1999 was the ninetest of the Nineties! The Clavy blazer is the official car of driving yourself to Band Camp, FINALLY! Play the music as loud as you please. Support RCR / regularcarreviews
98 blazer here, has 280,000. Done heater core, power steering gearbox and pump, and the dash don't light up thses days... But the engine still goes! Now I have an 03 S10 w/ the same engine lol
If you really listen to all he says in this videos, he is doing an impressive amount of research. Plus, he is kicking this videos out one right after the other. I'm impressed.
hey man the parts are absolutely around, my mom's man has a Suburban from the same year that's well over 300k. We've replaced just about all of the suspension bits and dropped in a 6.0 from the 5.3 that was in it, but it's still kicking. If you can replace the bits and do the work yourself they'll put forever
That 4.3 Vortec v6, which was released in 1985, was based off of the Chevy small block motor originally released in 1955. That family of engines was made for nearly 60 years and survived that long because it is simple and durable.
And the fact it's so reliable is why GM phased it out. After the '08 recession, Pretty much all the automobile industry had to stop making reliable vehicles to avoid going bankrupt again.
My dad owns a Blazer that was a one owner at 180,000 miles and still drives it at 260,000 miles. Rip on it all you want, but that Vortec is bullet proof with regular oil changes and gas in the tank 😂
Also, I’m driving an ‘03 Blazer 2dr 5-speed manual with 127,000 miles for $2.2k, parts are cheaper than dirt, and easy to work on. Perfect switch up from my Bimmers and Porsches for the winter 😉
@@traveller400 Yes, RHUBARB!!! I imagine they thought it wasn't "on BrAnD" for them anymore, which with their popularity, I'd have to agree, no matter how funny I think it is.
Mr. R? Interesting fact you may or may not have known. The 4.3 Vortec is just a Chevy 5.7 (350) V8 with two cylinders hacked off. That is literally all they did to create the 4.3. Just took a 350, went HERE'S JOHNNY and CHOP. What's crazier though is that, at some point, Chrysler did the EXACT same thing to create the 3.9 Magnum (insert condom joke here) V6. They took the 5.2 V8 and chopped two cylinders off of it. And somehow it sold.
Crazy 90's.. And to think in the late 50's and early 60's GMC was making V12's by putting V6 blocks together. I think even Detroit Diesels used a similar modular design, where you just added more blocks and turbos to make a larger unit. Back then people wanted more engine, afterwards they wanted less. Yeesh..
Yeah, they worked kind of like that. Still, I think detroits are cool. They're loud as hell, fairly simple, they make environmentalists angry, and were quite ahead of their time in a few ways. All these new 'Roller Rockers' and 'Common Rail' systems that companies are coming out with? All started with Detroits in the mid 20th century.
My parents bought my brother one of these after he graduated from higgschool in like 02 or something. I was still a kid at the time, we would go out saturday mornings and get breakfast, a haircut, and stop by the mall or gamestop. Good times with this car, even though i never drove it.
MultiLelde i own a 2000 s10 blazer that was my fathers. Grew up in the thing and now i drive it. I baby the hell out of it since it has 65k miles. I plan on rebuilding the entire motor and under body so that everything is like the day it was bought. But i also plan on turboing it so it can be a sleeper lol
1:57 I had a 2002 S10 and I had to replace EVERYTHING you listed, except that I went through 3 O2 sensors. That Air intake gasket was the biggest pain in the ass and the most expensive. If you were one of those morons that thought that green puddle on your driveway could be ignored then you may have lost your engine to coolant getting sucked into the intake.
I have a 1994 escort 5 speed, routine maintenance, 3 clutches, and engine sensor, I burned a coil once. Its been great; worst part ignition key. Put two in , and then they just break; I just made me an ignition without the need of a key. Works great! Though its grounds are sometimes off, and needs some caressing. It still starts, though! 163k on the engine!
