The bottom line: With a 2010 to 2017 Equinox and its 2.4-liter engine, the answer depends on whether the engine still runs. If it has failed, a dealer engine costs more than a running 2012 sells for, so on the older cars selling it as it is leaves you more. A 2015 to 2017 sells for more, so put its own value through the calculator first.
If it runs but burns oil, get a quote for the repair and compare it with what your car sells for running. Don’t wait for it to fail: in our offer data, buyers offer 46% less for a car that doesn’t start than for a comparable one that drives.
When you decide to sell, Sell Car Advisor’s comparison tool gets you several instant offers at once.
What would buyers pay for your Equinox with a failed engine?Fill in one form, answering whether your Equinox starts and drives, and see what several buyers would pay for it as it is.
Key Takeaways
- GM’s bulletin for the 2010 Equinox calls a quart of oil in less than 2,000 miles excessive, a test you can run on any year yourself.
- Owners on CarComplaints report a typical bill of $2,560 for oil burning on the 2012, across every fix from new piston rings to a new engine.
- GM’s free piston replacement covered 2010 and 2011 models, and both coverage periods have ended.
- Nearly two-thirds of the engine complaints owners filed with NHTSA for these years mention oil.
Automated assistant: general info, not legal advice
Answers come from our state paperwork data and published guides. Confirm anything binding with your state DMV.
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Why Does the 2.4-Liter Equinox Burn Oil?
This page is about GM’s 2.4-liter four-cylinder, the engine GM’s oil-consumption bulletins cover. GM traced the problem to worn piston rings. An engine that uses oil this fast and isn’t topped up between changes can run low, and that’s how a worn engine becomes a failed one.
Owners’ complaints to NHTSA show how widespread it is. Of 2,363 engine complaints for 2010 to 2017 Equinoxes, 1,507 mention oil. The 2011 and 2013 models drew the most engine complaints.
| Model year | Engine complaints | Mention oil |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 300 | 146 |
| 2011 | 419 | 214 |
| 2012 | 361 | 248 |
| 2013 | 420 | 309 |
| 2014 | 229 | 152 |
| 2015 | 231 | 140 |
| 2016 | 211 | 155 |
| 2017 | 192 | 143 |
Did GM Ever Pay for the Repair?
For the early years, it did. GM’s bulletins covered piston replacement, counted from the day the car was first sold:
- The 2010 models: 10 years or 120,000 miles
- The 2011 models: 7 years and 6 months or 120,000 miles
Both periods have now ended. For a later year, a Chevrolet dealer can check your VIN for any coverage that still applies.
Is Your Equinox Burning Too Much Oil?
You can check this yourself:
- Fill the oil to the full mark and write down the mileage.
- Check the dipstick every few hundred miles.
- If you’re adding a quart before you’ve driven 2,000 miles, the engine is burning oil at the rate GM’s 2010 bulletin calls excessive.
A shop can then run a compression or leak-down test to find the cause and price the repair.
Owners who reported a fix for oil burning on the 2012 on CarComplaints paid a typical $2,560. That figure mixes every fix: 23 had the engine replaced and 13 had new piston rings or pistons, so it sits well below a dealer’s price for an engine.
A ring repair is the smaller of those jobs, so ask for its price on its own.
Whether it pays depends on what the car is worth running. Kelley Blue Book values a 2012 LS in good condition at $4,725 in a private sale.
For your own year, trim, mileage and ZIP, open Kelley Blue Book’s page for your Equinox, which also prices repairs: 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017.
Is a Repair Worth It?
The example is a 2012 LS at the typical bill owners reported. Swap in the shop’s quote for your engine, your car’s value running and the offer you hold.
No offer yet? Sell Car Advisor’s comparison tool gets you several instant offers at once.
What Are the Signs It’s Getting Worse?
| What owners described to NHTSA | Share of engine complaints |
|---|---|
| Burning or losing oil | 64% |
| Piston or piston ring trouble | 26% |
| Check engine light | 23% |
| Stalling | 22% |
| Knocking, ticking or rattling | 20% |
| Timing chain trouble | 14% |
| Engine seized or blew | 11% |
If the engine knocks, ticks or rattles, have it checked before you drive far. Those sounds can come from the timing chain or from parts the low oil has already worn.
Kelley Blue Book puts a dealer diagnosis for a 2012 at $187 to $287 in Atlanta. NHTSA lists no engine recall for these years, so a dealer’s VIN check is the only place a free fix could show up.
What If the Engine Has Already Failed?
A replacement engine is a different sum, and where you live moves it by about $1,600. These are Kelley Blue Book’s dealer estimates for a 2012 in three cities.
| City | Dealer estimate | Of which labor |
|---|---|---|
| Atlanta, GA 30303 | $7,082 to $7,596 | $3,258 to $3,494 |
| Kansas City, MO 64106 | $5,526 to $5,955 | $2,534 to $2,746 |
| Seattle, WA 98101 | $6,092 to $6,564 | $2,795 to $3,027 |
A remanufactured 2.4-liter engine is listed at:
- Powertrain Products: $3,499, for 2011 to 2017 models
- The Powertrain Company: $4,667.25, for 2011 to 2016, plus a $170 core charge if you keep the old engine
Neither listing names the 2010, so check the fit against your VIN.
