2018 Chevrolet Equinox: What to check before buying
Owners have filed 382 complaints with NHTSA about this car, most about the brakes, transmission, and electrical. The 9 checks below target those problems, in the order you would do them at the car.
2018- Owner complaints
- 382
- Recalls
- 5
- Crashes reported
- 22
- 29 injuries
Your inspection sheet
Tick items off on your phone at the car, or print it. Ticks stay on this device.
0/9 checked
2018 Chevrolet Equinox: inspection sheet
Paperwork and questions
Before you go, or before you touch the car0/2
Walk-around and cabin
Engine off, key in hand0/1
Cold start, engine bay, and underside
Ask the seller not to warm the car up first0/3
Test drive
At least 20 minutes, with some highway0/3
These checks are specific to this model year. For tires, body panels, fluids, and the other basics every used car needs, use the general inspection guide.
Which Equinox is it?
EPA figures for each version of the 2018 Chevrolet Equinox. Use them to confirm you are looking at the version that was advertised, and as a yardstick on the test drive.
| Version | Drive | EPA rating |
|---|---|---|
| 1.5L 4-cylGas | AWD, FWD | 26–28 mpg |
| 2.0L 4-cylGas | AWD, FWD | 24–25 mpg |
| 1.6L 4-cylDiesel | AWD, FWD | 32 mpg |
- The 2018 Chevrolet Equinox was sold in three versions. Confirm which one this is from the window sticker, the engine cover, or the VIN report before you compare prices.
- Reset the trip computer at the start of the drive. A Equinox that averages well under the EPA 24 mpg combined on a mixed route may have an engine or tire problem.
Check the odometer against these mileages
Owners report these failures starting around the mileages below. A car inside one of these ranges deserves a closer look at that part, or records showing it was already fixed.
Air bag non-deployment
9,500–19,000 miles
Premature tire wear
12,580–17,700 miles
Stop/start battery failures
18,500–67,900 miles
Brake vacuum pump failure
62,000–84,000 miles
Why these checks: what owners reported
NHTSA complaints for the 2018 Chevrolet Equinox, grouped by the part owners named. Open a row to read what goes wrong.
Brakes887 crashes
The brake pedal suddenly goes rock hard or sinks to the floor, sometimes with a "Service Brake Assist" or "brake system fault" message and sometimes with no warning. Dealers most often blame the brake vacuum pump, and some cars need more than one. A failed pump seal can also drain the engine oil. Of these filings, 7 involve crashes, mostly rear-end and intersection collisions. Other reports describe grinding, brakes that grab hard, a parking brake that will not release, and automatic emergency braking that does not stop the car. Owners say their cars are not covered by the pump recall.
Transmission562 crashes
The car rolls away after being shifted into park, causing crashes and an injury. Transmission reports describe sudden downshifts to first while merging, cars stuck in first at high revs, a shifter jammed in reverse, and hard shifts with loss of power. Dealers often cannot reproduce these faults. Other filings cover a driveshaft dropping onto the highway at about 54,000 miles, differential whine, and batteries that keep dying under stop/start. A seized vacuum pump is also linked to camshaft and oil pump damage and metal in the engine.
Electrical421 crash
Check engine lights and limp mode lead this category. One recurring code points to the accelerator pedal sensor and drops highway speed below 25 mph. Owners also report a side detection error that a new harness did not fix, a dead speedometer and fuel gauge, power seats and mirrors moving on their own, and a "shift to park" alert that will not let the car shut off. Water leaking into the rear fuse box and sunroof motor failures appear more than once. One report describes a burning plastic smell and smoke under the hood before the car caught fire.
Engine27No crashes
The car shows "Engine Power Reduced" and drops into limp mode, often in cold weather, sometimes holding speed under 30 or 40 mph on the highway. Fixes include replacing the charge air cooler or turbocharger, adding a grille cover, and reprogramming the engine computer, but some cars fail again after repair. A smaller group reports catastrophic damage, including a broken camshaft, a separated connecting rod, and vacuum pump failure, one at 72K miles. Misfires from fuel injectors and turbo heat damage on the diesel also appear, including one fire report.
