Three vehicles wear this badge, and only one deserves your attention. The Equinox EV promises 250+ miles of range for potentially under $25k after tax credits, if GM actually ships the base trim instead of burying it under dealer markups and option packages. That's legitimately game-changing pricing for a long-range EV, though ditching CarPlay will cost them sales. The current gas Equinox (2018+) is competent appliance-grade transportation that's genuinely improved from the pre-2018 disaster years, but noisy cabins and cheap plastics remind you it's built to a price. Pre-2018 models earned their bad reputation with timing chains that jump and engines that burn oil before 100k miles. If you're shopping the EV and can live without CarPlay, it's the value play of the decade. If you're considering a used gas model, 2018 or newer only, and even then, a RAV4 will age better.
This luxury EV SUV handles like something half its size and delivers lane-keeping that actually holds the lane for 1,900-mile road trips. The problem is timing: early 2025 Launch Editions suffered systematic GHCA module failures that left cars undrivable for two months while owners waited on parts, plus software crashes that required a processor retrofit. Late-2025 models with the Orin chip and redesigned GHCA part (number 36000418) appear to have fixed the worst issues, and 2026 models are reportedly problem-free. If you're shopping used, verify those fixes were applied or find a 2026 build, you'll get a genuinely excellent SUV at a steep discount. Buy an unrepaired early model and you're inheriting someone else's warranty nightmare. For buyers who can confirm the updates or go new, this is a compelling alternative to the BMW iX or Audi e-tron.