Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (service brakes, ABS, rotors and pads, parking brake).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 1999 Chevrolet Tahoe owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact's wife owns a 1999 Chevrolet Tahoe. The contact stated while driving at a low rate of speed, an abnormal, grinding noise began to emit from the brake pedal upon depression without warning. The contact had to pump the brake pedal as the pedal depressed to the floorboard before coming to a complete stop. The contact then took the vehicle to an independent mechanic who informed him that the failure was a known issue with this model vehicle. The mechanic informed him that the vehicle might be under recall. The contact then called a local dealer where he was informed that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The manufacturer had yet to be notified of the failure. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 275,000.
Dt*: the contact stated while driving 5 MPH, the brakes failed, causing an accident. Two occupants in the vehicle directly in front of the contact's vehicle were injured. That vehicle was totaled and the occupants were taken to the hospital by ambulance. There were no details about the injuries sustained. There was a total of five vehicles involved in the collision. The contact's vehicle sustained damage to the grill, bumper and both front fenders. The air bag deployed and the seatbelt was worn. The three other vehicles sustained minor damage, although no information was available. A police report was taken. The vehicle was taken to the service dealer, but the vehicle was not part of NHTSA recall # 05V379000 for the service brakes: hydraulic: antilock. The manufacturer was notified.
Dt: while driving at 45 MPH and under the brakes failed to engage properly. The car will not stop properly. The consumer has to pump on the brakes to stop-sometimes this did not work. The vehicle was taken to Chevrolet dealer, and they said there was a problem with the ABS brakes. No repairs or corrections were made. At one incident the consumer was towing a horse trailer at 45 MPH. When brake pressure was applied, there were no brakes, a complete failure, causing the horse trailer to jackknife. The brakes failed and engaged and failed and engaged as reported by the consumer. This resulted in the trailer damaging the vehicle, trailer, and injury to the horses. There have been no repairs or corrections made to the ABS system at this time.
While driving my 99 Tahoe down a 4 lane road, a drunk had pulled out infront of me. I had slammed on my brakes and swerved to avoid him but still hit him pretty hard in his rear quarter panel. As a result of the accident, I had suffered a double hematoma to my brain and had brain surgery to stay alive. My complaint with my Tahoe is 1) my airbag in my steering wheel did not deploy. I think if it did, my injury would have been avoided. 2) I question the stopping ability if my anti dive front brakes. I was on the brakes hard with the vehicle nosing down but I think my stopping distance should have been shorter.
Chevy Tahoe 1999, we have owned this vehicle for four years and put 40,000 + miles on it, it now has 102,000 miles. In that time frame we have had to replace the front roters and pads four times. In January of 2002 I had an accident at slow speed in slushy road conditions where the vehicle did not stop over a travel distance of 100'+/- it was blamed on driver error and poor road conditions, since that time we had a complete failure of the front brakes with no accident and fortunately no injury. A third incident resulted in no property damage or accident.
Tl* the contact owns a 1999 Chevrolet Tahoe. The contact stated that while driving at a slow speeds and depressing the brake pedal, the ABS would erroneously activate and the vehicle would not immediately respond causing the stopping distance to be increased. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the ABS sensors failed. The failure was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 21,000. Updated 01/11/2017 the consumer stated the ABS system would not activate at 21,000 miles.
Dt*: the contact complained about increased stopping distance and inappropriate activation of the ABS brakes at low speeds which resulted in the vehicle striking a garage door with minor damage to the vehicle. There was NHTSA recall campaign 05V379000 regarding the ABS brakes. The vehicle had the same problems as indicated in the recall; however it was not included in the recall due to the VIN. There were no injuries, and police report was required. The dealer repaired the vehicle as instructed in the recall. Updated 01/25/06.
Tl* the contact owns a 1999 Chevrolet Tahoe. While driving various speeds, the brakes would seize and release without warning when the brake pedal was depressed. In addition, the vehicle shook violently. The dealer was unable to duplicate the failure. The contact then took the vehicle to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the ABS failed and needed to be repaired. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.
Tl contact owns a 1999 Chevrolet Tahoe. During deceleration, the antilock system engages and the vehicle will not stop. The contact had two minor crashes and the vehicle sustained damage to the bumper both times. The dealer replaced the speed sensors in March of 2007. In January of 2008, the failure recurred. The current mileage was 100,130 and failure mileage was 93,000. Updated 02-12-08 bf * updated 02/12/08
Brakes acted funny at stops - would slow down then keep moving until I slammed on brakes. Had the brakes checked and was told they were fine. On Friday 11/10/06, I was moving my 1999 chev Tahoe lt 4x4 - took my foot off the brake and it would not stop when I put the brake to the floor to miss a building. The vehicle ran into a building causing damage to the building and injuries to me, the driver and only passenger.
NHTSA investigations
Unwanted low-speed ABS activation
In a letter dated August 29, 2005, GM notified odi that it was recalling certain model year 1999 through 2002 c/k pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles to correct a problem with anti-lock brake system (ABS) wheel speed sensor corrosion that May result in unwanted ABS activation and extended stopping distances during low-speed braking (recall 05v-379).GM's recall covers approximately 804,000 vehicles currently…
Brake complaints in other Tahoe years
Frequently asked questions
How common are brake problems on the 1999 Chevrolet Tahoe?
NHTSA has 249 complaints about the brakes of the 1999 Chevrolet Tahoe, 45% of the model year's 552 complaints. The component named most often is antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip (161 mentions).
Is there a recall for 1999 Chevrolet Tahoe brake problems?
No. NHTSA lists no brakes recall for the 1999 Chevrolet Tahoe, though it has 1 recall for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 1999 Chevrolet Tahoe brake problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 97,000 miles, and 3% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 23 crashes, 0 fires and 11 injuries to brakes problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.