Service Brakes Problems of Chevrolet Equinox - part 1

My 2025 Chevrolet Equinox rs is experiencing critical active safety and electronic malfunctions. While reversing out of my driveway, the vehicle unexpectedly executed an aggressive "phantom braking" event, violently slamming on the brakes with no actual physical hazards or cross-traffic behind the vehicle. The reverse automatic braking (rab) and rear cross-traffic braking systems are hypersensitive and falsely triggering mechanical emergency stops, creating an immediate physical hazard and whiplash risk. Additionally, the google built-in infotainment system constantly suffers from communication freezes with apple carplay and media apps like pandora. Commands to select or play audio tracks freeze and fail to execute on the 11. 3-inch screen, indicating a systemic software architecture defect affecting the vehicle's dashboard modules. The vehicle has previously been out of service for an extended duration (30+ days)due to a broken telematics module causing parasitic battery drain down to 3 volts, along with multiple dashboard error messages. The manufacturer has been unable to permanently resolve these electronic and active safety failures.

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The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving 80 mph, the message “service brake assist” warning light illuminated twice. The contact stated that while attempting to depress the brake pedal, the vehicle failed to respond as needed, causing the contact to engage the parking brake and manually shift the gear shifter to a lower gear to get the vehicle to come to a complete stop. A dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the failure had occurred twice. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the brake booster pump needed to be replaced. The brake booster pump was replaced, and the vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 94,000.

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I was turning at a green light while following behind a truck pulling a trailer. All of the sudden, the car did the automatic emergency braking. It slammed on the brakes in the middle of an intersection while I was going ~15mph, and gave me whiplash. I am not sure if the car got confused by the trailer in front of me, but this is the first time this has happened in my first few weeks of owning this car. I've read that many others have had this issue with the Chevrolet Equinox ev, and this poses a serious safety issue for drivers of this car and others on the road.

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I own a 2018 Chevrolet Equinox. While driving at highway speed, the brake pedal suddenly became completely rigid and could not be depressed. The engine continued running normally, there were no warning lights, and I had to coast into a parking lot because I was unable to brake normally. The vehicle was towed to a Chevrolet dealership. The dealership diagnosed a failed vacuum brake booster and replaced the brake booster at my expense. After the repair, the exact same safety issue occurred again while I was driving at approximately 25 mph. The engine was running normally, there were again no warning lights, and the brake pedal instantly became rock hard and would not depress. The repair did not resolve the condition, and I no longer believe the vehicle is safe to operate. I am reporting this because the same loss of brake assist occurred before and after the dealership’s repair.

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While driving, my 2020 Chevrolet Equinox suddenly lost power and shut off without warning while I was pulling into traffic. The vehicle would buzz not crank afterward but would not restart. This created a safety hazard because the unexpected engine shutdown occurred while the vehicle was in motion. This is the second brake vacuum pump failure I have experienced with this vehicle. In 2022, the brake vacuum pump failed and was found shattered internally. At that time, the engine continued running, and the pump was replaced. During this most recent incident, the brake vacuum pump failed again, and the internal end of the pump broke apart. I replaced the vacuum pump and removed the broken pieces I could access, but the vehicle remains in a crank/no-start condition. The vehicle has not yet been inspected by a dealership or independent repair facility. However, after seeing the shattered pump components, a couple of mechanics I know expressed concern that the broken pieces may have affected the engine timing. That has not been confirmed. The failed pump and replacement parts are available for inspection.

I was pulling into a parking lot off the state thruway with the brake system failure no brakes, hard pedal, and the car would not stop.

On numerous occasions, while driving either on highways or streets, vehicle would brake on its own or aggressive braking when this type of braking was unnecessary. I was hospitalized for whiplash in one incident. After braking for no reason!!! gm sent a tow truck to pick up my vehicle, and I have not heard back for more than 100 days. If gm cannot fix this issue as stated in [xxx] then I should be compensated for the lack of use and my medical bills as well as loss of use. Not having a recall does not mean defects are not occurring!!!! information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

The brake vacuum pump has gone out four times now. While driving the brakes suddenly become hard as a rock to push. Of the four times two of them have been close calls to having a serious collision. This is a known issue with these vehicles so it blows my mind there isn't a recall for this.

Hard brake pedal and service assist message. This issue was recalled for trucks and larger suvs but not the Equinox. This is a known safety issue to Chevrolet, making my vehicle undrivable until I can come up with the $1,500 to have it towed and repaired.

