Isuzu Trooper

ctnewton

I just performed what I thought where key parts of the Isuzu recommended 15K service for my '99 Trooper TOD. This includes

Front and rear diff lube change, TOD fluid level check, oil change and chassis lube (I havent finished the last as I don't know where all the Zerks are. Anyway, I wrote up a short procedure and put it at:

http://www.suvtech.com/discus/

under Trooper DIY tips.

If you know where those Zerk fittings are, let me know! I saw two on the drive shaft, that's it!

Pete

erinsquared

Anyone notice how easily the rear axle bottoms out on the frame bump stop? I noticed that even with minimal weight in the rear, my Trooper would bottom out against the bumps stops causing a rough ride. The bump stops look like they only allow a few inches of travel before contacting the axle. I thought Isuzu may have slapped these extra long bump stops to provide better directional stability after the CR roll-over debacle, but a search at the local dealership shows the same bump stop part for '94 and earlier Troopers. Anyone else addressed this issue? I was thinking about removing them altogether and adding some sort of fabricated bump stop which would allow far more suspension travel. Any thoughts?

paisan

Put in the OME springs and you'll never hit the bump stops again. The Trooper is lightly spring to give it a nice smooth ride, but this also allows the axle to hit the bump stops easier. After installing the OME springs and Rancho 9000 shocks, I have a nice smooth ride + never hit the bump stops.

-mike

conman2000

Hi,
I noticed that too but it looks like they are progressive bumpstops which get harder the more they are compressed. I would think this would make it a softer "hit" when it compresses completely. You could buy smaller bumpstops at any speed shop but will make it much harder when it does compress completely. So far I think the ride is softer compared to my Sister's 97 and my Mom's 99 Explorers which both seem to hit their hard bumpstops more than the Trooper.

Hey Mike, we should get together next month and test my stock ride next to yours with a side by side compare. Plus I can get my neighbor too since he has a 01 Trooper too. Between the three of us, we should have a fair evaulation of the stock vs. OME/Rancho setup you have.

Just to compare from my seat of the pants, the Trooper does not lean as much as a 1999 Explorer 2door but more than the 97 4door and my previous 96 Suzuki Sidekick Sport 4door. In turns, feels much less tippy than the 99 Explorer 2door. The Trooper does dip more when braking than all of the other trucks but I think that is what make it ride better over bumps which is better than the other SUVs listed above.

Con

paisan

We can maybe find an empty lot and try to do some comparisons like through a slalom, and video tape it to see how much roll-over. Also do some SOP tests as well.

-mike

paisan

10-11pm EST. Come chat with other Isuzu Owners. If you are an owner, or prospective owner, you don't want to miss this opportunity to get in touch live with other's who have real world experience.

http://www.edmunds.com/chat/isuzuchat.html

-mike

gtroop

I would like to know if anyone else has noticed irregularities with the body on their Trooper. Specifically I am refering to the section of the body just above the back corners of the rear doors. Mine appear slightly rippled as if they have been damaged and repaired. The roof also has a slight wave at about the same place. I am paranoid about this due to the fact that I bought a new Civic in 93 that had been damaged in the factory and the rear quarter panel was repainted there. The color didn't match too good and I noticed the difference one day. Honda did admit the car had been damaged and paid to have a local shop repaint the panel (matched better than the factory). Anyway, does anyone have any opinions or notice the same waves? Thanks.

gpm5

My larger door has a slight outward ding along the bottom but that wasn't from the factory. No roof ripples.

keepontroopin

I noticed the same thing on my 2000 trooper. It is in the same place on both the driver side rear door and passenger side rear door. Right below the window and really is only visible when you look at it from an angle. My guess is that it is on everyones, but they haven't noticed it yet.

Hey everyone...take a look at your trooper today and let us know if you see the same thing. Stand by your rear bumper and look up the side of the car. Just below the rear door window you should see some imperfections in the door/paint. I will be interested to see if other people beside gtroop and myself see this.

erinsquared

I see a slight ripple near my driver's side rear wheel well. My guess was that it was due to frame flex which distorted the sheet metal. Did not seem to notice it when I first got the truck, but it is so subtle that it may have always been there. Not too impressed with the strength of the sheet metal on the Trooper. I suspect it is based on low quality steel stock without a lot of tensile strength (typical of most Japanese cars in steel-poor Japan). Working on the underside shows you where the strength lies - the drivetrain and frame appear extremely rugged and durable. Isuzu's reputation for making tough trucks is definitely evident on the underside. Shame they won't be making them anymore. 1 1/2 years trouble free...

mkaye

I too have ripples. My thought was that it is related to the relatively flat panels on the side of the trooper. I also have it slightly below the rear windows on the quarterpanel. Two friends both have 97's with the same thing, to various degrees.

raydahs

I have excactly what GTROOP is talking about. It looks to me like it's been welded then ground down too much. The side panels are probably in two pieces, then welded and ground. I noticed this about a month or so after I bought it (2 years ago). I can only see it when it's in the garage, and I'm standing in the house doorway (2 steps up) if the glare is just right. Mine is White, I'ts probably more noticeable on darker colors.

gtroop

Yea, the spot I am referring to is just above the back corners of the rear doors. It does look like someone ground on a weld. The other day I was walking to my Trooper in a parking lot and had another Trooper drive by - same color as mine. With the sun in just the right spot I noticed it too had the same imperfection. I am a little releived now.

