general problems of the 2020 Chevrolet Equinox - part 1

I am reporting a vehicle fire involving a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox [xxx] ). The fire originated in the engine compartment. The official fire report lists the causes as "undetermined", with the area of origin identified under the hood. There were no prior warning lights, mechanical issues, or indications that a fire risk was present. The vehicle was being used under normal conditions and was properly maintained to my knowledge. The vehicle was declared a total loss by my insurance company. Due to the undetermined cause and engine compartment origin, I am concerned there may have been a potential mechanical or electrical defect that was not identified. I am submitting this report in case similar incidents have occurred and to support an potential investigation int vehicle safety. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

While driving, my engine light came on. After taking it in, it turned out that I had water/oil freezing in the intercooler. This could have been very dangerous when I was driving. I have had the gm wrap put on it. I am hoping that this will not be a problem again.

Turbo/superchargers malfunctioned, and I had to have it replaced back up sensors do not work properly. Say backup, assistant, malfunction.

I would like to formally file a safety complaint regarding my Chevrolet vehicle and to express concern over Chevrolet’s handling of a known defect. On January 22, while driving to work in cold weather conditions, my vehicle experienced a sudden and dangerous malfunction. The engine unexpectedly revved to approximately 4,500 rpm, the check engine light illuminated, and the dashboard displayed an “engine power reduced” message. Despite removing my foot from the accelerator, the vehicle did not slow down as expected. I was able to pull over to the side of the road and bring the vehicle to a stop. I immediately contacted my local Chevrolet service department and was advised to bring the vehicle in six days later, the following Friday. Due to the safety risk, we did not use the vehicle during this time out of concern for a potential accident. When the vehicle was inspected by the Chevrolet dealership, we were informed that Chevrolet had identified this issue as being related to cold weather operation and that a custom shield had been designed to address the problem. We were also told that Chevrolet vehicles were not adequately designed for cold weather conditions, which led to this failure. Despite this acknowledgment and the fact that Chevrolet has engineered a corrective part, we were informed that the repair—costing approximately $1,600—is not covered under our extended warranty, as the shield was not installed on the vehicle at the time of purchase. The vehicle remains unsafe to drive. When accelerating, engine rpms surge from approximately 2,500 to 4,000 rpm, and the vehicle can suddenly decelerate, creating a serious risk of rear-end collisions if a following driver is forced to brake abruptly. This issue represents a significant safety hazard. Chevrolet has acknowledged the defect by creating a corrective part, yet is declining to cover the repair cost, leaving the responsibility with the customer for a known design issue. Please let me know my next step.

I bought the Equinox with 30,000 miles on it. It's at 67,000 now and I maintain the vehicle regularly. So why have I replaced the throttle body already because it gets dirty fast? and now I'm getting a check engine light for p2099 turbocharger underboost. When the vehicle is not old it's 5 years old, hasn't been driven hard. So why are you using a crap 1. 5l engine with a turbo that is notorious for these issues??? and what's worse the engineering is horse s$*t, because the air inlet hose is only one time use. But the part is underneath it where you can't reach. Why has this not been recalled yet????????? it's not but a scam to make you take it to a dealership. I'll continue to write complaints this is not right. And I'll never buy one again.

The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40 mph, the message "engine power reduced" was suddenly displayed. While attempting to stop, the brake pedal was extremely difficult to depress, and the braking distance was extended. The vehicle was later towed to the local dealer, who diagnosed that the brake vacuum pump had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The contact was also informed that metal shavings from the vacuum pump might have entered the engine and that an engine diagnostic test was needed. No further information was available. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 55,000.

The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle failed to accelerate while depressing the accelerator pedal. The message “reduced engine power” was displayed. The vehicle did not require a restart to resume operation. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed, and it was determined that the wastegate actuator had failed and needed to be replaced. The contact was informed that the coolant inside the actuator had frozen due to the local low temperatures. The dealer advised that precautions were needed to prevent future coolant-related failures. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 103,000.

The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving at 30 mph and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle lost power. The check engine warning light was illuminated. Neither an independent mechanic nor the dealer was contacted. The contact waited thirty minutes, and the vehicle started to operate as intended. The contact stated that the failure had occurred on several different occasions. The vehicle was not taken to an independent mechanic or dealer to be diagnosed. The contact stated that the failure had occurred on several occasions. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 130,000.

Rear spear tire compartment full of water. Sunroof drains leaking into rear fuse box. Fuel pump and fuel pump module failing when driving. Turbo locking up from oil seal failure.

Pulling into traffic car stalled without warning. Went from about 25 mph to a complete stop in approximately in less than 100 feet. Car sputtered with transmission grabbing intermittently as it jerked to a stop. Restarted about several times with similar behavior. (covered under 60,000-mile warranty (actual mileage ~55,000)). Replaced fuel pump driver control module to correct. No accident due to distance to on-coming traffic, but easily could have caused an accident during high traffic conditions.