Its reliability comes from the fact that its just a 350 with two cylinders shaved off. I have a Silverado that has one in it that gets like 25mpg. 260,000 and still going strong, it hasn't had an easy life either.
i miss mine I had a 97 chevy 1500 % speed manual. I used to go 100 miles an hour no problem all the time on the way to work. I traded it in though for a 2014 ram v8 hemi. I hope those are just as reliable.
I have a 1997 blazer 4X4 and it hasn't had a problem since I've owned it. But before I owned it, the blazer had its transmission, gas sensor , and water pump replaced and nothing else really
my 2000 Bravada had been very good to me. Only odd stuff to replace is the typical 4.3 spider assembly and fuel pump. Everything else is just normal for a 20 year old car. 180K miles my 1994 Jimmy... same as above ...runs great with 220K miles both are the 4.3L but they are not identical by any means
Alternator, Fuel pump, fuel lines, water pump, radiator, cooler lines, transmission cooler lines, 2 brake rotors, 2 brake drums, both headlights, spark plugs (twice, all 6), wires (twice, all 6), distributor, Head gasket, air intake, coil springs, body mounts, motor mounts, wheel bearings, and about 1/2 of all my fuzes are all things that had to be changed on my 98 S10 pickup with 190,000 miles. I still love this truck though.
@@CoasterMan13Official try owning a late 2000 volvo around 2007 onwards and get back to us about money pits. Oh and volvos are very reliable then the engine light go on and suddenly your wallet feels very heavy. When it comes to gm vehicles its always a bit of a gamble. Sometimes you end up with a money pit other times you end up with a vehicle that refuses to be a problem for you. Some of us ended up with a Jimmy that wasnt a problem. After 1998 however. Well. .
@@CoasterMan13Official sounds like he sure has a lemon. GM lemons tend to make themselves known quite well. Jimmy's and blazers didnt usually have that many lemons until after 2000
This car is indestructible. My blazer got rolled over, the whole engine was pushed in a couple of inches, overall it looked like shit, ready for scrapyard. The only thing we did was letting it drain from the oil that got into the engine and than it started, burned oil for like an hour but ran like brand new. It's a great off-road too. Love it.
Still have my original heater core, almost 20 years old and 260k. Plus, the dash is super easy to remove and you don't have to take the blower motor out. Dude doesn't know what he's talking about.
@@vinniekm 350 actually... 305 would be a 3.7L. 4.3L has the same bore and stroke as a 350. That's the point... GM can use same pistons and some other interchangeable parts.
6 years from the future. I can explain. In the modern era 2000s onwards it's not common for average new age people to have a car for a long time before switching to newer models. About 4-5 years give or take then a new one turns up. Even less. Anyone born from the millenial era around the 1980s would be the last generation that really understood the concept of owning older cars and keeping them going and more importantly rely on a vehicle long term. So it comes as a surprise for people when they see a old SUV or sport car not of the famous variety sputtering around. And more surprised when they hear the mileage. Some cars were just built to last. The GMC Jimmy and Blazers of the 90s were one of the few vehicles designed to take punishment and keep going. Not to mention for a truck of the era it wasn't bad looking and were relatively easy to fix. My SLT Jimmy has been going strong with only the last year or two not being in use thanks to the pandemic. It needs work to fix up and restore back to the road but it's essentially the cost of a computer. Compared to some modern cars where even a check up rivals a down payment for a small car.
Here in the UK you basically just described the Original Land Rover Discovery. Old Technology, endless repairs, Very much for the ''outdoorsy'' person. BUT when even I drive one I get this nostalgic feeling of the 90s when people could afford to but 4x4s and we actually made stuff here.
Vulgora Here in the UK Parts for old Land Rovers Cost Peanuts and listening to that list of parts that Blazers had replaced I would says its on par with Land Rover. Plus the OLD discoverys were dead easy to work on, I once helped a Friend do the Clutch in his on a Sunday afternoon.
