2011 Chevrolet Equinox Engine Problems

The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, there was an abnormal fuel odor inside the cabin of the vehicle, and the engine was rattling and vibrating abnormally. During the failure, there was no warning light illuminated. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer and the local dealer were not yet contacted. No further information was available. The failure mileage was 168,000.

NHTSA ID

11754526

Incident

Feb 1, 2026

Mileage

168,000 mi

Vehicle burns excessive oil. Have to put in a quart weekly. Check engine light comes on for camshaft sensor, they’ve already been replaced 3 times and the light won’t go off.

NHTSA ID

11719991

Incident

Feb 12, 2025

The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that the vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. While driving at various speeds, there was a misfire coming from the engine while attempting to accelerate. The failure occurred while attempting to accelerate from a stop. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a certified mechanic, who diagnosed that a shaft inside the engine had failed, and the engine needed to be replaced. The engine was replaced with a rebuilt engine; however, the failure reoccurred approximately 4 months after the engine was replaced. The vehicle was returned to the mechanic, who diagnosed and determined that the same failure had reoccurred. The engine valves and exhaust were cleaned; however, the failure persisted. The contact stated that smoke was entering the cabin of the vehicle and out of the exhaust pipe while the heater was activated. The vehicle was returned to the mechanic, who then diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced another time. The vehicle was repaired again. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 165,000.

NHTSA ID

11712022

Incident

Apr 20, 2025

Mileage

165,000 mi

While driving, the car wouldn't accelerate even though I was pressing the gas pedal to the floor. It made funny noises and was jerking. I was told not to drive because of the danger to my engine. The engine light did come on

NHTSA ID

11688729

Incident

Jun 6, 2024

The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal. In addition, the contact stated that once the fuel gauge displayed that 1/4 tank of gasoline was available, the vehicle jerked, and there was an abnormal sound coming from the engine with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the pistons had failed, and the engine was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to file a complaint with the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.

NHTSA ID

11673817

Incident

Nov 15, 2024

Mileage

90,000 mi

Gas is getting into the crankcase because the GDI Fuel pump is faulty and is causing check engine light and the stability Trax light and caused the reduce engine power light and shuts engine off

NHTSA ID

11661353

Incident

May 15, 2025

It burns oil excessively Stalls out while driving Stability traction control comes on Timing chain has to be replaced now Fuel pump needs replacement All this happened at same time My cost is 2700.00

NHTSA ID

11643435

Incident

Feb 7, 2025

Oil burns, no leaks, no lights appear for low oil. I get the oil changed every 3000 miles. We put 3 quarts in and 200 miles later it's burned 1.5 qt.

NHTSA ID

11630978

Incident

Dec 11, 2024

Jerking between gears

NHTSA ID

11624177

Incident

Oct 1, 2024

No warning lamps. I was 3 quarts low only going 1614 miles from last oil change. Oil consumption , piston rings not correct. No oil leaks just consumes a lot of oil. Low oil made my car stall out while driving. No oil light came on to fill. Piston rings recall , needs replaced. Bought from an individual in July.

NHTSA ID

11613108

Incident

Sep 5, 2024

I had just bought this car from a friend of mine and the first couple days it was fine then I was on the interstate and it started making this loud sound and stop going in the middle of the interstate and I was stuck on the interstate with my child and couldn’t get the dam thing to go anywhere I called someone to come help me they looked at it and said it was the engine or the time and chain I’m not really sure of what the problem is but it scared me so back I couldn’t get over to the shoulder to save my life I was stuck

NHTSA ID

11570760

Incident

Apr 12, 2023

The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle remained on the side of the roadway. Additionally, the contact observed condensation under the engine compartment. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the rear main seal and the timing chain needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was filed. The failure mileage was 118,000.

NHTSA ID

11567183

Incident

Jan 16, 2024

Mileage

118,000 mi

The oil has had to be changed every month. The oil just disappears. I have to check and fill it weekly. I was told it a manufacturing problem. Now I’m on the side of the road, I heard a loud bang and it started smoking and oil is all over the ground. I’m waiting on roadside assistance.

NHTSA ID

11565829

Incident

Jan 16, 2024

The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, he noticed smoke coming from underneath the hood. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact pulled into a business parking lot. The contact stated that he opened the hood and noticed the engine compartment had caught fire. Additionally, the contact stated that the battery was burned and was bubbly. The contact was able to extinguish the fire with water bottles. A fire department report and a police report were not filed. The contact sustained a minor burn on the right hand and did not receive medical assistance. The vehicle was towed to the residence of the contact's parents. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 185,000.

NHTSA ID

11558777

Incident

Aug 15, 2023

Mileage

185,000 mi

I purchased the 2011 Chevrolet Equinox 5 months ago from a dealership name The Automaxx group in Morrisville, PA. Two weeks after, the check engine light came on, I took it back to the dealership and it was in the shop for 3 days or more. I got it back and every week it was back in the shop for the last four months. I was very hesitant about driving it, but I need to get to my doctor appointments and then I park it. I had to constantly put oil in it and not knowing why or where the oil is going. It started smoking black thick smoke under the hood and cut off, then cut back on and I took it to the shop near my home, and let the mechanic diagnose the problem and he said the vehicle is not safe to drive at all, it's engine failure due to excessive oil consumption and that the vehicle could possibly catch on fire and that it's a defect with the engine from general Motors. I just would like to recoup the money back that I paid for the vehicle. I was totally unaware of the harm that I was in with this vehicle. I am not sure if the dealership was aware of the faulty engine or the dangerous vehicle that they sold, but thank God I wasn't hurt and that I don't have to inhale the smoke from that vehicle. The check engine light has been on for awhile and I was told that they weren't sure why it would not go off, that was a red flag for me. It has not been inspected by the manufacturer, police or insurance company.

