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The seating position does remind me more of a sportscar than a truck. Nothing wrong with that though, I find the visability great and the seating position very comfortable. The ride is very smooth and it drives great. On my test drive I was shocked at how smooth the Axiom was. The screen is distracting at first, but I now find it very convenient.
I laughed when I first read the Edmunds review of the Axiom when I was researching cars. Usually when reviews are that bad, the writer has some kind of bias against the vehicle even before they drive it. I just reread the article, the writer was so nitpicky that he complained about superficial things like having an underneath mounted spare. If he prefers the spare tire to be mounted inside, he has obviously never had to change a tire when his cargo area was completely full of luggage, not too fun trying to displace all that stuff to get a tire out and then having to put a wet or muddy tire back in so the luggage can rest upon it. Ridiculous.
He also commented on the way the Axiom bucked in comfort mode while breaking. The first thing I did when I test drove the Axiom was to try this 60-0 stop to see if this was true. The Axiom front end did dive in, but in know way did it bounce up and down like the reviewer said.
The reviewer didn't like the amber screen, I didn't either when I first drove it but I really like it now.
He also said anyone who is over 6 feet tall and a 33 inseam would be extremely uncomfortable, that is amazing that he can predict everbody's comfort in the axiom. Wait, he can't, I am 6'3" with a 36 inseam, I would not have bought it if I was "extremely" uncomfortable in it. I have taken it on several long trips and I am more than comfortable in it.
I could go on, but this post is getting long enough. You do need to test drive everything, a reviewer's opinion is just that, an opinion. I read almost everything I could about the Axiom before I bought and I would say most reviewers liked the Axiom, but a few disliked it very much like the edmunds reviewer.
I have had mine for 3 months now and I find the Axiom to be a great vehicle. When I was looking for vehicles, I decided I wanted a real 4WD (body on frame with rear drive) so I narrowed it down to the Axiom, Liberty, or Trailblazer. The Axiom was the only vehicle I got excited about and it definitely gave more bang for the buck (after financing and dealer discounts), it made my decision very easy. I don't regret my decision one bit and actually, I feel pretty wise about my decision.
If that's not enough, consider this...
Edmund's Rating... 5.2
Consumer Rating... 9.0 out of 18 reviews
Now let's look at the competition
Envoy (Motor Trend SUV of the Year)... 8.7 / 25
Chevy Trailblazer...7.2 / 27
Toyota Highlander... 8.3 / 3
Toyota 4Runner... 7.3 / 3
Ford Explorer... 6.6 / 20
Ford Escape... 7.4 / 8
Honda CRV... 7.5 / 17
Jeep Liberty... 8.6 / 27
Nissan Xterra... 10.0 / 1!
Judging by these numbers seems like Isuzu is doing something right here. The only problem is not enough people know about this truck but blame Isuzu's marketing people for that.
I'm not saying that the Axiom is for everyone, and for that matter the same could be said for ANY truck, but if your looking for a new truck with power, handling and a few extras here and there, take one for a test drive. I was very surprised and actually had some money left over for a few "necessities".
-mike
and if it had been mounted on the roof the reviewer would have said "increases center of gravity and will flip easily"
and if it had been a mini spare the reviewer would have said "I love economy cars...Ahhhhhhhh"
and if it had been under the hood the reviewer would have said "Just like on expensive sports cars and the classic VW bug"
The reviewer probably got rescued by an Isuzu in the back country and his ego has been hurt ever since Maybe an Isuzu cut him off one day and he still holds a grudge. There could be many reasons why he felt justified to pick on the Axiom. I wonder what he would have said if it had a Toyota emblem instead of Isuzu's.
