Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2011 Chevrolet Equinox owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Upon driving my car to work with my two kids in the car, my car suddenly lost power without warning, the dashboard lit up "engine power reduced" as well as stabilitrac and traction control. The car would not accelerate to more than 20mph and then died on me. I contacted GM, received a claim number and they never called me back as promised. I was able to restart the car and continue on my way in fear for the safety of myself and my children. As a result of this, I told my husband I was not comfortable driving this unsafe vehicle with our kids in the car and we would trade cars until the problem was resolved. The following morning my husband was driving the Equinox to work and it happened to him, "engine power reduced" loss of stabilitrac/ traction control. …
Regular oil changes at GMC dealership showed high oil consumption. Chevy dealership replaced transmission 2015 under factory warranty. High oil consumption continued. 2018 engine power shuts down car while idling. Took it to my local mechanic replaced transmission. Drove almost 400 miles on "new transmission" ac not working, idles with high pitch sound when fan is running. Now seat belts lights flash and alarm despite seat belts in buckled position. Engine goes to power down /save mode when driving on freeway at 60mph on highway. This power down (reduction) happens stalls and wont drive. Engine continues to shake and rattle after being put in park and removing key (when turned off)
Regular oil changes at GMC dealership showed high oil consumption. Chevy dealership replaced transmission 2015 under factory warranty. High oil consumption continued. 2018 engine power shuts down car while idling. Took it to my local mechanic replaced transmission. Drove almost 400 miles on "new transmission" ac not working, idles with high pitch sound when fan is running. Now seat belts lights flash and alarm despite seat belts in buckled position. Engine goes to power down /save mode when driving on freeway at 60mph on highway. This power down (reduction) happens stalls and wont drive. Engine continues to shake and rattle after being put in park and removing key (when turned off)
When you are driving the 2011 Chevrolet Equinox ltz and the vehicle goes into "engine power is reduced" mode the vehicle comes to a complete stop within 10 feet. You are unable to turn the steering wheel or continue to move forward in any way with the phrase service stabilitrack appearing right after. You can be driving slowly at 20-25 miles per hour or faster at 35-40 miles per hour and this is able to happen at any moment. Total control of the vehicle is lost and the engine is unusable. Chevrolet informed us that this is caused by a bad sensor in the throttle body. The sensor is unable to be replaced without replacing the entire throttle body. The vehicle is unusable without replacing the throttle body and the throttle body is not covered after the emissions warranty of 24,000 miles. From years 2006-2009 the throttle body was covered under the powertrain warranty at 100,000 miles. …
I was driving with my 7 year old son and 15 year old nephew on a 35 MPH busy street when all of a sudden my vehicle started shaking and the steering wheel and brake pedal lock on me I couldn't move the luckily there was no car coming at the moment, and I was able to turn off the vehicle and turn it back up. After that I it started up again and nothing seem to be wrong until the engine light turn on and I continued on my way, all of a sudden my on the dash board it said stability check/lost engine power and all of a sudden the engine shut off on me. I couldn't move to from lanes to avoid causing an accident luckily the vehicles on back of me notice my vehicle slowing down and they where able to miss hitting my vehicle. I really do want something done to fix this issue because I could of cause an accident with that sudden stop and all because of the engine powering off. …
I was in city streets going 30 MPH at most, 19 degrees in minnesota and it shows reduced engine power and stabiltrack off as traction control light comes on and check engine light is on. The engine starts shaking violently and I pull over, restart it and it goes for a few blocks and then the same warnings come on (engine light has gone off and on intermittently for a few months with no issues.) as mentioned, speed reduction was stated on screen and I drive slowly and was only able to accelerate slowly. I just went through a Chevrolet forum and see that I'm not the only one who's had these same issues and lights and warnings pop up on the screen. Luckily I was not on a highway or under any other scarier conditions and was close to home. …
I have had this vehicle since 2016 and have had issues with it since the 7th day of owning it. On day 7, I had the catalytic converter replaced (after they tried to tell me I didn't tighten the gas cap). Then after only owning the vehicle for 4 months, I had to have a whole new engine built (so they say it was) this was after my vehicle turned completely off in the middle of an intersection while driving with my 2 year old daughter. Up until that point everything had been fine. There was no check engine light, warning or anything. The dealership had my vehicle for almost 2 months before I finally got it back. The day I got it back, my vehicle started overheating and making a horrible noise. This time the dealership told me it was my radiator and that they replaced it. …
Upon leaving the home driveway, as the car began to accelerate, the "check engine" light came on, and the information station flashed the warning "stabilitrac / power reduced". The car was still drive-able, but would not accelerate past the first transmission gear. After getting the vehicle back home, I restarted it, and the same warning was displayed in the information station. The vehicle also began to idle very roughly and emit thick black smoke. All indications from internet sources point to a bad throttle body, which was later confirmed by the car dealership. According to the massive amount of complaints about this part, it has a very high failure rate in this vehicle. However, Chevy refuses to cover this part as part of their power-train warranty. …
I was driving my 2011 Chevrolet Equinox and the message "engine power is reduced" displayed. The car slowed down to about 30 MPH. Then the message "service stabilitrack" displayed. I was able to pull into a parking lot and shut the vehicle down. I waited a minute and restarted and drove the vehicle 20 minutes and the problem re-occurred. It was sat afternoon, so the dealer was closed. I nursed the vehicle the rest of the weekend and took it to the dealer Monday morning. The dealer says it is a bad throttle body before they even looked at the car, which tells me this is a common problem. The vehicle is unsafe to drive without the repair, so I had them do the service for $603 doing some research and speaking with some mechanic friends, this is a known problem that occurs between 50,000 - 60,000 miles and I feel should be covered under the powertrain warranty. …
A few days ago after work I stopped for gas and took a different route home. I live in a city with traffic so I idle a lot. While stopped, my 'service stabilitrak' and 'engine power reduced' came on. There was no where I could go but up the expressway. Once I sped up, the car proceeded to turn off. Luckily I was able to pull over onto the shoulder on top of the expressway. After that, the car wouldn't turn on anymore. After about 30 minutes, everything started flickering and then it had no electricity running at all. Not even my emergency lights. This was really scary because ppl are driving really fast next to me and and it was already night time. I finally got help and had it towed the next morning. The key was stuck in the ignition but still no sign of life until after it was towed. …
Traction Control complaints in other Equinox years
Frequently asked questions
How common are traction control problems on the 2011 Chevrolet Equinox?
NHTSA has 56 complaints about the stability & traction control of the 2011 Chevrolet Equinox, 7% of the model year's 782 complaints.
Is there a recall for 2011 Chevrolet Equinox traction control problems?
No. NHTSA lists no stability & traction control recall for the 2011 Chevrolet Equinox, though it has 3 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2011 Chevrolet Equinox traction control problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 77,000 miles, and 13% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 3 crashes, 0 fires and 0 injuries to stability & traction control problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.