Comments: 1-15, 16
Most of the problems with this truck were age and abuse related. My dad put close to 18,000 miles a year on this truck before I got it, and did not maintain it to the best of his ability.
Brake master cylinder failed at 92,000 miles. 18,000 miles a year of steep uphill driving on 18 year old brake lines were the cause of this. My dad drove it for two weeks, only filling it a little before and after work.
Water pump failed at 78,000 miles, but was not a major fault or defect. The car was 16 years old with the original coolant, hoses, and water pump.
AC needed to be recharged every year due to a leak that I could never find.
Wheel bearings were worn out causing rear-end of truck to shake sometimes over 58 mph.
Heater core blew when thermostat stuck at 106,000 miles. My dad put in a thermostat for the wrong car and it got stuck on a hot summer day.
Ignition lock was worn and did not need a key to start it. I thought it was great since it saved me a lot of money on a remote starter, nor did I have to turn the truck off to open the tailgate.
Vacuum leak caused 4 wheel drive not to engage/disengage. Line broke from rust and my stupidity.
This blazer was too easy to break into, especially if you live in the City. It was broken into twice, once for the truck, the second time for a pioneer head unit.
Starter went at 96,000 miles. Not an easy job since the 4 wheel drive system was very much in the way.
Leaks a little oil (half a quart every 4 months) from the rear main seal, barely noticeable, but drips onto exhaust sometimes.
This was my first car when I turned 16, and I loved it.
My dad drove it for seven years before I drove it, and it never left him stranded once. He bought it from a family who had it garage kept with 51,000 miles on it, so maintenance and rust were minimal.
This truck was bone stock, not lifted, not beefed up, and was tougher than 85% of the trucks/SUV out there.
Chevy was not kidding with their advertising claiming the blazer was "built like a rock". It drove through 4 blizzards, 2 floods, mud, and in over 100 degree temperatures.
The floods my dad and I drove through had water up to the hood of the truck, and it simply kept going with 4 wheel drive on of course.
It was slow since it had the underpowered 2.8 liter V6, but sure sounded mean as hell driving down the street. It was a challenge to maintain speed even with your foot to the floor up hills or small grades. However, it didn't have a problem doing 75+ once I installed a better set of Michelin tires though.
The 4 wheel drive system is excellent in these trucks. It was impossible to make it slip, and it would climb/drive through anything you could thing of.
For a 19 year old SUV and my first truck, it looked cool as heck. Midnight Black with a black deer killer bar, fog lights, and a killer black-flame decal in the rear window. Imports feared for their life when they saw this coming down the street.
This truck would refuse to die and never left my stranded. The parts are extremely cheap for this truck, and can be found anywhere. Not to mention you can fix almost anything your self on this truck with the simple set of tools, electrical tape, and twist ties.
Interior rattled along with the rear window a little, but that's why I bought a CD player for it.
The mileage was low on this truck, only 135,000 when I sold it, but the wear was above normal due to the thousands of harsh short trips it drove.
You never had to worry about keeping this truck clean since it had no carpets and a vinyl interior.
Gas mileage was exceptionally good for an SUV, about 24mpg in the city and 27mpg on the highway. Sometimes it would be lower or higher, it all depends how you drive.
I still regret selling this truck and wish I could buy it back to this day. It needed alot of work, and stupidly I bought a 93 eagle talon. The talon now resides under a cover in my backyard with a blown engine, after I invested close to 3 grand just to fix every thing else you could think of.
My suggestion, if you need a great winter beater or off-road warrior, find of these and you will not regret it. If you don't like the 2.8, an engine swap with most Chevy engines out there is very easy. Or you can buy a 88 or newer one with the 4.3 liter engine, just as good.
A good site to check out if you own a blazer or s10 of any year is www.s-series.org. It is a very helpful site, and is useful for modifying or simply maintaining your truck.
All of this stuff about the '86 is true. I own an '86 Blazer sport and it has never failed me once. I've taken it off roadding in snow that came up to the hubcaps and I never got stuck at all. My truck own dirt and snow covered roads, and it has the original suspension. So I say, "Long live the '86's."
