogged due to the cold weather. The clogged PCV valve caused the rear main seal to fail. The mechanic informed the contact that the PCV valve and rear main seal needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and a case was opened. The manufacturer advised the contact to take the vehicle to the dealer. The failure mileage was approximately 114,000.
Electrical system, Dec 26, 2022
I received a message "service side detection system". It seemed something was dragging?
Power train, Engine, Dec 24, 2022
My car has had multiple safety issues but the latest one is my car shut off while driving! I was able to start it again and get to a dealer when they said that there was no oil. I get my oil changed every 3,000 miles and the dealer said there is a known oil consumption issue with my car. It gave me no warning of low oil or anything. The dealer said I probably would have known it consumes alarming amounts of oil if I had followed the 5k miles suggested. They said I need to do a oil consumption test well before I even got to 3200 miles on the last oil change there is now oil on the floor of my garage.. this is a death trap and it’s known. I have never had a vehicle only last 6 years.. please help! When my car stopped while driving there was a near miss of getting slammed from behind from another vehicle behind me.
Engine, Dec 2, 2022
This suv uses excessive oil. No oil leaks. Jerking motion and almost causing accidents due to this defect has this so unsafe. Drove to my mechanic. Tells me selonoids burned and need replaced. No oil on dip stick due to engine burning up so much oil and rings thin!! I drove for 300 miles with oil on the dipstick only to find out from the mechanic the rings are too thin on the pistons and no oil!!! Said I will never need to get an oil change because I willbe adding oil all the time..just change the filter! I’m paying $50 every 2 weeks for synthetic oil to add in this pos suv. I’ve contacted GM and no response. The mechanic said to fix the problem I need a new engine or keep adding oil!!! As an Consumer….this is NOT RIGHT!!! Can you help me??? I contacted your office when this started happening and didn’t hear back via phone or email….Or I missed your communication.
Visibility/wiper, Nov 27, 2022
Was driving in a rainstorm and the wipers stopped working. It seems like something broke as the driver side wiper was over near the driver side door. After reviewing some of the online issues with the 2016 Chevy Equinox wipers, this looks to be very consistent with many of the other wiper issues listed. Safety was at a major risk as the vehicle was traveling on Interstate 90 during on Sunday 11/27/22 after Thanksgiving holiday. There were no warning lights indicating a problem with the wipers. I have pulled off the road and am waiting for a ride since I can't drive the car in the rain.
Engine, Nov 21, 2022
My 2016 Chevrolet Equinox has under 70k miles. I took it to a mechanic and he told me that the motor was no good. I had it for over 4 months and checked the VIN before I purchased the car. I was told that #3 cylinder misfired checked the compression on # 3 cyclinder and it only came to 50 lbs of pressure while the other cylinders showed 150 lbs of pressure. The oil reservoir was empty and I just filled it about 3 days ago. There was no sign of oil leakage.
Other or unspecified, Nov 20, 2022
Excessive oil consumption with no low oil indicator being triggered. Started around 99200 miles have to check oil frequently and add around 2 quarts a month.
Visibility/wiper, Nov 15, 2022
My daughter and I were driving as she just got her permit. Well it started to rain and we were on the highway and the front wipers just stopped working. As she is a new driver she freaks out. Lucky no one was behind us at the time. We pulled over to the side of the highway and we could hear the motor working. We sat it out until the rain slowed down and I took over driving and got us home without the wipers worker. My wife gets the new part and fixes it and a week later they stop working again.
Visibility/wiper, Nov 11, 2022
My windshield wiper abruptly stopped during a storm and almost caused an accident on the freeway.
Engine, Nov 7, 2022
Our 2016 Chevy Equinox LT with the 2.4l engine has a cracked exhaust manifold. This allows exhaust gasses to get into the passenger compartment. I found the problem due to the smell of exhaust gasses and a noisey exhaust.I removed the heat shield and found the crack in the cast iron exhaust manifold. This will only get worse and can cause the 02 sensor to make the check engine light on. I have read and found this is a very common problem with the GM 2.4L engine dating back to a least 2010. GM kept making this flaw with the know problem.
Engine, Visibility/wiper, Oct 20, 2022
Some previous background on my 2016 Chevy Equinox that I bought brand new: - I brought in my car about 6 months ago to get it repaired for an engine seal issue. This set me back about $3,200. I thought the issue was fixed, but I think it's related to the current issue I'm now having. - I had a minor incident where the windshield wiper flew off in the middle of the street and have seen a few complaints about that, so thought it was noteworthy enough to mention. Now, the car has 100,000 miles on it and the engine light came on again. I brought it in a few days ago (10/18/22) and the mechanics said that I had a "bad" engine and that the car's issue was excessive oil consumption. They quoted the repair at $11,000 (which I have found quotes that are lower since, but not by much). The KBB value of the car is just under $10,000. Considering the repair earlier this year, the car has cost me more than it's worth by far. The car is only 5-6 years old and only has 100,000 miles on it! I'm seeing the same make/model have recalls and several issues with the engine seals and the excessive engine oil consumption. I know that my car falls under this as well, but has not received any warranty or any recalls yet. I can't afford a new car or a fix on the current car since the issue is massive and requires a new engine. If TONS of other people are having the same issue(s) (over 1000 complaints), then why are consumers not being reimbursed? It looks like there are only lawsuits for this out there that are being handled at the consumer-level (which I cannot afford an attorney for this either). Now, I'm having to put oil in my car constantly in order to drive it. I'm worried it's putting me in danger (and anyone else on the road). I've been reading that once it gets cold outside (which it is already getting down to 32F at night), it's likely that the seals are going to break again and cause the engine to fail.
Visibility/wiper, Oct 9, 2022
I own both a 2015 & 2016 Chevy Equinox. The 2015 has a recall for the wiper blade ball joints rusting, but the 2016 does not have the recall. I did have an incident with the 2016 Equinox where the wipers stopped working during a rain storm due to corrosive ball joints (see attached photos). I think the recall needs to be expanded to include other years besides 2014-2015 models.
Visibility/wiper, Oct 7, 2022
I was driving in the middle of a heavy rain and my wipers just stopped working. Now I can hear the motor running but the wipers doesn't move at all.