A list of common annoying S-10 Blazer quirks.
#1
10-01-2006, 11:36 PM
A list of common annoying S-10 Blazer quirks.
Feel free to add some that I may miss here. We all know them well.
* Seatback lever broken drivers side for sure, passenger side also if you ever gave someone a ride.
* Top of steering wheel losing rubberized coating.
* Power mirror switch started to operate sporatically, but now, not at all because rain falls directly on it.
* Drivers seat cloth wearing fast at point between seat and backrest
* Angle of windshield causes abnormal sandblasting "fun in the Sun"
* Doors do not seem to close tight and rattle over bumpy roads.
* HEADLIGHTS not bright enough on 95-97 models
* Rear hatch latch breaks too easily
* Requires front brakes more than any other vehicles ever owned
* Gas tanks start leaking from the top after just a few years so you can't "fill-er up" without odor
* Come with Delco radios that have a shelf life of 3-5 years
* Spark plugs located whereas you need David Blaine to help you change middle drivers side.
But go figure that I am on my 3rd Blazer in a row.
* Seatback lever broken drivers side for sure, passenger side also if you ever gave someone a ride.
* Top of steering wheel losing rubberized coating.
* Power mirror switch started to operate sporatically, but now, not at all because rain falls directly on it.
* Drivers seat cloth wearing fast at point between seat and backrest
* Angle of windshield causes abnormal sandblasting "fun in the Sun"
* Doors do not seem to close tight and rattle over bumpy roads.
* HEADLIGHTS not bright enough on 95-97 models
* Rear hatch latch breaks too easily
* Requires front brakes more than any other vehicles ever owned
* Gas tanks start leaking from the top after just a few years so you can't "fill-er up" without odor
* Come with Delco radios that have a shelf life of 3-5 years
* Spark plugs located whereas you need David Blaine to help you change middle drivers side.
But go figure that I am on my 3rd Blazer in a row.
I'm not trying to rehash things, but I just thought it would be nice to see this list in a condensed version.
After reading all 21 pages
Here’s 60 answers that I thought were either funny or just a bitch to have to deal with. I didn’t get them all on here cause a lot of stuff is regular maintenance stuff.
Oh, you might want to make yourself comfy, cause it’s a pretty long list hahaha.
What am I laughing at? With my luck; I’ll probably have to change everything on this list too!!!! Man what did I just get myself into? It’s a good thing that I've been a backyard mechanic most of my driving life!!
Here we go:
1. Angle of windshield causes abnormal sandblasting "fun in the Sun"
2. Spark plugs located whereas you need David Blaine to help you change middle drivers side.
3. I've had to take my truck to the dealer 4 times just for the radio. (The first time was to get it ordered, the sec. time to get it installed, third to get it reordered, and the fourth to get[indent]that one installed. (In a span of like a month and a half)
4. Oh wait!!! I have one....the hood release!!! the hood release brakes so you keep a pair old pliers in it for the times you need to open the hood.....and you know what's even funnier...I oil change guy never asked how to get my hood open......(he must own a blazer too!!!!)
5. Oh, I forgot that mine also has a sticky speedometer...it likes to sit on a speed for a while, then WHAM all of the sudden get unstuck and tell me what speed I'm REALLY going.
6. After 208,000 miles, the Exhaust system is still in good condition (even in Massachusetts weather).
7. Early signs of FUEL PUMP failure (over heats and quits working when 1/4 tank or less) due to pump is cooled by gas and they fail to tell you to keep it above 1/4 or more so that the pump wont fall under early failure due to OVERHEATING.
8. Rear window doesn’t stay open, always falls on my head when im diggin around.
9. When I push the cigarette lighter in, my headlights go off.
10. Windows take 5 minutes to open.
11. The back glass is annoying as hell, it wont stop squeeking.
12. You gotta strip the damn dash to replace any of the switches in it.
13. Passenger side visor's mirror cover is broken, so it falls everytime my fiance flips it down to primp herself.
14. Owning a Blazer is a catch 22...for the most part, you can beat the poop out of them and they keep running and running....but like all vehicles....they are prone to their quirks...
