Isuzu Trooper

sbcooke · January 2004

Part of it is the import truck numbers have dropped to zero for Dec and significantly for the year. I don't think the Trooper has been made for some time, so anything coming in is probably only what remains in stock...going to zero.

Do incentives really factor into the price, or are those published numbers artificial figures so dealers can play with numbers for customers, when in fact they have incentives all the time we don't know about.

For example, when I purchased my Isuzu back in 1999 with no incentives I got it for about 7K under invoice, 24K++...with incentives a year later the price was about the same.

atlgaxt · January 2004

Sad thing is that they have an awesome new engine. I have yet to see anyone test it and I have yet to see one ad from Isuzu announcing the engine. Only ads I see are from local dealers trying to sell remaining 2002 and 2003 models. Also, why cannot Isuzu bring in the new pickup that they developed for GM? It does not seem that Isuzu is trying to stay in the consumer business in North America.

cracovian · January 2004

They sold 434 Troopers in Dec 2002, so you're right, that should be factored in too. However, the fact remains that even with the new Ascender the sales of all domestically sourced vehicles dropped 47.1% - this still is a staggering number and we thought the last year was a complete disaster...

You're also partially right about the dealers (whoever is left) playing their numbers but, I can't get the new Axiom for much less than the MSRP in Georgia. They have some decent financing but I'd pay for it mostly in cash, so no go here.

For some reason they have decent sales in Illionis, so I might check them out there. Loaded 2003 Rodeo 4x4 for 17K (9K off the MSRP) sounds tempting too :-)

buran · January 2004

Yep, I hear that rattling noise also "at the driver side front window post/column" on my '02 Troop (25k), but like you mentioned it is once in a while. I couldn't figure out the condition it occurs yet. it's tough since it is not consistent. I think that rattle began after front collision I had 3 months ago, but then for the last 2-3 weeks I have not heard any.

cracovian · January 2004

I browsed isuzudealers.com for prices in different states and the only dealer that stands out (#2 in the nation) is in Illinois (northern Chicago suburbs). They sell 2004 Rodeos and 2004 Axioms (both with DI 3.5l) for $6K off MSRP. 2003s go for up to $9K off. No one else even comes close. I called them and there are no fees (like $50 out the door). My local Georgia dealers laughed at me when I quoted those prices. What to do and what to choose if anything? My family lives sooo close to that dealership and I'm tempted to replace my good ole' Mitsubishi and have the second el cheapo isuzu in my driveway :-)

mkaye · January 2004

If this is the rattle that most of us have experienced in cold weather (and it only occurs in cold weather - at speed), it is the windshield trim pieces rattling as wind gets underneath. Does it sound like bugs hitting the windshield? If so, do a search and you should find the info. Most people have stuffed a window screen spline into the space between the glass and the trim piece (along the left and right side of the windshield/trim. This keeps the wind from rattling under it and making the noise. Isuzu has a fix but it is to squirt silicone under the trim piece making quite a mess.

michaelstrk · January 2004

I just joined this group. I am looking for input regarding whether or not to rebuild my Engine. I understand this group pertains to Isuzu troopers, however I own a pickup, and this was the closest group I could find. I have a 92 Isuzu 2wd pickup, 2.3 liter 4cyl engine with 223,000 miles. The engine has died (started burning antifreeze due to a cracked head). I am presently debating on whether to rebuild/replace the engine or just let the truck go. The body/interior are in great shape. But I am concerned that if I replace the engine, then the transmission may go, etc. Has anyone in this group replaced an engine with this many miles and gone another 100,000? or anything close to my situation?