-mike
You left one out! And if the spare tires were mounted underneath, it would have reduced the ground clearance! :-)
tidester
Host
SUVs
-mike
I finally got a roof rack on the Axiom. I decided to stick with Thule since I already had a Thule ski rack. I had permanent 54" roof rails installed just inside and next to the roof seams. Since the rails follow the seams they aren't parallel but it doesn't matter. I then bought Thule's Tracker II system to mount to the rails. It is a very solid design and will definitely hold more than the dealer installed rack. It gives the Axiom a rugged look. The great thing is that it comes off extremely easy, just unlock the 4 posts and the entire rack lifts off leaving just the foot kit.
-mike
Info on a gently off-road experience in the Pine Barrens of Central/Southern NJ. Come on out for a day of adventure, fun, and comradre with fellow SUV/Off-road/Rally/Car Nuts! Info at http://isuzu-suvs.com/events
-mike
Decided to go with the OEM hitch. It's a direct bolt on, no drilling required and has a step plate. In my search I found that the Hidden Hitch is not designed for the Axiom and there is a difference in bumper height, the Draw-Tite also is not designed for the Axiom and requires drilling plus repositioning the spare tire.
Best price I found ($230) was at St. Charles Auto (and free shipping!). Here's the link.
http://www.stcharlesauto.com/isuzu.html
Next, anyone have any recommendations on a hitch mounted bike rack? Looking at Yakima TerraFirma, Super Roc or maybe Roc N' Gate.
Thanks
Scoobyax, as a word of advice, try to get a hitch rack that actually locks down the bikes so if you carry multiple bikes they can't rub against each other and do damage. I borrowed a hitch rack that didn't lock down the bikes and when we go to our destination, one of my chain links was bent and the bikes were all scratched up. The best design I have seen is at http://www.draftmaster.com/
it locks the bikes down in a verticle position which is good since the Axiom is narrow, the bikes would not stick out on the sides like the more conventional designs.
Another reason why I like the draftmaster design, maybe the main reason, is because the bikes aren't in the path of the tire wash. Another time we used the rack on the back of a Suburban drving between Seattle and Tahoe. We were on some lonely Oregon highway around sunrise in which we hadn't seen another car for a hundred miles when we came upon a cattle herd being driven on the highway. We came to the back of the heard and asked the cowboy what to do, he said just drive slow, the cows will move out of your way. So there we were, driving the Suburbun through a herd of cattle on a two lane highway at 5:00 in the morning. When we reached our destination, our bikes were covered with "you know what." I know this doesn't happen everyday, but once was enough to sway my opinion
I do not own an Axiom just yet, but I am working hard on getting one. I recently went to my local dealership to get some pleasure from looking at new Axioms. When I arrived I saw five, most beautiful cars/trucks a man could have. The Ebony Black colors are in!!! And they have gray interior, which would be my choice over tan (I like to get dirty when biking). They look so cool(they remind me of Robocop up front). I don't know, there may be something wrong with me because if everybody else was like me, there would be a 6-month waiting list for these vehicles. If there is such a thing as falling in love with objects, I am a perfect example. I am hoping to post a message about purchasing my Axiom soon.
By the way, I think that these trucks are a little overpriced. At $32,040 for an XS 4WD it goes beyond my budget, but I haven't seen any blacks at any other version. What sort of target purchase price should I count on, considering I don't take the 0% financing? How hard can I press the dealer? Are any of you leasing your Axioms? Any thoughts will be appreciated.
-mike
I know here in California dealers are still discounting to just under $28,000 without 0% financing and $29,500 with 0% for Axiom XS 4WDs. Check out isuzudealers.com that is where I found mine and they seem to be very competitive.
I agree that $32,000 is a little steep considering that is where all of the other competition is hovering around for similarly equipped vehicles, but with discounted Axioms, you get a lot of value for your buck.
The 3.5L had plenty of power for passing in the hills and the TOD was amazing. At one point I pulled off the road into deep snow without losing traction and when I was backing out, a 4WD suburbun could barely make it to the same spot and was spinning all 4 wheels like crazy. That surprised me. The only time I spun the tires is when I tried to break loose the tires from a standstill going up hill on packed snow, but TOD quickly responded and the wheel spin stopped. I tested the brakes and had to try very hard for the antilocks to respond. On the curvy mountain roads, it handled like a dream, practically no body roll.
