Your vehicle report
1999 Chevrolet Lumina
The problems owners report. The recalls to check. The evidence behind each.
Your vehicle at a glance
Complaint patterns and official recall records, kept distinct.
- Owner complaints
- 103
- Received Mar 1999 to Aug 2019
Owner reports
Most reported problems
- 1Plastic intake manifold cracks and leaks coolant15 complaints · 15% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 2Head gasket leaks coolant into engine10 complaints · 9.7% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 3Airbags fail to deploy in crashes6 complaints · 5.8% of this vehicle’s complaints
Official NHTSA records
Recalls to check
- Recall #15V701000General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 1998-1999 Chevrolet Lumina and Oldsmobile Intrigue, 1997-2004 Buick Regal and Pontiac Grand Prix, 2000-2004 Chevrolet Impala, and 1998-2004 Chevrolet Monte Carlo vehicles. The affected vehicles were previously repaired under recalls 08V-118, 09V-116, and 15V-201 to address the possibility that engine oil may drip onto the hot exhaust manifold.
- Recall #09V116000General motors is recalling 1,497,516 my 1997-2003 buick regal, my 1998-2003 chevrolet lumina, monte carlo and impala, my 1998-1999 oldsmobile intrigue, my 1997-2003 pontiac grand prix vehicles equipped with a 3.8L V6 naturally aspirated engine. Some of these vehicles have a condition in which drops of engine oil may be deposited on the exhaust manifold through hard braking.
BrakeNews signals
Flagged complaint patterns
Unusual complaint patterns with no matched recall yet. A flag does not mean a recall will happen.
No problems currently meet BrakeNews’s flagging criteria. This is not a safety rating.
How flags are identifiedComplaint counts reflect reports submitted to NHTSA, not failure rates or a reliability ranking. Reported in these complaints: 10 crashes, 4 fires, 13 people injured, 1 death.
Explore by system
Where do owners report problems?
Choose an area on the car or a system below to explore the reported problems.
Illustrative only; not this vehicle’s exact design. Areas represent complaint categories, not confirmed defective parts.
Showing all 9 listed problems by system.
Engine & powertrain
Brakes
Electrical & lights
Airbags, belts & seats
Steering, suspension & tires
Body, doors & glass
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Driver assistance
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Other
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Complaint history
When NHTSA received these reports. Changes in reporting alone do not establish a change in failure rates.
Show as a table
| Year | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 1999 | 8 |
| 2000 | 12 |
| 2001 | 5 |
| 2002 | 11 |
| 2003 | 12 |
| 2004 | 12 |
| 2005 | 6 |
| 2006 | 4 |
| 2007 | 3 |
| 2008 | 3 |
| 2009 | 6 |
| 2010 | 6 |
| 2011 | 4 |
| 2012 | 0 |
| 2013 | 0 |
| 2014 | 3 |
| 2015 | 0 |
| 2016 | 4 |
| 2017 | 2 |
| 2018 | 1 |
| 2019 | 1 |
| 2020 | 0 |
| 2021 | 0 |
| 2022 | 0 |
| 2023 | 0 |
| 2024 | 0 |
| 2025 | 0 |
| 2026 (to Oct 2026) | 0 |
| Total | 103 |
Problems owners report
Listed groups have at least 3 complaints. The page includes the 20 largest groups plus any additional flagged groups; some complaints are not assigned to a group.
| Problem | Complaints | Share | Share ratio | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plastic intake manifold cracks and leaks coolant | 15 | 15% | – | |
| Head gasket leaks coolant into engine | 10 | 9.7% | – | |
| Airbags fail to deploy in crashes | 6 | 5.8% | – | |
| Fuel tank or line leaks gasoline | 4 | 3.9% | – | |
| Engine suddenly shuts off while driving | 4 | 3.9% | – | |
| Tires blow out or tread separates | 3 | 2.9% | – | |
| Vehicle catches fire from wiring | 3 | 2.9% | – | NHTSA recall #15V701000 |
| Unintended acceleration despite braking | 3 | 2.9% | – | |
| Brakes make grinding or squealing noise | 3 | 2.9% | – |
AI groups complaints by meaning; the groups are approximate. Share ratio compares the problem’s share of this vehicle’s complaints with its share on other vehicles over the last 24 months (shown from 3 recent complaints). A 2× ratio means twice the complaint share, not twice the failure risk. Flags mark unusual shares or recent surges after an AI review of the complaint content. “First signal” does not mean the pattern has persisted continuously.How recall estimates are calculated.
Recalls
NHTSA recall #15V701000October 26, 20151,003,556 vehicles affected
engine and engine cooling: engine; engine and engine cooling: exhaust system: manifold/header/muffler/tail pipe
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 1998-1999 Chevrolet Lumina and Oldsmobile Intrigue, 1997-2004 Buick Regal and Pontiac Grand Prix, 2000-2004 Chevrolet Impala, and 1998-2004 Chevrolet Monte Carlo vehicles. The affected vehicles were previously repaired under recalls 08V-118, 09V-116, and 15V-201 to address the possibility that engine oil may drip onto the hot exhaust manifold.
Engine oil that drips onto the hot surface of the exhaust manifold may result in a fire.
Remedy
The remedy applied under recalls 08V-118, 09V-116, and 15V-201 did not adequately remove the safety risk. Under the improved remedy, dealers will replace the engine’s front valve cover and gasket. Vehicles that are covered by recalls 08V-118, 09V-116, or 15V-201 that have not yet received the original remedy will instead receive the improved remedy under the original recall number. The recall began on February 19, 2016. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Oldsmobile customer service at 1-800-442-6537 and Pontiac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. GM's number for this recall is 15757. Note: Until the improved remedy has been applied, owners are advised to park their vehicle outside since the fire risk exists even when the vehicle is unattended.
NHTSA recall #09V116000April 8, 20091,497,516 vehicles affected
engine and engine cooling
General motors is recalling 1,497,516 my 1997-2003 Buick regal, my 1998-2003 Chevrolet Lumina, monte carlo and impala, my 1998-1999 Oldsmobile intrigue, my 1997-2003 Pontiac grand prix vehicles equipped with a 3.8L V6 naturally aspirated engine. Some of these vehicles have a condition in which drops of engine oil may be deposited on the exhaust manifold through hard braking.
If the manifold is hot enough and the oil runs below the heat shield, it may ignite into a small flame and may spread to the plastic spark plug wire channel and beyond increasing the risk of an engine compartment fire.
Remedy
Dealers will replace the engine’s front valve cover and front-valve-cover gasket with new parts of an improved design and remove the engine’s plastic cover and plastic oil-fill-tube extension, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin during may 2016. Owners may contact Chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, Oldsmobile at 1-800-630-6537, and Pontiac at 1-800-620-7668 or http://www.pontiac.com or http:www.gmownercenter.com.
Other model years
About this data
NHTSA complaints and recalls through October 2026. Complaints are counted once each, however many components they name. Original complaints are on NHTSA's page for the 1999 Chevrolet Lumina.
Problem groups are formed by AI and may be approximate. BrakeNews flags unusual complaint patterns; they are not official defect findings. Investigation reports are written and checked by AI, with no human review. Owner reports do not establish that a defect exists.
Read the methodology and track record · Check current recalls by VIN