225 of the 12,765 complaints filed about the Chevrolet Equinox are about the driver-assist systems — 100% of everything owners reported. The worst model year for it is 2025.
225
Complaints
100%
Share of all complaints
38
Crashes
2
Fires
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
Emergency braking engaged when backing into parking spot in between two vehicles. No obstruction was behind vehicle.
NHTSA complaint #11763646 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
BACK OVER PREVENTION: REARVIEW SYSTEM BRAKING
At approximately 5pm EST, my wife stopped the EV vehicle after backing out of the garage and put the vehicle in park. After exiting the driver's seat, she was outside the open driver's door, had both feet on the ground and cleared the door enough that she was preparing to close it, when the vehicle began moving with no one in the driver's seat. The vehicle traveled down our inclined driveway, across the street and striking my neighbor's house. A [XXX] neighboring child was in the vehicle's path. My wife believed the vehicle would strike the child and screamed for her to move. The child moved clear before the vehicle reached her, and no contact occurred. The vehicle stopped when it hit the left side of the neighbor’s garage causing damage to the stone siding and framing of the garage. The vehicle then started to move forward over the lawn and into the street. At some point after it started moving forward the neighbor, an adult male, was attempted to stop the vehicle physically but was unable to. I came out of the house and saw what was going on and was able to help stop the vehicle, entered it and apply the brakes. My wife also tried to enter the vehicle to stop it during these events causing her to get ran over, substantial scraps, bruising and other injuries. We are reporting unintended movement after driver exit and request investigation of park engagement, the shift-by-wire system, electric parking brake, Automatic Vehicle Hold/driver-exit functions, reverse automatic braking and propulsion/brake controls. 2 GM EV Concierge agents separately were unable to retrieve remote diagnostic information. The vehicle was towed to [XXX] in [XXX] with very specific instructions. I opened a case with GM EV Concierge and they escalated it to "the executive team". Despite multiple calls and emails the executive team has not reached out. The case was even closed once and I had it reopened. I opened ticket # XXX but can't find it so I'm opening this one. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA),
NHTSA complaint #11762083 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
On 3 occasions, the last happening today (XXX) traveling north on XXX toward [XXX] at approximately 14:05, the vehicle has stopped abruptly and hard, and will then release. Today, it took it longer to release. When it occurred this time, it braked just as hard but longer, so I had to cross two lanes so the cars behind me would not hit me. The cars swerved around me and the car eventually let go and I was able to accelerate from that dangerous position on the side of the highway. The first time it happened, someone was pretty close behind me. The car stopped hard, real hard, but let go quickly enough to accelerate before a collision. The second time, there was no one in front or behind us, and we were safe. It hadn’t happened in a while, today. We’ve downloaded 2 or 3 software update, and I was hoping it fixed the issue. It did not. Today the car stumbled and the rpm’s jumped. I feel like the car momentarily braked while I was accelerating. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11761939 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
LANE DEPARTURE: BLIND SPOT DETECTION
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. there was one day, i had open my trunk from my keyfob, in the house, and when i walked up on the driver side of my car (the car was turned off) it beeped and when i looked over, the blindspot light was on and flashing.
NHTSA complaint #11762008 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
BACK OVER PREVENTION: REARVIEW SYSTEM BRAKING
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. there was one day, i had open my trunk from my keyfob, in the house, and when i walked up on the driver side of my car (the car was turned off) it beeped and when i looked over, the blindspot light was on and flashing.
