Chevrolet S-Series

Price Paid:  $18000.00 from used

Year / Model Reviewed:
2003 S-10 LS Crew Cab

Summary:
I wanted a truck with 4 doors so I could have my kids (car seats) in back and the bed loaded with Home Depot stuff. I chose the S-10 because the Nissan Frontier 4 door truck wouldn't fit child car seats with enough space for a comfortable seat position. I can't afford the Toyota Tacoma 4 door , so, the Chevy was the choice.

Strengths:
Powerful engine - it drives the same even with the bed either empty or full of soil. It climbs steep dirt roads very well(in low 4)and can accelerate while doing so. It is stock and decent for dirt roads with the exception of the clearance - the wheelbase is quite long and tends to hit rocks. This could be fixed with a lift kit.

Weaknesses:
-Gas guage: 15 gallon tank registers at half full when actually there is only 5 gallons in the tank.
-When selecting cool, fresh air (not AC) I notice that it is 5-10 degrees warmer than the outside air temperature. It can get a bit annoying on those days that are warm, not hot, and you don't want to run the AC.
-The doors get misaligned quite easily and do not shut smoothly.
-Some of the interior molding makes noise like it needs to be re-glued or tightend.

Similar Products Used:
Honda CRV (not really in the same class, eh?)

Overall Rating
 2 of 5

Value Rating
 2 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
3.00 of 5, 1.00 votes

Price Paid:  $0.00

Year / Model Reviewed:
2003 chev s10

Summary:
Update to previous reveiw.

Shortly after posting original reveiw, the truck was sold. I recently bumped into the person who bought it and he told me the intake manifold gasket had to be replaced and the ball joints are going. He was thankful to have the extended warranty. Oh yes, the third door continues to need adjusting.

I have found out the intake manifold gasket is a common problem as well the ball joints.

Overall Rating
 3 of 5

Value Rating
 3 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 3.00 votes

Price Paid:  $21000.00 from Orion chev

Year / Model Reviewed:
2003 S10 LS extended cab 2wd

Summary:
2 issues: 1) GM and their dealers 2) the product Bought the vehicle new on 0% financing ( can't go wrong with a free loan ), full extended warranty with the intention to keep it for a long time. I only drive it in the summer and only in the cold part of winter never seen the slushy ,wet, salty stuff. I'm very meticulous about maintenance and staying on top of fixing any problems when they showup, neglect is a recipe for disasster for any vehicle. Within two weeks the third door rattled and a rear shock was leaking ( 200 kiolom ), fixed by the dealer although had to wait for a shock to be ordered. Returned to have shock replaced again had to have third door adjusted. The first winter the starter went and had a whinning noise from rear also third door rattle.Starter replaced, door adjusted again,tech. roadtest for whinning and said it was winter tires ( wrong ). I had performed my own diagnostics by having rear wheels off the ground and spinning them in drive , noise was there. Took it back to dealer and test drive with shop foreman , immediately he said there was a bulletin on this ( hanger bearing ) and the tech should have caught this ( duh ). There were a few rattles fom the center dash, the vents were tweaked and the stereo was replaced. Second winter the starter was acting up again and their was a coolant leak after a minute or so when started again third door rattle ( 3700 kilom ). Took it in for the repairs and told them i would be out of town for a week so they would have plenty of time. When i came back to pick up the vehicle ( Friday ) they told me they couldn't duplicate the problem with the starter and they couldn't find any leak so they put a dye in the cooling system. They told me to drive the vehicle for a 1000 kilometers to circulate the dye and book an appointment for them to use their infrared light to trace where the leak is coming from . I told them that was ridiculous since just running the engine for a period would be enough to circulate the dye , especially when it was dropped off on the Monday and this was on Friday, oh well was their reply. Oh yes the third door was adjusted again. After starting my vehicle in the parking lot and was brushing the snow off I noticed coolant leaking and forming a puddle, at that point I was seeing red.Back inside to tell them, the tech working on the vehicle came out and saw this and said the water pump was faulty and they would have to order one in. That Sunday I went out to start the vehicle and the starter wouldn't engage , called roadside had it towed to the dealership. Monday down to the dealership went out with them and showed it wouldn't start ( funny how that works ), they promised to fix it right away. I do like the " courtesy transportation " part of the warranty, when your vehicle is in for warrenty service they either drop you off and pick you up or provide a loaner vehicle. To date there are 4800 kilometers the third door still rattles the two front shocks are leaking and I'm selling it. I feel the third door is a week point and will be an issue for ever , the stater seems to be an issue in cold climates. The 60/40 seat is not all that comfortable and cheap cloth material. The sevice at dealerships is awful, part of this is the restrictions the manufacturers ( GM in this case ) have on how to do warranty work and how much they pay the dearlerships for the warranty work. It's ridiculous the owner has to first diagnose the problem for what to repair. This is the last North American manufacturer vehicle I'll ever buy, swithching back to Japanese. If you decide on this vehicle make sure there is as much warranty available as possible , you'll need it.

Strengths:
4.3l has lots of power ,good heat / ac, Stereo good features and sound, decent handling and ride, "courtesy transportation" included in warranty

Weaknesses:
Third door , seat comfort and material used, stock parts are poor quality ( shocks, starter ), speakers have good sound but can't handle any reasonable volume the stereo has, warranty service ( awful ), seem to have to order repair parts

Similar Products Used:
92 nissan truck ( fantastic) 94 nissan Maxima (fantastic)

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Price Paid:  $11500.00 from Winter Park Dodge

Year / Model Reviewed:
2003 Chevy S-10 2.2L RWD

Summary:
Nice little truck. 2.2L Engine is waaaaay underpowered and there's no real low end torque to speak of. I knew that when I bought this truck and am not dissappointed by it (Besides, headers and upgrades are relatively cheap for the S-10 series if you want to pep up you 2.2). Bottom line is: Don't expect to impress anyone at the track and don't think you're going to haul the yacht to the marina with the 2.2. The trick is gradual acceleration. If you punch the gas you won't get anywhere fast. But, if you accelerate smoothly, you shouldn't have any problems with most traffic situations. It's very practical for my needs which are hauling my bass and guitar euipment from gig to gig. And all of my and my friends' dealing with the S-10 (4.3 and 2.2) have been nothing but great! I'm looking forward to having this truck for a long time

Strengths:
AC is COLD! Comfortable ride Great ride height

Weaknesses:
2.2L is underpowered

Similar Products Used:
1993 S-10 Blazer

Price Paid:  $9000.00 from Dobles

Year / Model Reviewed:
2003 s-10

Summary:
This truck is so awsome. It beats the mercury mystique by a long shot. Dont ever buy those, they are a huge waste of money. Back to the s-10, it's a great little truck, and handles the road very well. I'd like to recommend this truck to all those chevy fans out there.

Strengths:
GAS MILEAGE!!! It just doesn't burn gas!

Weaknesses:
A little slow off the start.

Similar Products Used:
GMC pickup, and a woman car the mercury mystique, or it should be called th mercury mistake!