Thanks for any input
Michael Sibthorp

sdc2 · January 2004

I would check with the Isuzu guys over at 4x4Wire. I know there are guys over there who have rebuilt those old 4-bangers.

boxtrooper · January 2004

If it were me and I liked the truck and wanted to keep it, I would look into a replacement head from a junk yard, clean and inspect it and if it is in great shape just install as is. That would repair the cracked head issue at a minimum cost. Of course if anything else was known to be broken repair that too and use a new timing belt water pump etc...
..
I had a friend do this on a mega mileage Chevy LUV truck which was made by Isuzu with a 1.9L engine. The engine ran awsome and sounded great afterwords. He also replaced the exhaust since it was rusted out. All work was done at home and cost was very low, done in a weekend.

sbcooke · January 2004

A 1992 with 230K...You got your money's worth. With low financing and the deals that are still our there, you should be able to do well. If you are into upsizing the new Nissan Titan looks pretty cool.

tkevinblanc · January 2004

I don't know how many days have gone by without a post...

dnestr · January 2004

Not time for troopers, try skiing instead. I've seen on TV the roads in Oregon . Ours are the same now.

boxtrooper · January 2004

tires is doing very well in its first exposure to snow and ice on roads in NC where they do not plow the roads, just wait for the sun instead. In 2000 there were huge deep ruts on major roads for almost two weeks. I also have limited slip for the first time on this my third Trooper, and it really makes a difference on slippery roads. In my 1995 and 1984 Troopers without limited slip I would lock the hubs and switch in and out of 4X4 mode as I went through ice and snowy parts of the road. Now with limited slip there is much less need for that.

beer47 · January 2004

Just replaced my 60K B-Stones with Firestone Destination LE's. Made in Japan by B'Stone. Tire person claims that in order for B'Stone to save the Firestone label (Explorer)they had to really ramp up the quality. Supposedly these tires are "overbuilt and underpriced". I must say that they are a step up in grip/wet traction and comfort. I hope they last like the B'stones did, we'll see.

travonatr · January 2004

Greetings,

Thanks for all of the fine posts in this forum. I don't post often, but there is great deal of helpful information here.

I just purchased a 2000 Trooper S. Desert Tan. I sold my 1990 Trooper about 5 days later. Sure was hard to see it go!

OK the reason for today's post. Last night a friend of mine was sitting in the 2nd row passenger side seat. As he was buckling up the seat back gave out and dropped to recline mode! If he pushed on it to hard back it would go. If I sit in it with normal weight it seems to hold. But if I push on it a little, it drops. I am concerned about this because normally I have my kids sitting back there (in a car seat.) Does anyone know what causes or how to fix this problem? Do I need to make a trip to the dealer? This is the 40% side of the 60/40 seat.

Thanks in advance!

schweikb · January 2004

Last night it dipped to -16 degrees Fahrenheit in my area. The antifreeze tester shows I am protected down to -45F. Today I drove the Trooper (98 Auto with 110K miles) and everything seemed normal. It started on the first try, ran smoothly and seemed to have normal power and oil pressure. Whenever I stopped I noticed a slight gasoline order, however, something I never have. When I returned from my 15 mile trip I lifted the hood and noticed a moderately strong gasoline smell. It seemed to be more on the passenger side, although I could not find anything leaking, etc.

Any thoughts? Could something be frozen? The highest it has gotten today is +6 degrees Fahrenheit. I placed a dry piece of cardboard under the area where the fuel filter is (this was changed about 200 miles ago) and under the engine area and ran the car for about 15 minutes. Then I looked and no evidence of anything leaking to the ground, just the odor.

Thanks,

Bob

breakor · January 2004

This could be a serious problem. Do whatever you can to track it down. If you cannot find it yourself get a shop to.

While I know you don't want to hear this part, what with the temperatures in your area, but if you park in a garage with a water heater I strongly suggest you don't do this until you verify you don't have a leak. The pilot light could ignite even a small amount of fumes and lead to a disaster. Also, as a reminder your fuel line stays pressurized after you shut off the engine. Thus if you have a leak it can continue for quite some time adding fuel to your garage.

While the recent change makes the fuel filter seem a possible suspect the fact that you get an underhood smell does tend to discount this. Still it seems worth crawling under the vehicle and seeing if any thing looks or smells suspect by the filter.

