Blind spot indicator malfunction. Seat sensors alert for no reason. Cruise control stops working. Vehicle automatically brakes for no reason. Information screen malfunction and goes black at random.
2026 Chevrolet Equinox
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Limited comparison data
There is not enough comparable history to draw a useful model-year comparison.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Equinox years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
Limited mileage data: 12 of 70 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Forward Collision Avoidance. Review the 19 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes. Review the 17 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 16 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
What owners actually said
70 reportsHello, 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 oncomin…
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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.
The contact owns a 2026 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that in the first month after the vehicle was purchased, while driving at an undisclosed speed, the Forward Collision Avoidance system failed to function as intended. The contact stated that the alert system warned about vehicles or objects too close, while there were…
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The contact owns a 2026 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that in the first month after the vehicle was purchased, while driving at an undisclosed speed, the Forward Collision Avoidance system failed to function as intended. The contact stated that the alert system warned about vehicles or objects too close, while there were no objects or vehicles around. The blind spot detector failed to function as intended. The warning light on the driver’s side mirror was illuminated; however, there was no vehicle on the side of the vehicle. The contact stated that on a separate occasion, while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced phantom braking. Most recently, while driving at 30 MPH, the brake pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle accelerated independently. The contact used force while depressing the brake pedal to stop the vehicle. The contact stated that the vehicle in front was almost rear-ended. The contact stated that the failure was more prevalent while raining. 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 15.
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…
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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.
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 fo…
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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
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 gea…
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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.
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.…
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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.
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.
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…
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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.
See attached document for complaint.
Official recalls
126V114000 · Equipment:other:owners/service/other Manual
Feb 26, 2026
General Motors has decided that certain 2027 Chevrolet Bolt EV, 2025-2026 Cadillac OPTIQ, Chevrolet Colorado, Equinox EV, GMC Canyon, 2026 Buick Enclave, Envision, Cadillac CT5, Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade IQ, Escalade IQL, LYRIQ, VISTIQ, Chevrolet Blazer EV, Corvette Convertible, Corvette Coupe, Corvette Convertible E-Ray, Equinox, Silverado 1500, 2500, 3500, Silverado EV, Suburban 1500, Tahoe, Traverse, GMC Acadia, Hummer EV Pickup, Hummer EV SUV, Sierra 1500, 2500, 3500, Sierra EV, Terrain, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles. The radio may not have been set to the correct status to download the electronic owner's manual during production. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, “Occupant Protection.”
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: Without an owner's manual to consult, owners may not know how to safely use and operate the vehicle, increasing the risk of injury in a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will reset the vehicle radio, which will facilitate automatic download of the electronic owner’s manual, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 16, 2026. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1-866-467-9700, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or Cadillac customer service at 1-800-333-4223. The manufacturer's number for this recall is N252540430. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on February 26, 2026.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.
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