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VinCanary

Reliability report · 2023 Chevrolet Equinox · Updated July 2026 · ~$2,200/yr fuel · what it costs to keep →

The quietest year of the run — the settled final year of the gas Equinox before the redesign.

The 2023 is the final year of this third-generation gas Equinox (a new-generation, EV-inclusive Equinox arrives for 2024), and it's the calmest year in our data: 84 federal complaints, the lowest of the eight years, and only three recalls. The brake-vacuum-pump and reduced-power stories that defined 2018–2020 have faded out of the file.

The three recalls are all worth a VIN check — a passenger-airbag occupant-sensor issue on ventilated-seat cars, a driver-seat-bolt recall carried over from 2022, and the child-seat LATCH recall — but each has a free fix. This is a straightforward, settled used SUV: verify the recalls, do a normal inspection, and there's no expensive pattern lying in wait the way there is on the early third-gen years.

Evidence: 84 NHTSA complaints · 3 recall campaigns · 6 mechanic & forum sources

Canary status

Calm

What that means: 84 federal complaints — the lowest in our 2016–2023 Equinox data — and just three recalls, all free inspect-or-replace fixes. The loud early-gen-3 patterns are gone; what remains is a small, ordinary file. Calm means no expensive known pattern, with the recalls still worth verifying.

CalmChirpingSquawkingFainted

84

Federal complaints

3

Recalls

Federal crash tests

5-star scale
Overall
Frontal crash
Side crash
Rollover

Tested variant: 2023 Chevrolet Equinox SUV FWD (NHTSA VehicleId 18224)

Source: NHTSA New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) →

Known issues

Ranked by the cost of ignoring them. Every claim carries its source.

Passenger airbag may not disable for a child — recall 22V929

moderate

The most safety-relevant item on a 2023 is recall 22V929, on cars with ventilated front seats: the occupant classification system (the sensor that decides whether someone is in the passenger seat) may fail to disable the front passenger airbag when a small child or child restraint is present — a deploying airbag can injure a child. GM replaces the passenger presence system free. If you'll carry a child up front or in a front-facing seat, confirm this recall is closed by VIN.

Under recall 22V929

$0

Sources: NHTSA complaint database, 2023 Equinox · NHTSA manufacturer communications (recalls 22V929, 22V724, 23V339 documents) + independent gen-3 mechanic transcripts

Driver-seat bolt recall carried over — 22V724moderate

The 2023 shares the 2022's driver-seat recall (22V724): a stripped or loose bolt at the seat-frame height-adjust pivot means the seat may not properly restrain the driver in a crash. It's a free inspect-and-replace, and easy to miss because the seat feels normal in daily use. Confirm it's been done.

Sources: NHTSA complaint database, 2023 Equinox · NHTSA manufacturer communications (recalls 22V929, 22V724, 23V339 documents) + independent gen-3 mechanic transcripts

$0

Under recall 22V724

The known gen-3 issues, essentially quiet hereminor

  • 1.5L turbo I4

The 1.5T is the same engine that produced the earlier reduced-power, brake-vacuum-pump, and cooling complaints, but on the 2023 those are no longer a meaningful part of the file. They remain worth a test-drive check — a reduced-power message, a firm brake pedal, or a temperature-gauge climb still points to the known culprits — but on this settled final year they're the rare exception, not the expectation.

Sources: NHTSA complaint database, 2023 Equinox

The last of the gas Equinox before the redesign — and the calmest year we have on it.
6 mechanic & owner sources

Open recalls

Free fixes at any Chevrolet dealer. Run the VIN — “completed” isn’t always completed.

  1. 22V929On ventilated-seat cars, the occupant classification system may not disable the front passenger airbag for a child. Free passenger-presence-system replacement, 2023 (GM N222388911).open
  2. 22V724Driver's seat may have a stripped or loose bolt at the height-adjust pivot — reduced crash restraint. Free inspect/replace, 2022–2023 (GM N222377890).open
  3. 23V339Rear child-seat LATCH anchor bars may have excess powder coating that blocks child-seat attachment (FMVSS 225). Dealers refinish the anchors free, 2020–2023 (GM N232403240).open

What it costs to keep

The purchase price is what you negotiate. These are the numbers you live with afterward — each one sourced, none of them blended into a fake total.

The ownership picture — 2023 Equinox

Three sourced numbers. No fake total.

Fuel

28 MPG combined (26 city / 31 highway) for the FWD, 1.5L turbo on the EPA federal fuel-economy test.

Source: FuelEconomy.gov (EPA) — EPA’s federal fuel-economy test, recomputed with current gas prices. EPA record 45823 (Equinox FWD).
Other builds EPA lists: AWD, 1.5L turbo 26 MPG.

$2,200/yr

at $4.15/gal · 15,000 mi/yr · 55/45 city/hwy · pulled Jul 12, 2026

Theft

Stolen about 71% less often than the average vehicle. One less thing to price into coverage.

Source: HLDI — the insurance industry’s loss-data institute — HLDI whole vehicle theft losses, 2022–24 models, published May 2025 (report WT-24). 100 = the all-vehicle average. Series read: Chevrolet Equinox 4dr.
Other series: Chevrolet Equinox 4dr 4WD 22, where 100 = average.

29 vs 100

71% below average

Repair risk

What this specific year is known to need. Pulled from the issues above — the repairs owners actually report, at the costs they report them. Averages from other sites blend every year together; these are this year’s own numbers.

Source: this report — 01 Known issues.

Under recall 22V929$0
Under recall 22V724$0
Why there’s no single “cost to own” number: sites that promise one are guessing at your insurance quote, your annual miles, and your luck. These are the numbers we can actually source — and each one carries its receipt.

Shopping this year?

Get the printable pre-purchase checklist and an alert if this year’s recall sheet changes.

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Have a specific one in your sights?

The VIN is on the listing. We’ll check this exact car — build, open recalls, and whether the “completed” repairs stayed fixed.

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Before you buy

Print this
  1. 01Run the VIN for all three recalls — especially 22V929 (passenger-airbag sensor) if a child ever rides up front.
  2. 02Confirm the 22V724 driver-seat-bolt recall is closed (carried over from 2022).
  3. 03If using child seats, confirm the LATCH anchors accept them (the 23V339 population).
  4. 04Even on the calmest year, drive from stops and at speed to confirm no reduced-power message or hard brake pedal.
  5. 05Do a normal late-model pre-purchase inspection; there's no year-specific expensive pattern to chase.
  6. 06Note this is the last gas-only Equinox generation before the 2024 redesign — parts and familiarity are still plentiful.

Own one already?

The canary watches your VIN — new recalls and the mileage where known issues start.

Watch my VIN — free

vincanary.com/chevrolet/equinox/2023