Fitted at dealer labor rates, either engine lands between about $6,000 and $8,200. An independent shop may charge less for the labor, but some won’t fit an engine you supply, so ask before you buy one.
| Route, 2012 LS | Repair cost | After a $4,725 sale |
|---|---|---|
| Dealer replaces the engine | $5,526 to $7,596 | $801 to $2,871 short |
| Remanufactured engine at dealer labor rates | $6,033 to $8,161 | $1,308 to $3,436 short |
| Sell it as it is | None | Your best offer |
Neither route pays at dealer prices. Even in the cheapest of the three cities the gap is about $800, and a cheaper shop or a used engine would have to close all of it. Nine owners told NHTSA what a used, rebuilt or remanufactured engine cost them fitted, or what they were quoted: $4,000 to $10,000, typically about $7,000, more than a running 2012 sells for.
For a 2012, unless you need this particular car on the road, selling it as it is leaves you more.
A 2015 to 2017 is worth more running, so the sum can come out the other way. Run it in the calculator with your own car’s value.
What Were Equinoxes With Failed Engines Offered?
We pulled the 2010 to 2017 Equinoxes quoted through My Garage, Sell Car Advisor’s offer comparison form, with the engine marked as not working. Here are three of them.
| Equinox | Miles | Condition | Best offer | Second offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 Chevrolet Equinox 2LT AWD | 46,000 | Engine not working, won’t start | $610 | $417 |
| 2012 Chevrolet Equinox LS AWD | 165,000 | Engine not working, starts | $440 | $246 |
| 2014 Chevrolet Equinox LS | 90,000 | Engine and transmission not working, won’t start | $160 | Not quoted |
On the two cars with two offers, the best was about $190 above the second both times. That’s the difference one extra quote made.
In our offer data, buyers offered a typical $795 for Equinoxes from these years, against $1,055 for cars of every make from the same years.
Both figures count only cars 10 or more years old when quoted, so 2016 or older, in any condition.
Middle offer on an old Chevrolet Equinox, by model year 102 Chevrolet Equinox offers · 8,118 for all cars of the same years · Model yearsShow the numbers
Model years Chevrolet Equinox Offers All cars of the same years Offers 2005 to 2009 $423 24 $545 4,397 2010 to 2017 $795 78 $1,055 3,721 
How Do You Sell an Equinox With a Bad Engine?
You don’t need a diagnosis to get offers, because the instant-offer buyers we quoted make offers on cars that don’t run. What matters is describing it accurately.
If it stalls or needs a jump, answer that it doesn’t start. That answer decides which tow truck is sent. An offer made on a car described as starting can be lowered at pickup.
Payment from the instant-offer buyers we quoted comes when the tow truck does, so have the title, in your name, ready for that day.
Get offers for your Equinox. One form on Sell Car Advisor’s comparison tool goes to several buyers, and nothing is sold until you accept one of the offers.
Article Update History
Originally posted and shared with our readers.
Sources
GM bulletin 14159: special coverage, excessive oil consumption, 2010 Equinox 2.4L
Excessive consumption defined as less than 2,000 miles per quart, due to piston ring wear; piston replacement covered for 10 years or 120,000 miles from the date first placed in service. Accessed October 11, 2026.
NHTSA: vehicle complaints and recalls, 2010 to 2017 Chevrolet Equinox
Complaints filed under engine, by model year, those whose summary mentions oil, and the problems they describe, read from NHTSA's complaints and recalls APIs. Accessed October 11, 2026.
GM bulletin 15285: special coverage, excessive oil consumption, 2011 Equinox 2.4L
Piston replacement covered for 7 years and 6 months or 120,000 miles from the date first placed in service. Accessed October 11, 2026.
CarComplaints: 2012 Chevrolet Equinox excessive oil consumption
Owner reports: typical repair cost $2,560, average mileage 85,850, 107 complaints; solutions reported include engine replacement (23) and new piston rings or pistons (13). Accessed October 12, 2026.
Kelley Blue Book: 2012 Chevrolet Equinox values
Trade-in, private party and fair purchase values by trim, good condition, national averages at typical mileage. Accessed October 11, 2026.
Kelley Blue Book: 2012 Chevrolet Equinox check engine light diagnosis price
Fair repair range for ZIP 30303: $187 to $287. Accessed October 13, 2026.
Kelley Blue Book: 2012 Chevrolet Equinox engine replacement price
Dealer estimates for a 2012 in ZIP 30303, 64106 and 98101: $5,526 to $7,596, of which labor $2,534 to $3,494. Accessed October 13, 2026.
Powertrain Products: remanufactured 2.4L engine for 2011 to 2017 GM vehicles
Remanufactured engine price and warranty options. Accessed October 11, 2026.
The Powertrain Company: 2.4L remanufactured engine L2411GM, 2011 to 2016
Remanufactured engine price, shipping and core charge. Accessed October 11, 2026.
Sell Car Advisor: My Garage instant offers
Instant offers from several buyers on the same car, with the condition the owner gave, quoted March to October 2026. These are the cars in this page's offer tables and the set behind the condition figures (how much less buyers offer for a car that doesn't start or doesn't drive), compared within groups of cars of similar age and mileage. The model-year charts come from a larger set of offers going back to 2021.
Middle offer on an old Chevrolet Equinox, by model year, Sell Car Advisor
"102 Chevrolet Equinox offers · 8,118 for all cars of the same years" Accessed Oct. 17, 2026
Junk Car Value Statistics, Sell Car Advisor
"On this page: 2 figures from 17,628 instant cash offers, and 1 figure from same-day quotes by several buyers" Accessed Oct. 19, 2026
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