I was very impressed at how well the Axiom handled the trip. It is very capable in the snow.
-mike
My Axiom spottings so far in a year of ownership:
1 Anthracite XS (identical to ours) parked at Sizzler in Pinole - we just had to park next to it while we ate!
1 Metallic Green at Mcdonalds drive thru in Pleasant Hill
1 Anthracite driving down San Pablo in Richmond
oh, and I forgot the first one I've ever seen up close was bought from Walnut Creek Lithia by my coworker for his wife. He takes it to work every now and then.
Now understand this is from someone who sees a lot of cars every day. I'm on the road (in my Amigo) covering the whole SF bay area as a field technician for a computer company. So I NOTICE when there's an Axiom around!
Neat thing to see is when me and one of my partners is in from the field and our sales manager has driven his wife's Axiom to work. We'll be all parked together : a black '99 Amigo 4WD, a silver 2000 Amigo 4WD, and an Anthracite XS. It looks like we work for Isuzu or something!
Did any of you try to raise the back hatch any higher? I am 6' tall and I noticed that unless I bend, I am hitting my head on the open hatch. How about installing longer hydraulic supports?
Recently, I've seen an ad in the newspaper from one of Isuzu dealers, that they will discount any new Axiom by $6,700 from MSRP. That means I could get an XS 4WD for $25,300. Now, that's a great price!
seems like California is a little ahead of the rest of the US when it comes to getting an Axiom with gray interior. There is a dealer in Sacramento that lists gray interiors with Anthracite, Canal Blue & Blond Gray exterior colors, as well as Ebony Black.
Isuzu.com however, still lists tan as the only available interior, guess the people at Isuzu need to wake up and update a few web pages!
Hitch update, got the hitch FedEx'ed to my house last night from St. Charles Isuzu, total wait: 3 days, not bad for free shipping. Thanks k2rm for the hitch info and paisan for the dealer info on isuzu-suvs.com! Much appreciated!
-mike
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/ebayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1812838395&r=0&t=0
I'd wire in my own wiring if you are adding aftermarket fogs.
-mike
Sounds like something other companies might want to get in on.
:-)
"can't stop smelling a new car smell on my clothes"
did you sleep in it ???
-mike
A funny thing is, after a year of owning our Axiom - now I'm finally starting to see them more frequently. I'm glad to see more people are discovering a great vehicle.
True story: I was at the gas station filling up. Many other SUV's also getting gas, including a blinged-out RX300 Lexus at the next pump. Another driver WALKS RIGHT BY THE RX to gawk at the Axiom, then starts asking me details about it. He's so animated during our conversation that he actually draws the interest of a couple other people on their way to/back from the snackshop and they start asking stuff too. Kinda neat that Axiom's are so rare - I think the RX is a great looking ride, but they're just so commonplace now.
I've also noticed that in my area 2 of the GM dealers : 1 in Walnut Creek and 1 in Vallejo have started to stock & advertise Isuzu. That could be the reason I'm starting to see more new Isuzu's in general (including Axiom's)
-mike
and ohhhh so tiny on the inside
One question for you, you probably drive the same bumpy bay area roads that I do, do you have any rattles coming from the back seat area? I had troubles with my back seatbacks, but I was able to fix that rattle. Unfortunately, I have a new rattle on both sides near the pillars and I can't seem to figure out where they are coming from. I think it might be related to the adjustable height seatbelts. Do you hear anything after a year of ownership? I am considering taking it to the dealer for this one, it would be the first trip back to the dealer after 3000 miles.
-Ryan
-mike
-mike
Anyway, Best of Luck!
Paisan; I thought RX300 was that new drug prescription plan? oops, better be careful, don't want any "heat" over this, like the great Trooper/Sequoia torque, no-torque, 4wd, awd debate.