15. Rattles and squeaks even when not on bumpy roads.
16. Gas gauge reads empty at 1/8 of a tank.
17. Shopping carts that like to ruin my paint job.
18. The damn vacuum 4x4 system, these things suck.
19. Cheap double oil line crimps end up leaving oil on road when lines let go with no warning...
20. Have to be fair and list the good points...Girl friend likes it but then again she doesn’t have to fix it!!!
21. Factory radio decides when I can change the volume or station!
22. When in four high it sounds like I'm torturing it if I go over 15 MPH.
23. Might as well tape the window motor button down and get some coffee/read a book while it's going down.
24. It drinks gas like I drink Pepsi, and yet never needs to use the restroom.
25. It idles higher and pulls a bit more against the brakes when I turn the defroster on.
26. Whoever made the gas gauge needs to die. Once I get under 3/4's of a tank god only knows how much gas is left. It fluctuates like crazy... one minute ill be at 3/4 next minute 1/4 then 1/2... My only rule of thumb is when it stays at or around 1/4 for a while I go get gas. So far it hasn’t fooled me yet...
27. Speed controlled volume works at the worst times even when turned off.
28. A lot of people will probably disagree about this, but I also believe that your vehicle can tell when you don't like it. It's the energy you give off. I love mine, so it seems to love me back.
29. I just put on the 5th alternator and the bearing is already noisy!!!
30. Power mirrors don’t work, but defrost in them still does.
31. Radio turns on and off at will.
32. If I can't fix the electrical issues I'm considering setting it on fire and dancing around it giggling like a little girl.
33. Button on tailgate has to be pushed like 8 times before it works!!!
34. Hood opens with special "technique".
35. Everything friggin rattles, sometimes little mystery rattles too!
36. As far as the recline lever, tell people to just buckle up and ride and stop messing with crap if they are tired they need to lay in bed and take a nap not take one in your ride!
37. The factory radio was the first thing I threw in the garbage!!
38. As for the No.3 spark plug on a 4.3 4x4...I went and bought a $5 swivel socket at AZ and went through the wheel well...Took all of 30 seconds to get out.
39. I see signs that the fuel gauge wants to misbehave, but this disappears if the engine is shut off and restarted.
40. My driver side window refuses to go up most of the time or usually when I need it (has a mind of its own). Sometimes I have to pull on it to get it to lift, then it stops and I can't lift it as I'm holding down the button. I swear that's annoying.
41. Oil lines crack and leak (if your unlucky they will break as your driving and then seize up the motor).
42. Oh ya I forgot my pos heater, that still after the 5th fix doesn't work right.
43. Gauges randomly freak out during long road trips!!!
44. G80 Posi-Trac Rear ends are known to self-destruct...
45. My seats are wearing out from getting in and out.
46. My frigging cargo cover will not stay in place.
47. How about those F&^%$IN power window motors that keep going out that are mounted with heavy-duty aircraft grade rivets?
48. Bought a 2000 blazer used and both my seat back levers were broken so the guy i bought it from gave me 2 sets of vice grips to use for the lever. works great haha.
49. My ball joint separated on a 4 lane divided highway.
50. Since I’m a smoker and I smoke when I’m driving if it rains my leg gets soaked as well as my mirror switch and window control cuz of the weird angle of the windows.
51. Aftermarket stereo picks up engine noise, and the lights flicker allot.
52. Oil pressure gauge bounces all over the place at idle.
53. Front doors are about to fall off...and there's some weird black tar looking stuff under them???
54. Came home from Iraq...Drivers side door fell off (In parking lot of the airport).
55. Motor mounts (both of 'em) broke.
56. My cd player skips every time I hit a bump.
57. Center console tab broke under armrest from a 50 pound dog leaning on it.
58. Recently had to replace the heater core which wasn’t as bad as I thought except for a few a dropped 10mm socket, which required a trip to get another one to dig out the dropped one.
59. I had to glue the rear view mirror back on.
60. This old, tired thread has run its course.
Well, that about sums it up folks.
