1999 GMC Sierra 1500 problems & reliability
158 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1999 GMC Sierra 1500, alongside 1 safety recall campaign. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
2 complaints report injuries (4 injured).
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 70 | 44% |
| Service Brakes | 30 | 19% |
| Seats | 10 | 6% |
| Structure | 9 | 6% |
| Electrical System | 8 | 5% |
| Suspension | 7 | 4% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 6 | 4% |
| Unknown OR Other | 6 | 4% |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 5 | 3% |
| Steering | 4 | 3% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 107,000 miles (middle 50% between 65,750 and 150,621 miles), based on 128 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“ABS Brakes cut out leaving you with little to no brakes. No warning light appears. This continues on and off over time. Then that ABS warning light came on. When the warning light was on, brakes worked just not ABS. Light would go out and back to the original issue. Took it in to dealership when the light remained on…”
Service Brakes · filed Sep 25, 2021
“I was driving home from work on 421 in eminence, ky. I pushed the brake pedal & I had no brakes right in front of harry hill park. Gm & I are very lucky that no one was killed yesterday. The brake line corroded & leaked the brake fluid, so when I pushed the pedal, it went right to the floor. The vehicle is pretty…”
Service Brakes · filed Apr 27, 2019
“I got under the truck to change the oil then I noticed a crack in the frame where the cross member is. Cross member runs across frame support”
Unknown OR Other · filed Oct 15, 2018
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- PARKING BRAKE FAILURE
Engineering Analysis EA04011 · opened Apr 9, 2004 · closed May 10, 2005 · led to recall 05V161000
- PARKING BRAKE FAILURE
Preliminary Evaluation PE03057 · opened Dec 8, 2003 · closed Apr 9, 2004
Technical service bulletins
32 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 1999 GMC Sierra 1500. The 10 most recent:
This warranty administration bulletin provides information regarding the field action courtesy transportation policy.
17-NA-073 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 21, 2023
This Preliminary Information communication advises the technician that the Hydro-Boost is not serviceable and will need to be replaced if the brake pedal moves or applies on its own at a full turn.
PIT3665L · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 18, 2022
This service bulletin provides information for maintenance cleaning of the fuel injectors and gasoline detergent additive.
04-06-04-051F · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 22, 2022
This technical bulletin provides a procedure to apply grease to the leaf springs to correct a condition of a squeak noise from the metals making contact.
060309004N · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 31, 2019
This SKU is a Pitman Arm. The customer communication requested return of unsold inventory to inspect for the spline size. If the spline size is incorrect it will not have a tight fit with the mating component, and would…
DOR-K2S2K-10 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jul 26, 2019
This SKU is a Preformed Fuel Line. The customer communication requested return of unsold inventory to inspect for damage to the braided hose and crimps. Damaged braided hoses and poor crimps can lead to immediate…
DORM9T7N09 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jul 3, 2019
This Preliminary Information communication advises the technician that the Hydro-Boost is not serviceable and will need to be replaced if the brake pedal moves or applies on its own at a full turn.
PIT3665H · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 24, 2019
This SKU is an Air Door Actuator. The customer communication requested return of unsold inventory to inspect for incorrect UPC. Incorrect UPC could lead to a discrepency of inventory at the store. Incorrect UPC would…
DORU5R2J09 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 14, 2019
This Preliminary information communicates the need to contact SPAC until GM CCA has sufficient stock.
PIT5669A · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 18, 2019
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about a customer?s request to remove or disable the Bi-Fuel Compressed Natural Gas system. General Motors does not condone the removal of…
PIP5339A · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 4, 2019
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 1999 GMC Sierra 1500 has 1 NHTSA recall campaign — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 1999 GMC Sierra 1500?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 107,000 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.