2016 Chevrolet Equinox: won't start

Filed Feb 8, 2025 · Engine · IL

1. Excessive oil consumption! Adding one quart of oil every two weeks! 2. Timing chain replaced (TWICE) within 2 years! 2022/2023 3. Rear main seal replaced! 2022 4. VVT solenoid replaced because of rapid oil consumption causing metal shavings from engine! 2025 No warning lights just loud ticking all of a sudden and then engine shaking! Camshaft locked up and would not start, had to be towed to repair shop! This is a very dangerous engine (EcoTec 2.4L 4 cylinder) to drive with, as it can lock up or just fail causing an accident!

Filed Dec 21, 2024 · Engine · MN

We purchased a 2016 Chevy equinox with a 2.4 eco-tech engine in September 2023 for approximately $14,000 and 95,000 miles. In September 2024, our vehicle seemed to malfunction at a gas station. When my husband attempted to turn the car on, it sputtered and several different lights lit up the dashboard. The car wouldnt start and we had to have it towed. The shop informed us the next day that there was zero oil in the car and our engine had blown. This was extremely shocking to us as we had zero issues prior to this and had our oil and tires changed within the last month. Upon their inspection, they stated no oil in the car. We told them we had recently had it changed at an oil shop. A shop employee then informed us there were known issues with this type of engine and we should look into it. Upon further research, we discovered this engine had indeed experienced issues over the past several years. A lawsuit was apparently settled regarding the 2010-2013 vehicles and 2014-2017 were now also experiencing issues. There is a class action lawsuit going on in a southern state as well. I contacted the MN OIG office and they advised we file a complaint here. We still owed approximately 9,000$ when this happened. I contacted GM support at 866‑366‑2273 on 10/7 and spoke with rep Jasmine and supervisor Rochelle. They advised they cannot open a case for me unless I pay to have the car towed to a GM approved dealer and pay for a diagnostic. They stated it’s possible but not likely that I would receive any assistance due to the power train warranty am expiring at 60,000 miles. I advised I cannot afford to pay to have it towed a 3rd time and diagnosed again just in the hope they would be able to help. Prior to this happening, we did not experience any issues with the vehicle and it wasn’t indicating there were any issues (there were no lights on to show something wasn’t functioning properly).

Filed Dec 20, 2023 · Electrical, Engine · NJ

My car is a 2016 chevy equinox - the check engine light never came on and I was driving it home from the store when it started bucking, showing "power to engine low" error message and barely moved when pressing the gas. I got the car home and my husband was checking the car only to find I have no oil when I never received any warning. I have done research and have seen this is an issue for many chevy equinox owners who all experienced this with their cars. I just had an oil change completed a few months ago in early Sept/Late August with very minimal driving in the 4 month window as I was out of work for 2 of those months. I do believe this is a defect in the car due to the fact that I was out of oil so quickly PLUS no alert informing me that the oil was low prior to the issue with the vehicle. now it will not start and the engine appears to be trash now.

Filed Dec 3, 2023 · Electrical, Engine · OH

I was driving home from work, all of sudden all the dash borad lights started flashing and the car stop. engine would not start back up. I had to have the car towed home and the next day it was towed to the dealership, I was told that there is a problems with the Chev Equinox's oil use, it burns fast and make the plastic parts in the engine break down. I was told that i will need timing chain and pitston replaced or new engine. i filed a complaint with GMC and they said that they don;t know of any problems with the type of car engine that i have. GMC said they will pay $600, toward cost of my repairs about $6500. dollars.

Filed Mar 20, 2023 · Engine · VA

Ongoing problems with oil consumption despite repairs and frequent checking of oil and oil changes. The check engine light appeared shortly after purchase in 3/2019. I've visited at least 3 different service centers since purchasing and they have all identified issues with the engine/oil. My vehicle became inoperable on 3/10/2023 and would not start; it had to be towed to an independent service center. The most recent repair estimate started at $2,900 for a remanufactured engine, labor not included. The center I had my vehicle towed to reported this was the third vehicle (another 2016 Equinox and a 2015 GMC Terrain) they've encountered within the past few months that had the same issue. My vehicle is available for inspection as I cannot make any more costly repairs for a vehicle with a known issue.

Filed Mar 6, 2023 · Engine, Transmission · SD

My 2016 Chevy Equinox started running rough and when the codes were run it came back with P0335, P0016 and P0017. We then replaced both the camshaft, crankshaft and vvt solenoids. The codes were then cleared, and no further issues or engine lights were on. Then I brought the car home the weather was extremely cold, and the vehicle would not start. Tried to jump the vehicle would not start. Towed the vehicle to the shop, where it was determined that the PVC was frozen which caused all the oil to drain from the engine, the timing belt seized up and caused total engine failure. The mechanic has stated that it needs a whole new engine as all the oil had drained from the vehicle and cause damage that cannot be repaired. These vehicles have faulty piston rings in them and also it is common for the vehicles to be useless and have to have a total engine replacement. The cost for the engine replacement and vehicle repair is 9000 to 11000 dollars. Chevy intentionally has been mass producing vehicles that can and will kill someone. This is a known issue that they need to make right for all the owners of these vehicles. Please do a full investigation as to why these vehicles are still on the road and Chevy has not been made to recall and fix these vehicles correctly.