The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power and was unable to accelerate. Afterward, the message "low power mode" was displayed. The contact was able to pull over to the shoulder of the roadway; however, the failure persisted. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the turbocharger control valve (tcv). The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to technical service bulletin: 18-na-020. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, a case was opened, and the contact was referred to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was unknown.

While driving on the freeway at 75 mph my vacuum pump seized and shattered, causing me to loose all breaking power, damaging my engine beyond repair and endangering my life and numerous other drivers on the road. There is a current recall on the particular year, make and model for this issue but my VIN is not included so the dealership refuses to fix the issue.

The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving approximately 70 mph, the check engine, traction control, and stability control warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local advance auto store and was diagnosed with a fuel injector failure. The fuel injectors were replaced, but the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The local dealer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 92,080.

The vacuum pump broke and caused the brake booster to lose vacuum and made the brakes hard and almost caused an accident.

Vehicle brakes became hard and failed to stop, check engine light came on and warning saying reduced engine power. Vacuum pump seized and broke off in the crankshaft. After vacuum pump replacement vehicle failed to start multiple times. Vehicle started and had rough idle and stalled multiple times. Currently awaiting dealer inspection.

Engine reduced power, over acceleration as well as sluggish acceleration, wobbling on the freeway, electrical dashboard problems, tire sensor light comes on after getting it repaired. This vehicle has the same problems like 2021 -2024, reduced speed and couldn't go over 40 mph on a busy street with speed limited being 50 mph.

The contact owned a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving at 70 mph, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the instrument panel lights became dim/flicker, and the vehicle lost automotive power. The contact mentioned she pulled over to the right side and left the vehicle at the scene. In addition, the contact drove back to the scene where the vehicle was parked, and she noticed the state trooper and a tow company. No injuries were sustained. No medical attention. The contact mentioned the fire happened overnight. The vehicle extinguished independently. A fire department mentioned to the contact that there were calls about the fire and that the fire was coming from the engine. However, the fire report was unknown. A police report was filed. The insurance company denied the claim of fire. The vehicle was destroyed. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was unknown.

The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 35 mph, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle could not able to be restarted. The vehicle was towed to the residence, and a handheld diagnostic machine retrieved dtc: u18a2. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 12,000.

The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that at start -up, there was an abnormal rattling sound coming from the engine. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where the vehicle was diagnosed, and the contact was advised that the a/c compressor was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact referenced technical service bulletin: 18-na-162; as a possible cause for the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 50,000.

Unknown, my wife was driving my 2020 chevy Equinox on the freeway when suddenly the vehicle shut down with no warning signs . . She tried to turn on the emergency lights and did not function slowly she yield to other lanes and cars honking she safely made it to the side of the freeway. . She tried to turn the car and did not wanted to restart everything shutdown . She call roadside assistance. . They came and try to give her a jumpstart and it fail. They tried to tow it and they couldn't cause the brakes were also locked. . This. Was a scary situation that would had cause major accident.

Engine burning excess oil causing engine to go in safety mode and preventing car to go over 25 miles per hr. This happen on a major highway with two kids in the car and was almost rear ended. Took to dealership who has recieved bulletins regarding this issue and will repair the engine. To me this should be on a recall due to saftety.

I was driving the car and suddenly the car started accelerating on it's own. No cruise control was on . My wife was in the passenger seat and it was lucky as I did not panic , just taped on the brakes to slow down. This happened many times until we got home and it is dangerous and scary, also this is a know problem with this model car. No lights or warnings came on. We could have easily crashed into a vehicle in front of us, run a red light , etc. No inspections by anyone, maybe it was inspected by the dealer?.

The vaccum pump seized which is connected to the camshaft which broke causing the timing chain to break. This caused the vehicle to lose breaking g power and almost wreck.

Engine loss of power while on highway. When tried to excelerate engine sputtered, going up small incline it would not exceed 50mph. Took to auto shop and spark plug tip was broke and error for cylinder #1. They said take to dealer. Took to dealer and they said engine failed. Cyclinder #1 no combustion. Vehicle had 87,000 miles. Engine had to be replaced. $13,000. Gm assist covered some but I paid $9072 to replace engine. Vehicle at approx 25000 miles had same issue. I took to dealer and they said a spark plug was cracked and had to replace. I took my vehicle in every 7k miles for oil change and inspection to local conrad’s total car care. I was originally quoted verbally $9900 for engine repair. I called gm to file a complaint and they said engine “gm cost assist” program called me. When they got involved they offered $4100 towards repairs and dealer - serpentini westlake, OH increased their quote to $13k so I still pair $9072. Dealer got an extra $3k for me calling gm to complain and I “saved” or got $800 benefit from gm cost assist. What a scam. Dealer refused to give me paperwork showing the details of repairs or breakdown of cost. I received a receipt that stated engine replacement $9072. They wanted me to sign the receipt but would not let me read or view any of the attached paperwork. I refused to sign the receipt and they reminded how much of a favor they did for me by giving me a loaner for approx 10 days while replacing my engine. They additionally said they aren’t required to provide me with any details regarding the gm cost assist or pricing.

