Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AIR BAGS | |||||
| 3373 | 10013523 | Sir light on steady after bulb test and no diagnostic trouble codes (dtcs). *tt | 04/20/2005 | ||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| AIR BAGS | |||
| 02/08/2013 | 1 | ||
| I had an accident on the hwy in georgia, the steering was hard to control/lock, the tire sled, was rust and corrode on structure, brake area, wheel area, frame, tire broke off, almost flipped and was hit from the back, and twice in the front after slamming into a cement divider and the air bags didn't deploy at all, i injured my left side, neck, back, and hip. blessed that my pregnant daughter in her 8th month wasn't in the truck with me. i had done multiple repairs on the fuel tank, tire rod, knock sensor, abs brakes, running board,brakes,rotors, etc, and was told that the rust on the frame won't effect the trucks performance and it was safe to drive because everything is attached to the frame good. i almost lost my life and two of us got injured. if these trucks are having and been having these issues- why do they just pull all of them and give people other options. *tr | |||
| 02/08/2013 | |||
| I had an accident on the hwy in georgia, the steering was hard to control/lock, the tire sled, was rust and corrod on structure, brake area, wheel area, frame, tire broke off, almost flipped and was hit from the back, and twice in the front after slamming into a cement divider and the air bags didn't deploy at all, i injuried my left side, neck, back, and hip. blessed that my pregnant daughter in her 8th month wasn't in the truck with me. i had done multiple repairs on the fuel tank, tire rod, knock sensor, abs brakes, running board,brakes,rotors, etc, and was told that the rust on the frame won't effect the trucks proformance and it was safe to drive because everything is attached to the frame good. i almost lost my life and two of us got injuried. if these trucks are having and been having these issues- why dothey just pull all of them and give people other options. | |||
| 09/01/2011 | 134000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2002 chevrolet avalanche. while driving 55 mph, the driver fell asleep and crashed into a bridge. the air bags did not deploy. the driver sustained several broken bones, two black eyes and a back injury. the driver was transported to the hospital via helicopter where she was placed on life support for fifty days. the passenger sustained a t-12 compression fracture in her back, a fractured right kneecap and a lacerated right hand. the vehicle was destroyed. a police report was filed. the dealer was not notified of the failure. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure however, did not offer any assistance. the failure mileage was 134,000. the vin was unavailable. kmj | |||
| 09/01/2011 | 134000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2002 chevrolet avalanche. while driving 55 mph, the contact stated the driver had fallen asleep causing her to crash into a bridge when the air bags did not deploy. the driver sustained several broken bones, two black eyes, a back injury and was transported to the hospital by airplane where she was placed on life support for fifty days. the passenger sustained a t-12 compression fracture in her back, a fractured right kneecap, and a lacerated right hand. the vehicle was destroyed. the dealer had not been notified. the manufacturer was aware of the failure; however, did not offer any assistance. the failure mileage was 134,000. a police report was available. the vin was available. bw | |||
| 03/27/2007 | 78213 | 1 | 05/10/2002 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2002 chevrolet avalanche. on march 27, 2007, the contact crashed into an embankment head on at 45 mph. the vehicle flipped up and landed on its side in a ditch. there was over $18,000 worth of damage. the vehicle was destroyed and the contact was injured. the side and front air bags failed to deploy and the driver's side seat belt failed as well. the contact has pictures. a police report was filed. the current and failure mileages were 78,213. updated 04/23/08. *lj the consumer also stated the seat belt did not lock into place as it should have. the seat belt harness broke which caused the consumer to fly forward | |||
| 05/06/2006 | 42000 | 1 | 07/29/2001 |
| Dt*: the contact stated while driving 25 mph, the air bag light illuminated and the air bags deployed without incident. the sudden deployment startled the driver causing the vehicle to leave the road and hit a light pole. the pole was impacted with the front of vehicle and there was no braking prior to the impact. in fact the contact thought the accelerator pedal may have been depressed harder, as a result of the shock. although seat belts were worn the driver sustained injuries. a police report was filed at the scene. the vehicle was towed to the dealer where the insurance company deemed the vehicle totaled. the dealer offered no explanation as to why the air bags deployed. updated 05/30/06 | |||
