2026 Chevrolet Equinox Problems

What owners report

Complaints on this model year are dominated by two things: the driver-assistance suite (forward collision/automatic emergency braking and blind-spot warnings) engaging or alerting when nothing is there, and brake/electrical faults in which pedal feel or power assist is lost and warning lights come on. Many reports arrive in the first few thousand miles, and a large share involve the vehicle being out of service at a dealer waiting on diagnosis.

1. 1
   Forward collision avoidance

   Automatic emergency braking triggers with nothing in front

   Mentioned in 12 of 60 sampled complaints

   Owners describe the automatic emergency braking slamming on at low speed in parking lots or on clear roads with no vehicle, pedestrian or obstacle present, sometimes with no forward-collision warning first. Others report the forward-collision alert and adaptive cruise control disabling themselves, misreading speed-limit signs, or the cruise speed changing in steps without driver input. Several say the dealer could not reproduce the event or found no fault, and some owners asked to have the braking feature turned off. Reported from the first few hundred miles up to about 17,000 miles, often at low speeds in parking areas and in rain or at night.

   3 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask whether the vehicle has received the latest over-the-air driver-assistance updates and whether any front camera or image-processor codes were stored. On a test drive, note whether the collision alert lights or mirror warnings flicker in open areas.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I was driving down my neighborhood road about 20mph there were no other cars around on the road at all only mailboxes and cars parked in driveways. The car suddenly slams the brakes hard enough the tires were squealing and threw us forward thankfully me and my child had our seat belts on. It scared the heck out of us cause there was no warning and definitely not expected.”

   NHTSA complaint #11736126, filed 2026-05

   “I was traveling about 45mph and the SUV emergency brake system activated, it scared me and my passengers, the guy behind me was even more scared. I had the front seat passenger immediately deactivate the emergency braking system.”

   NHTSA complaint #11709261, filed 2026-01
2. 2
   Transmission and drivetrain

   Transmission slip, hesitation and column shifter mistakes

   Mentioned in 9 of 60 sampled complaints

   Owners report a slipping or hesitating feel under light-to-moderate acceleration, occasional refusal to reach a higher gear at highway speed, and the transmission dropping into neutral. Several complaints focus on the steering-column gear stalk, which is easy to grab instead of the wiper control, shifting the vehicle out of gear while driving. Dealers in some cases could not reproduce the slip or replaced an axle with the symptom returning. Reported from a few hundred miles to the mid-teens of thousands of miles, often on acceleration from a stop or at highway speed.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Drive at steady light throttle from a stop and feel for a slip or shudder, and try highway speeds to confirm all gears engage. Practice the column shifter and wiper stalk so you know which is which.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The gear selection is on the steering column and to change from Park to Reverse or Drive takes usually over six attempts to get in the right gear. When your entering traffic and you get delayed trying to put the car into the proper gear this becomes a very dangerous safety issue. General Motors refuses to advise me how to deal with this problem unless I give them the name of an attorney who will represent me.”

   NHTSA complaint #11671755, filed 2025-07

   “I am driving a rental Chevrolet Equinox with the steering-column-mounted electronic gear selector. I believe this shifter design creates a serious safety hazard. The gear selector is a stalk on the steering column positioned and operated similarly to controls commonly used for windshield wipers in other vehicles. While driving, pulling back on this stalk can immediately shift the transmission into Neutral, even at highway speeds. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11762382, filed 2026-09
3. 3
   Brakes

   Brake pedal to the floor with warning lights

   • 10 complaints (13%)
   • median 425 mi at 0.3 yrs old (2 state mileage, few)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2025–2026

   Complaints describe the brake pedal going to the floor with little or no stopping power, accompanied by service brake, steering-assist or all-wheel-drive messages and sometimes a locked or unresponsive pedal at startup. Several owners report the vehicle was towed and diagnosed with an electronic control module failure, while others say the cause was not found; one owner describes a brake-assist failure with a long wait for parts. Mostly reported under about 1,000 miles, with some events at several thousand miles.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask for the service history on any brake, steering or module repairs, and check that no warning messages appear at startup. Test the pedal for a firm, consistent feel.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “When trying to disengage cruise control, with button on steering wheel, brakes locked up going 75mph on the interstate. Would not unlock until I physically pressed brake pedal. If I had not been able to control the car, we would have been sent head first into the concrete barrier wall. Also, when trying to start car or put in into gear, it tells me to press brake when the brake pedal is pressed as far as it can go. Radio will randomly cut off and screen goes blank. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11693821, filed 2025-10

   “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.”