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Brakes went stiff and hard to push no warning light. I was driving on the interstate with my daughter. Was stuck out of town with no breaks.

The vacuum pump failed and my brakes went out pedal became extremely hard to push. I was driving on the highway at the time and was lucky I had a shoulder to slow down on and finally stop. I took the car to my usually mechanic who confirmed the vacuum pump failure but referred me to the chevy dealer because this is a known issue. The dealer confirmed the pump had blown apart( their words to me) and that there are most likely debris now in the engine. No warning lights or alerts of any kind came on. Total suprise.

The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving approximately 5 mph and approaching a stop sign, the brake pedal was depressed and there was a thumping sound coming from the brake pedal, with the message “service brake assist” was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the residence and parked. The contact stated that the next day while driving approximately 63 mph, the message "reduced engine power" was displayed. The contact exited the highway, and while attempting to depress the brake pedal, the pedal was firm, and the vehicle failed to slow as intended. The contact continued to depress the brake pedal with force, and the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle slowed down eventually. The vehicle was taken to an auto parts store and a handheld diagnostic machine to diagnose the vehicle. The contact stated that the vehicle was turned off and failed to restart. The vehicle was restarted after three attempts. The vehicle was taken to the residence and the following day, the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed and determined that the vacuum pump, camshaft, and timing belt needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 111,000.

Driving at 50 mph car applies brakes for no reason.

As I was coming to a stop at light my brakes became very difficult to push the pedal down to stop. It took everything in me to get the vehicle to stop before entering the intersection and oncoming traffic. I was able to get the vehicle parked safely in a nearby parking lot but then the engine wouldn't start it just kept trying to turn over. The brake assist error popped up, and then the check engine light came on. I was able to get it started again about 20 minutes later, all the same warnings and lights. I white knuckled the drive back to my house. . . Once I got home the engine was smoking, smelled like it was burning, and oil was spilling out all over the place underneath, impossible to see where a leak was as it was coming from the entire engine. There was zero warning with the vehicle, no issues up to this point, and suddenly the Equinox is now useless in my driveway unable to start with oil still leaking in multiple spots. An oil pan under the main leaking area, but there are still multiple areas of oil spilling even a week later. Oddly enough my onstar report for the month came to email a few days later reporting perfect engine health and zero issues - even thought the vehicle can't start now.

Walked out of the car into the gas station came back out the brake pedal was locked up literally didn’t even wiggle at all couldn’t start the car I tapped it a couple times and then it made a horrible snap/pop sound and works fine for now.

Brake vacuum, pump failed while driving which made the brakes not work. I had it towed to a dealer and they found that the pump was internally damaged. Pump was then replaced. There was no warning this was about to happen and it happened suddenly. One moment the car had brakes and the next there was no braking. A very dangerous situation and we were lucky to not have a major accident.

The contact owns a 2026 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving approximately 5 mph, another vehicle crashed into the front of the vehicle. During the crash, the parking braking activated, and smoke and flames were coming from both the rear wheels. The contact used a bottle of water to extinguish the flames. During the failure, the maintenance icon was displayed. There was no injury sustained. A police report was not filed. The vehicle was later towed to the local dealer, but the cause of the failure was not yet determined. The contact was advised to notify the insurance company of the failure. The failure mileage was 1,100.

Driving towards direct light/sunlight is damn near impossible with this vehicle die to the extreme amount of glare from the dashboard. It makes me worried especially now that summer is approaching, feels like it can be catastrophic. Rear brake assist is horrible on more than one occasion the car will stop as if it has just been hit by a semi. Leaving the vehicle unable to proceed in reverse(one has to shift to drive or put in park before continuing to reverse). This is not only a nuisance but can lead to an accident especially during the mad rush of drop off at the elementary.

The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated the brake pedal became firm while driving approximately 40-45 mph. The check engine warning light was illuminated, and the brake assist service message was displayed. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who determined that the brake housing had shattered inside the engine. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 213,000.

The vehicle owner took the vehicle to the dealer greco Chevrolet of fort lauderdale the dealer reported no vehicle failures. The braking system melted due to right temperatures. The dealer reported dtc c0072 brake system temperature too high. Report stated front rotor temperature reached greater than 1112 degrees fahrenheit, and that the rear rotors reached greater than 932 fahrenheit. The report stated that the high temperature was caused -antilock braking system -traction control system -vehicle stability control no warning lights shown in the vehicle. The dealer gave the owner the number 833-948-4631 to speak with gm tech support. The case was referred to gm concierge 833-382-4389 owner alleges that this could only be caused by faulty materials in the batch of this vehicle construction. Is concerning that the manufacturer did not come to the dealer to determine the causes of failure. Is very possible that the same materials were used in building other vehicles in the same batch. Concerning also that these high temperatures could cause fires in the wheels during operation. Is quite urgent that NHTSA visits this dealer and performs a non-bias inspection of the vehicle and the alleged bad materials.

