1999 Chevrolet S-10 LS from North America - Comments

Drivers side seat recline adjustment handle broke off.

Drivers door is sagging slightly because of bad door pins. Also must be slammed to close the door properly.

Oil leak and a nasty oil film are building up on the engine because of a faulty valve cover. The baffles inside the valve cover have sealant around them, and after a while, the sealant deteriorates and oil is pulled from the crankcase through the PCV system. You have to replace the valve cover to correct this concern, there's a bulletin available at GM dealerships, which explains more in depth. This concern happens on 2.2 engines mostly.

E-brake cable keeps coming off of release handle assembly. If this happens to you, just reach way under the dash behind the E-brake pedal, and you can manually release the E-brake.

Faulty passenger side wiper blade dug into windshield and left a permanent wiper outline.

Blower motor resistor went bad, which caused the fan to only work on HI.

Bed is sagging, caused by bad or worn out leaf springs (if you look, you'll notice a lot of 2WD S-10s with the same problem).

Check engine light came on - crankshaft position sensor had to be calibrated. You need the tech 2 scan tool to perform the recalibration.

Interior:

The trucks seats are comfortable, but for a man of 6'3, you really need more leg room. Nice of GM to include a drivers seat lumbar support, not often seen on pickups.

The controls are really laid out well, and everything is right where you'd expect it to be. The interior design is really modern looking and attractive. Plenty of power outlets to use (3 if you include cig. lighter in ashtray).

Convienient center armrest with a fold up lid to keep pens and other small items, and 2 cupholders along with another storage bin on the floor. Also cupholders and map pockets in the doors too.

The center seat is really only suited for children, wayyy too small for an adult except in an emergency.

Exterior:

Chevrolet did a good job designing this truck. If you're going for looks, get the regular cab, but if comfort is what you need, go for the extended cab. Really nice lines this truck has, along with bulged fender flares and an attractive front end. My truck has the upgraded wheels package, which look awesome, much better than the work truck steel wheels they come with as standard equipment.

Engine/transmission:

The 2.2 4 cylinder is economical and quiet, but lacks pep for city driving and highway passing. The spicer built manual gearbox is best suited to the underpowered engine, with short throws and a solid 'click' feel when changing gears. One complaint of mine is that at 70mph, in 5th gear the truck runs at 3,000 rpms which makes the truck sound louder and burns more gas. Anything faster than 70 and you can really hear the motor working hard at those high rpms.

I always liked having a standard, so I could pop start it if I killed the battery, but I found out the hard way that the truck's security system will keep you from doing this. Not a huge problem though because these trucks have battery run down protection as standard equipment. Unless you regularly haul heavy loads or tow, stay away from the gas guzzling underpowered 4.3 V6! The 2.2 is much more reliable and requires less maintenance. (ie, oil cooler lines)

Aftermarket parts:

Plenty of manufacturers offer a wide veriety of parts, from cold air intakes and computer chips, to clear euro lenses and air bag suspension. Be careful when choosing after-market parts, because many a time I have been burned by parts that don't fit correctly, or have been poorly manufactured.

I strongly recommend upgrading the truck's factory speakers with a good quality set. The GM factory CD player stereo is sufficient unless you plan on powering huge speaker boxes and amps. These trucks can be a lot of fun to upgrade if you do the work properly.

Common S-10 problems:

Here is a list of typical design flaws and problems with the S-10 2WD 4cyl.

- 3rd door handle commonly breaks off

- Drivers and passengers seat recline adjustment handles break off

- Head gasket leaks

- Idler arm.

- Windshield wipers inoperable or stuck (bad wiring)

- Leaf springs have tendency to sag

- Fuel pump

- Secondary AIR pump concerns

Yeah we had a s-10 at one time and all the things you mentioned were bad about it actually happened, but the head gasket went 3 times it's not a very sturdy truck we had numerous problems with it until we junked it and got a Toyota Tacoma that truck now has 292K and it hasn't gave us any problems considering I drive it like I stole it.

Hello just an update on how the truck is doing after 120,000 miles. Well I have not had ANY problems with this truck. I was even rear ended by a GMC 2500 and the truck was totaled by the insurance company. But guess what? I'm still driving it! The frame isn't bent at all and the truck drives in a straight line. You really can't even tell it was in an accident by driving it!

And as far as reliability, the truck has yet to break down. The only thing that broke off was the passenger side seat recline handle. I was wondering when it was finally gonna go. I wish I could change the title of this review to "best small pickup available for the price". Why buy a Toyota and pay more up front when you can buy a S-10 for much less?

I LOVE THIS TRUCK!

Do yourself a favor and BUY ONE!

I drive an S-10 and it's been an average vehicle at best. The fact that 3rddoorhandle.com exists is a testament to one of the oversights that Chevy engineering made in some of the details.

My seat reclining handle also broke. I've had a number of wiring issues. Now when I sit still with it running, my gas gauge goes to empty until I rock back and forth in my seat.

My cruise control also only works when it's set to the off position when my truck is initially started.

I like the functionality of having a pickup and the price was reasonable, but I think I'd rather pay a little more for a quality product. I would only recommend this truck if you can't afford something better. I'm looking foreign thanks to poor American engineering. What a shame.

Hey, just another update from the original reviewer.

The truck is just bulletproof! Have not had ANY problems with it whatsoever!

I love this little truck and I hope to keep it for a good long time, then I will buy another one of course! Keep your overpriced foreign imports.

I think the reason people have had problems with these trucks is because they beat the hell out of them and expect them not to break. Or they neglect to do simple maintenance on them.

I'm sure there's cases where somebody has a truck and does all the maintenance to a T and things still go wrong, but I believe that the way you treat your vehicle goes a long way, although I haven't needed to do ANY maintenance to this truck except oil changes. (synthetic Quaker state lasts me 10K miles and it runs smoother and quieter).

I've driven this truck to PA, ME, NY, NH repeatedly. Also I drove for months in heavy city traffic without any problems. Please just go and buy an S-10 already!!!