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.

- Roseburg, OR, USA

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.

- Muncie, IN, USA