I was driving at the speed about 30~ miles/per hour on the city road, as I was slowing down to turn into the penera bread where I plan to, and I pressure the break paddle, the break paddle was stocked, it cannot pressed down. It was extremely dangerous situation, I cannot stop the vehicle, and it was very scary. I finally switch the driving to 'p" to stop the vehicle, and route the vehicle to curb to force hard stop. This is extremely risky situation. My understanding is model year 2020 - 20xx Equinox has reported this problem by many consumers. Vehicle brake stocked while driving, I hope there is no injury or death occurs. This is extremely dangerous. My seatbelt pressed really hard on me, my chest hurts from this sudden hard stop, and I am so scared. A week after, I still cannot resume the driving due to the impact of the situation.

At around 7k miles while driving the brakes and steering suddenly stopped working and all warning lights came on including check engine light. The dealership said it was the main brain and the fixed it. Then last Thursday night while driving on the highway my brakes stopped working suddenly and all warning lights came on again. It is at the dealership now and they are now saying the problem is the bcm. I’m honestly scared to drive on the highway now. I’m really scared someone will get hurt or killed from this vehicle if it happens again.

I was driving and the brake vacuum pump failed and the metal shards went up into the engine. The service light went on as they failed and I lost the ability to brake. Yes, we still have the part and the shards that came out of the engine, but there are still pieces in the engine. My safety was at risk and everyone else's on the road because I had no brakes and was driving 45 mph. The vehicle has not been looked at yet by any professional because so far no mechanic will touch it.

Multiple occasions of “engine reduced power” and vehicle stalling/jolting/jerking when trying to go over 45 mph. When trying to go to work Monday - on the interstate, it was jerking/jolting when trying to increase any speed and brakes were getting harder to press on, decided to try to reduce speed and get pulled over without the brakes, car was overheating completely. Now seeing multiple people have had this issue with the same car - I’m not sure whether it’s comforting that I’m not the only one or terrifying to know there’s multiple vehicles on the road experiencing this dangerous issue. Seeing a pending lawsuit did not surprise me one bit - I am not happy whatsoever about risking my own life and others on the roadway due to this not being a priority in the first place to correct before selling this vehicle to me, buying it with my hard earned money. Greedy greedy.

While driving, the vehicle experienced an almost total loss of braking capability. The pedal was very hard to press, and when pressing with all my weight, I could slow the vehicle to a stop, but it took a great distance. There was no warning or malfunction indicator until I pulled into a parking lot a few minutes later. At that point, a "service brake assist" message appeared. Had I been in traffic, going faster, or in an area with pedestrian crossings, this could have caused a possibly deadly crash. I searched online and found that there is a vacuum pump that is known to fail on this vehicle, and can cause these symptoms. Upon replacing this vacuum pump, the issue was resolved. I still have the failed vacuum pump.

We purchased our car new. Around 70,000 miles or so the brakes went out and were barely usable. We had it towed to moses in charleston and it was apparently an issue with brake booster or vacuum pump. I don’t have the specifics at the moment but they fixed it and we drove it home and it did the same thing again with the brakes going out. Had it towed again back to them and they did something else and it was fixed. Fast forward to today and there are 155000 miles in it and it did the same thing. Clearly this is extremely dangerous! every time it occurred my husband was driving and was able to handle it. If I was driving, it could be a totally different story. Upon a google search it appears there is a lawsuit in michigan over this because it is clearly a problem and a dangerous one at that. I will also note that my sister in law also has about the same model Equinox and hers did it as well.

The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 60 mph, the vehicle's brakes did not depressed, it maintained the same speed the warning indicator stating service brake assist illuminated and then the check engine light illuminated. The emergency brakes were engaged in order to allow the vehicle to slow down. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a vacuum pump for brakes failure. Additionally, metal was in the engine due to the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was.

While in a parking lot going about 10mph or less, a car pulled out from a parking space on the left. I did a full brake and despite being dry, warm pavement, the car activated abs and released some brake pressure and allowed the car to continue to move. This ment that my braking distance increased by about 5-10 feet more than you'd expect. I have had this happen 3 times, each time a car was pulling out perpendicular on the left. I tried to replicate this in an open parking lot and it never repeated therefore I think it has something to do with the car approaching on the left and the active braking system.

