Complaint volume
43 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2026 Chevrolet Equinox Complaints
43 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2026 Chevrolet Equinox, grouped by component category.
43 Total complaints
1 Crash reports
0 Fire reports
2 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are forward collision avoidance, power train, service brakes,forward collision avoidance. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 1 crash report, 0 fire reports, 2 injury reports, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 6 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 5,658 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to forward collision avoidance, power train, service brakes,forward collision avoidance?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2026 Chevrolet Equinox?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2026 Chevrolet Equinox
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2026 Chevrolet Equinox complaints?
1 Crash
0 Fire
2 Injury
0 Fatality
0 Towed
0 Medical attention
What are the most common 2026 Chevrolet Equinox complaint categories?
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 5
POWER TRAIN 3
SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 3
SEAT BELTS 2
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 2
VISIBILITY 2
AIR BAGS 1
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 1
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,LANE DEPARTURE 1
43 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2026 | SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Hello, since I purchased the vehicle on October 1, 2025, there have been issues regarding collison system and adaptive cruise control. When driving down the road it will try to come to a complete stop with no reasoning. It happens more often when it is rainy and night time. I believe the collision system is conufsed with oncoming traffic and it thinks they are on my side of the road but they are not. I also get alerts with side mirrors and shaking of my seat when no one is beside me. It triggers to say someone or a vehicle is approaching from the side, but there is no one or nothing there. The issue that is most troubling is I almost hit someone in the rear end on 02-03-2026. I went to slow down for a traffic light, and it started slowing down, but then got a surge and would not allow me to stop any more. It kept going. I had to remove my foot from the brake and hit it again harder. It has happened a few times, but not in a situation like this. Thankfully I was following a safe distance or I may have hit the vehicle stopped in front of me. Similar situation happened a few times, one when I was pulling into an Applebees to eat, the brake did not want to stop the vehicle. It was like a surge of power again. This time was not as bad as no one or a vehicle was not in front of me. I have also noticed it a few times driving and when I go to stop the surge, but it seems to be escalating. I do not have the auto start stop on, I switch it off as soon as I start the vehicle. I do not have the auto hold on when it happens either. I have an appointment on the 16th of February to hopefully get it looked at, but will see. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | ENGINE | I purchased a brand new 2026 Chevrolet Equinox Sport Utility on 8/22/2025. 4 weeks later the front end started leaking oil. It has been back to the dealership 4 times for repairs, including replacing the engine. After all these attempts to fix the oil leak it continues to leak oil and we are waiting for the dealer to pick it up again. We are not sure if it is safe to drive but the dealer says to keep driving it. No warning lamps or system messages were triggered during this entire time. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Car info – 2026 Chevrolet Equinox Purchased 9/25/25 Stock# [XXX] VIN: [XXX] Type: LT 4dr All-Wheel Drive On 1/8/26, I took my 2026 Equinox to Northpointe Chevrolet because I had a warning light that came on every time I started my car. The warning light states, ‘Service Driver Assist System’. The alert had been coming on for about a month but I had to cancel my previous two appointments due to bad weather. I explained to the man in service that I would like the automatic braking feature deactivated on my car as well as the alert light corrected. I told him that I was coming up to a red light and I was slowing down when my car automatically slammed on the brakes and gave me whiplash. The man in the service department asked me if I lived on a back road. I told him that I did and he told me that is why I am having this issue. He stated that the dirt and mud caused the wires on the sensor under the front bumper to corrode. He stated that the sensor was supposed to be waterproof/weatherproof but they are not. He showed me where the sensor was on my vehicle. He also stated that the automatic braking was not something that they could turn off because it was a safety feature. He also told me that the broken sensor causes the automatic braking system to operate. I am now afraid every time the red light comes on in my car that the brakes are going to slam on again so I slow way down. My neck has not fully healed from the first time. What would happen if I am driving down the interstate going much faster that I was the last time they automatically stopped the car suddenly. He then explained that the issue was not covered under my bumper-to-bumper warranty because the dirt caused the issue – apparently the waterproof sensor box had no bearing??? I have only made 2 payments so far on this brand-new car. I was charged $87.34 for the diagnostic check and I will be charged another $558.25 when the part comes in to repair my sensor. