AutoUtility currently tracks 400 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2018 Chevrolet Equinox. Brakes & Traction Control issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 138 complaints (34.5% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 22 filings cite a crash, 4 cite a fire, 16 report one or more injuries.

Key Problem Findings
  • • Total NHTSA Complaints: 400 reports
  • • #1 Reported Problem Area: Brakes & Traction Control (138 reports • 34.5% of submitted complaints)
  • • Secondary Problem Areas: Engine & Cooling (83), Powertrain & Transmission (65)
  • • Crash-Citing Complaints: 22 filings
  • • Fire-Citing Complaints: 4 filings
  • • Complaints Reporting Injuries / Fatalities: 16 injury filings • 0 fatality filings
Reporting Methodology: Statistics describe unverified consumer submissions voluntarily filed with NHTSA. Complaint volume is not normalized for vehicle sales volume or miles driven. Multiple components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission.
Total Complaints
400
Submitted to NHTSA ODI
Crash-Citing Complaints
22
Filings citing a collision
Fire-Citing Complaints
4
Filings citing smoke or fire
Complaints Reporting Injuries
16
Filings citing one or more injuries
Complaints Reporting Fatalities
0
Consumer filings citing fatalities

Most Reported Problems for 2018 Chevrolet Equinox

Top automotive subsystem defect categories ranked by unique owner complaint volume in federal records

#1 Problem Area 34.5% of complaints

Brakes & Traction Control

138 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 10 crash reports 🩹 7 injury report entries
#2 Problem Area 20.8% of complaints

Engine & Cooling

83 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
🔥 1 fire report
#3 Problem Area 16.3% of complaints

Powertrain & Transmission

65 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 2 official safety recall campaigns for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 2 crash reports 🩹 1 injury report entry
#4 Problem Area 14.5% of complaints

Electrical System

58 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ 1 crash report 🔥 1 fire report
#5 Problem Area 10% of complaints

Fuel & Propulsion System

40 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 1 crash report 🔥 2 fire reports 🩹 4 injury report entries
Domain Share Note: Share percentage represents the proportion of unique complaint filings referencing each vehicle system. Because single complaints may cite multiple systems (such as engine and electrical simultaneously), domain percentages represent individual category incidence and may sum to over 100%.

Symptoms Mentioned in NHTSA Owner Reports for 2018 Chevrolet Equinox

Specific mechanical, electrical, and driver-assist defect symptoms identified via deterministic narrative analysis

AutoUtility uses deterministic phrase matching to identify recurring symptom descriptions within consumer-submitted NHTSA complaint narratives.

Powertrain & Transmission 2.3% of complaints

Loss of Motive Power While Driving

9 complaint narratives describe this symptom
Symptom Identification Method: A complaint may describe more than one symptom, so percentages may sum to more than 100%. Symptom identification reflects text contained in consumer-submitted complaint records and does not establish a confirmed mechanical diagnosis.

Recent NHTSA Owner Reports for 2018 Chevrolet Equinox

Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Driver Assistance & Safety Tech NHTSA ODI ID: #11759470
Filed: 08/25/2026

"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..."

Incident Date: 08/24/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
Brakes & Traction Control NHTSA ODI ID: #11758826
Filed: 08/22/2026

"While I was getting off the freeway, my vehicle displayed the “Service Brake Assist” warning. When I attempted to brake, the brake pedal became extremely hard and would not respond normally. The vehicle would not stop normally when I pressed the brake pedal. I was almost involved in a crash because..."

Incident Date: 08/21/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: SERVICE BRAKES
Engine & Cooling NHTSA ODI ID: #11758016
Filed: 08/19/2026

"While driving, the vehicle experienced a sudden, catastrophic loss of engine power accompanied by severe engine shaking, reduced acceleration, and a lit Check Engine / ESC light. The vehicle was towed to a technician who diagnosed a complete dead misfire in Cylinder 4. Upon detailed inspection, the..."

Incident Date: 08/15/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: ENGINE
Other / Miscellaneous NHTSA ODI ID: #11757428
Filed: 08/17/2026

"The car had a engine code of P171d my safety and others was put at risk because of the vehicle malfunction while not able to drive after the light turn green or keeping maintaining a searching speed. The engine code was confirm at the dealership while getting serviced. The engine light up here, two..."

Incident Date: 07/18/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Brakes & Traction Control NHTSA ODI ID: #11755192
Filed: 08/06/2026

"I own a 2018 Chevrolet Equinox. While driving at highway speed, the brake pedal suddenly became completely rigid and could not be depressed. The engine continued running normally, there were no warning lights, and I had to coast into a parking lot because I was unable to brake normally. The vehicle..."

Incident Date: 07/22/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: SERVICE BRAKES
Consumer Narrative Notice: Excerpts are sanitized text descriptions submitted by vehicle owners to the federal ODI database. They reflect the reporting consumer's observations at the time of filing and have not been independently confirmed by vehicle manufacturers or government investigators.

Complaint History for Chevrolet Equinox

Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2015–2026)

Model Year NHTSA Complaints Crash Reports Safety Recalls Detailed Report
2015 Chevrolet Equinox 679 24 2 View 2015 Problems →
2016 Chevrolet Equinox 395 14 1 View 2016 Problems →
2017 Chevrolet Equinox 271 18 0 View 2017 Problems →
2018 Chevrolet Equinox Current Page 400 22 5 Current
2019 Chevrolet Equinox 298 21 4 View 2019 Problems →
2020 Chevrolet Equinox 302 20 4 View 2020 Problems →
2021 Chevrolet Equinox 91 5 4 View 2021 Problems →
2022 Chevrolet Equinox 162 13 5 View 2022 Problems →
2023 Chevrolet Equinox 94 4 3 View 2023 Problems →
2024 Chevrolet Equinox 72 5 1 View 2024 Problems →
2025 Chevrolet Equinox 215 8 0 View 2025 Problems →
2026 Chevrolet Equinox 0 0 1 View 2026 Problems →
Comparative Disclaimer: Complaint totals are unadjusted historical counts and are not normalized for vehicles sold, active fleet size, or total road mileage. Newer model years naturally have had less calendar exposure time to accumulate owner filings.

Detailed NHTSA Component Breakdown for 2018 Chevrolet Equinox

Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 98 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications

Vehicle Component / System Total Complaints Crash Reports Fire Reports Reported Injury Entries Reported Fatality Entries
Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES 63 5 0 2 0
Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN 30 2 0 1 0
Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER 27 2 0 4 0
Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE 25 0 0 0 0
Fuel & Propulsion System NHTSA category: FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 16 0 1 2 0
Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 15 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 14 0 0 0 0
Wheels & Hubs NHTSA category: WHEELS 11 1 0 4 0
POWER TRAIN,ENGINE 9 0 0 0 0
Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 9 1 0 0 0
Air Bags NHTSA category: AIR BAGS 8 5 1 4 0
Engine & Cooling NHTSA category: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 7 0 0 0 0
Fuel System NHTSA category: FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE 7 0 0 0 0
Structure & Body NHTSA category: STRUCTURE 7 0 0 0 0
Visibility & Wipers NHTSA category: VISIBILITY/WIPER 7 0 0 0 0
ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 5 0 1 0 0
POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES 5 0 0 0 0
Seat Belts NHTSA category: SEAT BELTS 5 0 0 1 0
Vehicle Speed Control NHTSA category: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 5 0 0 0 0
Visibility / Glass NHTSA category: VISIBILITY 5 0 0 1 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 4 0 0 0 0
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 4 0 0 0 0
Forward Collision Avoidance NHTSA category: FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 4 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC,ENGINE 4 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 3 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 3 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 3 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 3 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 3 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 3 1 0 0 0
Tires NHTSA category: TIRES 3 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 2 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SEATS 2 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 2 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 2 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,STRUCTURE 2 0 0 0 0
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 2 0 0 0 0
EXTERIOR LIGHTING,VISIBILITY/WIPER 2 0 0 0 0
Seats & Restraints NHTSA category: SEATS 2 0 0 1 0
STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES 2 0 0 0 0
STEERING,LANE DEPARTURE 2 0 0 0 0
STEERING,SERVICE BRAKES 2 1 0 0 0
STEERING,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 2 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 2 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES 2 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 2 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 2 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS 1 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,SERVICE BRAKES 1 1 0 3 0
AIR BAGS,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 1 0 2 0
AIR BAGS,STRUCTURE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,STRUCTURE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 1 0 2 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC),ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EQUIPMENT 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,LANE DEPARTURE 1 1 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SEATS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,STRUCTURE,SEATS 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,STRUCTURE,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,STRUCTURE,VISIBILITY/WIPER 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 1 0 1 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,WHEELS,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING,POWER TRAIN 1 0 0 0 0
ENGINE,ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING,STRUCTURE 1 0 0 0 0
ENGINE,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
OTHER/I AM NOT SURE 1 0 0 0 0
PARKING BRAKE 1 0 0 0 0
PARKING BRAKE,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,STRUCTURE 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,SEAT BELTS,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,WHEELS,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
Steering NHTSA category: STEERING 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,POWER TRAIN,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,SERVICE BRAKES,POWER TRAIN 1 0 0 0 0
STRUCTURE,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC),ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
VISIBILITY,SEATS 1 0 0 0 0
Data Attribution & Reporting Methodology: Complaints are unverified voluntary submissions to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI). Because multiple vehicle components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission, component-level rollups may sum to more than the unique complaint count (400). Injury and fatality entries in the detailed table reflect raw values entered by reporting consumers across individual submissions; they are not deduplicated casualty statistics and may include duplicate or unverified entries. Complaint volume is not normalized for sales volume or vehicle mileage and does not represent an audited component failure rate.

Related Official Reports for 2018 Chevrolet Equinox

Cross-reference safety recalls, crash test safety ratings, and EPA fuel economy for this model year

Official US Government Data Provenance

The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database.

Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.