2018 Chevrolet Equinox engine problems

“On approximately 09/04/2026, while driving my vehicle and slowing to a stop, I applied the brake pedal and it suddenly became extremely hard to depress. At approximately the same time, the steering became very stiff and difficult to turn. I believed I had lost normal braking ability and had difficulty controlling the vehicle while attempting to stop. The engine then shut off on its own. After the vehicle stopped, attempts to restart it were unsuccessful. The engine would crank/attempt to start but would not complete the ignition cycle and remain running. A ticking noise was also present. The vehicle remains available for inspection and is being towed to a local GM dealership for diagnosis. The specific component responsible for the failure is currently UNKNOWN. The vehicle previously generated diagnostic code P050F in January 2026. Following the 09/04/2026 failure, diagnostic code P0017 was identified. I did not receive P0017 prior to this incident. I did not observe an overheating warning or temperature-gauge indication showing that the engine was overheating before the vehicle shut down. The incident created a safety risk because the brake pedal became…”

“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 ground electrode/tip of the spark plug had broken off inside the combustion chamber while the engine was running. The free-floating metal fragment severely gouged the piston crown and scored the cylinder wall, resulting in a total loss of compression and catastrophic engine failure at just under 51,000 miles. This unexpected engine failure causes an immediate and dangerous loss of motive power while operating in traffic, creating a severe crash hazard for passengers and surrounding motorists. This issue appears to stem from a known component defect (GM Technical Bulletins PIP5657C & 21-NA-255) related to premature spark plug failure and low-speed pre-ignition (LSPI) in the 1.5L turbo engine.”

“My granddaughter was driving the vehicle and experienced a catastrophic engine failure while driving down the road. Warning messages and audible sounds began and said to turn off the vehicle immediately. The brakes completely stopped working at that point. She pulled over immediately and called to ask what she should do. She was approximately 1/2 mile from home and she drove approximately 10mph to her driveway, pumping the brakes helped get the vehicle to her driveway. The vehicle was then towed to the dealership.”

“While turning right at a red light my vehicle started making knocking noises, loss of acceleration then the ECM (limp mode) and ESC code happened. Protecting the vehicle from damage due to transmission fluid loss. Looked under the car and Transmission fluid was pouring out between the transmission and drive shaft. Car will no longer start due to codes being present from the computer shutting the car down during fluid loss.”

“The car cut off on the street with no warning. Once I crank the car back up and pulled over, it was leaking fuel and coolant with no warning lights on the dash boatd”

“Early this year I traveled to Mobile AL. While I was driving my car made this sound and it lost acceleration but no warning light appeared on my dashboard. My car eventually lost power and I had to get a tow. I went to a repair shop and they explained to me that it was the turbo that’s why I lost acceleration they said a lot of equinox with turbos are having this problem but it only goes out around 100000 mile but I only had 67000+ miles on my car at the time. The mechanic explain it shouldn’t have gone out so soon as it did. Also the vehicle makes a sudden jerk or jolt while driving this maybe an engine or transmission problem without any warning sign signaling there’s a problem with the vehicle. I’ve researched this and learned that this model vehicle has transmission problem while driving”