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: No Fire: No Injuries: 1 | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | POWER TRAIN | GM has redesigned the gear shift of the 2026 Chevrolet Equinox to be placed on the steering wheel. That's fine except engineers put it in the exact spot of where the windshield wiper lever traditionally is AND made it look and act and move like a windshield wiper lever, which instinctively means you as a driver will hit that gear shift when it starts raining or when you want to trigger windshield wiper fluid. Doing so, as we experienced twice (once on a highway exit and another time on a major road) will cause the car to go into neutral since pulling the lever toward you (a movement that used to trigger fluid on the windshield) triggers the car to go into neutral. When you're driving on a major road, this is dangerous, slows the car, forces you to have to figure out how to get it back into drive and there's no obvious workaround for that. You can't come to a complete stop on a highway or a major busy road when in neutral and the car doesn't have easy/instinctive ways to send it back into drive. Numerous drivers have complained of this on Reddit and Facebook and presumably to GM. I sent a complaint to GM today. This is the first time in 40 years of car ownership that I've felt nervous driving a car because I'm worried I will cause a wreck because of poor design. There needs to be a workaround or alert to to this. Very dangerous. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | VISIBILITY | The contact owns a 2026 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that there was a distortion in the windshield glass, which caused visibility issues while driving the vehicle. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, and the Service Manager informed the contact that the distortion was due to the sunglasses the contact was wearing. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and filed a complaint. The failure mileage was approximately 2,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 2,000 |
| Jan 2026 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | I was traveling about 45mph and the SUV emergency brake system activated, it scared me and my passengers, the guy behind me was even more scared. I had the front seat passenger immediately deactivate the emergency braking system. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | SEAT BELTS | The contact owns a 2026 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the driver's side seat belt became loosened. The contact pulled on the seat belt, which went across the chest, and the seat belt failed to lock and restrain as intended. The contact was able to pull and stretch the seat belt up to the steering wheel. The contact then pulled the lap belt, and the lap belt failed to lock securely as intended. The contact was able to pull and stretch the lap belt upwards. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact called the dealer; however, no assistance was provided. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 500. | Crash: No Fire: No | 500 |
| Jan 2026 | POWER TRAIN,VISIBILITY | See attached document for complaint. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | STRUCTURE | When I purchased the car new, and brought it home I noticed the windows seemed a little dirty, so I proceeded to wash them, At that point I noticed a blurry windshield with what appeared to be sticky spots. No matter how often I washed them it never got better. Went back to the dealer, they washed them, but no better. After making an appointment with the service department they confirmed the windshield was defective and that they would replace it (one) time but could not guarantee the replacement would be any better, because the 2025/2026 Chevy Equinox SUV's are noticing this type of defect with the windshields, I went on line and read the same thing. So even though the windshield has been replaced, it is no better with the same problem, also a little worse. When you drive into the sun it becomes very blurry and somewhat distorted, and more noticeable, And there is some sort of a film over the windshield causing the glare and blurriness. Since they replaced it there is nothing else the car dealer can do for me, So I'm stuck with it. It is very difficult to drive into the sun, it really effects me. This is not regarding an accident, but the fact that the dealer sold me a brand new 2026 Chevy Equinox with a defective windshield. Date of purchase: 7/15/25. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2025 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | While driving South bound on an early morning drive in bright sun, the Forward Collision Avoidance/Alert System and Adaptive Cruise Control kept intermittently disabling itself. This continued to happen for 20 minutes. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2025 | POWER TRAIN,VISIBILITY/WIPER | After I purchased my vehicle, 2026 chevy equinox rs, I noticed severe distortion on the front windshield. I had it replaced once, with the same problem. They were going to put another windshield in but we wanted to see it first, which was worse than the first two. I do not like the feeling of being car sick. Also, the transmission slipped once, while driving. It felt like it went into neutral and then back into gear. The dealer looked at it and could not find anything wrong. It was good for a few weeks and then it did it again. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2025 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | When trying to disengage cruise control, with button on steering wheel, brakes locked up going 75mph on the interstate. Would not unlock until I physically pressed brake pedal. If I had not been able to control the car, we would have been sent head first into the concrete barrier wall. Also, when trying to start car or put in into gear, it tells me to "press brake" when the brake pedal is pressed as far as it can go. Radio will randomly cut off and screen goes blank. Trunk button on drivers door does not open trunk without pushing it minimum of 5 times. Sometimes it takes more. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2025 | SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC,POWER TRAIN | The contact owns a 2026 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that there was a crackling sound coming from the brake pedal while depressing the brake pedal, with the message a "Service All Wheel Drive System" displayed on the instrument panel. The contact stated that while the AWD feature was activated and driving up an incline, the vehicle hesitated while depressing the accelerator pedal with the "Service All Wheel Drive System" message displayed. The dealer was notified of the failure, and an appointment was made for service. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 150. | Crash: No Fire: No | 150 |
| Sep 2025 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Car has never been aligned and pulls to the right. The dealership can not fix it, they advised me they have put in an escalation with Chevy. I have seen multiple social media posts regarding this same issue, with the same model of car. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2025 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | My 2026 Chevrolet Equinox has been having problems; when cruise control is set it randomly puts itself into emergency park mode, the infotainment system loves to shut down which affects the entire vehicle. When this happens I can’t see my speed, every screen goes black and I have to pull over and reset the entire thing which takes a good 30 minutes, sometimes more. I have taken it to a shop which they said it was electrical and module issues, never told me exactly what or where and I’m having to struggle just to get the invoices. The problems are not currently resolved, it would’ve had to been in the shop for over a month and I can’t afford to be without a car that long with zero option of a rental. I have children. I got my car in May of this year with only 4 miles on it, been having the issues ever since. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2025 | POWER TRAIN,SEATS | I purchased this vehicle in June 2025 and the gear selection lever is constant problems. It will never go into or go out of gear on the first attempt. This has caused some near accidents on two occassions as I backed out of a parking space trying to get in gear and proceed timely to avoid on-coming traffic but the lever will constantly bounce to another gear or park which was not selected. The car also has a seat problem in which the seat will start a quiver motion which does startle me as the driver. As an 82 year old driver this becomes a safety issue since is very disruptive and unexpected which makes the driver panic. I notified Chevrolet of these problems but that communication was ignored. The vehicle now has 1400 miles, the selling dealer is 320 miles away. I was told by Chevrolet that to return the vehicle to the dealer would require that I pay $6 per mile charge. This is simply malicious treatment to a senior. There is one GM dealer in my county but they do not want to address another dealers problem. Yes this safety issue has put other drivers at risk because I pull into traffic and cannot get going with traffic flow with a defective gear selector. Anyone can come to my home to inspect this problem | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2025 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | Faulty windshield. Replaced with two additional windshields (1GM, 1 Aftermarket) which were both defective. All Chevrolet and Cadillac vehicles on the lot had defective (Warped) windshields. These windshields distort images, cause dizziness and motion sickness. The Dealer purchased the vehicle back. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2025 | POWER TRAIN,LANE DEPARTURE | The gear selection is on the steering column and to change from Park to Reverse or Drive takes usually over six attempts to get in the right gear. When your entering traffic and you get delayed trying to put the car into the proper gear this becomes a very dangerous safety issue. General Motors refuses to advise me how to deal with this problem unless I give them the name of an attorney who will represent me. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |