Chevy s10 or blazer ls v6 4x4

misfit1

New member
Just bought 2001 chevy blazer ... saw mostly new models on the feed any older gen people out there with overland or off road set ups
.... I currently have had mine for two days and I’m taking her apart for the head gasket for sure and maybe anything else I see .... any recommendations for must have replacements ? I should post pics to get it started but it’s dark now but tomorrow hope to hear from y’all


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Buddha.

Finally in expo white.
I’ve had several S10 trucks. First things that come to mind are steering components that wear out often, leaking oil cooler lines, in radiator trans cooler which has become ineffective over the years. Hot transmission fluid is bad.
Why was the head gasket bad? I’ve never had a head gasket go out. I have had radiators leak at the ends “tanks”. I’d be suspect the radiator has caused a overheat leading to bad head gasket.
Just a wild guess.
 

misfit1

New member
Also does anyone know what is this part that is mounted underneath Er the radiator more on the passenger side ?? It has 3 hoses coming out of it , two of them run to either header and the third (in my case) was a tube leading to nowhere anyone know what the deal is?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

sackettmw

Member
Also does anyone know what is this part that is mounted underneath Er the radiator more on the passenger side ?? It has 3 hoses coming out of it , two of them run to either header and the third (in my case) was a tube leading to nowhere anyone know what the deal is?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Secondary air injection pump.
 

Andrew_S

Observer
Just echoing the second post, steering components and balljoints are going to be a weak point for this truck. Especially if you crank up the t-bars at all. The spider injector design is also a common failure point. Oil cooler as previously mentioned is notorious for hoses failing and leaking. Do an oil cooler delete vs repairing the existing components. Push button 4wd can also be an issue. I believe you can switch to a lokar cable actuated set up with relative ease. Good luck with the build, they are awesome little trucks.
 

Herbie

Rendezvous Conspirator
A lot of common parts to the Astro van (and I've got a Blazer LS transfer case under my van too).

1) Transmission fluid cooler is a must if you're going to be doing any kind of trail work or have a heavy load.
2) Fuel pump is a wear item. We consider the OEM pump to have a max 100k miles service life. Much less than that for cheap replacements. If you don't know if/when it was changed, order your replacement now, and consider swapping it proactively. Keep the fuel filters fresh too.
3) As others have said, the fuel spiders can sometimes be an issue.
4) For front suspension pieces like ball joints and idler arms, the consensus seems to be Moog still the best you can get. The idler arms in particular will take a beating if you crank up the torsion bars and/or fit bigger/heavier wheel/tire package.

SAIS diagrams here may help:

 
  • Like
Reactions: SFP

1stDeuce

Explorer
I had a '98 Sonoma that I used hard. In 120k miles, I did replace the tie rods and pitman arm once. Never touched the ball joints, but I actually greased them, which is something most people don't do. If you hear squeaking from the front on an S10, it's the ball joints, and they've likely never been greased...

As for push button 4wd, there is no cable kit to replace it. There may be for the front axle disconnect, but that's almost never an issue anyway. I would recommend USING the 4wd as often as possible as being the best preventative maintenance for the 4wd system. Not using it allows the grease on the wiper contacts of the actuator motor to gum up, and it'll let you down when you finally do try to use it. I cycled my truck 2wd to 4wd at least a couple times a week, and into low range at least once a month, or whenever I hauled my boat in an out of the water in the summer. You don't have to drive for any distance in 4wd, just push 4wd when you're going straight, and after it completes the shift, go back to 2wd. You can do this anywhere, anytime. Never had an issue with push button 4wd not working in 8 years of Michigan driving.

The S10 platform was really solid. It does have a lower frame than some other SUV's of the time, but with a mild lift and some 30" tires, it'll go lots of places, especially if you have the G80 option for rear locking diff. (Unlikely, but you can check the glove box to see...) I'd find some rear shackles for a ~1" lift, and then crank the front bars for not more than 1" of lift and go. If you crank farther, the ride does degrade as you lose droop travel, and you will see accelerated wear on the steering parts.

Enjoy!!
 

Forum statistics

Threads
185,527
Messages
2,875,533
Members
224,922
Latest member
Randy Towles
Top