I like your story about the 86. I've got an 88 s-10 2.8, no 4x4 though, but he's on his last limb. The tranny is failing and slips going into forth and usually won't go into OD. The engine is real loud and the exhaust train leaks. I want to fix it up and you sound like you have done a lot of work on these blazers and I'm hoping you can tell me what you know. I'm 18 now and have had it since I was 16 and we just rolled over 161000mi a few weeks ago. Id love to get into working on cars, but I don't know much. If you could give me some info or email me @ hiddenshadowfox@yahoo.com Id really appreciate it.
Shaun
La Mirada, CA
Yoiu exaggerated the water crossing up to the hood part. No stock blazer has a snorkle. You would suck water badly and would have to keep the engine at like half throttle to keep water from going up the exhaust pipe into the cylinders. I don't think you have a smokestack either...
But its okay to exaggerate, we all do.
Yes I know stock blazers do not have a snorkel, but I didn't exaggerate the story. There was water up to the hood at one point, but I wasn't driving through it for a long period of time(maybe a minute tops). The water was up to the headlights and at the door locks. I can see it not making it through if it tried to go cross a big water source, but this was only a minute in the middle of a town. However, it did fine also on a flooded highway in 4 wheel low with water up to the wheel wells which was what we drove through the entire trip home from a camping trip. Remember, my dad wasn't trying to "test the limits" of the blazer, just trying to get his kids home alive.
I have tried to explain it on mine because the 2.8 TBI intake was very restrictive,(intake tube connected only to pinhole size inlet for air unless you removed a grommet). The electronics seemed to be very well shielded along with the exhaust, although the battery cables and both headlights (filled with water) had to be replaced shortly afterwards. The air filter was damp, only the interior was soaked (thank god it had vinyl floors and seats).
You can say what you want, but I watched a mini van, a honda passport, and some other cars get trapped with their owners swimming to safety while the little truck that could in 4 wheel low kept going. It wasn't like my dad was being stupid, we were driving on a highway that was flooded from a hurricane, the blazer needed gas, pulled off into a little town and found ourselves smack dab in the middle of 4 feet of water.
Maybe we just got lucky and had God on our side, but all I can say is this truck NEVER EVER LEFT ME OR MY FAMILY STRANDED no matter what. It never failed to start and never failed to get anyone home. It made it through floods, snow, hail, mud (off-roading) and kept going. Despite the problems it had before I sold it still it kept going even though it was 19 years old on mostly original component. Try to say that about most of the new cars and trucks out there today.
I'm actually thinking of buying another old s10 blazer 4x4 since winters are harsh were I go to college. Can't buy trucks this strong anymore except for some of the Jeep Cherokee's, and I kinda miss the truck that was built "like a rock".
I totally agree the s10 blazer is extremely tough in 4x4 a little weak in power though. I use mine to go camping in the back woods with only mud roads and lots of hills. Let me also mention I haul a supply trailer to this camp that weighs more than the blazer itself. It always kept crawling forward against all odds. Only problem I do have is my motor finally let go and can't find an affordable replacement.
The s10 is the best truck I've had mine for 4 years and never once did I get stuck I got a chain that stays on my truck for people thinking they can go down some mean mud roads and 10 to 1 iam the one pulling them out the s10 is mean yea the power isent there, but no problem getting throw mud snow the best vehicle ever think god for s10s.
I owned my S-10 4X4 for 11 years now. I completely went through the truck and recently installed new gears front and back and a rear limited slip differential. The truck has been been mainly on road, but is set up now for a little off roading due to the 3.73 gears and limited slip rear axle. The 2.8 L has been rebuilt and I installed a new BW 5 speed in place of the stock 4 speed and rebuilt the NP 207 transfer case. I have installed 235X15 Michelin's all the way around on after market rims. The AC is new, but could work a little better in the summer. Strong tough and a keeper that's my S-10.
Carl.
