Chevrolet Equinox vs Ford EcoSport: which is more reliable?
The Ford EcoSport is ahead of the Chevrolet Equinox on the federal record, 81/100 against 76/100 — a real but narrow gap that a bad model year on either side closes.
The record, side by side
Chevrolet Equinox
- 15 model years scored
- 5,754 owner complaints on record
- about 56 complaints per year on the road
- 38 recall campaigns, 15 safety-critical
- best year 2017 (90/100) · worst 2025 (46/100)
Ford EcoSport
- 5 model years scored
- 1,840 owner complaints on record
- about 55 complaints per year on the road
- 12 recall campaigns, 1 safety-critical
- best year 2022 (93/100) · worst 2018 (70/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: Equinox against EcoSport
The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.
What owners actually complain about
Chevrolet Equinox
- Engine — 2,316 complaints
- Visibility/Wiper — 891 complaints
- Power Train — 668 complaints
Ford EcoSport
- Engine And Engine Cooling — 839 complaints
- Engine — 795 complaints
- Power Train — 217 complaints
They do not fail the same way: the Equinox's complaints concentrate in Engine, the EcoSport's in Engine And Engine Cooling. That difference matters more to a buyer than the score gap, because it says which repair bill you are taking on.
Years to avoid on each
Chevrolet Equinox — avoid: 2025.
Ford EcoSport: no model year scores below 45; the strongest are 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022.
A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.
What each costs today
A recent used Chevrolet Equinox prices at about $30,500 and a Ford EcoSport at about $23,700 — the Ford EcoSport is roughly $6,800 less, and they return 26.0 against 25.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Chevrolet Equinox or the Ford EcoSport more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Ford EcoSport scores 81/100 against the Chevrolet Equinox's 76/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The gap is small enough that the model year matters more than the badge.
Which Chevrolet Equinox and Ford EcoSport years should I avoid?
Chevrolet Equinox: 2025. Ford EcoSport: no year scores below 45. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Chevrolet Equinox and the Ford EcoSport?
The largest complaint group on the Chevrolet Equinox is Engine (2,316 complaints); on the Ford EcoSport it is Engine And Engine Cooling (839).
Is the Chevrolet Equinox or the Ford EcoSport cheaper to own?
A recent used Chevrolet Equinox prices at about $30,500 and a Ford EcoSport at about $23,700, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.