I’ve only owned my 03 Blazer for less than a week and I’ve already noticed a few odd little things like:
1. The warning bell won’t go off if I try to listen to the cd player in the reverse ignition mode.
2. The passenger lock won’t unlock with the remote.
3. Gas gauge is intermittent.
4. Lights stay on all the time, at night I don’t have to turn them on at all (the switch is always in the off position).
That’s it for now.
Although a lot of the stuff on here is regular type maintenance, if you take the time to regularly check stuff, it won’t surprise you unexpectedly.
With older vehicles, things are bound to breakdown or fall off. That’s just the way it is!!
Happy Blazing everyone
After reading all 21 pages
Here’s 60 answers that I thought were either funny or just a bitch to have to deal with. I didn’t get them all on here cause a lot of stuff is regular maintenance stuff.
Oh, you might want to make yourself comfy, cause it’s a pretty long list hahaha.
What am I laughing at? With my luck; I’ll probably have to change everything on this list too!!!! Man what did I just get myself into? It’s a good thing that I've been a backyard mechanic most of my driving life!!
Here we go:
1. Angle of windshield causes abnormal sandblasting "fun in the Sun"
2. Spark plugs located whereas you need David Blaine to help you change middle drivers side.
3. I've had to take my truck to the dealer 4 times just for the radio. (The first time was to get it ordered, the sec. time to get it installed, third to get it reordered, and the fourth to get[indent]that one installed. (In a span of like a month and a half)
4. Oh wait!!! I have one....the hood release!!! the hood release brakes so you keep a pair old pliers in it for the times you need to open the hood.....and you know what's even funnier...I oil change guy never asked how to get my hood open......(he must own a blazer too!!!!)
5. Oh, I forgot that mine also has a sticky speedometer...it likes to sit on a speed for a while, then WHAM all of the sudden get unstuck and tell me what speed I'm REALLY going.
6. After 208,000 miles, the Exhaust system is still in good condition (even in Massachusetts weather).
7. Early signs of FUEL PUMP failure (over heats and quits working when 1/4 tank or less) due to pump is cooled by gas and they fail to tell you to keep it above 1/4 or more so that the pump wont fall under early failure due to OVERHEATING.
8. Rear window doesn’t stay open, always falls on my head when im diggin around.
9. When I push the cigarette lighter in, my headlights go off.
10. Windows take 5 minutes to open.
11. The back glass is annoying as hell, it wont stop squeeking.
12. You gotta strip the damn dash to replace any of the switches in it.
13. Passenger side visor's mirror cover is broken, so it falls everytime my fiance flips it down to primp herself.
14. Owning a Blazer is a catch 22...for the most part, you can beat the poop out of them and they keep running and running....but like all vehicles....they are prone to their quirks...
15. Rattles and squeaks even when not on bumpy roads.
16. Gas gauge reads empty at 1/8 of a tank.
17. Shopping carts that like to ruin my paint job.
18. The damn vacuum 4x4 system, these things suck.
19. Cheap double oil line crimps end up leaving oil on road when lines let go with no warning...
20. Have to be fair and list the good points...Girl friend likes it but then again she doesn’t have to fix it!!!
21. Factory radio decides when I can change the volume or station!
22. When in four high it sounds like I'm torturing it if I go over 15 MPH.
23. Might as well tape the window motor button down and get some coffee/read a book while it's going down.
24. It drinks gas like I drink Pepsi, and yet never needs to use the restroom.
25. It idles higher and pulls a bit more against the brakes when I turn the defroster on.
26. Whoever made the gas gauge needs to die. Once I get under 3/4's of a tank god only knows how much gas is left. It fluctuates like crazy... one minute ill be at 3/4 next minute 1/4 then 1/2... My only rule of thumb is when it stays at or around 1/4 for a while I go get gas. So far it hasn’t fooled me yet...
27. Speed controlled volume works at the worst times even when turned off.
28. A lot of people will probably disagree about this, but I also believe that your vehicle can tell when you don't like it. It's the energy you give off. I love mine, so it seems to love me back.
29. I just put on the 5th alternator and the bearing is already noisy!!!
30. Power mirrors don’t work, but defrost in them still does.
31. Radio turns on and off at will.
32. If I can't fix the electrical issues I'm considering setting it on fire and dancing around it giggling like a little girl.