I thinking it could have nothing to do with cold temperatures, especially since you run fine. I'm guessing it could be a problem with a fuel line leak. I assume you checked the lines and injector area looking for a problem. Did you also check the fuel pressure regulator? Maybe the vacuum line fell off and fuel is seeping through??? Did you check the charcoal cannister? It too could of had a line fall off allowing fuel vapors to exit under the hood. Maybe the gas tank fill line has a leak??? Seemingly if you remove the gas cap and have pressure that is unlikely.

Again, if you cannot find the source and continue to get the smell I strongly suggest you take it to some shop.

I suppose it is also possible that you just ran over something that didn't smell at umpteen below and smells like gasoline when it heated up???? But like I said I wouldn't just assume that.

It also might be a good idea to carry around a fire extinguisher in the meantime just in case.

sdc2 · January 2004

I think the fuel pressure regulator can leak if it goes bad, which many of them do. Does your Trooper take a bit of cranking to start?

dnestr · January 2004

travonatr - I've never heard such the disrepair on Troopers, but it looks like the button on the upper part of the seat doesn't fix it properly and some part is broken inside. I'm not sure you'll be able to repair it yourself.

schweikb - I had the same problem last winter (-20 C\ - 8F) with my '99 Trooper. In my case, the chapped rubber tube was located in the upper part of the engine, just under the black plastic cosmetic cover. Cold weather and time chaps the rubber. The new tube and labor cost me about $15, but who knows how many I've saved. Get a shop!

schweikb · January 2004

Thanks for the input. I took off the plastic cosmetic cover and saw the leak. The rubber hose that connects the left and right bank of what I would call "fuel rails" was leaking on the right (passenger) side. I could see that the gasoline was coming out of the end of the rubber hose, not through it. The rubber hose did not appear to be porous. I noticed that the metal fuel line seemed to be further into the rubber hose on the driver's side, so I loosened both pressure clamps and tried to wiggle the rubber hose around. On the leaking end, the lip on the metal fuel line was outside of the rubber tubing, clearly visible. I know the rubber hose is supposed to go over that lip so there is a better seal. Because of the extreme cold (it was about +6 degrees F) I couldn't do much without risking breaking something. I moved the clamp more to the end of the rubber hose - it had been about 1 1/2 inches in from the end and probably not putting pressure where the metal fuel line was.
Speaking of the cold, the clip that holds the hood prop in place when the hood is closed snapped off because of the cold.
I realized that about 10K miles ago my Isuzu dealer replaced the IMG and probably when re-assembling the pieces they removed, they probably did a shoddy job with that rubber hose. The extreme cold probably shrunk the hose enough that it slipped off the metal tubing since the tubing had not been inserted far enough in, or at least past the raised lip.
Anyway, when I get back down state and in my heated apartment building garage in a week or so, I'll remove the clamps and try to re-position the hose properly. But, so far after about 30 minutes of running at idle speed and a 2 hour trip there does not appear too be any leak or odor.
Thanks again for your input.

Bob

paisan · January 2004

dnestr · January 2004

Yep, 3 years rubber couldn't be porous, I think now. I didn't find the reason of the smell, just took the truck to a dealer as soon as it was possible. They shown the leak and said it needed the new hose. Speaking frankly I forgot to ask them about the old one.

Glad it helped.

tkevinblanc · January 2004

Woke up in Suburban Maryland to 3 degrees Far. a few days ago... of course, it'll be 50 degrees today. Positively balmy.

My Trooper does not idle well for the first minute or so in 3 degree weather, but I don't figure that to be much of a problem. It smooths out shortly.

sbcooke · January 2004

My seats hold the different positions without a problem. The latch assembly must have something wrong with it. I agree that it is probably something you will need a dealer to fix to get right.

dnestr · January 2004

If any small gear is broken inside, the worst of it is that usually impossible to purchase such cheap small things separately. As a rule the whole latch assembly is available, because it has its own catalogue number. Unfortunately that is quite another matter of money.

pe1227 · January 2004

Hi all,

Just thought I would post,

I bought my 98 trooper in Aug and I just wanted to say how impressed I am with how it handles in the snow/ice here in Oregon. I pulled out 1 explorer and 1 blazer that was stuck in the ice with no problem. This is a great truck!

dnestr · January 2004

What kind of tires does your Trooper have? In my opinion most of off-road ability depends on tires. 2WD vehicle with winter/muddy tires can trump AWD truck which is without them.

pe1227 · January 2004

I have a set of tires that are labeled Wildcats. I bought them from a local dealer up here (Les Schwaab). Just the stock size 24570R16. They worked great in the ice and snow here. I think though that the 4X4 capabilities are more than just the tires although the tires definetely play a large role. With all the features that the truck has, 4low, 4 high, winter mode, it gives the truck an advantage over some other models. IMHO.

Paul

dnestr · January 2004

I nearly agree. But all that you only just mentioned is nothing in the case of a bad "gasket" between a steering wheel and a driver seat.

pe1227 · January 2004

Too true....

raydahs · January 2004

with your Trooper, totalled? If so, did you decide on what your going to replace it with? Just curious.

sdc2 · January 2004

For a variety of reasons, I am looking for a 2-door Tahoe. The Trooper was about the smallest vehicle I can fit into comfortably, as I am 6'3" and also "long torso". Very few vehicle have adequate headroom...even the Trooper was only do-able without the moonroof.

And when you throw in a desire for a modicum of off-road ability, the list of possibles becomes very short.

bawbcat · January 2004

I just got back from a holiday in Thailand. I only saw a few Troopers there, but lots of Isuzu D-MAX pickup trucks. Surprisingly to me the most popular type of passenger vehicle there seems to be mid-size pickup trucks, and Isuzu has a very strong position in that market. The D-MAX is a good looking truck, particularly in 4x4 config. I think Isuzu is crazy not to import it to the US. Perhaps GM doesn't want the competition.

Here's a link for those who haven't seen the D-MAX:
http://www.isuzu.co.jp/world/product/dmax/index.html

stever · January 2004

And you have to love the aftermarket paint jobs on some of those rigs.

Steve, Host

tkevinblanc · January 2004

It's very nice looking. Isuzu is cutting it's own throat by not bringing that here.

dnestr · January 2004

There's a rumour that not only the pickup truck is there, but also SUV is being made in Thailand on the Dmax base.

boxtrooper · January 2004

I think that it is over here, GM is selling it as the mid sized pickup truck. I also think that GM having bought from Isuzu the Duramax engine joint venture in the USA would not allow Isuzu to name its own vehicle DMAX in the USA. The SUV of the DMAX is therefore the Trailblazer, but the Trailblazer has GM parts especially the Opel/Saturn inspired straight six which is two more cylinders on a big 4cyl in the larger Saturn. I wonder if the rest of the driveline in the Trailblazer is the same as the Thai DMAX. I have heard of an all Isuzu version of SUV that could become the 2006 Trooper. GM is in the parts consolidating business big time. The Saturn SUV is from Suzuki aka the Vitara. Saturn will have its badge on the GM minivan soon.

atlgaxt · January 2004

Isn't it ironic that several pictures on the DMAX website look like they were taken in western portions of the United States? They are going for that image for marketing purposes and then they do not even sell the truck here!

beer47 · January 2004

Isn't the Isuzu PU the new GM Colorado?

boxtrooper · January 2004

Think utility fleets, delivery fleets, and bio-diesel people and practical people looking at the high cost of gasoline and introduce the 30+ mpg pickup truck, at a price below the high power GM gasoline version and this could be big for Isuzu.

Article from refernce at other end of it:
Isuzu returns to the US marketplace with a new pickup deveolped together with General Motors.

The new truck will be marketed around the world under both Isuzu and GM badges. Production begins in 2003 at both Isuzu and GM plants in Thailand and Shreveport, Louisiana.

The new pickup truck program marks the largest joint effort to date between GM and Isuzu, which is best known for the development of the Durmax diesel engine in the Chevrolet Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD trucks. The relationship for this truck involves everything from engineering through sales.

Isuzu's truck is a twin to the 2004 Chevrolet Colorado.

