2011 Chevrolet Equinox recalls & problems

Recent owner complaints

• Aug 28, 2025 · 117,000 milesEngine and engine cooling
  The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while the mother was driving, the vehicle suddenly stalled. The vehicle was towed to the residence and was later diagnosed by an independent mechanic, who discovered metal shavings in the engine oil pan and informed the contact that the engine had seized and needed to be replaced. The contact stated that prior to the engine failure, the vehicle experienced excessive oil consumption over a 14-month period. The local dealer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 117,000.
• Feb 1, 2026 · 168,000 milesEngine
  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.
• Jun 20, 2026 · 175,000 milesElectrical system › Instrument panel › Speedometer/odometer
  Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2011 Chevrolet Equinox. It was discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy. The vehicle was a private sale. At the time of purchase, the mileage was 119,000, and at the time of a Carfax report check, it was discovered that the mileage was 175,000.
• May 14, 2026 · crash · 1 injuryStructure › Body
  I was in a rear end collision on May 14th 2026 the impact of the speed totaled my car in my airbags did not deploy and from my understanding where the sensors are on my vehicle they should have I ended up getting a concussion and soft tissue damage because my head hit the steering wheel my seat belt did not lock either.
• Feb 12, 2025Engine
  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.
• Jan 6, 2026Visibility/wiper
  Wipers have stopped working, have had it repaired twice and they keep quitting.
• Apr 20, 2025 · 165,000 milesEngine and engine cooling
  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…
• Jan 6, 2026 · 125,000 milesVisibility/wiper
  The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while the windshield wiper was activated, the windshield wiper arms detached. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 125,000.

Owner complaints are submitted to NHTSA by the public and are not verified. Shown as filed (NHTSA removes personal details); long reports are shortened.

NHTSA defect investigations

• PE20009 · opened Jun 1, 2020 · closed Jun 3, 2022Momentary Increased Steering Effort
  On June 1, 2020, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened PE20-009 to investigate instances of a momentary increase in steering effort after the vehicle is driven in a straight line for a period of time due to an issue with the steering gear in model year (MY) 2010 through 2012 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain SUVs.If the electric power steering system fails to operate as intended, the driver will experience momentary increased effort when attempting to turn the steering wheel from the straight-ahead position. For this condition to occur, the driver would need to have traveled in a straight line at a sustained high speed, without turning the steering wheel, for approximately 30 minutes or longer. The steering gear contains a servo unit that includes a worm gear with a worm and a worm wheel. General Motors (GM) stated that the primary root cause of the increased steering effort…
• EA19005 · opened Dec 13, 2019 · closed Nov 28, 2022 · led to recall 22V165000Front Wiper Transmission Inoperative
  On December 13, 2019, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) upgraded RQ18-002 to an Engineering Analysis (EA19-005) to further assess the MY2010-2016 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain windshield wiper failures. Due to a prior recall, 16V-582, addressing this issue in the MY2013 subject vehicles, MY2013 was not included in the analysis. To date, ODI had received 998 complaints with allegations of the front windshield wiper failing in adverse whether conditions, while the vehicle was in motion.General Motors (GM) initiated Safety Recall 16V-582 on August 3, 2016 to address windshield wiper failure in the Model Year (MY) 2013 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain. Failures were attributed to water and debris intruding into the windshield wiper assembly ball joints, leading to excessive wear and eventual detachment of the affected ball joint resulting in loss of windshield wiper function.…
• RQ18002 · opened Nov 2, 2018 · closed Dec 19, 2019Windshield Wiper Transmission Failure
  On November 2, 2018, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened a Recall Query (RQ18-002) to assess the scope of Recall 16V-582.General Motors (GM) initiated Safety Recall 16V-582 on August 3, 2016 to address windshield wiper failure in the Model Year (MY) 2013 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain. Failures were attributed to water and debris intrusion into the windshield wiper assembly ball joints, leading to excessive wear and eventual detachment of the affected ball joint with an attendant loss of windshield wiper function. The recall remedy addressed these conditions with the installation of an improved windshield wiper motor/transmission assembly and the relocation of a drain hole on the Air Inlet Panel at the base of the windshield.RQ18-002 was opened to assess windshield wiper failure rates in the MY 2010-2012 and MY 2014 - 2016 Equinox and Terrain (subject vehicles).During…