Used 2012 Chevrolet Equinox Consumer Reviews
Used Equinox for sale
See Edmunds pricing data
Has Your Car's Value Changed?
Used car values are constantly changing. Edmunds lets you track your vehicle's value over time so you can decide when to sell or trade in.
so far so good
tcs4886, 05/22/2012
2012 Chevrolet Equinox LS 4dr SUV AWD (2.4L 4cyl 6A)
9 of 10 people found this review helpful
bought this vehicle on 1/19/12, it has 4,700 miles on it and havent had any problems with it. Fuel economey has been about 24 mpg around town. I downgraded from a 2004 Tahoe to try and get rid of paying $120 a week in gas. I pick apart every vehicle I own and havent found to many things i dont like so far. Biggest downside is the lack of power. Downgrading from a V8 in my old vehicle to a 4 cyl was hard enough, but it really could use a little more power. It is a very comfortable vehicle with plenty of front and rear leg room and do i dare say..its ACTUALLY pretty fun to drive. no trips to the shop except for an oil change. best vehicle I have had yet in snow. hopefully the good luck goes on
Great vehicle so far
mcclane, 10/25/2012
2012 Chevrolet Equinox LT 4dr SUV w/1LT (2.4L 4cyl 6A)
5 of 5 people found this review helpful
We bought our equinox new 4000 miles ago and it has been all we hoped it would be. I read a lot of good reviews on it so we decided to take the plunge and buy one. We wanted a bigger vehicle without giving up a lot of mpg. We have the 4 cylinder LT model and average over 29 mpg. The majority of our miles have been highway but on the highway we get between 30 and 31 mpg. I'm 6'2" and it's comfortable to take on longer trips. The moving backseat is also fantastic. We have it up the majority of the time to add to the storage and all the way back when we have friends in the back. They have more then enough room (as did I when I tried it out in the back once). Overall, very happy.
2012 Chevrolet Equinox for sale near you
Showing 3 of 21 listings
- LT 4dr SUV w/1LTMSRP: $8,500129 mi away
- LT 4dr SUV w/1LTMSRP: $5,495149 mi away
- LT 4dr SUV w/1LTMSRP: $5,990169 mi away
See all 21 listings
Classy but costly
Kenneth Boser, 03/02/2018
2012 Chevrolet Equinox LTZ 4dr SUV (2.4L 4cyl 6A)
5 of 5 people found this review helpful
It's a classy looking car, easy to get in and out of and a pleasure to drive..at first. We purchased the Equinox because Chevy was boasting a higher gas mileage, but we were rather disappointed that it does not get any better gas mileage than the other car we had previously. Also, a year ago we had to replace the timing chain and cam gear which was very costly. Currently, we are experiencing strong fumes in the car and the car vibrates so badly any time we have to stop: i.e.: traffic light, road construction, etc. It has been diagnosed as having a cracked manifold; again, this will be a costly fix. The car is comfortable, but is very noisy; it is difficult to carry on a conversation with passengers.
- Safety
- Technology
- Performance
- Interior
- Comfort
- Reliability
- Value
A goodie
Lyle Jones, 10/22/2016
updated 10/26/2020
2012 Chevrolet Equinox LTZ 4dr SUV AWD (2.4L 4cyl 6A)
5 of 5 people found this review helpful
This is a very nice car to own. Ease of handling. Good appearance. Comfortable. A little slow on acceleration uphill. The wife likes it. Update: It is starting to burn oil. One quart per 2500 miles. We've had trouble with the tire pressure sensors. We're at 5500 feet above sea level and when the seasons change from hot to cold the sensors show low pressure when there is no low pressure.
- Performance
- Interior
- Comfort
Equinox = Disaster - STAY AWAY
Brian, 03/06/2017
2012 Chevrolet Equinox LTZ 4dr SUV (2.4L 4cyl 6A)
13 of 16 people found this review helpful
I've driven cars for more than 30 years now, and owned a real variety in that time. Without a doubt, the Chevrolet Equinox is the absolute worst car I have ever owned In 30 days, I have had more than $6,000 in repairs done to the abysmal, wheezy 4 cylinder engine. This included timing chain, valves, heads, pistons, and the ancillary parts that go with those repairs. (Thankfully I have an extended warranty) Even after being essentially "rebuilt", the engine idles roughly, gas mileage is terrible (the only way this thing gets 32 MPG is to be towed by another vehicle getting 32 mpg), it clatters and rattles and sounds like a diesel and now I have had acceleration surge once which nearly caused a crash. The transmission is in another league altogether. It's an automatic that feels like an old manual in terms of shifting. There is a terrible lag between gears that makes you feel like the transmission is hesitating or slipping. Combine that with the raspy, wheezy engine and it sounds like the car has emphysema. Truly an embarrassing. Mine is the LTZ model so it has all of the options, including the Pioneer audio system which is just muddy sounding and no better than the standard sound system. The leather seats are hard and flat but not totally uncomfortable. They are, however, very difficult to get into thanks to the oddly vertical and oversize side bolster. All of that being said, the Equinox does have a very comfortable ride on the open highway but quickly becomes choppy and unsettled on uneven pavement. It's reasonably quiet but not overly so, due in no small part to the poor engine. The instrumentation is great, with large, legible dials and logically placed gauges. A nice touch is the redundant digital speedometer between the analog speedometer and tach. The headlights are powerful and if you have the optional fog lamps, the lighting is superior. The Equinox handles well, with nicely weighted steering and a taut suspension that pushes back when pushed. Cargo space is really poor due to the rake of the back window encroaching over a foot into an already tight cargo space. Back seat ingress and egress is poor also due to the rake of the back door in relation to the seat cushion location. I've heard this all before too... 2010 was the worst year, buy a 2011 or newer and you'll be OK. Then it was 2011's are bad too but they got the bugs worked out in 2012 and newer. The absolutely horrible reliability of this car is it's legacy and believe every other review that says "run - don't walk" away from the Equinox. Cars like this are what almost killed GM and are the best advertising for the Japanese and German brands.
- Safety
- Technology
- Performance
- Interior
- Comfort
- Reliability
- Value