Annual production is expected to reach 500,000 units worldwide.
..
http://www.pickuptruck.com/html/2004/isuzu/pickup/guide.html

dnestr · January 2004

Sorry, I misunderstood a pic in a magazine. I was running over again. It was a Dmax pickup truck with soft/hard top.

bstone3 · January 2004

Well my 01 TOD Trooper quit surging while the outside temp was cold (below 35)but when it warmed up last week to above 60 the surging at cold startup started again. They already replaced the FPR and they want me to bring it in Friday and leave it for the day so they can go over the computer codes that have been generated with their corporate maintenance help group, wherever that is - let you know what they find out - the service department at Century Isuzu (Huntsville, Al) is at least being very supportive to diagnose and correct. If any of you remember, when they put in the long bypass line (vs the shorter factory bypass line) the problem went away - hot or cold - hmmm!

Still think this is the greatest and certainly most pleasurable vehicle we have ever owned - was curious to see from earlier post that Isuzu is coming out with their own pickup - same as Colorado - but different engines - what engine?

sbcooke · January 2004

Sounds like the old IMG problem, even though it was supposed to be fixed beyond the 99 model year.

93trooper · January 2004

I have a 1993 Trooper - automatic transmission. Last week, after having my car out in the cold overnight, it wouldn't start. My initial thoughts were bad battery but on checking that the battery was good I brought it to my service station. They changed the starter and everything was ok. Within one day, I was getting problems with my display lights coming on, on the dash (i.e. battery, fuel,etc). I brought it back in and they checked that there were no loose relays or fuses. It was ok for a couple of days until yesterday when the display lights came on as well as a blinking "check transmission light". When this first happened I was on a highway and didn't notice anything with the tranny. After getting off, I did notice a sluggishness moving from a stop. I brought it in this morning and they changed the alternator. I have 142,000 miles so maybe it's just coincidental that my starter and alternator went bad so close together. I'm wondering though if there is anything they could have done when changing the starter that could have caused a problem with the alternator. These guys have usually been good on all other repair work that they have done for me. Any comments you have would be appreciated.

boxtrooper · January 2004

93Trooper, I my opinion, the alternator going bad can cause voltage related problems and a low battery voltage when not fully charged. Then when starting the starter working very hard draws that battery voltage even lower which results in extra wear on the starter and longer cranking time which heats up the battery cable which accelerates cable and connector corrosion which lowers the voltage even more making the problem worse until something is fianlly done about it.
..
The system was not fully checked out or maybe they thought the alternator might not be a problem but these things are often related more than just by the age of the parts. With 142000 miles on it your engine is probably much easier to crank than when new since everything has worn a litte which makes clearances looser. My 1984 could be turned over by two fingers on the flexfan when it had 200000+ miles on it.
..
I would also inspect the thick heavy gage battery cable all the way down to the starter and its connectors looking for a leak in the insulation that might have allowed air and water and other stuff into the copper wire area which can eat enough copper away to lower your cranking voltage. If in need of replacement there is probably a generic cable at the auto parts store, use the heaviest gage wire that will fit for lowest voltage drop and quickest cranking.

cracovian · January 2004

My 2002 Trooper LS has two empty speaker grilles in addition to the two occupied ones that are already there. I'm guessing it's the leftovers from the Nakamichi equipment on LTDs.

I really have no idea about this stuff but has anyone tried (or is it even possible, maybe with a split wire or something) to add two more speakers in the back using the current factory stereo setup? I was going to replace the existing factory speakers with a couple of good quality Polk ones from crutchfield but since they're sooo expensive I wouldn't mind adding them to the setup instead.

sbcooke · January 2004

Are those air vents and not speaker holes?

I upgraded to POLK speakers front and rear. I found that upgrading the head unit made a significant improvement with stock speakers...I didn't think the speaker upgrade was as much of a gain.

bsmart1 · January 2004

cracovian · January 2004

I could have sworn I was able to stick some speakers in there.

serrano · January 2004

It sounds to me like you may also have a bad ground. Loose or missing grounds wires can cause all kinds of unexplained electrical gremlins. Check for loose or unattached wires in the area.

Tom

Isuzu Trooper

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