2020 Chevrolet Equinox: What to check before buying

Brake assist fails, and the pedal either goes stiff and needs heavy force or sinks to the floor. Most reports trace this to the brake booster vacuum pump. The pump can shatter and send debris into the engine, sometimes ruining it. When a warning appears, it reads "Service Brake Assist." Failures range from nearly new cars to well past 60,000 miles, and some owners report the pump failing more than once. Owners say a recall exists, but their VINs were left out. The category records 4 crashes and 2 injuries.

Loss of power and stalling lead these reports. They often come with a check engine light and a reduced-power mode that limits speed. Heavy oil use shows up on low-mileage cars, as much as a quart every 1,000 miles, and dealers cite bulletins for it. Turbo-related code P0299 keeps coming back and is hard to diagnose. Other failures include cracked spark plugs, a dead cylinder that required a new engine, high-pressure fuel pump failure, and vacuum pump debris destroying the engine. One car caught fire after losing power on the highway.

Hesitation is the most common complaint. The car delays or ignores the accelerator when pulling out or merging, sometimes showing an "Engine Power Reduced" message. Transmission fluid leaks appear as early as 500 miles, and a porous torque converter case led to one replacement transmission. Other reports describe losing forward gear, shaking under acceleration around 35 to 40 mph, and transmission replacement between 72,000 and 95,000 miles. Some stalls here trace to the fuel pump driver control module. Three crashes are recorded, including a parked car that rolled away.

Stalling and no-start conditions run through these reports. Causes include a battery with a shorted cell and fuel pump module faults. Water is a recurring theme, with sunroof drains leaking into the rear fuse box and spare tire well. Owners also describe the radio and infotainment screen shutting off while driving. Service ESC and traction control lights come and go, and a "shift to park" message can leave the car unable to turn off. A failed low beam means replacing the whole headlight assembly. No crashes are recorded.

The car stalls without warning, often in intersections or on highways. Most cases trace to the fuel pump control module or the fuel pump itself, and some cars will not start at all. Reported failures span roughly 14,860 to 80,000 miles. Owners note the same part was recalled on 2021 and 2022 models but not on the 2020. Parts shortages are a major theme. Some cars sat at dealers for weeks or months waiting for back-ordered modules, and owners paid for repairs once the warranty ran out.

Power steering assist cuts out while driving and leaves the wheel stiff and hard to control. Two of these events ended in crashes. A separate pattern is front-end shaking under acceleration, often near 39 mph or at the 2-3 shift. Dealers linked it to the front half shafts and a service bulletin, but the shaking can return after replacement. Other reports describe knocking during turns on new cars, "Steer Assist Reduced" messages, and lane keep assist that loses track of the lane lines.

Unintended acceleration appears in several reports, including one crash where the car kept accelerating with the brake applied. Adaptive cruise control is the other main complaint. It shuts off or slows the car abruptly at highway speed, or it fails to stop for slowing traffic. Automatic emergency braking also works only some of the time. Some owners describe the engine revving with an "Engine Power Reduced" message, or the car refusing to accelerate. Dealers often find no error codes and cannot reproduce the problem.

Side airbags fail to deploy in driver-side impacts. This is the main pattern, and it includes a T-bone crash where the side curtain stayed stowed and the car was totaled. Five of the six reports involve crashes, with 7 injuries recorded, including a concussion. Other reports describe airbags that did not deploy in a multi-car pileup and a front passenger seatbelt that did not tighten on impact. One crash is blamed on the brakes failing to stop the car in wet conditions.