The worst vehicle I have ever owned was a 2000 four door Blazer. I owned one years ago and had nothing but problems with it. The fun part was when something would go wrong, you would hear from other owners that the problem you had was common. Turned out these vehicles have a lot of common problems. lol
I bought a 1999 four door for my wife. She stopped driving it after 6 months as every system, 1 by 1, went out. I decided to just use it as a hunting/romping truck, but then found out it sucks off road. That low hanging frame would get it high centered all the time. I finally unloaded it for scrap metal prices when the head gasket blew. What a horrible POS that thing was. Worst vehicle I've ever owned out of close to 20.
Tat2Dragons I had a 2000 4 door. bought it in 07 with 113k miles and drove it for the next 5 years without an issue. then everything sort of went out at once. in my experience it seemed to be the fault of 1 mechanic i went to that did a rushed job, and the problems just snowballed from there.
Tat2Dragons really i drove a 2002 i couldent kill it nothing went wrong we (me and two friends) slammed it into trees and beat the living hell out of it i actually have a vid about it on my chanel
wade mckenney Lucky you, mine was nothing but a big headache. I'd list all the problems I had with my Blazer, but it would take too much of my time and probably just put me in a bad mood. lol :)
I had the same problem. I had a 2000 4x4 and it was nothing but problems. The crankshaft broke in the engine and it had 162,000 miles. I loved my truck but too much money spent on it because I had to fix it all the time.
Great job on this one....perfect blend of humor, facts and insights. The S10 Blazer has to be one of the most popular models of all time in terms of sales.....in the 90's and 2000's, you couldn't drive two miles without seeing at least one. And oh yeah, that vacuum-operated 4WD broke all the damn time.
My Senior Prom vehicle was a 98 S10 Z24 4x4 extended cab. Jet black, and beautiful. It was a great truck. Thanks to my mom's friend at the time, Sheila,her brother was a ARCA driver in the early 90s
"it doesn't even look like a fan - it looks like a fucking salad spinner!" and that's when I lost it... damn you called it exactly for what it is! hahahahaha - I love these reviews
I honestly think this is their best review. I love the cinematics of it, but the commentary even more. It's old but I always find myself coming back to this one when I need a good time :) Good job fellas.
First car, middle of high school, and for almost a decade, was a 96 GMC Jimmy, the rebadged twin of this blazer. 2 door, automatic, and suffered all of these problems and more. Oh my god, the vacuum lines. The latter years of its life i gave up on believing i'd have 4wd or adjustable directions on the aircon. Feet and defroster, that's how it rests at failure, and that's how you're gonna get your hot or cold air. I was a teenager and i treated this car like an irresponsible teenager would. I plowed this through snowfields and brush. I crawled over rocks and through mud. I changed my oil not often enough and I drove until the piston rings were so defeated that i couldn't bear the embarrassment of driving the smoke machine around town anymore. Traded it for scrap about six years ago and this review fills me with such agonizing nostalgia for it. These are not vehicles that will last, the vacuum lines will make sure of that. The plastic and rubber everything will make sure of that. But this was a great SUV in its time, and a great size for a fun, versatile, capable SUV. I'll always miss you, Jimmy Bernie Bojangles. You were a great friend.
Mr. Regular everything that was replaced sounds absolutely normal for any vehicle 16 years old? I mean.. are you really going to ride the same fuel pump, bearings, and alternator for 16 years? No, I didn't think so. It just sounded like regular maintenance that comes with the territory of owning any car.
I'm not a hundred percent sure but I'm pretty sure those blazers have tapered bearings that at their most expensive cost 10ish bucks a wheel when needed to be replaced and they're serviceable in that every brake change it is recommended that they get regreased and resealed inside the rotor. Super simple stuff and most mechanics will add a small additional charge if any at all to your brake work in order to do it.
There are plenty of things on my car that I have just now replaced that were 46 years old. Such as my starter motor, (yes this is serious), head gasket, tachometer ect. Then there are things that are still 46 years old that work. Like the voltage regulator, heater coil, exhaust (minus the manifold. That was replaced with headers). I don't know how old the ignition coil is. It's either 46 years old or 30ish.