NHTSA complaint #11762008 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
On XXX, at approximately 5pm EST, my wife stopped our 2026 Chevrolet Equinox EV after backing out of the garage and put the vehicle in park. After exiting the driver's seat, she was outside the open driver's door, had both feet on the ground and cleared the door enough that she was preparing to close it, when the vehicle began moving with no one in the driver's seat. The vehicle traveled down our inclined driveway, continued onto neighboring property, and continued through grass. A [XXX] neighboring child was in the vehicle's path. My wife believed the vehicle would strike the child and screamed for her to move. The child moved clear before the vehicle reached her, and no contact occurred. The vehicle stopped when it hit the left side of the neighbor’s garage causing damage to the stone siding and framing of the garage. The vehicle then started to move forward over the lawn and into the street. At some point after it started moving forward the neighbor, an adult male, was attempted to stop the vehicle physically but was unable to. I came out of the house and saw what was going on at this point and was able to help stop the vehicle, entered it and apply the brakes. My wife also tried to enter the vehicle and stop it during these events which ended in substantial scraps, bruising and other injuries. We are reporting unintended movement after driver exit and request investigation of park engagement, the shift-by-wire system, electric parking brake, Automatic Vehicle Hold/driver-exit functions, reverse automatic braking and propulsion/brake controls. Two Chevrolet EV Concierge agents separately were unable to retrieve remote diagnostic information. The vehicle is currently at my house and has only been driven to secure it in the garage since the incident. Opened a case with GM EV Concierge and they escalated it to "the executive team". It should be towed to a dealer today. Police report submitted but I do not current know the report number. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5
NHTSA complaint #11761249 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
In my chevy equinox 2018 my vacuum pump and brake booster failed when I was driving and I could not brake. I slid into the gravel side of the road on the 138, luckily there were not alot of traffic at the time cause I would have caused a major accident. Never had any braking issue till now. Now this is a major financial hardship on me to fix this issue that should have not happened if it got recalled to fix this issue on this certain model. No lights, no indicator lights or anything came on either which was scary. And I have no problems or any other issues with the equinox. It just failed all of a sudden.
NHTSA complaint #11759470 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
I was on the way back home from the office driving [XXX]. Speed limit of the road was 45mph and I was driving around 40 mph. There was a traffice light and it changed to yellow. The card in front of me stopped but the brake was slipping and my vehicle couldn't stop, ended up hitting vehicle in front of me. My vehecle equipped with Automatic Emegency Brake and Front collison warning but no warning popped up and automatic brake didn't work. I pushed brake so hard but it was slipping. I was holding steering wheel with both hand and stepping on the brake. and triied to avoid crash by turning vehicle to the right. But couldn't avoid crash and hit the passenger side of the vehicle in front of me with my driver side corner. Brake did not work and none of the emergency features equiped in the vehicle responded, INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11759542 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
I was on the way back home from the office driving [XXX]. Speed limit of the road was 45mph and I was driving around 40 mph. There was a traffice light and it changed to yellow. The card in front of me stopped but the brake was slipping and my vehicle couldn't stop, ended up hitting vehicle in front of me. My vehecle equipped with Automatic Emegency Brake and Front collison warning but no warning popped up and automatic brake didn't work. I pushed brake so hard but it was slipping. I was holding steering wheel with both hand and stepping on the brake. and triied to avoid crash by turning vehicle to the right. But couldn't avoid crash and hit the passenger side of the vehicle in front of me with my driver side corner. Brake did not work and none of the emergency features equiped in the vehicle responded, INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11759542 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
After taking a long drive, our phone suddenly stopped connecting via Apple car play, all of a sudden the screen went black while we were doing 80 miles an hour on the highway using GPS and then the phones wouldn’t connect again at all. Multiple attempted to restart the car and display did nothing. This has now become an intermittent error on the vehicle. I was told by a Chevy dealership there was nothing they could do & I just needed to wait for an update to come out. Fast forward two months and countless hours of research I attempted to call onstar to have our connection reset to onstar because I saw that helped out. I found out our vehicle had not been connected for over 6 months while I was paying for the service and the telematics unit was likely the issue. 3 visits to the dealership, 3 modules later & the problem is still persistent. GM will not cover my rental, will not give me a loaner vehicle and will not accommodate my schedule to have the 4th module attempted to be replaced. This is an extremely scary and frustrating concern. I fear for my safety when I’m on the road and my dashboard goes black for several minutes at highway speeds. the issue has been confirmed and is widespread in this model and should be recalled - GM should be forced into a lemon law for anyone who has had this many problems as most of us have.