| 11/21/2005 | 85689 | 3 | 11/04/2001 |
| I went off road at 45 mph airborn struck a very large tree which caused vehicle to roll over violently landing on its top. no air bags deployed, both my wife and i were ejected from the seat belts onstar was not notified. i noticed brakes acting strange just before leaving the road, they didn't slow the vehicle and didn't click like antilock breaks should. vehicle was a total loss, windshield and drivers window broke, severe buckling of hood, passenger side pushed back to the tire, frame torn in several areas, duct and lower dash area displaced, sdm was downloaded showing incomplete data, sdm data does not support the amount of damage and know facts. my wife had to be airlifted to trauma cntr with serious injuries, my injuries were put on hold so that i could be with her. *nm | |||
| 08/01/2003 | 17000 | 1 | |
| The consumer loss control of the vehicle and hit a utility pole, and the air bags failed to deploy. the driver was not injured. *jb | |||
| 02/12/2003 | 2 | 06/11/2000 | |
| I was driving on the highway with bad weather conditions. i was struck by a passing vehicle that lost control and sended me swirving on the hjighway strucking trees on the side highway. after the impact of the trees neither airbags opened up on my chevy avalanche 2002. | |||
| 08/25/2002 | |||
| Consumer states: while driving at the speed of 45mph was involved in a frontal collision neither air bag deployed. dealer has been notified. if you have any additional information feel free to add. ts | |||
| 05/23/2002 | 1 | 11/01/2001 | |
| No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak | |||
| AIR BAGS - FRONTAL | |||
| 01/03/2006 | 64900 | 1 | 02/01/2003 |
| Dt*: the contact stated while driving around a curve the vehicle slid off the road and through gravel into a metal telephone pole and a tree. upon impact, both frontal airbags and the side curtain airbags failed to deploy. the contact sustained neck and shoulder injuries along with bruises and pain. the passenger sustained minor injuries. both occupants were wearing seat belts. the vehicle was towed to an independent repair shop which determined the vehicle was a total loss by visual inspection. a police report was taken at the scene. the vehicle has not been inspected by a service dealer or the insurance company. this was the second failure of the air bags. the contact hit a deer at 65 mph at an earlier date, and all the air bags failed to deploy. the driver was wearing a seat belt and sustained no injuries during the accident. the vehicle received damage to the grill, headlights and front bumper. the vehicle was repaired by a dealer and returned to service. there were no warning indicator prior to the air bag failure in either accident. *ak updated 01/25/06. *jb | |||
| 07/11/2005 | 66000 | 1 | 09/15/2002 |
| 1. motor vvehicle accident 2. air bag did not deploy 3.not at this point | |||
| 05/12/2003 | 1 | 05/15/2002 | |
| Traveling at 65 mph passing another car switched land and rearend went out. did 360 degree and hit the side on high way. air bag did not deploy. it did $9000 in damage to the front end. steering feels like its hitting another metal dealer has to grease the steering shaft every 25,000 miles factory defect but i have to pay for it after warranty ran out. applying brake when making a turn if truck goes over a road hole or bump in the road anti-lock brake does not work and loose control of the truck. suspension is not good. *la | |||
| 03/14/2003 | 18334 | 1 | 09/30/2001 |
| The vehicle was involved in a rollover accident in which the vehicle rolled over three times yet neither air bag deployed. the dealer was notified. *nlm the consumer's wife applied the brakes but nothing happened, and steered to the right of the road to avoid hitting other vehicles. scc | |||
| 01/16/2003 | 5000 | 1 | 07/01/2002 |
| While driving on highway, consumer's vehicle skidded from the right to the left lane. without warning the driver's side air bag fully deployed while the passenger side air bag partially deployed. consumer's visibility was completely blocked resulting in car crashing into the guardrail. *ts both air bags deployed and were fully deflated before impact. *scc | |||
| 08/09/2002 | 1 | 11/01/2001 | |
| I was changing lanes to pass a truck. as i completed the lane change, the back end continued to slide. i started to swerve left and right in my lane. as i passed the truck, my vehicle crossed over the right lane and hit the right the guardrail. i believe i hit the right rear of my vehicle twice on the guardrail. my vehicle then turned approximately 90 degrees counter-clockwise and headed straight into the concrete center divider. my vehicle bounced off the wall and ended up mostly in the right hand lane facing the traffic that was behind me. no airbag was deployed. the vehicle is classified as totaled by the insurance company.*ak | |||