NHTSA ID

11558405

Incident

Nov 29, 2023

The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact heard an abnormal knocking sound with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with excessive oil consumption. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the vehicle was consuming engine oil excessively fast. The contact stated several quarts of oil were kept in the vehicle to avoid the oil becoming extremely low. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and diagnosed with excessive oil consumption and the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 110,000.

NHTSA ID

11556422

Incident

Nov 15, 2020

Mileage

110,000 mi

Engine locked up no oil, six months after oil change with low travel miles. Car sits most of the time. No warning indicators, service not due.

NHTSA ID

11554664

Incident

Nov 11, 2023

Excessive Oil Consumption.

NHTSA ID

11543471

Incident

May 5, 2023

[XXX] [XXX] [XXX] Findlay Chevrolet Chevy has thousands of complaints regarding the 2.4L oil consumption. Thousands! The engine has 97,500 and consumes 2qts in 1,000miles. I requesting that GM helps fix the issue. A normal engine does not even consume 1qt in 3000miles, let alone 2qts in 1,000. It does not leak. The only problem is a GM defect possibly with piston rings which is documented with similar years. On top of this. They had an airbag recall for similar models and years. This vehicle they say, does not have a VIN on the recall. Yet, my “service airbag” error is on. It seems that GM does not care if someone has an airbag that may go off at 70mph. Not do they care about selling people engines that consume oil at a rate that will leave people stranded in the middle of nowhere. Or possibly starting on fire from getting too hot from not having oil in the engine. Thank you for your time INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11536413

Incident

Aug 3, 2023

Just got a 2011 Chevrolet Equinox from a dealership that I trusted. Only had a few weeks and it just stalled on me while driving in traffic!!! 😱 Would not start back ! It was terrifying!!! Thank God it wasn’t rush hour! A nice man helped push it out of road into a parking lot! Now I find out there are safety issues and recalls that I was not aware of! Faulty oil piston rings caused it to jump time! They want over 7,000$ to fix but I do not have that kind of money!!!Its a death trap and shouldn’t have been allowed to re sale!!!

NHTSA ID

11531156

Incident

Jun 29, 2023

The vehicle started rocking during regular errands but displayed no error codes. Turned it off and left for a few minutes, when returned it would not start just the engine spinning. Had it towed to a local mechanic chain where they said it was likely a major issue and that there was no compression. They wouldn't be able to fix it so towed it to a dealer. Once the dealer had a look they determined the piston ring was blown/etc and the Equinox would need a whole new engine to get working again. The dealer also stated there was little to no oil in the system, and no light or warning of any sign had alerted. The vehicle had under 3000mi since the last oil change and only 69000mi in total use. Apparently there is TSB/warranty and major known issue in regards to oil consumption but not that I was made aware of before looking into since this issue. I have also been told that there are no active recalls on my vehicle and the VIN says everything that needed to be addressed has been.

NHTSA ID

11526185

Incident

Jun 3, 2023

The vehicle’s engine had been stalling shortly after ignition and when idling. I had it in a repair shop three separate times and was told that it was a problem with the solenoids. The first two times, they were cleaned. They were replaced on the third. I was also told that the vehicle was using an excessive amount of oil, and to bring it in every 3000 miles for an oil change. On the date of the incident, I was traveling home. I took exit 363 off of I-70 onto US-287. While traveling down the off-ramp, the engine stalled. I was unable to brake properly. By the time the vehicle came to a complete stop, I was the middle of a busy crossroads. This particular area sees a lot of traffic, especially semitrailer trucks. When I was next able to get it into be looked at, I chose a different shop because the first had clearly missed something. It was this shop that told me my engine was ruined because it had been being driven without oil, despite not being at the 3000 mile mark yet. The vehicle has not been driven since, as I have not had the $7000 it would cost to replace the engine. Please, if there is any advice or help you can give me, I’d so appreciate words of wisdom. Thank you for your time.

NHTSA ID

11520857

Incident

Aug 22, 2021

The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to provide notification whenever the oil level was low. The vehicle was hesitating and shuddering before accelerating. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was informed that the vehicle was experiencing an abnormal oil consumption, causing engine failure. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 143,822.

NHTSA ID

11519974

Incident

Nov 2, 2022

Mileage

143,822 mi

The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while coming to a complete stop, the vehicle lost motive power. Additionally, the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed the vehicle with a catalytic converter failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.

NHTSA ID

11519885

Incident

Apr 14, 2023

Mileage

150,000 mi

Stalling and stopping completely while coming to a stop. New muffler put in, still stalling! - I drive daily with my two children under five and the risk of my truck stopping completely while driving is my biggest safety concern for both my children and I!

NHTSA ID

11515093

Incident

Apr 1, 2023