I own a 15 year old BMW E46, I got new suspension parts once for 300$ and that's it. I still drives like on the first day, nothing rattles, everything works and it's still gorgeous. There is nothing normal about replacing just about anything you can find under the hood in 16 years.
my god. you just reviewed the same car as my own on the day of the second anniversary I've owned mine, and I gotta say, it was spot-on. Lots of repairs for sure. but if you don't mind that and want a decent work vehicle or off-roader, it's a decent choice. The description of the video is also accurate: I blast my music as loud as I can stand it whenever I drive it, since the thing works well with stereo customization(six speaker nacelles, plenty of room for subs). Plus. it looks cute too c:
Yes. Even with all my miles on it, those 4x4 parts are original. The engine, tranny, and differentials are original. I've replaced a few parts along the way, but the most major were just brake lines, fuel lines, water pump, and I've replaced the fuel pump twice. Really just parts that will go bad when your major components last that long.
Mine has 265,000 miles now and the 4x4 works. No engine or trans issues but the rear differential whines. Still drives though and has no issues except an oil leak.
depends on what we're talking about, my '02 pathfinder in 2020 is running like a dream, even with some neglect; damn thing's old enough to vote now. politics not so much, and in 08 even worse, but there were some good trucks/suvs in that time minus jeeps cherokees grand or not.
My '98 Kia Sportage (~154K mi.) has had repaired or replaced in the least 2 years: All the spark plugs. All the O2 sensors. All the vacuum hoses. All the belts. All the pulleys. Windshield wiper fluid reservoir. Engine wire harness. Battery. Battery terminal connectors. Tires. PCV valve. A/C blower motor. Water pump. Exhaust manifold. Catalytic converter. *The entire oil pan/filter assembly.* Aaaaand *THE ENTIRE FRONT AXLE.* Oh, and the gas cap 'cause somehow *that* broke, too! :D Still needs: Suspension upper control arms in *all four corners.* Heater core. Windshield.
This video gives me fond memories of my '96 Blazer 2 door. The interior squeaked and rattled like crazy and the 4WD eventually went out, but man that thing was fun.
1999 was the golden age of the internet. It was fast and you could shop, bank, game, meet people, and learn about stuff, but it wasn't all pervasive and in every corner of your life. When you walked away from your computer you didn't take it with you.
an '01 4x4 blazer was my first car a few years ago. That "list of replaced parts" sounds about right. Even though that car was a money pit it was a great car.
It seems like my 2001 Blazer is always a couple repairs away from being a good SUV. I replace the rear end, transmission, ball joints, tie rod ends, idler arm, pitman arm, and the steering box. Now it needs control arm bushings and a motor mount. On the brite side it is the TrailBlazer Luxury edition with embroidered leather, heated seats and mirrors, climate control and 4 auto. Also it is lifted 4 inches and has off road tires. The engine is friggin great though. 18 to 20 MPG and reliable as all hell. I have never had a problem with it.
Man, you are all about some Ben Folds. I congratulate you. I thought his fame was restricted to the borders of NC and whatever residents had ever lived within its borders.
My dad owns a used 2003 blazer that he's had for a while. It still runs, alongside with his red 1990 blazer. The red truck had part of the roof covering the back seat removed (sawed off) so technically it's an s10 pickup now. That ones not road legal, but during snow days he uses it as a snow plow on the driveway.
My daughter has a 86 blazer with 200, 000 miles on it and its a tank. Just passed emissions here in Phoenix and runs great. Has a few problems but still gets the job done. And is tough as nails. She was rearended getting off the freeway by a car and no damage. The car that hit her was totaled.
3:00 for the record, this suv does not have a locking front differential, the front axle actuator is for the hubs. Also, for the record, all the things you rattled off probably cost less than $100 in parts... ok I'm exaggerating but seriously it is ridiculously cheap to maintain these things. As a virtually broke college kid I could afford to fix these machines. And once you fix it once you usually never have to fix it again.
