Compare the2022 Chevrolet EquinoxVS 2021 Lexus NX Series

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the Chevrolet Equinox’s rear seat shoulder belts have child comfort guides to move the belt to properly fit children. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages children to buckle up. The Lexus NX Series doesn’t offer comfort guides on its rear seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Equinox are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The NX Series doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Compared to metal, the Equinox’s plastic fuel tank can withstand harder, more intrusive impacts without leaking; this decreases the possibility of fire. The Lexus NX Series has a metal gas tank.

Both the Equinox and the NX Series have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Chevrolet Equinox is safer than the Lexus NX Series:

	Equinox	NX Series
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	159	209
Neck Injury Risk	17%	46%
Neck Stress	190 lbs.	509 lbs.
Neck Compression	10 lbs.	24 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	363/349 lbs.	480/609 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	26%	42%
Neck Stress	153 lbs.	295 lbs.
Neck Compression	51 lbs.	70 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	264/236 lbs.	442/307 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Chevrolet Equinox is safer than the Lexus NX Series:

	Equinox	NX Series
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	109	192
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	288	317
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
Max Damage Depth	13 inches	15 inches
HIC	377	542
Hip Force	730 lbs.	828 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Warranty

There are over 12 times as many Chevrolet dealers as there are Lexus dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Equinox’s warranty.

Reliability

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Equinox has a standard 700-amp battery. The NX Series’ 580-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2020 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Chevrolet vehicles are better in initial quality than Lexus vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Chevrolet third in initial quality, above the industry average. With 18 more problems per 100 vehicles, Lexus is ranked 12th.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Equinox gets better fuel mileage than the NX Series:

			MPG
Equinox
	2WD	1.5 Turbo 4-cyl.	26 city/31 hwy
	4WD	1.5 Turbo 4-cyl.	25 city/30 hwy
NX Series
	2WD	2.0 Turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/28 hwy
	4WD	2.0 Turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/28 hwy
		F Sport 2.0 Turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/27 hwy

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Chevrolet Equinox uses regular unleaded gasoline. The NX 300 requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

The Equinox has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The NX Series doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Chevrolet Equinox higher (7 out of 10) than the Lexus NX Series (3 to 7). This means the Equinox produces up to 24.5 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the NX Series every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

The Equinox stops much shorter than the NX Series:

	Equinox	NX Series
70 to 0 MPH	161 feet	183 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	119 feet	127 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	141 feet	142 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

The Equinox’s optional tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the NX Series F Sport’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Equinox offers optional 19-inch wheels. The NX Series’ largest wheels are only 18-inches.

The Equinox has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The NX Series doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

Suspension and Handling

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Equinox’s wheelbase is 2.6 inches longer than on the NX Series (107.3 inches vs. 104.7 inches).

The Equinox Premier AWD handles at .86 G’s, while the NX 300 F Sport AWD pulls only .76 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

For greater off-road capability the Equinox has a 1.2 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the NX 300h (7.9 vs. 6.7 inches), allowing the Equinox to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Equinox’s minimum ground clearance is 1 inch higher than on the NX 300 (7.9 vs. 6.9 inches).

Chassis

The Chevrolet Equinox may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 650 pounds less than the Lexus NX Series.

The front grille of the Equinox offers available electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The NX Series doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Equinox uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The NX Series doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Passenger Space

The Equinox has 31.6 cubic feet more passenger volume than the NX Series (103.2 vs. 71.6).

The Equinox has 1.8 inches more front headroom, .4 inches more rear headroom, 3.8 inches more rear legroom and .2 inches more rear shoulder room than the NX Series.

Cargo Capacity

The Equinox has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the NX Series with its rear seat up (29.9 vs. 17.7 cubic feet). The Equinox has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the NX Series with its rear seat folded (63.9 vs. 54.6 cubic feet).

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the Equinox easier. The Equinox’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 28.6 inches, while the NX Series’ liftover is 31.2 inches.

Towing

The Equinox’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the NX Series’ (1500 vs. 0 pounds).

The Equinox can be flat towed on all four wheels (dinghy towed), allowing recreational vehicle owners to bring it with them on the road. When they reach their destination, the Equinox can be unhitched and driven around locally. The NX Series can’t be towed flat on the ground.

Servicing Ease

The Equinox has a maintenance free battery for long life without checking the battery’s water level. The NX Series doesn’t have a maintenance free battery, so the water level in the battery’s cells must be checked often to prevent damage.

Ergonomics

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Equinox’s available exterior PIN entry system. The NX Series doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

The Equinox’s power window, power lock, power mirror and cruise control switches are lit from behind, making them plainly visible and easier to operate at night. The NX Series’ power lock, power mirror and cruise control switches are unlit, making them difficult to find at night and operate safely.

Both the Equinox and the NX Series offer available heated front seats. The Equinox Premier also offers optional heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the NX Series.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Chevrolet Equinox Premier has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. The NX Series doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

The Equinox (except LS) offers an optional 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The NX Series doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Equinox Premier’s optional Automatic Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, with the driver only controlling speed with the brake pedal. The NX Series doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the Equinox owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Equinox will cost $545 less than the NX Series over a five-year period.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Equinox is less expensive to operate than the NX Series because it costs $154 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost much less on the Equinox than the NX Series, including $68 less for a water pump, $129 less for a starter, $123 less for fuel injection, $80 less for front struts and $508 less for a timing belt/chain.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Chevrolet Equinox will be $4093 to $4449 less than for the Lexus NX Series.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Chevrolet Equinox and the Lexus NX Series, based on reliability, safety and performance.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Equinox second among compact suvs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The NX Series isn’t in the top three in its category.