Reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers, shown in full
Data refreshed
Our database holds 392 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. Each one is a report filed by an owner or driver and published by NHTSA without most of them being verified. A complaint is not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. Narratives are shown exactly as filed.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Showing 1–25 of 392 · page 1 of 16
: "I live in my car. The 2016 Equinox 2.4L burned all its oil in 2 weeks with no leaks, failed to give a dashboard warning, and the engine is now knocking, threatening to leave me unsheltered." This ties my vehicle's specific failure to the federal database for future legal payouts.
right front wheel assembly is bad.
I started up my car on a cold winter morning and I heard a loud popping noise. I backed up my car minutes later and discovered puddles of oil in front of me in my driveway. I asked my husband to come out and look. He got under the car and said my oil blew out of the rear seal. I was unable to drive my car as the seal was blown. After some investigating I discovered it was the PCV valve that froze and blew out the rear seal. I discovered that Basil Ford was sent this Bulletin and told to clean the PCV valve when people brought their car in. They never reached out and told me to bring the car in to have this done. It could have been an easy fix. I also discovered by researching that people had this happen to them when they were driving on the highway and it caused them accidents. I called GMC and they are telling me my 2016 isn't in the class action suit. Basil wanted way too much money so I took it to Pep Boys and it cost me $3,000 to have the PCV valve replaced with the kit that prevents it from freezing up again and I had to replace my manifold and my rear seal
Around 100,000 miles car started burning through oil. Have to check oil weekly. No warning lights come up when the oil is low. Patiently waiting for them to put a recall on it.
Excessive oil consumption with no warning light, loss of power, and stalling. Also caused the master seal to leak and plugged the PCV valve. I have records for the repairs. It continues to excessively use oil and is not a reliable vehicle. When it stalls, power steering is lost as well as the stabilitrack.
engine constantly eats oil, no oil leak
Engine failure. There is a class action that has been filed for this exact make, model, and engine size. There were no lights indicating an issue and the car had recently been serviced with an oil change and oil filter change and was being regularly maintained on oil changes. When it was brought to a mechanic, they told me the entire engine had failed and there was no power to one of the spark plugs anymore. I reached out to GM regarding this and they acknowledged the failure
Transfer case and front differential failure. No warning lights came on beforehand
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while reversing the vehicle on a cold, snowy day, there was oil on the driveway. There was a fuel odor inside the vehicle, and the engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who determined that the failure was related to the PCV system. The mechanic stated that the PCV valve was clogged, causing the gasket to fail. The vehicle was partially repaired. The mechanic later informed the contact that other repairs were necessary. The local dealer was contacted and confirmed that there were no recalls associated with the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by the dealer. The manufacturer was contacted and confirmed that there was no recall coverage associated with the VIN for the repair. The contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 113,000.
I am writing to formally document a series of catastrophic mechanical failures regarding the aforementioned vehicle. Despite rigorous maintenance and significant financial investment, the car remains non-drivable, posing a severe safety risk. Chronology of Failures: October 2024: Four months post-purchase, the timing chain failed on I-94. Atwater Chevrolet replaced the component; however, this did not resolve the underlying engine instability. December 3, 2025: Following a dashboard warning light, a Northland Chevrolet dealer replaced the solenoids. At this time, the windshield wiper motor also required replacement. Late December 2025: Shortly after these repairs, the vehicle suffered a major failure of the rear main seal and engine block during sub-freezing temperatures. This caused a total loss of oil and left the driver stranded in hazardous conditions. Maintenance and Disclosure: We have invested over $4,000 in preventative maintenance, including oil changes every 2,800 miles to mitigate known oil consumption issues. At the time of sale, there was no disclosure regarding the inherent engine defects common to this model. Current Status: The vehicle is currently at a dealership and is inoperable. A $10,000 loan balance remains. Current diagnostics suggest a frost plug failure triggered the event. I have contacted GM regarding Bulletin 14882, which addresses identical issues in similar models, but was informed it does not currently attach to this VIN. Furthermore, the extended warranty provider has denied the claim following an inspection, despite the documented manufacturing issues known to affect these engines for several years.
The wiper blade motor is gone out. The tire pressure sensor is off : the oil seems to disappear faster than the sensor
Clogged PCV caused engine pressure resulting in failure of rear main seal
While driving with windshield wipers on, they suddenly stopped working. The wipers were stuck in position in the center of my windshield. Upon inspection, it appeared that one of the arms had become disconnected from the piece it was connected to. Snapped right off during unsafe driving conditions.