The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated while driving 35 mph, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to respond. The message “engine power reduced” was displayed. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the transmission and engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and opened a case. The failure mileage was 95,000.

I put the vehicle into reverse to back in into my garage when it suddenly lurched forward and hit the garage door on the garage across the alley. There was damage to the garage and the car's front end. It has never done anything like this before.

Engine light continues to turn on after taking it to shop multiple times and no one can find the problem. Code shows p0299. Everything has been checked and there’s nothing to correspond with this code. This has been going on for a year now with multiple fees paid to diagnose and repair.

I have 149,000 miles in this car. In my lifetime of being the one owner and purchasing this car brand new the vacuum pump has failed five times. Twice now resulting in blown engines. And still no recalls.

The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated while driving approximately 40 mph, the vehicle went into limp mode and failed to exceed 10 mph. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an auto repair shop to purchase a diagnostic tool; the diagnostic tool was used to diagnose the vehicle. The diagnostic scan tool determined that the ecm module, air induction system, and oil pressure system needed to be repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline. The failure mileage was 144,919.

We were driving on the highway and just exited. My husband hit the brakes and the pedal was hard to push. He basically had to put all his weight on the pedal in order to slow down. Once we were able to stop completely, we got the 2020 chevy Equinox looked at and we were told that the vacuum pump that is attached the the cam shift exploded and pieces were in the engine. This has caused approx. $3000 in damage that me and my husband can't afford. The vehicle is still at classic Chevrolet in grapevine. We are going to have to tow it back to my brothers until we can afford the payment to fix it.

Engine piston failure cannot get it fixed new engine on order 5 weeks now chevy will not even talk about it.

I was operating the vehicle when it suddenly shut off in traffic. I attempted to restart the vehicle and received a "reduced engine power" and "service brake assist" message. The vehicle had a clunky noise and failed to restart. Upon inspection at the dealership, I was told that the vacuum pump inside the engine had exploded and sent metal components throughout the engine system. No previous issues or warnings were present prior to this failure. This is a safety issue as the vehicle gave no warning signs of issue and shut off in the flow of traffic with very little ability to brake or steer out of the way.

The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds and attempting to accelerate from a stop, the engine started choking. The vehicle lost automotive power, stalled, and shut off unexpectedly and stalled. The contact waited for a while, restarted the vehicle, and continued driving. The failure became persistent, and several attempts were needed to restart the vehicle. Recently, the failure reoccurred 4 times while attempting to drive to the residence. The contact stated that water was leaking into the cabin of the vehicle from the moon roof, and the rear wheel well was filled with water, and there was water moving around inside the vehicle, and the floor mats were extremely wet. Due to water entering the vehicle, the moon roof and the radio were inoperable. The contact stated that the check engine and tpms warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was inspected by a family member and was diagnosed with fuel injector failure. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but was not diagnosed for the stalling failure. The dealer replaced the fractured fuel cap; however, the failures persisted. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failures. The failure mileage was approximately 68,000.

Vehicle stalling, smell of fuel in oil. Dealer reported - high-pressure fuel pump failure, excessive fuel in crank case. Vehicle stalled/misfiring cel present. Vehicle had to be towed to dealer from an island. Dealer will not warranty the part. Vehicle had less than 3,000 miles. Yes, three thousand miles.

I was driving on the highway on my way to work and received the error message “engine power reduced”. My car immediately dropped speed and I was unable to go over 40mph. My check engine light came on. I made it to work and contacted the dealer to make an appointment to bring the car in, which I did as soon as I finished working for the day. Driving 30-40mph with my hazards on for almost 50 miles on a highway where the minimum speed limit is 55 was hazardous in itself. I was almost run off the road by a truck and cars were honking and passing me. I am a 59 year old woman and have driven many cars in my lifetime. I have never experienced this type of scare. I took to the dealer and they advised “cac frozen and the parts need replacement”. They said it’s not a warranty issue. The repair cost is $3000 and this car is only 3 years old. I found an existing recall on this same model car and year for this same issue - but they advised that my car wasn't affected in this recall. Apparently, this car is exhibiting these same issues. I contacted Chevrolet and they are trying to escalate. In the meantime, I have no vehicle, and told the dealer to halt any repairs until Chevrolet gets back to me. I have taken great care of this car. I start my car and allow it to warm up at least 20-30 minutes in the winter. I also make sure that I get all my oil changes and have all preventive maintenance done as required. This issue could not have been prevented by me - but it could have been prevented by the car manufacturer.