Sneaking onto the market before the Ford Ranger as America’s first home-produced small truck, at least for the “big three”, the Chevrolet S-10 was offered in the U.S. and Canada until 2004. This example has to be the nicest one left and it’s listed here on eBay in Monroe, North Carolina, and the current bid is $7,100, but the reserve isn’t met. The seller lists a buy-it-now price of $11,500 if you can’t wait.
The S-10 (and GMC S-15) went on for a few additional years in Brazil after production ended here, and now Chevy’s smallest pickup is the Colorado, a huge thing compared to the tiny S-10. We know here at Barn Finds that any time we mention “the first”, “the last”, “the biggest”, “the fastest”, “the whatever…” it gives an opening to prove us wrong. Most of us aren’t know-it-all automotive scholars making huge money doing this, and we do make mistakes. All we ask is that you keep things semi-polite when you correct us. Just for the record, I know that the S-10 wasn’t the first small pickup made in America, although, the first-generation S-10 was made from 1981 for the 1982 model year until the end of 1993.
The Crosley pickup was really small, and there were others as small or smaller than the S-10 from independent manufacturers. Back to this incredible truck. A college friend had a truck exactly like this one, other than his had a five-speed rather than an automatic as this one is wearing. The condition of this three-owner truck is nothing short of amazing, it’s truly nice enough to be in a museum. The underside looks great and the seller says it’s rust and leak-free. This truck would have been around $8,800 new in 1993, the equivalent of $19,220 today. Can a person get a small pickup for $20,000 today?
The seller does believe it may have been repainted at some point, so it apparently isn’t 100% original, for those of you keeping track (maybe I’m the only one keeping a spreadsheet). They mention replacing the body side moldings and the wheel trim rings and center caps, and the interior looks equally nice. You know you’re dealing with an honest seller when they show so many great photos, including many detailed photos and even a photo or two of tiny cracks on the top of the padded dash, just so the next owner isn’t surprised. Very well done, seller!
The super clean engine compartment is where a Chevrolet 4.3-liter OHV V6 lives, with somewhere around 170 horsepower. It’s sent to an automatic and finally to the rear wheels and this one drives nice, according to the seller, and everything works as it should. I don’t know if I’ve seen a nicer S-10, have you?
Wow. Looks sharp in white. Love the front end, and factory sport wheels.
4.3 will move this out really well.🏁
A/C is icing on the cake.
My ‘92 ext. cab’s rims were black paint with silver highlight paint on the “star” edges … really popped for steel rims, but these all-silver work too.
Back when this was new, in my opinion, this short bed single cab S10 with a 4.3 V6 was a hot rod. I remember one of the car magazines testing one equipped like this with an opening picture of the rears smoking up a storm. When I first saw it I figured it was a 4 cyl. Stick shift. But when I looked at the ad I couldn’t believe it. This is a great truck in what appears to be in immaculate condition. Hope it goes to a great new home and continues to get the care it deserves.
I worked for NAPA auto parts as a summer delivery driver while in high school and we got a brand new S10 in 1990. It had the 4.3 v6 and was a blast to drive. it was also white 2wd had AC and vinyl flooring. Everyone wanted to drive that as the other trucks were older and well beat along with several chevy Chevette 4 banger 4 speeds that were also well abused !! I bought myself a brand new 1993 s10 blazer with the 4.3 vortec V6 now that was a really fun ride !
In ‘93 this series of S-10 truck had been around for 11 years and was 100% better than the original 1982 version that I purchased.
Ended up with a’92 extended cab and 5 speed transmission that was a great little truck.
I currently daily drive a 16 Colorado 4wd that these supposedly morphed into…wish GM would go back to this size truck but it will likely never happen.
Nice looking truck. I had an early S-10, 1986 4×4 with 2.8L and 4speed. It was a good truck but the 2.8 was a slug. The 4.3 was a major update for this little truck. Wish they made something like this today.
As a kid working at a Chev Olds dealer in early 90’s I drove both. The 2.8 was so slow it was dangerous, a slug may be faster. The manual transmission didn’t help much.
The 4.3 was a welcome change. If I find a nice one near me one day, I won’t even consider a 2.8 and will walk away no matter how nice it is.
I had one identical to this, 4.3, white. That thing would run out from under you! About 4 weeks after I got the truck, my son hit a cow with it. Total loss, truck and cow. Son not hurt. Didn’t even get a steak out of the whole ordeal.