Fuel system15No crashes
The fuel gauge is unreliable. It will not read full after a fill-up and shows empty when the 15-gallon tank takes less than 10 gallons, so drivers run out of gas. A dealer reportedly says there is no fix. Fuel leaks from the filter, lines, or injectors also appear, one at about 4,000 miles with heavy spillage. Other reports describe stalling, a fuel pump failure that limits speed to 14 mph, and a transmission failure at 4800 miles. Two reports describe engine fires with brake loss, one with 2 injuries.
Steering141 crash
When stop/start restarts the engine, a flood of warnings appears, including service brake assist, steering assist, and StabiliTrak, and the wheel may lock or stiffen for a few seconds. Dealers trace some cases to low battery voltage, and one car needed several batteries by 55,436 miles. Vacuum pump failures that break the camshaft shut down the engine and remove power steering, reported at 62k and 70k miles. Other complaints describe the wheel sticking at highway speed, pulling to the right, and wandering. One crash involved brakes and steering locking together.
Airbags138 crashes
In front and side collisions, the bags fail to inflate. Eight filings involve crashes, with 11 injuries reported, including a concussion and a broken elbow. In several collisions the bags smoke without inflating, and one report describes the passenger seat catching fire after a crash. Outside of crashes, the warning light comes on and stays lit, sometimes only when the front passenger buckles up. Dealers often find no fault code. One diagnosis called for replacing front sensors.
Wheels and tires111 crash
The most serious reports describe the front alloy rim breaking apart at interstate speed while the lug nuts and center stay on the hub. One of these cars rolled over, injuring 3 people. Rapid tire wear is the most common complaint: factory Michelin tires worn to 1/32 or 2.5/32 of an inch by about 15,000 to 17,700 miles. Alignment checks keep finding rear toe and camber out of spec, and one fleet of 40 needed tires on 26 cars under 20K miles. Slow leaks and repeated TPMS warnings also appear.
In owners' own words
Excerpts from complaints Equinox owners filed with NHTSA, as written. Listen for the same symptoms on your test drive.
No warnings or lights. Brakes failed taking vehicle out of garage with foster children. All maintenance was kept up. 55,900 miles. Towed to Nissan dealer where purchased. Shop didn't know the cause. Vehicle could not be repaired because the cause was never found. Could it happen again, out of the blue, without warning. Documents available on request only. Dates of incident may be off a bit.
Filed with NHTSA, February 2024
The emergency break was stuck it wouldn’t allow the parking break to release which caused me to not be able to stop. It drove fine for 40 miles then when I turned into a parking lot it wouldn’t stop even with the emergency break released.
Filed with NHTSA, June 2023
Winter 2020/2021 I had to replace my exhaust manifold and now winter 2021/2022 I am having issues with my turbo/super charger but same code of P0299 for both incidents. Wondering what is going on with my vehicle. I bought it at 42,000 miles and now has 88,000 on it
Filed with NHTSA, January 2022
No code, no indication of anything wrong, no lights or warnings, no sounds or rough running indications on the vehicle. It just completely died in the middle of the highway while traveling down the road and would not restart. Middle of the night with me and my granddaughter in the vehicle. It ended up being a problem with the timing chain which was not broke. Nor were there any indication there was a problem with it.
Filed with NHTSA, January 2025
There's a leak by the rear fuse box. Moisture and water gets on the fuses. My sunroof and sunshade have stopped working. I noticed the Julian date on my sunroof motor falls with in the date range that it needs to be replaced cause it could be a faulty one.
Filed with NHTSA, June 2024
My car alerts shift to park when it is already parked and will not shut off. The battery has to be disconnected to turn the car off. It won't start and the dash displays multiple lights park, check engine lights, tire lights and more
Filed with NHTSA, November 2024
Car stopped working at 72K miles. sputtered, stopped, cranked but no start. P0017 error - which has a TSB on it. Camshaft position error. Chevy knows about the issue but just hopes it happens outside of warranty, which is not acceptable. Vacuum pump also had catastrophic failure.
Filed with NHTSA, August 2023
Has had 2 codes come up for bad fuel injectors maybe more before it hit 50,000 miles dealer can't recreate cases a bad miss fire really surprised it runs
Filed with NHTSA, September 2022
How the 2018 compares with other Equinox years
Complaints for this year next to the average for the other model years, area by area.