Filed Jan 9, 2023 · Engine · IL

Car would not start one morning. The battery was replaced about a month ago. Had a mechanic come and check and had error code P0016. The mechanic ran through what he could but he could not get it started and suggested we tow to a shop. We towed the vehicle to the nearby Chevy dealership. They stated the engine failed and will need to be replaced and was quoted 6500-8000 to replace. This car is only 6 years old and has 84,000 and is maintained. Chevy is selling cars with bad engines.

Filed Sep 6, 2022 · Electrical, Engine · LA

Purchased vehicle certified pre owned May 2019 with 56,000 miles. In June 2019 replaced front tire that were new due to passenger tire wear also New battery and oil change..Jan 2020 had to have front main seal oil ring replaced. Oil changes done every 3 to 7 thousand miles. Have a 2 sets of tires put on .Have had some hesitation problems throughout while.driving. But never did find cause. Took to chevy dealer on Nov 3rd for windshield wiper motor replacement. Picked up on Nov. 5th. Have had issues with starting since picked up had to carry jump start box in car. Car was parked until I could get a new battery approx 1 week. Put new battery in drove to work for about 2 days still.had issues. Traction stability light had came on never went off. Parked car for another week or so Drove 2 miles down road to store. While driving car was loosing power. Screen went out and engine reduced power light came on and died. Waited about 15 min jump.started .got about 10 feet car went into.Limp mode got it home . Would not start ..got a list of codes. Replaced starter, camshaft and crankshaft sensor, new pcm, valve cover. Amd another battery. Car has not ran since. Motor is blown. Car has been down since Dec. 15th 2021. I have lost my job. Due to not being dependent on getting to work. Have looked into repair cost about 7 to 8 thousand that I cam not afford and still Makin car payments. This is a Manufacture defect and could have been alot worse if I was going any faster or been out in the dark stranded somewhere. Hard to believe a regular maintain vehicle would just die the way it did. Someone or something needs to be done ..Not fair to have to pay over $15000 and still making payments on a lawn ornament. When Chevrolet has none about this issue and refuses to fix. Knowing the engines will blow a rod do to the oil issue ..

Filed Feb 10, 2022 · Engine · NY

Entered vehicle and smelled exhaust inside. Checked tail pipe and it was clear and blowing out exhaust. Pulled out of driveway and got sudden smell of oil. About 200 feet down the street smelled burning oil. Turned around and went home, car was dying and would not start after. Had to be towed to be checked and was told engine was flooded along with other issues from driving that short distance the way it was. NOT ONE ALERT SHOWED OR IS NOW SHOWING ON DASH OR DISPLAY. Nothing about oil, no check engine, no warnings of any issues. Has been maintained and just had an oil change. Is driven daily and had no alerts or issues. Now we are stuck paying over $6k to replace the entire block when there was no notification that any maintenance was needed. Any notification that pops up, we check and fix immediately. In the shop still and techs say no lights or warnings are coming on still when they turn the car on. Not even check engine when it’s blown! We bought a newer vehicle to avoid these issues and now we are stuck dropping that much or more to replace engine block or buy a new suv all together. Seeing as the economy is horrible right now, we really can’t afford to do either!!

Filed Apr 6, 2021 · Electrical, Engine · 98,000 miles · WI

In early november of 2020 my chevrolet equinox engine failed due to excessive oil consumption and burning oil. My low oil light never went on and we did regular oil changes which still didnt matter. We were putting oil in it every few days until finally it wouldnt start anymore. I had it then towed to the chevrolet dealership to have it fixed as it is my only means of transportation.they corrected the problem but refuse to take accountability for the excessive oil consumption resulting in a bill of over $2,200. They never fixed the low oil light, and we have found that now even though it had been fixed it is still using oil excessively so I am constantly checking it. I contacted chevrolet to dispute the matter but they refuse to pay for the damage because it is out of warranty. I told them that I believe it to be a manufacturing defect as I have researched that many chevy equinoxes have had similar issues resulting in engine damage, yet they still have refused to look into it and said to file a complaint with you hence this email. I am seeking a recall on the 2016 equinox regarding excessive oil consumption and defective low oil light. This is a safety hazard and could cause an engine to die on a highway and possibly cause an accident. I would appreciate this being looked into and be kept informed on its status. Thank you

Filed Mar 8, 2020 · Engine, Fuel system · 124,000 miles · MT

The older model equinox had an issue with it's high pressure fuel pump, so did my newer 2016. It failed and was pushing fuel into the engine at extreme levels. This caused the engine to stop working properly and fail. The gm technicians said they fixed the issue recently, but would not go on. I was driving in a potential fire starter. The actual issue happened while driving at 35 MPH, the engine blew up and luckily did not start a fire with the amount of gas that was in the engine.