4.3 power, comfy seats, dead reliable, cheap to fix or modify.

Lots of squeaks and rattles. Hard shifts.

Low repair costs, mine never stranded me. Good looks, excellent power. This is a truck for people who like small powerful trucks.

Similar Products Used:

1999 GMC Sonoma 2.2- I'll take mine

You've gotta love the 4.3 liter V-6 engine, or the 3/4 small block. 160HP and 200ft.lbs. of torque. The automatic transmission is excellent! Although I've modified mine a bit, it still gets 20MPG no matter what! With 31x10.50x15 Sport King tires and the 3.08 "economy" gearing. I just turned 175,000 miles over on the stock drivetrain. The 2.72:1 Low-range in the transfer case is the lowest you can get in a mini-truck! The design of the body is excellent, sharp without being too boxy, and you can get custom parts cheap for them also.

The few weaknesses I've found are the front brakes can become over-taxed at times, the regular cab is a bit cramped for 2 adults(4x4 anyway), and the sheetmetal used in the bodies is prone to rusting-bedsides,rockers,cab corners,etc.

I would recommend it to someone young looking for a quality off-road vehicle thats cheap to insure, easy to manuver, and will tow 5000# with no complaints. I have two other S-10s also, a 1989 S-10 Blazer 4x4 with 167,000 miles and a 1985 S-10 4x4 with a 350 engine. True the suspension rides rough unless you carry weight in the rear, and there were problems with some components, but none of my vehicles have ever left me stranded!
How many other STOCK mini 4x4's can you fit 31" tires on, AND still have the power to turn them? I plan on getting AT LEAST 200,000 miles from my drivetrain, possibly more, and I run the crap out of it!

Similar Products Used:

The 1st generation S-series won hands down against the '98 Ranger, Dakota, Toyota Tacoma, and Frontier I test drove. The Ranger's 4.0L engine had NO POWER! and a 5 speed auto, come on! The Dakota's 5.2L V-8 got only 16MPG at best with 235/75R15 tires, the Tacoma had either the WiMPy 4 cyl or an OHC V-6, and the Nissan had a high low-range and no horsepower! S-10 won in my book.

Great Hangling with ZQ8 Suspension, Good Power from 4.3L V6. Comfortable and Roomy.

Leaky Engine, audible tick from engine compartment. Blown A/C Compressor within 1 year, as well as exhaust manifold gasket.

Great Handling, moderately powered compact truck. Best in it's class. Comfortable interior, well placed controls. This truck has been pretty much rock solid since day one. I love the way the ZQ8 suspension handles, and the power of the 4.3 Litre V6, with the help of a few minor modifications has really impressed me. THis truck really gets the job done hauling as well. Thanks to the Torque numbers the V6 provides for moderate towing easily. You are only limited by the somewhat disappointing brakes.
I feel that these trucks are fairly overpriced with the given options, but one could be had cheaper with a little shopping savvy.

Similar Products Used:

Not as roomy as Ford Ranger, but I think it excels in all other aspects to any compact truck on the market.

this truck will last a lifetime it has over 400K miles on it nobody hardly belives that but its true it has a great engine with plenty of power for a 2.5L

sucky brakes and no A/C

this truck is so reliable i cant stress that enough it has a crack in the block and will still bark 3rd gear easily (not that u should be barking any gear) it has a few rust holes but nothing a little fiberglass cant hide

Similar Products Used:

it will SMOKE all 2.2 S-10s thats all ive owned is S-10s

Toughness, Goes anywhere, does anything!

Seat Recliner Handles!!! Brake system sucks!

This truck is awesome as a long time Ranger owner (had 3 of them all brand new) I must say I am now an avid GMC/Chevy Fan. My 98 Sonoma Highrider 4x4 King Cab has gone everywhere, even some places full sizes dared to tread. I have totally submerged the truck in a creek crossing, and it kept going, not even a sputter, pulled out Full Size trucks that had all 4 buried in mud up to the rockers, and travelled in the worst of snowstorms (here in the mt's of NH we know about snowstorms!) without worry, this truck never gets stuck with the BF Goodrich all terrain 31" t/a tires on it (stock with the highrider package) unless you frame hang it (Oops). Only Drawback, at least with the Automatic, if you want staight speed, buy the 4.0 Ranger, but if you want Power, go Chevy/Gmc vortec 4.3 in the short haul (1/4" mile) the ranger will kick the GMC's butt, but in the long haul, the ranger is a speck in the mirror. Only Drawbacks, the truck has a few sqeeks (but hey, its a truck! get over it!, the recliner handles on the seats SUCK and break often, but they aint expensive) and the ABS system needs to be a little less touchy (But I hate ABS anyways so I may eb biased) Overall THE BEST TRUCK FOR THE BUCK IN ITS CLASS!

Similar Products Used:

88, 91, 92, and 93 ranger 2.9, 3.9 and 4.0, The Sonoma will outwork, and outperform the Ranger anyday WAY more power from the Vortec 4.3 and a lot less repairs.

