2020 Chevrolet Equinox problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Service Brakes (83) · Fuel/Propulsion System (37) · Engine (29)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Chevrolet Equinox model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
🛣️ Complaints by mileage
85 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (4)
Child Seat:vehicle Latch Anchor 2023-05-11 · campaign 23V339000 · 668,187 vehicles
Defect: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020-2023 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain vehicles. The four rear-seat lower child seat LATCH anchorage bars may have excessive powder coating, which could prevent a child seat from being installed with the anchorage bars. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 225, "Child Restraint Anchorage Systems."
Risk: The inability to install a child seat with the LATCH anchorage bars could result in an unsecured child seat, increasing the risk of injury in a crash.
Fix: Owners are advised to install child seats using the vehicle's rear seat belts until the remedy is complete. Dealers will inspect the latch anchorage bars, and remove and replace the finish, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 2, 2023. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N232403240.
Power Train:automatic Transmission 2020-10-29 · campaign 20V668000 · 194,105 vehicles
Defect: 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.
Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:disc:caliper 2019-10-03 · campaign 19V704000 · 166 vehicles
Defect: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020 Chevrolet Equinox vehicles. The rear brake calipers may have been produced with an incorrect lubricant, potentially causing the rubber seals to swell and the brakes to drag.
Risk: Brake drag may result in overheating of the brake pads, affecting the braking ability and increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear brake calipers, including the brake hose gasket, brake fluid and wheel to hub lubricant, free of charge. The recall began October 29, 2019. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-630-2438. GM's number for this recall is N192270920.
Fuel System, Gasoline:storage:tank Assembly 2019-09-19 · campaign 19V667000 · 301 vehicles
Defect: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Chevrolet Equinox all-wheel drive vehicles. The fuel tanks may have been manufactured with an improperly sealed seam, possibly allowing fuel to leak along the seam near the fuel inlet.
Risk: A fuel leak in the presence of the ignition source can increase the risk of a fire.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel tank, free of charge. The recall began October 24, 2019. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1-586-596-1733. GM's number for this recall is N192271870.
Service bulletins (854)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Unknown Or Other 2026-10-26 · GM Update N25-250552 · Over The Air
• improvements to onstar functionality.
Unknown Or Other 2026-09-26 · PIT5698F · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this pi provides diagnostics tips on how the lin bus works and how to diagnosis it.
Unknown Or Other 2026-09-04 · PIP4902W · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email gds2 session logs into technical assistance.
Unknown Or Other 2026-07-21 · PIT5099J · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
pi to help diagnose a/c concern
Unknown Or Other 2026-04-01 · PIT3271Q · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communicates information about how to determine if a wheel and tires size change is available.
Unknown Or Other 2026-03-27 · PIT5992B · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information discusses a condition that may arise from the drivers window switch sending an errant message causing the vehicle to enter manual fob learn mode.
Showing the 6 most recent of 854 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-10-20 · Service Brakes“vacuum pump failed causing brakes to fail then causing exhaust camshaft to break. …”
2026-10-19 · Service Brakes“there were no warning lights prior. we were driving on the highway and the brake pedal all of a sudden became hard as a rock, and we could barely stop the car. stoping distance was extremely long and dangerous, we were very lucky there was no one in front of us and that we were almost the the exit we needed to be at. managed to slowly pull the car …”
2026-10-17 · Service Brakes“vacuum pump, i was driving 75mph and needed to slow down due to traffic and my break pedal was hard and wouldn’t stop me, i almost hit a car in front of me. i also had my children with me. no the problem hasn’t been inspected, i bought the part to repair it myself. there was no fair warning. i almost wrecked with my children in the car! i was over …”
2026-10-14 · Unknown Or Other“"brake vacuum pump seized and shattered, sending metal debris into engine via camshaft. vehicle lost power and would not restart – towed to dealer. dealer found metal debris in oil fill (photo available) and quoted $2,101 for camshaft/vacuum pump and $9,480 for engine assembly – total $12,493.83. this is identical failure to class action thieme et …”
2026-10-13 · Service Brakes“vacuum pump failed, camshaft is broken. when vacuum pump failed there were no brakes and no warning. almost flew off a bridge.…”
2026-10-08 · Air Bags · 💥 crash“none of the airbags deployed in an accident. the right front end of the car hit a utility trailer and nothing went off. the car has been deemed a total loss after being trailered to the lot and assessed by the insurance inspector.…”
2026-10-05 · Visibility:rearview Mirrors/Devices · 25,000 mi“the contact owns a 2020 chevrolet equinox. the contact stated that there were persistent electrical issues with both side-view mirrors independently adjusting after the vehicle was turned off. the driver was constantly manually readjusting the mirrors while operating the vehicle. the dealer performed a software reprogram, but the failure recurred t…”
2026-09-28 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic“the contact owns a 2020 chevrolet equinox. the contact stated that while driving approximately 20 - 25 mph and depressing the brake pedal, the brakes locked up. the contact turned into a nearby parking lot and coasted to a stop and shifted into park(p). the contact waited a while for a co-worker, and the co-worker drove the vehicle to the residence…”
2026-09-24 · Engine“i've spent $1000 on repairs to my turbo and now have to replace the whole thing. while looking online i've seen many people are having the same issue with the 2020 model. almost every car has to replace the turbo between 60,000-80,000 miles which seems ridiculous.…”
2026-09-22 · Fuel System, Gasoline · 51,000 mi“the contact owns a 2020 chevrolet equinox. the contact stated that the vehicle failed to start, but initially the vehicle restarted. the contact was able to drive to the residence, but the vehicle failed to restart. an independent mechanic arrived at the residence and identified a failure with the fuel pump module, part number: 13565338, as the cau…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.