33. Button on tailgate has to be pushed like 8 times before it works!!!
34. Hood opens with special "technique".
35. Everything friggin rattles, sometimes little mystery rattles too!
36. As far as the recline lever, tell people to just buckle up and ride and stop messing with crap if they are tired they need to lay in bed and take a nap not take one in your ride!
37. The factory radio was the first thing I threw in the garbage!!
38. As for the No.3 spark plug on a 4.3 4x4...I went and bought a $5 swivel socket at AZ and went through the wheel well...Took all of 30 seconds to get out.
39. I see signs that the fuel gauge wants to misbehave, but this disappears if the engine is shut off and restarted.
40. My driver side window refuses to go up most of the time or usually when I need it (has a mind of its own). Sometimes I have to pull on it to get it to lift, then it stops and I can't lift it as I'm holding down the button. I swear that's annoying.
41. Oil lines crack and leak (if your unlucky they will break as your driving and then seize up the motor).
42. Oh ya I forgot my pos heater, that still after the 5th fix doesn't work right.
43. Gauges randomly freak out during long road trips!!!
44. G80 Posi-Trac Rear ends are known to self-destruct...
45. My seats are wearing out from getting in and out.
46. My frigging cargo cover will not stay in place.
47. How about those F&^%$IN power window motors that keep going out that are mounted with heavy-duty aircraft grade rivets?
48. Bought a 2000 blazer used and both my seat back levers were broken so the guy i bought it from gave me 2 sets of vice grips to use for the lever. works great haha.
49. My ball joint separated on a 4 lane divided highway.
50. Since I’m a smoker and I smoke when I’m driving if it rains my leg gets soaked as well as my mirror switch and window control cuz of the weird angle of the windows.
51. Aftermarket stereo picks up engine noise, and the lights flicker allot.
52. Oil pressure gauge bounces all over the place at idle.
53. Front doors are about to fall off...and there's some weird black tar looking stuff under them???
54. Came home from Iraq...Drivers side door fell off (In parking lot of the airport).
55. Motor mounts (both of 'em) broke.
56. My cd player skips every time I hit a bump.
57. Center console tab broke under armrest from a 50 pound dog leaning on it.
58. Recently had to replace the heater core which wasn’t as bad as I thought except for a few a dropped 10mm socket, which required a trip to get another one to dig out the dropped one.
59. I had to glue the rear view mirror back on.
60. This old, tired thread has run its course.
Well, that about sums it up folks.
I’ve only owned my 03 Blazer for less than a week and I’ve already noticed a few odd little things like:
1. The warning bell won’t go off if I try to listen to the cd player in the reverse ignition mode.
2. The passenger lock won’t unlock with the remote.
3. Gas gauge is intermittent.
4. Lights stay on all the time, at night I don’t have to turn them on at all (the switch is always in the off position).
That’s it for now.
Although a lot of the stuff on here is regular type maintenance, if you take the time to regularly check stuff, it won’t surprise you unexpectedly.
With older vehicles, things are bound to breakdown or fall off. That’s just the way it is!!
Happy Blazing everyone
Last edited by swartlkk; 11-19-2010 at 06:42 AM. Reason: Added Summary
#4
10-02-2006, 10:59 AM
RE: A list of common annoying S-10 Blazer quirks.
My 1997 has 126,000+ and It's on it's 3rd set of front brake pads...which were just installed so that's about 60,000 miles per set...which is great in my opinion. Also the rear shoes are still original...but I will FINALLY be changing them on my next oil change. I have replaced the left front door hinge pins/bushings once. Other than that I have none of these "quirks". Oh yea the spark plug thing......Try using a CHEAP spark plug socket with a 3/4" hex on the end of it....you can break iy loose with a 3/4" wrench and spin it out by hand and it's done in a few minutes!!
#5
10-02-2006, 03:58 PM
RE: A list of common annoying S-10 Blazer quirks.
ORIGINAL: Blasir
* Drivers seat cloth wearing fast at point between seat and backrest
* Doors do not seem to close tight and rattle over bumpy roads.
