1999 Chevrolet Silverado 2500: common problems

Owners of the 1999 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 filed 81 complaints with NHTSA, most often about service brakes and tires. Details by component below, with sources.

Key figures

Owner complaints: 81
involving a crash: 2

What fails most often

1 Service brakes 58% of all complaints
2 Tires 10% of all complaints
3 Fuel system 7% of all complaints
4 Electrical system 5% of all complaints
5 Engine and cooling 4% of all complaints
6 Vehicle speed control 4% of all complaints
7 Air bags 2% of all complaints
8 Engine 2% of all complaints

Circle size and colour show each component’s share of NHTSA complaints. Schematic only, not a drawing of the exact model.

Service brakes: 47 complaints (58% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
Tires: 8 complaints (10% of all).
Fuel system: 6 complaints (7% of all).
Electrical system: 4 complaints (5% of all).
Engine and cooling: 3 complaints (4% of all).

Symptoms owners describe

How many of the 81 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).

rust, corrosion23 · 28%
brake failure8 · 10%
fuel system, fuel smell4 · 5%
won't start2 · 2%
seat belts2 · 2%
smoke, burning smell, fire2 · 2%
vibration2 · 2%
warning lights, check engine2 · 2%
airbags did not deploy1 · 1%
engine failure or replacement1 · 1%

Components owners complain about

Component	Owner complaints	involving a crash
Service brakes	47	1
Tires	8	0
Fuel system	6	0
Electrical system	4	0
Engine and cooling	3	0
Vehicle speed control	3	0
Air bags	2	1
Engine	2	0
Fuel/propulsion system	2	0
Seat belts	2	0
Steering	2	0
Structure	2	0
Exterior lighting	1	0
Latches, locks, linkages	1	0

What owners report

Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.

Both airbags failed to deploy during head on collision. Http://www.user.dccnet.com/lhornung/accident dt
Air bags · crash · 2002-11-01 · NHTSA complaint #768782
The vehicle rear ended someone due to brake failure, there were no injuries and the dealer is still refusing to work on the vehicle.
Service brakes · crash · 2000-06-22 · NHTSA complaint #864035
The parking brake has never worked properly since new. Your partial recall fix for standard transmissions only is inadequate. Make me wonder about undue gm influence. Just because the automatic transmission trucks have park. That is not an excuse for gm not to fix the parking brake.
Service brakes · 2019-03-04 · NHTSA complaint #11184032
The contact observed that the fuel line was severely rusted. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 80,000.
Fuel/propulsion system · 2017-04-10 · NHTSA complaint #10971693
Broken or missing exhaust manifold bolts causing exhaust leaks. Potential for carbon monoxide leaks into the driving compartment. Upon researching on the internet this seems to be a very common and expensive problem. With gm engines from 1999 to around 2007. Just found this problem on my 1999 silverado on 5/20/16.
Engine · 2016-05-22 · NHTSA complaint #10870216
Rusted brake lines ! Driving down the street, hit brakes to slow down to turn into a drive, brake peddle went to the floor, no brakes at all, I found the brake line going to the rear had broken by the gas tank, brake lines are very corroded and rusty, truck is keep indoors, and came from new mexico, no rust on the…
Service brakes · 2015-12-13 · NHTSA complaint #10809915
The fuel gauge malfunctions after filling tank - it reads empty immediately and intermittently thereafter at any fuel level. It makes it difficult for traveling any long distance as you are not quite sure how much fuel is available or if it will shut down on me during a difficult situation.
Fuel system · 2014-07-31 · NHTSA complaint #10618019
This truck has had an exhaust tic for many years. I just thought it was a lifter noise when in all reality while changing spark plug and wires about 2 months back I found the broken exhaust manifold bolts. Upon further research on the web I found this is an issue on 80% of these gm trucks.
Engine · 2014-03-09 · NHTSA complaint #10568023

When owners complained

NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.

200013
20015
20023
20033
20044
20057
20066
20073
20085
20094
201010
20113
20121
20133
20144
20153
20161
20171
20181
20191

Comparison

By complaint count this model year ranks 4,046 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 11% most complained about).

On average one model year of the Silverado 2500 has 121 complaints (34 years in the data). This year has 81, below average.

What to check before buying

Service brakes. Pedal feel, ABS operation, leaks, discs and hoses.
Tires. Tire age by DOT code, bulges, wear pattern.
Fuel system. Fuel smell, leaks, rough running, fuel-system codes.
Electrical system. Scan all modules, test the battery and alternator, inspect connectors near the impact zone.

Other years of this model

Questions and answers

What are the most common problems with the 1999 Chevrolet Silverado 2500?

Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: service brakes, tires, fuel system. Total complaints: 81. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: rust, corrosion (28%), brake failure (10%), fuel system, fuel smell (5%).

How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 1999 Chevrolet Silverado 2500?

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 Silverado 2500 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 2026-11-05.