Chevy S10 pickups (auto, gasket, fuel, tire)

[Jimrob1]

I was going to sell my 2003 S10 this past winter, but then decided not to. Though I drive it very little, when I do it runs very well. I bought it new in Feb 03, Its a 5spd manual and a 4 cyl, I have maintained it well, and it now has 59,000 miles on it. I wonder for anyone that has owned one has it been a good purhchase for you. What would anyone say is a good life expectancy on this truck model with good maintenance?

[rjl78]

I had two S10s. The first was a 96 with 4 cylinder and automatic. That thing had problems. Mainly a transmission that grenaded about a month before the warranty was up. I purchased is from the company I worked for at the time for a great price. It was the business managers vehicle. So it had an easy life.

I traded it off at 48,000 miles.

The second S10 I bought I wish I would have kept. It was a 2000. 4 cylinder with a 5 speed. Both were extended cabs. The 2000 was a far better pickup. The 5 speed had a bit more power and the mileage was better to boot. I kept the 2000 for about a year. At the time I needed a bigger pickup. I moved up to a 3/4 pickup... Talk about quite a change.

Proper care they should last a long time... 200,000 miles before any engine work would needed to be done. Might have to replace the clutch before that. Depends on how its drove.

Like I said I still miss the 2000...

[Donn2390]

Originally Posted by Jimrob1

I was going to sell my 2003 S10 this past winter, but then decided not to. Though I drive it very little, when I do it runs very well. I bought it new in Feb 03, Its a 5spd manual and a 4 cyl, I have maintained it well, and it now has 59,000 miles on it. I wonder for anyone that has owned one has it been a good purhchase for you. What would anyone say is a good life expectancy on this truck model with good maintenance?

I reecently sold my '91 S-10 PU with just over 160 K miles on it. It was in perfect condition with no major work done on engine or trans. I see no reason it won't go many more trouble free miles before needing any work.
My reason for selling it was it was a basic, no frills model, and I wanted something a little fancier.
I looked long and hard at the new Colorado's, but decided, because of the cost, and the new, yet unproven engine, I opted for another S-10. I found a loaded '03 S-10 extended cab with only 9400 miles on it, brand new for all practical purposes. I expect this truck to outlast me, since I don't put on a lot of miles anymore. This is the third S-10 I have owned personally.
During my working career, I was a Fleet Supervisor for a Government fleet, and we purchased many S-10's during my years with the company. They were excellent vehicles and provided many trouble free miles for us. If we had found them not to be great vehicles, we would not have continue to purchase that type vehicle.
If properly maintained, they should last you well over 100 K miles, and 200 K isn't out of the realm of possibility.

[Jimrob1]

Thanks for all the comments and info. I still see alot of older S10's on the road and parked around town. I never get to ask the owners how they like their trucks, so this website provided that info.

[southernnaturelover]

I used to have a 2001 S-10 that I bought brand new. It was 4cyl/5spd and I put about 30k miles on it before I traded it, never had any problems with it. The older S-10's ('82-'93) used a different engine than the newer ones, they used the 2.5L "Iron Duke". The newer S-10's ('94+) use the same 2.2L engine that is used in the Cavalier. As far as I know the only real problem with them is blown headgaskets, but as long as you don't overheat it you should get a long life out of it.

[rjl78]

My only complaint about the 2.2 it was no power. OK for Cavalier and Malibu... For a compact pickup I thought there might be a better option. Even a 3.1 V6 would have been a step up and just as good of mileage IMO.

[southernnaturelover]

Originally Posted by rjl78

My only complaint about the 2.2 it was no power. OK for Cavalier and Malibu... For a compact pickup I thought there might be a better option. Even a 3.1 V6 would have been a step up and just as good of mileage IMO.

I agree there. I also remember mine came with a 4.10 rear end, so even though it was a 4cyl, it still drank gas on the highway like a V6.

[rjl78]

Originally Posted by southernnaturelover

I agree there. I also remember mine came with a 4.10 rear end, so even though it was a 4cyl, it still drank gas on the highway like a V6.

Yup... I forgot about the 4.10 gearing. Power of a 4 economy of a 6

[Deez Nuttz]

Well I myself have owned 3 S-10 pick ups.

The first one is a 93. I still have it. It currently has 177,800 miles on it and still running strong. Has the anemic as hell 2.8 liter V6 and T-5 manual trans. Doesn't mave much more than 5 hp and 10 ft torque than a 2.2 but it does get 20/26 mpg. Still an excuse of power for a V6. Has had one clutch replaced at 63k and still on clutch #2 despite all the clutch dumps and tire roasting I've done to it. Water pump and starter were replaced at 145k and radiator at 172k. I keep the oil changed every 3k but have ran it hard. The paint is gone to hell, headliner falling down, seats ripped, door panels faded/ripped, jimmy wrigged head lamp switch, all of this normal wear and tear but she still fires up every morning and never skips a beat. Just don't get the 82-85 S-10's with the 2.8 because they're notorious for throwing rods and breaking cranks....they beefed up the bottom end in '86.

Second one was an 84. Good truck but had it's 1.9 liter 4 cylinder and 4 speed replaced with a mild 350 V8 with 3 speed auto trans. Poor mans hot rod if you will but fast....ran 13's in the 1/4 mile.

Third one was a 97.....48k miles on 4.3 liter V6 and 4L60E trans....#6 rod bearing walked out causing catastrophic damage to crank, oil pump, rod bearings.....then the trans had shifting problems....then the a/c went south and costed $900 to repair....overall a nice truck but seemed to be plagued with problems....sold it for a steal and the truck was pretty cherry too...for an S-10.

Now I'm wanting to find one with a 4X4 package but everyone seems to say they're junk.

Also IMO if you're going to get one get the 4.3 liter....especially the 96 and up trucks as they're peppy enough to get out of their own way. The 4.3 was the only engine ever worth a damn in the S-10....should have been the base engine with a V8 as an option.

[southernnaturelover]

I always thought they should have used the 3800 V6 in the S-10's, it would have combined good power and fuel economy.