The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the braking system became inoperable, and the brakes unexpectedly locked up with no warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed the vehicle and retrieved trouble code TSB-21na268. The contact was informed that the brake vacuum pump connected to the crankshaft had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 61,000.

The contact owns a 2026 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the brake pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to stop as intended. The contact stated that the brake pedal was depressed to the floorboard, and the vehicle gradually came to a stop. The service brake and service power steering warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with ecm failure. The contact was informed that the ecm needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was towed back to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with brake control module failure. The contact was informed that the brake control module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired again; however, the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was towed back to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with brake master cylinder failure. The contact was informed that the brake master cylinder needed to be repaired. The vehicle was being repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 700.

Vacuum pump went out while driving down the interstate causing hard breaking. Break pedal was extremely hard to push down putting us at risk of not being able to break in time. There were on and off alerts to service breaks assist, however it was not consistently an alert. We replaced the vacuum pump and the issue seems to be resolved. The pump is not available as we tossed it in the trash.

In may 2026 while driving home from her job in downtown st. Louis, my daughter was driving my Equinox. While traveling on the highway at the speed limit of 55 miles an hour her brakes failed and she came within a few feet of rear ending a full gas tanker truck. She was able to maneuver to the shoulder of the highway and avoid an accident. After a few moments of the engine, idling the engine completely stopped working and shut down. After having the car towed to my local mechanic at a midas shop, they began the diagnosis. I began similar research online to find cases of similar things happening. What was diagnosed is that the vacuum pump on the brake line was faulty and broke. Pieces of this pump made their way into my engine and ruined two of the cylinders in my engine. The car is now not drivable and needs a replacement engine. Chevy knew about this faulty, vacuum pump part and they did issue recalls on other vehicles using the same part. They have also issued technical bulletins to their technicians for a diagnosing this failed vacuum pump. I have tried to contact chevy and they have offered me no assistance. I know a class action suit has been filed for this very same issue. Chevy is aware of this issue. Chevy‘s choice to use a part they knew was faulty. Almost led to the death of my daughter.

I was driving to work, when I got off the exit I stopped at sheetz. When I got back in the car my brake pedal was stiff as a rock, and there was oil on the ground. A friend of mine does mechanic work so I called him and he said it sounds like the vacuum pump. I had the car towed to his garage, the tow costed me $400 which was very cheap considering where I was located. When I got it to the garage he confirmed that it was the vacuum pump and we removed several pieces of metal from inside the engine. I now have my car at the chevy dealership in chippewa PA. They told me to be $180 a diagnose it, well they just called me a little bit ago and said it's going to be another $900 to take everything apart and to truly diagnose it. I'm finding out now that gm has known about the failing vacuum pumps and they kept producing them anyways. I see there's a class action lawsuit taking place, and I am not very happy. My life was put at risk. And now I'm expected to be stuck paying this huge bill?.

Vacuum pump failed: on may 28th, 2025 the brake pedal on our 2019 Chevrolet Equinox became very hard along with check engine light, a "reduced power" notification, and "brake assist failure" notification. After a mechanic inspected the engine, he found that the vacuum pump had shattered. The mechanic replaced the pump with an oem replacement from gm. On may 11th, 2026 the same exact issue happened again. 1. The vehicle and/or part is available for inspection. 2. Anyone driving or riding in the vehicle is at risk due to the difficulty of braking. 3. The vehicle/component has not been inspected by the manufacturer since the 2nd incident.

Travelling on a highway with 70 mph posted speed limit, the vehicle dashboard signaled the check engine light and a variety of warnings that "power reduction measure" was enabled and to "service brake assist. " at the next available exit, I was able to exit from the highway and go to a gas station, where upon pulling next to a pump the brake pedal became extremely hard and nonresponsive, resulting in poor braking, nearly striking the car in front of me, even at a very low speed. Upon a quick internet search, it appeared that other vehicles were having the same issue, and it was recommended not to drive, as well as information referring to an ongoing class action lawsuit. A tow was called and brought to the nearest Chevrolet service center (nels gunderson Chevrolet), where they confirmed the brake booster vacuum pump failed (exploded) and sent shrapnel into the camshaft, noting that both would need to be replaced, which is the exact same repair that other vehicles similar to this one are having or have had.