AI Damage1999 Chevrolet C/K Pickups: common problems
Owners of the 1999 Chevrolet C/K Pickups filed 37 complaints with NHTSA, most often about service brakes and engine and cooling. Details by component below, with sources.
Key figures
- Owner complaints
- 37
- involving a crash
- 5
What fails most often
- 1 Service brakes 62% of all complaints
- 2 Engine and cooling 11% of all complaints
- 3 Fuel system 11% of all complaints
- 4 Structure 8% of all complaints
- 5 Electrical system 5% of all complaints
- 6 Equipment 5% of all complaints
- 7 Air bags 3% of all complaints
- 8 Parking brake 3% of all complaints
- Service brakes: 23 complaints (62% of all), 5 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Engine and cooling: 4 complaints (11% of all).
- Fuel system: 4 complaints (11% of all).
- Structure: 3 complaints (8% of all).
- Electrical system: 2 complaints (5% of all).
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 37 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service brakes | 23 | 5 | 0 |
| Engine and cooling | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Fuel system | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Structure | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Electrical system | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Equipment | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Air bags | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Parking brake | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Suspension | 1 | 0 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
50 yards to try to stop my truck the brake pedal went to the floor I was helpless cars on one side telephone poles on the other luckily put truck in 2nd gear to slow the truck down some then crash ed hard into the back of freight truck. Luckily not killed.
Air bag did not deploy. Vehicle was a total loss. My wife sustained a fractured rib, bruised sterum and cervical spine dislocation. My two children ages 6 and 9 sustained cuts to the head from flying glass requiring stitches and glue.
There are no warning lights on the dash. The gm dealer says my vehicle is not involved in the abs recall as it is in minnesota. Dealer says I have to will probably have to replace the hubs and sensors to fix problem.
The body is starting to rust over the rear tire and the frame is really rusted. Driver power window switch went out and rolled itself down and cant get it to go up at all. Really love the truck but gm could have built it to last longer..my 1974 gmc is in better shape than this truck is and its nearing 40 years old.
This will be the 4th fuel injector pump installed on my vehicle. Twice it quit while traveling more than 50 mph on major highways. This causes all lost of power to the steering and braking. The company has replaced it free until now. The vehicle had to be towed all 3 times.
Dt*: the contact stated the driver side tailgate cable has been replaced and fractured a second time. The passenger cable is in the process of fracturing. There is a nhtsa recall, # 06v066000, regarding the tailgate cables.
Load of plywood fell from the pickup when the tailgate cable broke. The car behind me did not get hit by the load of plywood but had to avoid the load by swerving. The plywood was damaged and the tailgate was destroyed.
Exhaust manifold bolts are snapping off one by one. This is causing exhaust fumes to enter the cab of the truck making the driver sleepy or sick from the fumes. After talking to g.m mechanics a lot of the chevy 3/4 ton with 6.0 motors are doing this. This is a bad safety issue. G.m denies there is a problem.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
Comparison
By complaint count this model year ranks 6,176 of 36,659 model years in the NHTSA data (top 17% most complained about).
On average one model year of the C/K Pickups has 29 complaints (13 years in the data). This year has 37, above average.
What to check before buying
- Service brakes. Pedal feel, ABS operation, leaks, discs and hoses.
- Engine and cooling. Radiator and fan after a frontal hit, coolant level and condition, overheating.
- Fuel system. Fuel smell, leaks, rough running, fuel-system codes.
- Structure. Rails, pillars, panel gaps, signs of pulling or welding.
Other years of this model
Questions and answers
What are the most common problems with the 1999 Chevrolet C/K Pickups?
Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: service brakes, engine and cooling, fuel system. Total complaints: 37. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: fuel system, fuel smell (8%), brake failure (5%), overheating, coolant loss (5%).
How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 1999 Chevrolet C/K Pickups?
NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.
Should I buy a 1999 Chevrolet C/K Pickups from a US auction?
Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.
Other 1999 models
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-06.