AMT has decided to give the ‘99 Chevy Xtreme pickup truck a facelift featuring an all-new, accurate, grille and bumper assembly. Compact and mid-sized trucks have been a popular range for automotive manufacturers, and it’s small wonder they would be for modelers, too.
Round 2 has created eye catching box art and a variety of photos to give you a great idea of what the AMT 1/25 scale ‘99 Chevy S-10 Xtreme pickup plastic model kit offers. I really like seeing the parts overview on the bottom of the box. Thumbs up! Also, you’ll find a paint color guide and callouts in the instructions.
The Goodyear Eagle GSC rotational tires with General Motors (GM) five-spoke two-piece wheels are as accurate as you can get. Although the wheels fit nicely into the branded tires, I shaved a lip off of the inside of the tire to bring the wheel a little bit closer to the tire.
GM used its 4.3-liter V6 Vortec engine in a variety of brands and vehicles. With 20 pieces to assemble the powerplant, I found the detail and fits flawless. However, I suggest taking the alternator (Part 63) and mounting it to the front water pump and bracket assembly (Part 57). This way, when you put the serpentine belt on the front of the engine, you will be able to line up the alternator pulley without having to struggle forcing the alternator over the water pump bracket assembly. Note that, except for the pump and alternator, you won’t complete the upper portion of the V6 until after the body meets the chassis.
By the late 1990s, pickup truck interiors became as cushy as those you’d find in cars. This Xtreme pickup truck comes with a split bench seat with head rests and custom door panels to match. I chose a dark gray for the dashboard. Although the kit includes decals for the instrument cluster radio and controls, they are difficult to see on the dark colored dash. Finishing off the interior is the tall manual shifter and cup holder assembly.
For me, the stance is what makes these pickup trucks stand out. The chassis assembly starts with the front suspension. As hard as I tried, I just found the front disc brakes (parts 501 and 503) were too bulky. They hit the inner wheel (Part 505) and pushed the front tires too far out under the front fenders, so I left them off. The subassembly for the engine and exhaust system fit into place with no issues.
Before I painted the truck, I built the newly tooled grille and lower bumper assembly and all of the body panels, making sure to test-fit the body to the chassis as I went along. With final assembly approaching, I cut the black stripes for the hood off the decal sheet and noticed they were cracked. I used them anyway, touching up the broken decal.
During the final front grille assembly, parts 308 and 309 should be switched around; 309 should be on the driver side and 308 should be on the passenger side. The angle of the turn signal will be upside down if you follow the instructions. After the body was connected to the chassis, all I had to do was finish up a few parts in the engine compartment, like air conditioning lines and the battery.
I like the new pieces that Round 2 has added to give more life to the AMT 1/25 scale ‘99 Chevy S-10 Xtreme pickup plastic model kit. If you haven’t built a compact truck kit and you are looking for one, now is the perfect time to add this truck to your collection.