1999 SLP Chevrolet S-10 Seeker: The Ultimate S-10

From the July 1999 issue of Car and Driver.

So, you checked out the ads and read all the road tests. You’ve driven every make and model, you’ve scraped together enough cash, and you’ve decided to buy a Chevrolet S-10 pickup truck. The problem is you’d like one with sportier looks and handling and some extra per­formance to boot.

Chevy has one solution, its new-for-’99 Xtreme package. That consists of added body cladding, 16-inch wheels and tires, and Chevy’s own ZQ8 sport suspension with bigger anti-roll bars, stiffer shocks, and springs that lower the body by two inches. But the guys at SLP Engineering­—an independent specialty tuning outfit in Troy, Michigan, who turn out a version of the Camaro SS, the Firebird Firehawk, and the Grand Prix GTX—have another solu­tion, called the Seeker. (SLP also offers a version for GMC pickups called the Xpress.)

SLP calls the Seeker the “ultimate S-10” pickup truck. The base Seeker package runs $1599, and it’s simply cosmetic—a deeper, lower front air dam with fog-light pockets; rocker-panel extension cladding down both sides of the cab and bed; and chrome badges. The air dam and the cladding are made of closed-molded ure­thane and painted to match the truck’s color. A Seeker can be ordered in regular­ or extended-cab form, with a smooth- or sport-side bed. It’s sold and warranteed by Chevy dealers.

Comparably equipped, it’s more expensive than the Xtreme. The base S-10 LS Xtreme V-6 starts at $18,089, and an S-10 LS with the ZQ8 suspension and the SLP Seeker package would run $18,617. Our rear-drive test truck started out as a short-wheel­base, regular-cab, step-side S­-10 with a 180-hp, 4.3-liter Vortec V-6 mated to a four­-speed automatic transmission. Loaded with A/C and the usual power goodies, it stick­ered at $19,103.

SLP offers several other aesthetic and performance options that were also installed on our test truck. These included Hella fog lights ($219) in the front air dam, a one-piece wraparound rear bumper ($289), and a fiberglass tonneau cover ($899) that’s hinged at the front of the bed and swings open with the aid of two gas struts. It’s lockable and adds secure storage space, which the cramped regular cab lacks. Unique to the Seeker is an option Chevy doesn’t offer—a power sliding rear window ($469) with a nice touch: The window switch is located on the center console, eliminating awkward over-the­-shoulder contortions.

To improve handling, SLP equipped our Seeker with its Performance Suspension package ($449) with thicker anti-roll bars at 35 mm diameter up front and 28.5 mm in the rear, connected by stiffer links. They’re up from 33 mm front and 23 mm rear on Chevy’s ZQ8 setup—stock S-10s make do with a 25 mm front anti-roll bar only. SLP requires the pur­chase of its otherwise optional suspension lowering kit ($349) with this package. It includes shorter front coil springs and rear leaf­-spring-lowering blocks, and it drops the truck down two inches. Topping off the handling options was a $1999 set of polished 17-inch, six­-spoke wheels with meaty P255/50R-17 BFGoodrich Comp T/A tires (16-inch wheels and P235/55R-16 tires come on Chevy’s Xtreme package).

To improve performance, SLP added a Power package ($899). The stock single-tube engine air intake is replaced by a two-­into-one air intake topped with a pair of K & N air filters. In back, there is a cat-back exhaust system made of stainless steel that is three inches in diameter with dual chrome exhaust tips. It lends a throaty, boy-racer exhaust note. SLP says this system adds 15 hp to the 180-hp L35 Vortec 4.3-liter V-6.

All these modifications make the S-10 look and sound sportier, but its perfor­mance is only marginally better than that of a GMC Sonoma GT with the ZQ8 sus­pension and a 180-hp V-6 (C/D, December 1995). The Seeker’s grip was up 0.02 g to 0.84 on the skidpad. Weighing 229 pounds more than the Sonoma GT, the Seeker ran just 0.1 second quicker to 60 mph, at 8.4 seconds, and fin­ished the quarter­-mile in the same 16.5 seconds. Not surpris­ingly, the ride quality went from pickup-­truck stiff to kidney-belt harsh. But throttle response in town and on the highway was much improved.

The street-rod look, the better handling, and the performance come at a price, a very big price: $26,274 for this baby. Delete the convenience features, and the performance bits can be had for $22,087. The bottom line here is more than we would be willing to spend for the “ultimate S-10,” but SLP is betting there are some truck-crazed people out there who will.

Source: Reviews - aranddriver.com