| 07/17/2002 | |||
| While making a turn at a low speed vehicle rolled over, and air bags did not deploy. dealer notified. *ak | |||
| 03/05/2002 | |||
| While traveling at 15 mph vehicle slammed into side of another car. upon impact, none of airbags deployed. please provide any further information.*ak | |||
| 12/07/2001 | 1 | 08/27/2001 | |
| While driving 40 mph on wet pavement, consumer applied the brakes and abs failed to activate which resulted in vehicle rolling over.*ak. consumer stated as soon as he applied the brakes, the wheels locked up and the back of the vehicle broke loose from the road and spun 90 degrees to the left, vehicle skidded off the left side of the road and through a fence, vehicle then rolled into a ditch, consumer also added that the front and side airbags failed to deploy.*jb | |||
| AIR BAGS - FRONTAL - SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE | |||
| 03/02/2007 | 3 | ||
| 2002 chevy avalanche's most common consumer complaint is water leaking into the interior of the suv. front floors are completely soaked with standing water. dealership has tried varied method's to fix. the reason for complaint< and please pay attention to this: not only are these reported problems inconvenient (one chevy avalanche owner reported one inch of water in the floor of his cab after an 8 hour drive!), but they could also be dangerous. on page 8-1117, volume 4 of the gm authorized service manual from helm inc. states: caution: if any water enters the vehicle's interior up to the level of the carpet or higher and soaks the carpet, the sensing and diagnostic module (sdm) and the sdm harness connector may need to be replaced. the sdm could be activated when powered, which could cause the deployment of the airbag(s) and result in personal injury. this fact is not given to owners, and in reality the air bags deployment system has been compromised by the water leaks. this one website has over 160 similar complaints. the federal government needs to make gm accountable, find and fix the problems asap, before there is a fatality. thank you. *jb | |||
| 01/18/2006 | 1 | 08/26/2005 | |
| My vehicle (a 2002 chevy avalanche) was involved in a total loss collision on january 18, 2006. the collision was a full frontal crash which caved in the entire front end of the avalanche. the air bags did not deploy, and the driver of the vehicle was thrown out of his seat belt due to the force of the impact. the driver ended up in the passenger seat of the vehicle. it is my belief that the air bags malfunctioned. the criteria for air bag deployment were met. there was a deceleration rate from approx. 55 mph to a complete stop. the air bag sensor was hit (as seen from the examination of the vehicle upon arrival to the body shop). the collision was in the middle front of the vehicle. general motors did an inspection of the vehicle, however, i was not pleased with their conclusion. they said that the air bags did not malfunction. they claimed that the vehicle absorbed the impact, which caused the air bags not to deploy. i believe that this is a huge safety issue and it should be investigated by someone other than the manufacturer, who, in my opinion, was biased in his review of the incident. *nm | |||
| AIR BAGS - SIDE/WINDOW | |||
| 01/03/2006 | 64900 | 1 | 02/01/2003 |
| Dt*: the contact stated while driving around a curve the vehicle slid off the road and through gravel into a metal telephone pole and a tree. upon impact, both frontal airbags and the side curtain airbags failed to deploy. the contact sustained neck and shoulder injuries along with bruises and pain. the passenger sustained minor injuries. both occupants were wearing seat belts. the vehicle was towed to an independent repair shop which determined the vehicle was a total loss by visual inspection. a police report was taken at the scene. the vehicle has not been inspected by a service dealer or the insurance company. this was the second failure of the air bags. the contact hit a deer at 65 mph at an earlier date, and all the air bags failed to deploy. the driver was wearing a seat belt and sustained no injuries during the accident. the vehicle received damage to the grill, headlights and front bumper. the vehicle was repaired by a dealer and returned to service. there were no warning indicator prior to the air bag failure in either accident. *ak updated 01/25/06. *jb | |||
| 12/07/2001 | 1 | 08/27/2001 | |
| While driving 40 mph on wet pavement, consumer applied the brakes and abs failed to activate which resulted in vehicle rolling over.*ak. consumer stated as soon as he applied the brakes, the wheels locked up and the back of the vehicle broke loose from the road and spun 90 degrees to the left, vehicle skidded off the left side of the road and through a fence, vehicle then rolled into a ditch, consumer also added that the front and side airbags failed to deploy.*jb | |||