Faults:
The problems that I have had with my S-10 were that the upper and lower ball joints needed to be replaced on the control arms, the power steering pump seal and the passenger side front wheel bearing needed to be replaced. I probably could have prevented having the upper and lower ball joints from being replaced if I had not been driving through a couple feet of water while off-roading and if I had greased them as often as I do now. The other problems were just bad luck. The front brakes started to give me a problem because they were not disengaging all the time after braking which ended up being a problem with the master cylinder, but the front brakes also needed to be replaced and the rotors turned because of this. These problems were fixed under my extended warranty when the truck was just over 3 years old.
General Comments:
Other than that, the S-10 has been great. I had the Rhino spray-on bed liner installed soon after I bought the truck and a soft tonneau cover. The 4.3L coupled with the 700R4 transmission is a great combination. The engine has good low-end torque for accelerating and hauling. I have helped people move many times and the eye-hooks in the bed are very handy when strapping things down. One time I loaded the bed with cinder blocks, which probably exceeded the payload capacity of the truck, and the truck had no problems with it. It handled drastically different, but that was expected with that much weight. I have had the truck for 6 years and it just hit 50,000 miles. Recently, the brakes needed to be replaced during an inspection. This was the first time for the rear brakes. The rotors in the rear also needed to be replaced. The front brakes were replaced and again the rotors were just turned. I am beginning to hear a squeaking noise when I drive in reverse, which I think is coming from the U joints on the drive shaft. But all in all, I am happy with my S-10. I was tempted to trade it in because of the good deals GM was having with their employee discount for everyone, but I have become very attached to it. I have heard that the engine and transmission can last even into the 200,000-mile range as long as there is regular maintenance done. All manufacturers have their lemons from time to time, we just hope that we do not get one. I will probably keep the truck as long as I can.
16th Oct 2005, 08:10
Doesn't sound too bad to me if that's really all that's gone wrong in 80k over 5 years.