One of my vehicles is a 92 S-10 with the 4.3 Vortec engine. They are really good motors, I have 150K and have only had to do some cooling work, worn parts, hoses, and rod the radiator. Still has plenty of spunk and power . I was getting about 19-21 commuting and about 16-18 pulling my 16' DB. The only complaint about the chevy is the cheap interior and chassis parts. You will be changing the lower ball-joints and idler arm regularly if you pound the river bars often. I am sure the Explorer suspension has its own issues too. These small SUVs were not really made for off-roading. I replaced the S-10 with an F250 PSD, something that could handle the trials I put my vehicles through.

MB