Depending on what I find as I dig into the truck, this could be a very short build thread. I am hoping not.
Several years ago, I bought an S10 roller from another GRMer with the intent of running it in the challenge. Several snags were hit, and it never made it, but it has now turned into a fun (and very out of budget) fair weather cruiser. Time for another attempt.
Cooper_Tired bought an Integra for the 2022 Challenge from a guy who also happened to have a couple of pickup trucks laying around. One was an S10 Extreme. Well, two years later, and I'm ready to take another crack at the challenge, and found out both trucks were up for grabs. I sort of bought them both, despite really only having a plan for the S10. But this thread is about the S10, the other one will not be likely to make a challenge appearance.
So, for the princely sum of $300, this beaut is mine:
Ran when parked a few years ago, but right now, the starter does not seem to do anything, so I need to dig into the wiring, or maybe just hit it with a hammer. Rust is pretty bad on the body, but from what I have seen so far, the frame is probably okay. If it isn't, then I may have to cut bait and part it out, or maybe use the drivetrain as a donor for a lighter weight challenge car. Being a ZQ8, it has a factory lowered suspension, bigger front sway bar, and a rear sway bar. I did not luck out on the rear axle - it's a 7.625" open diff. I haven't looked closely enough to tell if it has the hop shock, but it is an automatic, so it may not.
I actually bought it a ways back, but couldn't haul it home at the time. With loads of help from wae and Cooper_Tired, we retrieved it yesterday. I tossed a couple bug bombs in it last night, just in case. While dodging raindrops this morning, I took it from this:
To this:
Looks better, but it is crusty. Next step is to try to get it started and moving under its own power. After that, start selling off parts, including the truck cap. Not sure I'll be able to zero it out, but it would be nice.
In anticipation of picking up the truck, a little ways back, I bought a set of C5 Z06 wheels (all 17" front wheels) for $150. Will need to grab some spacers to get them to fit. Too bad the Hoosiers on them are corded and out of date.
As for the challenge, I've been attending and competing with friends off and on since 2005. We've mostly built stuff that we thought might be cool to mess with, but we never really tried to build something with the potential to win. Heck, with the exception of 2006, I don't think there was even an attempt to be in the pointy end of the field. Other than that goal, there is not much of a plan, or rather there are dozens of different plans. We're going to try not to make it too complicated, have plenty of testing time, and build something that a pro driver can hop into and drive hard without it biting them. With no autocross in Ohio during the winter, 2025 will be a building, testing, and development year, and 2026 will be the intended debut year at the challenge. Wish us luck. We'll need it.
Also, anyone in the SW Ohio area who is interested in joining a challenge team, let me know. There's four of us right now, but the more the merrier.
I think the only thing we have really dismissed at this point is a K swap, as we just don't have the experience with them, and it seems like the build could go over challenge budget very quickly.