I just got this used car in seemingly great shape, was told it was garage kept and well cared for. Dealer had oil changed before I drove it off the lot. I only had it about one month, had driven about 1,000 miles so far, I check the oil, and dipstick was nearly dry. I threw oil in it and took it for an oil change just in case. No oil leaks, etc. No indication, no oil light, nothing to alert me to low oil level. I saw here on NHTSA that these cars burn through excessive amounts of oil, and I definitely saw that firsthand. I’m wondering why no recalls exist when this is a well-known issue with these cars, and so many of them are dead at 50-70k miles…? The last two cars I had (Ford Escapes), had over 218k or 185k miles and they were still drivable when I got a replacement vehicle. Now I buy this used Equinox with almost 70k miles and I’m wondering if it is going to break down within the first year. I expect I will be buying lots of oil and checking/changing it often. This is not just an inconvenience, it can cause major safety concerns! I will not be a repeat Chevy customer!
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that two weeks after the vehicle was purchased, while the vehicle was being serviced, the contact was informed that the engine was very low on oil. The contact stated there was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that an oil change was performed on the vehicle. Two weeks later, the contact took the vehicle back to be checked and was informed that the engine was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. However, no cause for the failure was found. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact had to check the oil level weekly. The contact stated that the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.
This car used so much oil that I had to put it in constantly. Eventually the time belt broke, and the car stopped because it literally had no oil in it causing the engine to blow. This is a known problem I found out later on.
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the air bag warning light illuminated. The warning light remained illuminated constantly. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the weight sensor on the front passenger’s seat had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.
When I was driving home from the grocery store a very heavy thunderstorm started I turned my wipers off because of the sudden rain just to realize that they were not working. I had to pull over because I couldn’t see. Causing me to almost get rear ended with my 6 month old, 18 month old and 6 year old I was finally able to start driving 45 minutes later when the rain stopped. This was a very dangerous incident that happened that could have ended in a car catch INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving at 25 MPH, the vehicle vibrated and idled abnormally. The contact depressed the brake pedal, and the vehicle jumped unintendedly. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact continued to drive to the residence. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed that the timing chain had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired due to the cost. The independent mechanic advised the contact not to drive the vehicle. The failure became a recurring failure, and the contact parked the vehicle, and the vehicle was no longer driven due to safety concerns. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 78,000.
The high pressure fuel pump leaking into crankcase and leaking gasket the fuel in the oil was so much it lit on fire.
oil consumption is bad. according to mechanic it has now caused problems with timing chain and tensioner. I have to get that replaced ASAP before engine ties up. There is a class action lawsuit in Missouri for same reason with cars like mine. My car has not even hit 114,000.
Front wipers stop working in the middle of a rain storm while driving down the highway we were unable to see anything(road/cars)out of the window. We had to put on flashers and stick head out of a rolled down window to (which with rain slapping you in the face is not safe either) try and get to a shoulder on the highway safely. My hubby and I were terrified and thought we were going to die or cause harm to others on the highway. After rain slowed down we got home very slowly with hazard light running. Once home I searched the web for problems that could have caused the wipers to suddenly stop. Results were to check fuses and relays (all checked out fine). I read that it could be a bushing on linkage arm that came off. Husband and I took off wipers and the cowl and sure enough linkage arm bushing had popped off of the ball joint. We tried to replace old bushing with a new one and put everything back together as it was taken off. Turned on wipers and it popped right back off. My car is now sitting in the yard unusable because I can not safely (for my family or other families out there) go any where because it is raining/will rain. There were no warnings or messages nothing they just stopped moving. One of the most scariest things in our lives, so glad our kids and grandson was not with us when it happened and that by the grace of God my husband and I made it home safely. This is very dangerous. It is also not uncommon due to information/videos on the internet. Please help correct this dangerous issue. Car is available for inspection any time Thank you
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that the vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that one and a half quarts of oil needed to be added every two days. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer to be diagnosed and it was determined that the failure was caused by the timing belt sagging, and the piston being burned. The dealer stated that the gasket kit, timing chain, tensioner, sensor, guards, actuator, and bolts needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and filed a claim. The failure mileage was approximately 148,000.
While driving on the highway, it was barely raining so I turned my wipers on low and about 5 minutes into my drive the rain picked up, and I tried to turn my wipers up at which point the stopped working altogether. I had to pull off on the shoulder and wait for the rain to end, which was about 20 minutes later. Afterwards I proceeded to the nearest gas station and purchased a squeegee to use while I was driving since cars were kicking up rain from the wet ground. Having wipers abruptly stop while it is raining heavily and traveling at 55 mph is beyond dangerous. I see all of the complaints online and a recall should and needs to be issued, as this issue could have and still can caused a tragic accident.
The concern is the oil consumption. The car looses a quart of oil a month. I average only 620 miles per month. There is no leak. A mechanic has been keeping track of it every month since April 2025. No warning lights alerted me of the problem. This has been an ongoing problem with the Chevy Equinox. My last one had the same problem but it was fixed thru a recall. It is frustrating for me to have to bring my car in every month to have it checked, because I am a caregiver for my husband and its hard for me to get away. I also use the car for his doctor appointments. I need a dependable car and can't afford a different one.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
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