I'll be getting my license in about 6 months and an 86' S10 blazer will be my first. My father has let me drive the vehicle off-road and it did remarkably well considering the bald tires. There are a couple things you've mentioned in your story that I object to. Problems we have with the vehicle are the dependability of it starting. It will start after it has sat for awhile, but if you attempt to start the vehicle after it has ran for awhile it won't start it simply clicks. The starter has been replaced about three times in 4 years under low miles because it used to never start also the vehicle cuts in and out while being operated. Obviously I have the "unlucky blazer"
I have a 2000 S-10 Blazer. The bearings are going out at a rate of 1 every 20,000 miles, sometimes less (and I don't have over sized tires). I'm told by my tire dealer that the GM sealed bearings are poorly engineered and fail. Furthermore, there's no way to get into them so it costs me $300 per bearing to replace. I'm out over $1000 in three years. Keep this in mind. By the way my 1989 Blazer is still going strong at 250,000 miles. I'm selling the new one!
In 1993, I purchased a used 1989 S-10 Blazer with the 4.3 liter engine. The mileage is now about 290,000 miles. Most of this is city driving with occasional 60 mile trips.
I have replaced the digital dash, starter coil, and 2 alternators and the upholstery - nothing else. The engine starts easily at the touch of the ignition key. It runs very smoothly. It has never used oil between changes. Recently, there now seems to an oil leak at the rear main seal and no inexpensive way to fix it. My solution is to be careful where I park and use oil absorbents in the garage.
I have a '95 S10 blazer and it can sit at an idle in water and not suck water back up the muffler.
In 1993 I purchased a 1986 GMC, 2.8 and it was my first vehicle. Back in those days, I did some research and everyone who owned one said that they were really durable and some what of a work horse.
A friend of the family who sold cars came across the vehicle at a tow yard. It had front end damage but we fixed it. So, of course it was used with about 79,000.00 miles on it. It has always started and ran like a champ. My 86 has about 120,000.00 miles on it now and is still about 90% stocks. It runs better and has better gas mileage than my 2 mustangs. I have no leaks; I have no rattles, and believe it or not any problems.
I have an after market stereo, along with a 6 disk cd changer and a 3000w class D amp and it doesn’t rattle at all. One thing that I love about the blazer is that there’s a bunch of space inside and the simplicity of the engine. When you look under the hood you see everything and you don’t have to remove a bunch of things to get to something. Newer vehicles, you have to remove a bunch of plastic and coverings just to get at what you need to work on but with the older ones there’s none of those problems.
Also since it’s older it’s cheaper to fix and you don’t really see a lot of them, since people are into that I’m going to put myself further in dept and purchase a brand new vehicle that’s only going to last up to 5 years. That’s if I’m lucky or until something major brakes down and if course I’d have to trade it in and get laughed at and screwed over at the local dealership and we all know that they’d give a guy a fair price for his vehicle, we can trust them.
No thank you, I’ll keep my older vehicle thank you and use the money that I’ll save to purchase a second home. I don’t have to worry about the engine light coming on or sensors that do god knows what going out and costing me extra money. A 2.8 doesn’t have a lot of power but it runs better and is less problematic than the 4.3. It’s not like you can legally speed anyway and gas is well over 3 dollars a gallon now. I’ll take my time and enjoy the scenery, while I listen to my oldies and those other folks can pay more at the pump.
As I’ve aged, I’ve learnt that sometime older is better and in this day and age we should stick to what works and save what we can.
I just bought a 86 s 10 blazer.. hope I get good service from it as my dad did on his 85 he had over 300 thousand miles on it when the head gasket blew, but other than normal mainteance that was all that was ever done to the little 2.8.
I have an 85 S10 4x4 with the little 2.5L 4 cylinder, and I have to say at 165000 miles it still runs great!
I bought it not too long ago for cheap (650). It had a little trouble getting home. Quick tune up the next day fixed it. Haven't had a problem since then.
I've climbed some pretty nice hills in the woods with it, 4 low and first gear can't be stopped!
The only issue I have with it is the stock 4 speed manual and a rattling exhaust shroud. All in all one awesome truck.
My advice to anyone who doesn't have one, buy one!
I just bought an 80's blazer today for 350 bucks, that 2.8 is freakin slow, but good god that thing can't be stopped on the trails.