My mother had a 95 Jimmy 10 years ago... impeccable timing on that one... owning among THE most inefficient vehicles known to man in 2007-8; when gas was well over $3.50 a gallon smh...
my 01 dodge ram had the vacuum lines for 4wd. They were clogged with dirt so when I would get stuck I would go underneath and blow through the vacuum line to get it in 4wd.
I owned my 2001 blazer for a year and a half and all I had to replace was tie rods, ball joints, hub assemblies, cv axles, water pump, serpentine belt, and now I have u joints to install. But I can still say it's been a good truck through out that time.
Own a 2000 with 169k miles. I have replaced the cat, the water pump, the distributor, the plugs and wires, the alternator, the fuel sending unit and a donut gasket, but the red paint and body have stayed mint and I've slapped alterrain tires and black slot rims and it's beautiful I never want to get rid of it
Wow I have a 1996 4.3 V6 step side S-10 with almost 200,000 on it. Anyway, it has been way more reliable then this thing has been. I've replaced the distributor, A leaking intake manifold gasket, Fuel pump. water pump. front brakes, headlights, batteries, ect... Minor shit for a 20 year old ride. It does have maintenance light on saying some shit about emissions. Maybe it needs a new o2 sensor? The idle is a bit rough. The stick shift shift manual tranny uses auto trans fluid, and its has a slow leak for many years. Also the truck really needs some AC work. I can charge the AC and they air will work through the summer, but then the refrigerant leaks out before the next summer. Anyway, That 4.3 is a good engine if you take a little bit of care of it. 200,000k 19 years old, burns no oil.
I think any care is reliable if you look after it, keeping an eye on fluid levels and servicing it every once in a while any car will go on indefinitely.
Yeah exatcly, i dont think any car goes without its flaws from the factory, like my car is a Ford Fiesta, and right out the bat from the factory the Locking barrels are shit so they wear and then you cant lock the door haha =D But its a 12 year car, and i havent replaced nothing! Absolutely zero =D
The fuel pump and a water pump are pretty big things, and you either drive really gentle or you got luck cuz all these Chevys have loads of problems (Blazers, s10s etc). This one being a perfect example, and my uncle has one that's gone through 3 transmissions, 3 exhausts 2 intake manifolds a water pump fuel pump, and all the other regular maintained items and its a 2001 with less then 170,000 on the clock. My explorer... It's a 97 and biggest thing I've done to it is either brake lines which take all of 20 minutes, transmission lines and spark plugs. Lmao. The explorers and Rangers were much better built then the chevy competitions. Dodge had some issues with their Dakota and Durangos but either way, both alternatives were and are much much more reliable then these cheap ass chevys. Don't u have to take the whole bed off the truck to get to the fuel pump? Lol. That's a big job
Kenny M My dad had a 2001 Ford explorer. that he bought new and kept it until 2011. He is a mechanic and he babied the truck. It was a really good truck, he had very few problems with it. However, the Ford was known to have a weak transmission. He sold the truck to a young guy that probably drove it hard, and he say the guy about a year later and the guy said the transmission failed and had to be replaced. And my dads good friend put 3 or 4 transmissions in his Ford Ranger.
Cool video, as usual, MR. RCR... My ex wife had a 95 Blazer. The Vortec V6 was a horrible and unreliable motor. The old owners were old people who drove slow. The carbon buildup got so bad, the engine ended up throwing a rod(among other issues). After replacing the engine, she ended up totaling her Blazer while drunk lol Ahhh memories. Crazy women and Blazer's don't mix hahaha... Keep kicking ass with these videos, if you ever need some music contributions, hit me up, its what I do ;) Cheers!!!