   NHTSA complaint #11741936, filed 2026-06
4. 4
   Lane departure

   Blind-spot monitor shows false warnings

   • 10 complaints (13%)
   • median 7,007 mi at 0.5 yrs old (2 state mileage, few)
   • filed 2026

   Owners report the blind-spot indicator on the driver-side mirror lighting or flashing when no vehicle is alongside, including while stopped or parked, and in at least one case shortly after walking up to the car. Owners say they cleaned the sensors and the dealer found nothing wrong, and some describe the false alerts as distracting enough that they stop trusting the system. Reported within the first months of ownership, from near-zero mileage up, and noted as more noticeable at night.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: During a test drive, watch the mirror indicators in empty lanes and ask whether any camera or sensor module has been replaced or is on parts restriction.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “my 2026 equinox is having an issue with the blind spot warning on my driver side mirror will either say on or flash. this is regardless of driving, or being parking. i have washed my car, checked my sensor, and i am still having issues. the dealership does not see any issue with the car, however, while driving at night, this is such a distraction because i'm constantly checking my mirror to make sure there's nobody there. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11762008, filed 2026-09

   “Vehicle will detect objects in the blind spot when there are none there. I will look back and see that nothing is in the blind spot. Turn my turn signal on to indicate a lane change. I get half-way through the lane change and the light on the mirror starts to flash indicating that something is in my blind spot. I react and return to my original lane. I look back again and ther is nothing there. This is the classic false positive. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11732190, filed 2026-04
5. 5
   Electrical system

   Stalls, no-restart and electrical shutdowns

   • 8 complaints (10%)
   • median 4,789 mi at 0.7 yrs old (2 state mileage, few)
   • filed 2026

   Owners describe the vehicle shutting off while driving or refusing to restart, sometimes with screens going black, warning lights on and the shifter stuck in park, requiring a tow. Some report the fuel pump or fuel pump control module was replaced, sometimes more than once, and others say the dealer has kept the vehicle for diagnosis without a confirmed cause. Reported from roughly 500 to 6,500 miles, in a mix of low-speed stops and highway driving.

   4 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask whether the fuel pump or its control module, battery and any modules have been replaced, and check the radio/display reset bulletins were applied. Have a scan done for stored module codes before buying.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I am reporting a serious safety issue involving my 2026 Chevrolet Equinox. While I was driving on the highway, the vehicle suddenly shut down and became completely immobilized in a travel lane. I was unable to move the vehicle out of the lane or shift the transmission into Neutral. This created an extremely dangerous situation, and a truck nearly struck my vehicle while I was stopped in the roadway. The vehicle had to be towed to a Chevrolet dealership. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11759591, filed 2026-08

   “On Friday March 20, 2026, we traded in a Chevy Equinox to get a newer model which is the VIN number we listed in this complaint. Driving home from the dealership the vehicle went from drive to park on its own (driving at 65 miles/hr) and my husband had to immediately put the car physically back into drive. Once we finally got the vehicle to our house, I went out to check it, and the vehicle would not even start. Every single light came on yet it would not start up. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11726337, filed 2026-03

Buying note. This is a recent model year with low-mileage complaints concentrated in driver-assistance calibration and brake/electrical faults, so a thorough test drive and a full module code scan matter more than mileage. Ask for the complete service history, confirm any software updates were applied, and be aware that a number of owners report multiple dealer visits before a cause was found.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.