These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them.

These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them.

      Keith Dillman

      Not too long ago, people believed that the electric car revolution was just around the corner. I’m not referring to the past five, ten, or even twenty years; I mean back in the 1990s. General Motors inspired many with the EV-1, an almost groundbreaking vehicle that unfortunately ended abruptly when the company unexpectedly ended the program. While that model remains well-known in history, there was a lesser-known GM electric vehicle from the same era with a completely different design: the S10 Electric.

      We have discussed these vehicles a few times before, though without much expertise, if I'm being honest. Information on these basic electric pickups is quite scarce. This is why I was astonished to see Keith Dillman post in a Facebook group that he owned not just one, but three S10 Electrics.

      Here’s a closer look at the S10 Electrics. Sharing a powertrain with the EV-1, all of them are front-wheel drive. The image above shows the rear, resembling a basic trailer axle. Keith Dillman

      Given that GM produced only 492 of these between 1997 and 1998, that’s quite remarkable. It's even more so when you discover that almost 60 of them were destroyed alongside the EV-1s. Of the few factory trucks that remained, most ended up as government vehicles. All three of Dillman’s S10 Electrics are from 1997, bearing build numbers 42, 107, and 145. Interestingly, they were also government trucks that he believes served at Robbins Air Force Base.

      “The S10 Electric had the strength of General Motors backing it,” Dillman shared with me over the phone. “There’s a lot of high-tech features in it; the only issue is the batteries were terrible. That’s why they didn’t succeed. It was set up for failure. There’s no way it could have been successful.”

      Indeed, the lead-acid batteries in all three of Dillman’s trucks are now practically useless. He acquired his first S10 Electric around 2018, and despite that, he has never driven one. This means he has spent the last seven years tinkering, attempting repairs while waiting for a lithium-iron-phosphate battery specifically designed for trucks like his. More on that later.

      Dillman tells me he has made several repairs to the first S10 Electric he obtained. Everything powered by the 12-volt circuit functions properly. This particular model even has a working diesel heater. Yes—these trucks have a one-gallon diesel tank behind the regular fuel door that feeds a small water heater. Since the powertrain’s heat pump is ineffective in cold weather, there’s a switch on the dashboard that activates the diesel heater. It even has a one-inch stainless steel exhaust pipe that exits behind the back tire.

      As you can see, he’s quite well-prepared with spare parts for the S10 Electric. Keith Dillman

      Finding parts for these vehicles can be challenging, as expected. Dillman mentions that if you’re looking for a highly sought-after part, like the front bumper valance, you’ll just have to buy an entire truck. He learned that all part numbers for the S10 Electric (and EV-1) are eight digits long, starting with “2700.” He searched through the Vintage Parts website and purchased everything that fit that description “without knowing what most of it was due to a lack of pictures, poor descriptions, or abbreviations.”

      “I bought everything they had,” Dillman continued. “If they had two, I bought two. If they had seven, I bought seven. I just cleared them out. I ended up with some interesting items, including parts I actually needed, like the charging port and factory charging port in the box, among other things I could go on about.”

      This brings us to the batteries. Dillman mentioned he exhausted all options with lead-acid batteries over the years with no success. Eventually, he and a few other S10 Electric owners collaborated for a group purchase of lithium-iron-phosphate batteries from Trajectory EV in California. They paid half upfront, with the balance due upon receiving the batteries. So far, “four or five” owners have received theirs. “Not me,” Dillman noted, “but it’s been years in the making, and I don’t want to rush the process.”

      The new battery has been the most costly aspect of his endeavor. Dillman stated that at $12,000 per pack, he’s only buying one and plans to rotate it among the three trucks instead of spending $36,000 on all of them. When winter sets in Indiana, where he resides, he intends to place the battery in warm storage to extend its lifespan. This should help the truck retain its projected 150-mile range, which is adequate for leisurely drives and car show visits. Considering the lead-acid battery-equipped S10 EVs supposedly managed only

These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them. These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them.

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These 1998 Chevy S-10 Electric Pickups were meant to be destroyed, but one individual rescued three of them.

The three trucks are remnants of an electric vehicle experiment conducted by GM in the late 1990s, and their present owner is focused on making them operational again.