1999 Pontiac Grand AM problems & reliability
849 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1999 Pontiac Grand AM, alongside 2 safety recall campaigns. 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.
48 complaints report injuries (60 injured, 16 deaths reported).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 1999 Pontiac Grand AM vehicles were involved in 21 fatal crashes with 17 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 203 | 24% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 133 | 16% |
| Electrical System | 132 | 16% |
| Suspension | 107 | 13% |
| Visibility | 88 | 10% |
| Air Bags | 76 | 9% |
| Steering | 70 | 8% |
| Exterior Lighting | 68 | 8% |
| Structure | 45 | 5% |
| Equipment | 33 | 4% |
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 70,000 miles (middle 50% between 45,250 and 91,810 miles), based on 270 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Our braking system on this car failed us, and is probably crushed by now at no fault of my own. My safety was at–risk when the brakes lost pressure and if it wasn’t for our seatbelts, I could’ve been thrown through the windshield. I hereby declare that [XXX] deliberately caused our accident and lied about being…”
Structure · filed Jul 22, 2023
“The gas gauge will show full then without warning quickly drop to “E” and the low fuel indicator will ding and the light will come on then just as quickly as it started it will go back to full or 2/3rds the slow creep back to the full position. (The tank was not full) While driving all the electrical components start…”
Fuel/propulsion System · filed Jun 3, 2023
“Tl* the contact owned a 1999 pontiac grand am. The contact stated that while driving about 60 mph, the vehicle crashed into a concrete barrier that was pushed over to the contact's lane, following an accident that involved two trucks. The passenger's air bag deployed. No other air bag deployed, including the driver's…”
Air Bags · filed Jul 26, 2019
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- TURN SIGNAL FAILURES
Recall Query RQ04005 · opened Jun 18, 2004 · closed Nov 30, 2004
- FRONT SUSPENSION COIL SPRING FRACTURE
Engineering Analysis EA03021 · opened Nov 4, 2003 · closed Oct 19, 2004
- FRONT SUSPENSION COIL SPRING FRACTURE
Preliminary Evaluation PE03031 · opened Jul 14, 2003 · closed Nov 4, 2003
Technical service bulletins
155 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 1999 Pontiac Grand AM. 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 communicates to the dealer the process for downloading or updating operating software for the Tire Pressure Monitor, Active Fuel Injector tester, multi media tester, PICO Scope, GR8…
PIP4723F · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 14, 2022
This Preliminary Information communicates to the dealer the process for downloading or updating operating software for the Tire Pressure Monitor, Active Fuel Injector tester, multi media tester, PICO Scope, GR8…
PIP4723D · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 31, 2020
This informational bulletin provides information for dealers/technicians on Procedures to Unlock Delco Radio with Theftlock.
19NA273 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Dec 2, 2019
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician on how to unlock radios that are Delco TheftLock. Technician will use the radio to get the scrambled code. Technician will need to…
PIC4696E · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 22, 2019
This warranty administration bulletin provides information regarding the field action courtesy transportation policy.
17NA073 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 18, 2019
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician on how to unlock radios that are Delco TheftLock. Technician will use the radio to get the scrambled code. Technician will need to…
PIC4696D · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 5, 2019
This warranty administration bulletin provides information regarding the field action courtesy transportation policy.
17NA073 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 15, 2019
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician on how to unlock radios that are Delco Theft Lock. Technician will use the radio to get the scrambled code. Technician will need to…
PIC4696C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 31, 2018
This Preliminary Information communicates to the dealer the process for downloading or updating operating software for the Tire Pressure Monitor, Active Fuel Injector tester, multi media tester, PICO Scope, GR8…
PIP4723C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 20, 2017
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 Pontiac Grand AM has 2 NHTSA recall campaigns — 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 Pontiac Grand AM?
- · 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 70,000 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.