* Come with Delco radios that have a shelf life of 3-5 years
* Drivers seat cloth wearing fast at point between seat and backrest
* Doors do not seem to close tight and rattle over bumpy roads.
* Come with Delco radios that have a shelf life of 3-5 years
I've had to take my truck to the dealer 4 times just for the radio. (The first time was to get it ordered, the sec. time to get it installed, third to get it reordered, and the fourth to get that one installed. (In a span of like a month and a half)[:@]
#6
10-02-2006, 10:48 PM
RE: A list of common annoying S-10 Blazer quirks.
Anyone else have trouble with their gas guage fluxuating? That happened around 90K. Alternator went out around 80K, fron wheel bearings and ball joints around 60K, fuel pump just before 100K, 4x4 went out around 75K.
#7
10-03-2006, 01:48 AM
RE: A list of common annoying S-10 Blazer quirks.
oooh yeah.....my passenger side front auto unlock just died....it moves it to almost unlocked....however at least it does lock it.....(I never take passengers) I think you covered most of the big stuff.....rotars and cv joints..replaced my radio with an aftermarket soon after I got my blazer.....
oh oh wait!!! I have one....the hood release!!! the hood release brakes so you keep a pair od pliers in it for the times you need to open the hood.....and you know what's even funnier...I oil change guy never asked how to get my hood open......(he must own a blazer too!!!!)
oh oh wait!!! I have one....the hood release!!! the hood release brakes so you keep a pair od pliers in it for the times you need to open the hood.....and you know what's even funnier...I oil change guy never asked how to get my hood open......(he must own a blazer too!!!!)
#8
10-03-2006, 04:13 PM
RE: A list of common annoying S-10 Blazer quirks.
Oh, I forgot that mine also has a sticky speedometer...it likes to sit on a speed for a while, then WHAM all of the sudden get unstuck and tell me what speed I'm REALLY going. 
#9
10-03-2006, 07:26 PM
RE: A list of common annoying S-10 Blazer quirks.
I found that on the sparkplugs, at least on the middle one that is almost impossible to get to, that I just bought a cheapie spark plug socket and slapped it on the bench grinder, took off about 1/2 inch to 3/4 of an inch and it works perfect.
#10
12-20-2006, 05:54 PM
RE: A list of common annoying S-10 Blazer quirks.
1998 4WDR 4 Door Blazer with 208K Miles.
Lets see.. where do I start... here's my list of "common" problems
[ol][*]Passenger seat adjustment lever snapped off..[*]Windsheild Wiper control "solder" problem (fixed myself)[*]Driver side door hinge bushings (had a body shop fix it for $100)[*]2 set of Front Wheel Hub/Bearings (Approx $500/HubX 4 = $2K)[*]Upper and Lowerball joints and Tie Rod Ends (Replaced Twice)[*]Drivers Side Electric Window Moter (just stopped working).[*]Remote Mirror Switch (Damaged from dripping water in window).[*]Irratic gas gauge (but fuel pump is still working).[/ol]
But... after 208,000 miles, the Exhaust system is still in good condition (even in Massachusetts weather). I expect to make it through the winter with it.
The really sad part about all this is... I still like the vehicle (but I probally wont ever buy another... except for parts!)
Lets see.. where do I start... here's my list of "common" problems
[ol][*]Passenger seat adjustment lever snapped off..[*]Windsheild Wiper control "solder" problem (fixed myself)[*]Driver side door hinge bushings (had a body shop fix it for $100)[*]2 set of Front Wheel Hub/Bearings (Approx $500/HubX 4 = $2K)[*]Upper and Lowerball joints and Tie Rod Ends (Replaced Twice)[*]Drivers Side Electric Window Moter (just stopped working).[*]Remote Mirror Switch (Damaged from dripping water in window).[*]Irratic gas gauge (but fuel pump is still working).[/ol]
But... after 208,000 miles, the Exhaust system is still in good condition (even in Massachusetts weather). I expect to make it through the winter with it.
The really sad part about all this is... I still like the vehicle (but I probally wont ever buy another... except for parts!)