My first new vehicle was a 1985 Chevy S-10 with the 2.5L 4-banger with a 4 speed. No AC, no radio, no power steering, no power brakes…no power anything except “armstrong steering.” It had pep, would hold its own at highway speeds, and got around 22 mpg. It was fun to drive, although the plastic vinyl seats, the lack of AC (and no ductwork in the dash!), coupled with the south Texas summer heat made it impossible to keep it. Sold it for about the same as I paid for it 6 years later. This one brings back a lot of memories – but this one’s a whole lot nicer!
I had 2 S-10s, they were nice trucks and got the job done.
The 4.3 was like a 350 with 2 cylinders cut off, it was a ballsy engine and got better gas mileage then the 5 cyclinder piece of crap that GM brought out in 2005!
Nice truck I wish the Chevy and Ford still built them its sad to know that this 32 year old truck is better built , more dependable and will out last the trucks both Chevrolet and Ford build today
I had an ’87 single cab with an Edelbrock equipped 350/350 combo that could pass anything but a gas station. These are fun trucks. My current project is a 2nd Gen ’01 extended cab that I am slowly resto-modding.
Nice one Pairs. Like the front end treatment 😎 👍
Scotty makes an interesting point about pricing in 1993 vs 2025. You can’t buy any new vehicle today for the equivalent price of this when new. We will never see new vehicles again that are truly affordable. There is too much money to be made selling $45,000 Chevy Colorados. Or $65,000 Silverados for that matter. And the really funny thing is that the bed in this S-10 is as big as the overpriced four door behemoths prevalent today. More accessible too. Besides, buyers today must be cosseted. What? No Apple Car Play? No safety nannies? No hands free driving? Perish the thought. Some smart buyer will be happy to get this one. GLWTS.
My ’93 S-10 Tahoe is the opposite of this one color wise; I bought it from the original owner and although not quite as nice as this one, I still LOVE it!! :-)
nice S10………. just not sure its $11,500 nice ?
Thanks, Paul! I was just coming here to list the selling price but you beat me to it.
Geez, I don’t know where my original comment went, but I’ll try again. I had a ’02 Sonoma ext. cab with the 4.3 V6 & pw/pl & p mirrors & a/c.
I upgraded it with 8-way leather heated p seats, an overhead console with compass & temp. readings, a self- dimming mirror and a center console w/ cupholders. The Mn. salt ate it up in spite of my valiant efforts. Traded a strong runner at 167,000 miles for a ’04 LeSabre Ltd.
The one in the ad sold for $11,500 today.
Well bought and well sold. IMO. My friend had one of the earlier ones (1980 something) with a 4cyl in it. It was a real cracker box of a vehicle but became a lot of fun when he put a built 350 in it.
A 350? Cool! Must’ve been doing wheelies sitting in the garage! Lol!
I love this generation of GM trucks and SUV’S. I keep on the lookout for a same gen Blazer with the 4.3 and 4wd, for decent $ and not on the left coast for our run around SUV. The farther we get into newer stuff, the less I can fix myself, the more I want old vehicles.
Ever since seeing an 82 S-10 I wanted one. I went to work for a Buick dealership in 85 as a technician and when we got a GMC franchise in 88 I was able to buy a white long bed S-15 at employee pricing. I had very few issues with it until I had to overhaul the transmission at 255000 miles. At 287000 miles I was rear ended on I-4 in Orlando by some guy who had been sending texts. The driver and passenger doors were the only straight panels left on my still showroom looking truck. I was not hurt but my truck was destroyed since both ends had significant damage. The truck pictured here brought back a flood of memories. Thanks
Nice truck! The only thing it needs here in the snow belt is 4WD, IMHO. The tail tends to step out in the snow unless you keep some weight in it, but other than that, a very nice “Home Depot Hauler”. These used to be called compact trucks, but like so many cars and trucks in North America, they’ve gotten bigger, heavier and thirstier over the years, and it hasn’t been an improvement. The Asian manufacturers that started the whole mini truck craze have also jumped on the “bigger is better” bandwagon, and have also abandoned a market they once owned, and this truck was designed to compete in. The nearest modern equivalent to this truck is the Ford Maverick “semi truck”, with unibody construction in place of a full frame, a crew cab and short bed in place of a standard cab and long bed, and a price probably 50% higher than a modern equivalent of what this truck would cost if built today.