2018 Chevrolet Equinox: fire, smoke or burning smell

Filed Jan 5, 2026 · Fuel system · TX · fire · 2 injuries

My wife and I were driving to Galveston on I-45 and were driving through La Marque when our car suddenly lost power. I started moving over to the outside lane and went to turn on the emergency lights. I realized the lights were already on. We heard a thump and thought that the serpentine belt had broken and that the engine would overheat, followed up by white smoke coming from the dash vents. My wife opened her window and leaned out the window while I tried to control the SUV without power. A truck pulled next to us and the passenger screamed that our car was on fire. I stepped on the brakes, but my foot went to the floor without effect. I hit the button for the emergency parking brake, but it didn't stop the car. I let the car slow down and then black smoke was coming from the vents. We were choking from breathing the smoke and I tried to open my window, but all electrical systems had quit working. The car finally slowed enough for me to shove the gear shift into park. My wife jumped out of the car and fell to the pavement, also hitting the concrete barrier on the side of the highway. My seat belt was stuck and I kept pushing the button and reached for my pocket knife to cut the belt when it released. At this point, flames were coming from the vents when I reached for the door handle and open the door. I fell out of the car onto the highway, rolling away. I was finally able to get up and saw several vehicles stopped behind us, but some were still driving through. I got away from the car and found my wife who was being helped by another man who stopped ahead of us. The car was on fire, mostly from the back, heavily in the left rear where the gas tank is. The car was completely burned and an unknown retired firefighter said all of the signs point to a defective fuel pump.

Filed Sep 4, 2025 · Engine · KY

The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Equinox. The contact stated that while depressing the accelerator pedal, the turbo charger failed to operate as designed, and the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The contact stated that excessive pressure was needed to depress the accelerator pedal. The message “Engine Power Reduced” was displayed due to a low coolant level. Additionally, the contact was adding 2-quarts of engine oil to the vehicle weekly. The contact stated there was oil on the ground underneath the vehicle. While checking the oil level, the contact saw smoke coming from the exhaust. The check engine light was illuminated. The contact was made aware of the Special Coverage Program, the federal safety agency ID Number: 10171426 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Air Bags, Service Brakes, Hydraulic); however, the year vehicle was not included. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who replaced the oil line connected to the turbo charger; however, the oil leak persisted. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

Filed Oct 24, 2022 · Fuel system · NC

The braking system failed as the engine compartment filled with smoke and flames. At first the doors remained locked but eventually unlocked so that the occupants were able to exit the vehicle unharmed. The vehicle was consumed by the fire before the fire department could extinguish the fire(5-10 minutes).

Filed Oct 7, 2020 · Airbags · 65,000 miles · OH · crash · fire

Vehicle was involved in a front end collision. No other passengers besides driver of vehicle was in car. The drivers airbag deployed, but upon exiting the vehicle the passenger seat had caught fire due to a malfunctioning airbag.

Filed Aug 18, 2020 · Electrical, Engine · 65,000 miles · VT · fire

Driving down the road the car started to smoke under the hood area and all I could smell was burned plastic. Pulled over and got out. Not even a minute later the car burst into flames.

Filed Feb 16, 2018 · Airbags · 12,000 miles · FL · crash

Involved in a rear end collision. My vehicle rear ended another vehicle and caused front end damage to mine. Received email from instead indicating a critical problem with the air bags and their deployment. The air bags never went off upon impact but smoke came from the side airbags.