The 2018 has the most owner complaints of the 8 Equinox years we cover, about 2.2 times the average of the others. Newer years have had less time to collect complaints, so compare like with like.
- Brakes8823
- Transmission5616
- Electrical4222
- Engine2714
- Fuel system1522
- Steering147
Where the 2018 fits in the Equinox's history
Redesigns and mid-cycle updates change what can go wrong.
The 2018 is the first model year of the Equinox's third generation (2018–2024). First years of a redesign often carry teething problems that Chevrolet fixes in later years, so the checks above matter more than usual.
Chevrolet updated the Equinox for 2022, so a 2018 does not have those changes.
What changed for 2022 (not on a 2018)
- New front grille and redesigned headlamps
- Restyled lower fascia and tail lamps
- Wireless Android Auto/Apple CarPlay
Should you avoid the first year of a redesign? See the 45-car study.
Recalls to confirm (5)
Recall repairs are free at any Chevrolet dealer, but the seller may never have had them done. Check each campaign number against the VIN.
20V668000TransmissionOct 2020
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Chevrolet Cruze and Buick LaCrosse, 2018-2020 Chevrolet Equinox, Chevrolet Traverse and GMC Terrain, 2018 Chevrolet Malibu, 2019-2020 Buick Encore, Buick Enclave, Cadillac XT4, Chevrolet Blazer and GMC Acadia, and 2020 Cadillac XT6 vehicles. The start/stop accumulator endcap may have missing bolts.
Risk: Missing bolts on the start-stop accumulator endcap could result in a transmission oil leak and may progress to a loss of propulsion, increasing the risk of a crash. A transmission fluid leak in the presence of an ignition source may increase the risk of fire.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the start-stop transmission accumulator and replace it if any bolts are missing, free of charge. The recall began December 15, 2020. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267, Buick Customer service at 1-866-608-8080, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. GM's number for this recall is N202313440.
18V576000BrakesAug 2018
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Chevrolet Equinox, Impala, Cruze, Volt and Bolt EV vehicles, GMC Terrain vehicles, Buick Lacrosse and Regal vehicles, Cadillac XTS and XTS Professional vehicles and 2018 Chevrolet Malibu vehicles. The rear brake caliper pistons may have an insufficient coating causing gas pockets to form, potentially reducing rear brake performance.
Risk: A reduction of braking performance can increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will bleed the vehicle's brake system, free of charge. The recall began October 11, 2018. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 18279.
18V358000Fuel systemMay 2018
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2018 GMC Canyon, 2016-2017 Buick Envision, 2016-2018 Chevrolet Colorado and Malibu, 2017-2018 GMC Acadia, 2018 Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac ATS, Chevrolet Equinox, and GMC Terrain vehicles. The high pressure fuel pump may detach from its mounting flange, possibly resulting in the pump damaging the high pressure fuel line.
Risk: A damaged fuel line can create a fuel leak, increasing the risk of a fire.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the high pressure fuel pump, and high pressure fuel pipe, free of charge. The recall began July 2, 2018. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 18188.
18V252000Wipers and visibilityApr 2018
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018 Chevrolet Equinox vehicles. The driver and front passenger door window glass may not be properly tempered. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 205, "Glazing Materials.".
Risk: If the glass is not tempered properly, and the window is broken, the glass can break into large pieces, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the glass in the front doors, free of charge. The recall began May 15, 2018. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 18136.
17V516000TransmissionAug 2017
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain vehicles and 2017-2018 GMC Acadia vehicles. The right front intermediate driveshaft may fracture and separate while driving.
Risk: If the front right intermediate drive shaft assembly separates while driving, the vehicle will lose propulsion, increasing the risk of a crash. If the assembly separates while parked on a grade, without the park brake engaged, the vehicle may move unintentionally, increasing the risk of a vehicle roll-away.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the right front intermediate drive shaft assembly, free of charge. The recall began August 25, 2017. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 17329.
Also looking at these instead of a Equinox?
Cars shoppers compare with the Chevrolet Equinox, with their own 2018 checklists.
2018 owner complaints, side by side
- Buick Envision13
- Kia Sportage147
- GMC Terrain201
- Volkswagen Tiguan275
- Hyundai Tucson362
- 2018 Chevrolet Equinox382
- Subaru Forester475