CAN'T BEAT A S-10 OFF ROAD..I'VE BEEN DRIVING THEM FOR YEARS AND I LIKE THE WAY THEY GO IN MUD AND OVER ROCKS...EXCELLENT SUSPENSION

BRAKES DON'T WORK HALF THE TIME...YOU HAVE TO SAY THE WORDS " OH S#@% " ALOT CUZ YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN THE BRAKES ARE GONNA WORK...NOTHING DEPENDS CAN'T TAKE CARE OF...I LIVE IN A VERY SMALL COMMUNITY "THANK GOD" AND MOST EVERYONE KNOWS I HAVE TROUBLE WITH MY BRAKES AND STAY OUT OF MY WAY..WE ALL KNOW THE 4.3L KICKS BUTT SO IF YOUR EVER IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH OUT FOR THE BLUE S10 4X4---I HAVE THE RIGHTAWAY WHOOA...HONESTLY I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY TIMES I'VE MISSED MY DRIVEWAY AND HAD TO TURN AROUND IN NEIGHBORS DRIVE...MAKES ME LOOK VERY STUPID...AND I DON'T NEED ANY HELP

S10 4X4'S ARE AWESOME...WHO CARES IF THEY DON'T STOP...NO FEAR...WILL BUY AGAIN...I COMPLETELY REPLACED THE WHOLE ABS SYSTEM AND IT STILL WON'T STOP ALL THE TIME..OH WELL

Similar Products Used:

TRUE BLUE CHEVY OWNER..WON'T EVEN LEAN ON A FORD..

Our little truck takes the worst beating and still go for more. First bought by my parents as their work car, my uncles and grandparents took it over, using it for the farm. It has 180,000 miles on it. It has had all it's routine maintenence, and we have had not one single performance problem with the truck since they purchased it brand new from the dealer in April of 92. The only thing that went wrong with it was a farm related accident, and a rear end collision (which sadly took the tailgate). The 5-speed manual is fun to drive, it is the only car i use to refresh my skills on stick.

When you buy standard equiptment, it really makes the car suck! Thank God we had the 4.3 V6 and a Cassette Deck! The bench seat is hard to move in, especially with no tilt steering! It is a pain in the ass to get in that truck if you are big and tall. Normal age problems are occuring... paint hipping, doors are bent, no tailgate, rearview mirror fell off.

The Chevrolet S-10 is a great reliable and dependable pickup that will never let you down and always take a thrashing and survive only for more! Serving a great life as our primary farm truck.

Similar Products Used:

The last truck we had before then was a '79-'82 Chevy Custom Deluxe Full Size Truck. A big clunker if you ask me. The S-10 could run circles around it. I am just thankful that my parents are smart enought to buy Chevy trucks, not those God-awful Fords (especially Rangers!)

Interior comfort @ 6'1", good reliable engine/transmition package, functional third door, respectable handeling,

Where do I start?!?!? After 2 years and 21,000 miles on the road, the truck has: Shock leaking oil, loud AC condenser noise, brake rotors going bad(Need turned), CD player malfunctioning, all out of warranty. The giggest dissapointment with this truck is the interior squeaking and rattling. The inside of this thing rattles like a 80's camero (if your old enough to know what I'm talfing about. Mostly due to the firm suspension but it REALLY SUCKS. The gas milage is the other issue. How can they produce a 2001 full size 4WD that gets 23 mpg but only squeak 21 mpg out of a sonoma V6? Because unlike the Japanese, they are using engine technology thats 20 years old and we still buy it! Sad but true. Shop around!!!

I am not at all happy with this truck. The performance is great with the V6 and it drives almost like a car in 2WD but my final impression is that its CHEAPLY MADE.(See weaknesses) I had looked at a few other mid sized trucks before buying this one and thougt the sonomma was the best, but in reflection I wish I had bought a full sized Ford or Chevy.

Similar Products Used:

None

Exterior looks, interior is appealing. All the controls seem to be layed out nicely. 5 speed shifts smoothly. I like the pop out ext'd cab window's, armrest for the driver and the drink holder actual works great, which seems to be a problem with many vehicles. Don't buy a vehicle with a crappy drink holder!

The 4 cylinder engine leaves me wanting more horsepower. It has enough to get out of the way but not much more. Rear child seats are not real practical. No full grown adult in there right mind is going to sit back there. It's not a family vehicle at all. 2 people comfortably, that's it. Sliding rear window latch is a little cheap. The 2wd model runs terribly in the snow and ice. Even with brand new tires and about 350 lbs of weight in the back, it would still spin like crazy. However in Colorado they don't know how to plow and don't believe in salt for the roads so it's often worse than other areas back east.

Overall the truck has been pretty good. No major mechanical problems. It doesn't ride as smooth as a car, but that's because it's a truck. I own the 4 cycle version which at times I wish was a 6. But it does ok, and gets better gas mileage. I think the extended cab is a must in the smaller trucks. Maybe with a full size pickup you wouldn't need one as much, but with the smaller trucks there just isn't enough room. The breaking doesn't exactly feel like your going to stop on a dime. But does ok. The anti-lock brakes are noisy as hell when they kick in. But I would much rather have noisy and working, over non-anti lock breaks. The back end does seem to sag a lot with a load in the back. Invest in heavy springs, I didn't. Overall, my only major regrets in the model and year I have is that I did not get a 4wd and I don't have air conditioning. Otherwise I think I would drive it till the wheels fall off.

Similar Products Used:

Haven't driven a Ford Ranger, Toyota, or a Dodge. So I couldn't fairly compare them. I don't like the way the Fords look, Wouldn't drive a Toyota, and haven't heard too many favorable things about the Dakota's. However the V-8 option does sound appealing in the Dodge along with it being slightly bigger than the Chevy's

paint still looks like new. Very comfy ride. ( I'm 6'2" and 230 )

BRAKES!!!!!!!Stop well but wear out. 9 sets of front pads, originals in the rear still.

This has been a WORKHORSE!!! 175000 miles and the only problem was and is brakes. I've hauled my 18' Bass boat all over the midwest and this truck has never flinched. I abuse her and she asks for MORE. off-road, snow, man I could do a Chevy commercial!

Similar Products Used:

If only they all lasted and worked this well. In fact I'm going this week to look at a new one.