Yeah, it probably is because you take care of it. My ex's motor threw a rod at like 120,000 miles. I think the prior owners were not very good with it. The mechanic said the carbon buildup was some of the worst he ever saw. Most of the problems were with the 4 wheel drive and vacuum hoses, too. Just a pain to work on...
ugghhhhhhh man everything about this little truck conjures up so many, many sweet moments to be reminisced, even the hard, unplanned headaches are a drop in the bucket now, even those moments do i miss. Had me a little two door just like this, champagne-silver, sunroof, big ole all terrain tires and a rear window defroster where only 3 of the little wires worked. My first car at 19, two jobs, freshy in college and away from home. bought it in the spring, everything during that time was perfect in its own way. even the identity of this truck: a 90s kid, it was my other half in a way, everything was just so perfect in its own way, regardless of the many things that didnt work and were broken. I need to get her back.... one day..
Damn I wish I would have seen this video before buying a 98 blazer 4x4 with 102,750 miles on it for 4000$ the interior is a solid 7.5/10 I started experiencing stalling while driving once I got home after driving back 200 miles from place of sale. I’ve changed alternator, spark plugs, wires, distributor cap, rotor. Car stopped stalling for about 2 days. Then I got a code for a map sensor, I put a new map sensor, removed throttle body, IAC, throttle position sensor, MAF and gave it a deep clean. Car has only stalled once in the last 4 days. Before it had stalled like 10 times on the way home from work every mile and a half. Going to try seafoam next. Open to reasonable suggestions if anyone has ever gone through this.
You really have calmed down since the 2008 Dodge Avenger Review haha. It's almost as if you put less "weirdness" into each video. Pretty soon you'll be John Davis haha just kidding. Keep up the awesome videos!!!!
@@samwoody5436 I just bought on 01 zr2 ls, because we’re 5.3 swapping my 04, it’s got a shit ton more then my 04 does. I believe ls models got a lot more.
Yeah the "vortec" came out on later first gen 4.3 tbi motors (93-94ish maybe). They have the name written on the valve covers, it's supposed to have better flowing heads. My 1990 jimmy has a 4.3 non-vortec.
Don't think that's right. Pretty sure Chevy changed the name in '86 when EFI became standard. For sure I remember Tim Allen mentioned the Vortec in his act in the early nineties; he wanted a leafblower powered by one.
okay I think I got it straightened out, in 1985 they they did market it as a 'vortec' engine, with reference to the swirlport heads that funneled air into the engine - but really was still a smog era engine , I just found it in a old brochure, but the actual vortec cylinder heads which are widely considered a better flowing head didn't get used until like 94 or something, when they started using cpi and making closer to 200hp, some confusing ass shit
Mysteriously, Chevy didn't learn from VW and Mercedes that vacuum lines are a terrible way to do things. I'm having nightmares about vacuum door locks and vacuum Injection Pump fuel cutoffs still.
Gotta love those automatic air locks on the volkswagens. Things don't work half the time and the theft system will go off if you don't use them so it pretty much screws you over
I still love my 02' Blazer ZR2 w/ 300k miles on her. She's had plenty replaced just like you mentioned & a new Transmission. She still gets sticker mpg in 2023! Looks beautiful because the old Grandpa I bought her from for $3k always kept her in a garage & not a single person has sat in the backseat. My heater core went years ago, I just bypassed it because I don't need it here S of Houston Texas & I'm not paying $40 then $400 to have it installed & I'm not having the dash taken apart, she doesn't rattle & don't want her to start rattling. 😂
I knew a guy that had a same period s10 2wd, he hated to drive it in the rain, im more afraid of dexcool, or as i refer to it as "dexcoolaid" grenading the engine!
Hey, the 4.3 has its uses. Despite the intake manifold and distributor problems, its iron block/iron heads/2 valve pushrod configuration is incredibly durable. Plenty of them driving around with three and four hundred thousand miles. And show me another modern naturally aspirated engine that makes 90 pounds of torque at a thousand RPM.
My dad once owned this. Four Doors variant and equipped with 5 speed Manual Transmission btw. We really satisfied with it and i even still remember the colour, too bad it's allready gone now.
