The 2020 Equinox Costs $476 a Month, and Fuel Is 39% of It

Our calculator puts the 2020 Chevrolet Equinox at $28,578 over five years, or $476 a month, on a $12,300 purchase. That is a fair number for a compact SUV, but it only holds if you buy the right one at the right price.

The verdict: buy it, but only an LT trim with a clean service history, at or below roughly $12,300 and under about 70,000 miles. Check current values on Kelley Blue Book or Edmunds before you talk numbers. If a dealer is asking $14,000 or more for an average one, walk away. The Equinox is a competent, comfortable commuter. It is not a car that earns a premium.

Where the money actually goes

Most buyers fixate on the sticker. Our calculator says that is the wrong place to look.

Depreciation is only $3,230 over five years, about $646 a year. That is small because a 6-year-old Equinox has already taken its biggest value hit. Fuel is the giant: $11,166, or about $2,233 a year. That alone is 39% of the five-year total.

Insurance comes to $7,123, around $1,425 a year. That is our estimate based on the car's value and class, not a quote. Your own number will differ based on your age, ZIP code, and driving record, so get real quotes before you sign.

Repairs are $3,504 and maintenance is $3,300. Registration is $255. Add them all and you land at $28,578.

The lesson is simple. A cheaper car with worse gas mileage can cost you more than a pricier Equinox. And an Equinox that needs a big repair in year two blows past our repair figure fast.

Which Equinox to buy, and which to skip

The 2020 sits in the third generation, which ran from 2018 to 2024. By 2020, Chevy had worked through some early kinks, and the lineup is simpler than it was in 2018 and 2019. The 2020 model leans on the 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder, which is the engine you will find on most lots.

Trims run L, LS, LT, and Premier. Here is how I would rank them:

• LT: The pick. It adds the features you will use daily without the Premier price. Look for one with the factory driver-assist package if the price is right.
• LS: Fine if it is cheap. You give up some comfort and tech, but you also skip some things that can break.
• Premier: Only worth it if it costs about the same as a clean LT. Leather and a bigger feature list do not matter if the asking price pushes you past our $12,300 assumption.
• L: Skip it. It is sparse, and base trims tend to resell poorly.

All-wheel drive adds cost at the pump and one more driveline to maintain. Buy it if you live where it snows. Otherwise front-wheel drive is the cheaper life.

Run the VIN of any candidate through the NHTSA recall database. Open recalls get fixed free at a Chevy dealer, but you want to know before you buy, not after. Be wary of any seller who cannot show recall completion.

And be wary of the 2018 and 2019 models if you are comparing. They are cheaper for a reason, and they carry the engine options and early-build issues that Chevy trimmed away by 2020.

The real reliability picture

The Equinox is average. Not bad, not great. RepairPal is a good place to check the current reliability rating and typical shop costs for this model, and you should read it for yourself.

Here are the failure modes that matter, and they cluster around the turbo engine.

Oil and fuel issues on the 1.5T. Owners in cold climates have reported fuel diluting the engine oil, especially on short trips. Thin oil wears parts faster. Many owners shorten oil change intervals to guard against it. Expect this to matter past 50,000 miles if the car lived a short-trip life.

Coolant leaks. Plastic cooling parts age badly. A leaking thermostat housing or water pump area can run $400 to $900 at an independent shop. It tends to show up between 60,000 and 100,000 miles.

Carbon buildup and rough running. Direct-injection engines can collect carbon on the intake valves. A cleaning runs a few hundred dollars. Ignoring it can lead to misfires.

Turbo and wastegate trouble. Less common, but expensive. A turbo replacement can reach $1,500 to $2,500 with labor. Most cases show up after 80,000 miles.

Infotainment glitches. Screens freezing or rebooting is a nuisance more than a danger. A software update at the dealer sometimes fixes it. A new head unit does not come cheap.

Our calculator's $3,504 repair figure averages out to about $701 a year. That is realistic for most owners, but it hides a lumpy reality: some years cost almost nothing, and one bad year can eat $2,000.

What you will spend each year by mileage

These are my estimates for annual repair and maintenance, on top of fuel and insurance. Do not read them as optimistic.

Under 50,000 miles: About $700 to $1,000 a year. Mostly oil changes, tires, brakes, and a cabin filter. Repairs should be rare and covered by what is left of the powertrain warranty if you are lucky, so ask the dealer about it.

50,000 to 100,000 miles: About $1,200 to $1,800 a year. This is where coolant parts, brakes, a battery, and a full set of tires pile up. The first real turbo-engine repair usually lands here.

Over 100,000 miles: About $1,800 to $2,800 a year. Expect suspension work, a possible turbo or timing-related service, and more frequent surprise repairs. At this point, a $12,000 car can become a $15,000 car quickly.

Fuel and insurance sit on top of all of that: roughly $2,233 and $1,425 a year, per our calculator.

Inspection list before you pay

1. Pull the oil dipstick. Check the level and the smell. A gasoline odor or a level that looks too high can point to fuel dilution.
2. Ask for oil change records. Gaps over 7,500 miles are a bad sign on this engine.
3. Check coolant level and look for crusty residue around the thermostat housing and hoses.
4. Cold start the car. Listen for rattling at startup, which can signal timing chain or tensioner trouble.
5. Feel for hesitation under hard acceleration. Surging, stumbling, or a rough idle can mean carbon buildup or misfires.
6. Watch the transmission through every gear. Harsh shifts or flares between gears are a red flag. Test it cold and warm.
7. Run the infotainment screen through every menu, with the backup camera and Bluetooth. Freezes are common to test for.
8. Test the stop-start system. If it shudders on restart or the battery light flickers, price in a new battery.
9. Scan for codes with an inexpensive OBD reader, or ask your mechanic to. Stored codes tell you what the dashboard may be hiding.
10. Check the VIN on the NHTSA site for open recalls and confirm the fixes were done.

Fuel: the biggest line on the bill

Look up the exact EPA ratings for the trim and drivetrain you want at fueleconomy.gov. They differ between front-wheel and all-wheel drive.

What matters is the dollar result. Our calculator's $11,166 fuel total, at 12,000 miles a year and $3.50 a gallon, works out to about $2,233 a year, or $186 a month. That is more than your depreciation, more than your repairs, and more than your insurance. If you drive 18,000 miles a year, scale that up by half.

If a hybrid or a more efficient rival costs a little more upfront, do the math. Fuel savings can swamp a small price difference.

Two alternatives at a similar price

Honda CR-V (2018 to 2019): Slightly older, but its reliability record is stronger, and resale holds up, so it is worth a look if you find a clean one near the Equinox's price.

Mazda CX-5 (2019 to 2020): It drives better than the Equinox and has a good reputation for dependability, so it deserves a test drive before you commit.

Where this car stops being a good deal

The 2020 Equinox is a good buy at or under $12,300, with under about 70,000 miles, an LT or LS trim, and proof of regular oil changes. Up to roughly 90,000 miles, it is still reasonable if the price drops to match and the inspection comes back clean. Past 100,000 miles, the risk of a turbo or cooling repair rises faster than the discount, so stop paying more than about $9,000. Anything priced near $14,000 is overpriced, whatever the badge on the trunk says. At that price, buy the CR-V or the CX-5 instead.