NHTSA complaint #11757907 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
The vehicle’s software, steering, and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) create severe, active driving hazards. First, the steering and traction programming cause violent, unprompted lane deviations. While driving 20 mph on a snowy dirt road, the system automatically engaged and violently pulled the vehicle directly into the lane of an oncoming snowplow. A similar erratic swerving event occurred at 25 mph on [XXX] during icy conditions. Most recently, the steering violently pulled the vehicle 6 feet to the left at 50 mph, despite the suspension and wheels being in perfect factory specification with summer tires mounted. As a professional heavy-vehicle driver, I had to manually fight the wheel to maintain the lane. Second, the Adaptive Cruise Control unpredictably fails to recognize stopped traffic on both interstates and town roads. It repeatedly fails to apply the brakes when a lead vehicle stops, requiring emergency manual braking to avoid rear-end collisions. The system also triggers severe phantom braking without warning. We are forced to manually disable traction control and parking assist upon every vehicle start just to avoid losing control of the vehicle. The dealership has evaluated the vehicle multiple times but has failed to resolve these core software and ADAS defects, despite months of ongoing negotiations with GM Corporate. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11756183 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
The vehicle’s software, steering, and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) create severe, active driving hazards. First, the steering and traction programming cause violent, unprompted lane deviations. While driving 20 mph on a snowy dirt road, the system automatically engaged and violently pulled the vehicle directly into the lane of an oncoming snowplow. A similar erratic swerving event occurred at 25 mph on [XXX] during icy conditions. Most recently, the steering violently pulled the vehicle 6 feet to the left at 50 mph, despite the suspension and wheels being in perfect factory specification with summer tires mounted. As a professional heavy-vehicle driver, I had to manually fight the wheel to maintain the lane. Second, the Adaptive Cruise Control unpredictably fails to recognize stopped traffic on both interstates and town roads. It repeatedly fails to apply the brakes when a lead vehicle stops, requiring emergency manual braking to avoid rear-end collisions. The system also triggers severe phantom braking without warning. We are forced to manually disable traction control and parking assist upon every vehicle start just to avoid losing control of the vehicle. The dealership has evaluated the vehicle multiple times but has failed to resolve these core software and ADAS defects, despite months of ongoing negotiations with GM Corporate. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11756183 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
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.
NHTSA complaint #11756326 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
On a steep gravel road in a remote area, I pressed the accelerator and the vehicle stopped climbing. I inferred that traction control had intervened, but there was no immediate, obvious indication explaining why the car wasn’t responding. The most frightening part was not knowing what the vehicle was doing. A clear, immediate indication that traction control was actively limiting power would have reduced uncertainty.
NHTSA complaint #11752810 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
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.
NHTSA complaint #11751995 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
My telematics module for onstar is draining power from the car's battery which has been not allowing me to start after I turn it off without having to jumpstart it. Also when I do jump start it, the cruise control don't work and service messages pop up on my HUD. The dealership said it's undrivable due to safety concerns and the part is backordered for an unknown ETA.
NHTSA complaint #11745373 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
The Chevrolet Equinox EV has a large blind spot because of the size of the front window pillars and the adjacent side view mirror. To quote from an Internet search, "This creates a significant blind spot when preparing to make left at intersections, making it difficult to spot pedestrians cyclists, or oncoming traffic." My vehicle was involved in an accident during a left turn in which I believe the blind spot was a significant factor. The Chevrolet Equinox EV is supposed to be equipped with "enhanced automatic emergency braking" which, if so, did not function to prevent an accident.
NHTSA complaint #11744882 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
BACK OVER PREVENTION
The contact owns a 2022 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that after the manufacturer performed an over-the-air (OTA) update to the OnStar system, the radio module and infotainment system became inoperable, rendering the rearview camera and the OnStar system inoperable. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who diagnosed that the radio module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 79,665.
NHTSA complaint #11743744 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
While cruise control was active, the vehicle initiated un-commanded physical acceleration and deceleration in unpredictable 5 mph increments (up or down), forcing the vehicle to change speeds without driver input. This required me to immediately deactivate the system and override the accelerator/brakes to maintain control of the vehicle in while driving, creating a severe and direct safety hazard. With cruise off I could see the erratic jumping of the set-speed number on the digital display. This issue has occurred on two separate instances. In both cases, pulling over, turning the vehicle completely off, and turning back on completely cleared the glitch and restored normal operation of this feature.
NHTSA complaint #11743667 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
BACK OVER PREVENTION: REARVIEW SYSTEM BRAKING
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.
NHTSA complaint #11743805 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.