Raydahs? How bout them Chiefs?

raydahs

I'm not too concerned about the Chiefs this year, they'll be back next year though. I wish we would have signed T.Gonzalez instead of Rice....oh well. Those Bronco's however are going to be back in full force, they're 3 deep in all of the skill positions offensively.
The AFC West is going to be strong this year.

keepontroopin

You mean lets go Steelers! What are you guys atheists!

sasquatch_2000

You mean, "GO PATRIOTS!", right?

keepontroopin

You are kidding.......right?

paisan

But I root for whoever Bill Parcels is coaching/involved with. Follow the General, not the army!

-mike

gpm5

I like the pack myself.

tntmyth

I took the plunge! Just picked up my new 2001 Trooper S 2WD this past week. It's the 2-tone Moonmist Mica/Silver fenders with charcoal interior. Just love the truck more everytime I drive it. Got it for well under invoice with the 0% for 60 months. Also went for the new Isuzu 7 year, 100,000 mile bumper to bumper warranty. The Trooper feels solid, I may never use the warranty but it is transferrable to the next owner or can be prorated if I trade. After 300 miles I am getting used to the feel of the truck and I am whipping it around handily. I actually enjoy that solid feel when you go over a bump. Nice smooth ride on the highway. Of course, not at smooth and fast as my Mazda Millenia S, but then again, the visibility is excellent in the Trooper. The cargo capacity is the best part. I use it for my business to carry boxes to UPS. Most of the time, I can just throw them in the back of the Trooper instead of shoe-horning them into my car's back seat. And love the way the boxes seem to stick to the anti-slip cargo mat! I have already had to fold down the seat to get extra space for boxes. As you all know, the Trooper is the easiest and most versatile of all the SUVs for folding down the seats and carrying cargo...no headrests to mess with. Got about 15-16mpg on the first tank of gas. That's encouraging since the engine is still new. Hopefully, I will get lucky and get 17-18 once it breaks in.

I'm in the market to add a CD player or changer. If anyone has one they want to sell for a good price, let me know. Does anyone have any experience with those CD players that are sold on Ebay? The auction indicates that they plug directly into the back of the standard radio of the current Trooper/Rodeo and works from the controls on the radio. I am wondering if they work and are any good.

paisan

Be sure to check out the Isuzu Owner's area, and check out my web-page http://isuzu-suvs.com We have a bunch of Do-it-yourself projects as well as FAQs and other info.

-mike

konghh

Don't get too carried away with the smooth ride. I agree Trooper rides very nice on the highway but on poorly paved secondary road, the ride will deteriorated out of proportion. Even more so if speed is below 70-kph.

Anybody succeed in sharpening up the Trooper's dull, un-responsive, ponderous steering? I sure would very much like to know.

paisan

Did the trick for me. You also might want to try poly bushings on the sway bars, heard that the poly bushings made a difference. I noticed that after I put on the rancho 9000s the car was more stable, and smoother than before (at setting 3f/3r) and with 6/6 set it was great off-road.

I never found the steering to be dull or un-responsive, well maybe compared to a sports car, but hey let's face it it's a TRUCK!

-mike

conman2000

The Changer is nice as mine came standard in the LS. the only problem I have it that it skips when reading CD-R CDs burnt at 16x. So I burn them now at 4x with no problems. I have seen the 6disc changer new online for about $500+ so it may not be a great deal considering you can get a fancy radio and changer for that price. Since you don't have one, I would suggest looking for an aftermarket radio and changer IMHO. My brother in-law bought a refurbed changer for his Benz for under $250(new is almost $800 from dealer) on Ebay so you might get lucky. Good luck with your new ride.

Cheers,
Con
01 Trooper with 1,400 miles on it! (Starting to get "old"!

paisan

Wow, I'm like the only person who has never had a CD skip, even on the roughest off-road trails... Go figure.

-mike

fiveharpers

No deadskins, Go Dolphins

gpm5

The steering is excellent on my '99 trooper. No continual adjustments to keep it straight, I almost don't need my hand on the wheel--just kidding, but you know what I mean.

conman2000

It appears the skipping is from what is called "jitter" in burning CDs. The jitter is worse when burning at higher speeds. Some new CD players say they are CD-commpatable which means it can handle Jitter correction better. As for skipping when I hit bumps, not one yet even on our bumpy NYC roads.

Cheers,
Con

tisteve

In here in SE Virginia, two dealers are running ads for a '01 Trooper S 4x4 automatic, new, not demos for $19990. This doesn't include $500 +/- freight and a $295 "processing" fee (read profit)which makes the real price close to 21k before TTL. I checked it out and they only have one or two at this price, probably ones that have been sitting for awhile, but still new.
Looking forward to purchasing one in a few months when the wife's lease ends (on her car, not her!)
Anyone else seeing similar deals?

paisan

A wife's lease can't expire. "Um, yes, I think I'd like to extend the lease on her!" or "Oh, man I can't wait to get the 2003 model, she looks really hot!"

-mike

sasquatch_2000

...sounds like the bumper mounted wench people were talking about!!!!

;-)

keepontroopin

Why is it that I cannot connect to your links to your site that you post in your messages, but if I hit stop on the browser and insert a www in the url it will work?

paisan

It should work http://www.isuzu-suvs.com or http://isuzu-suvs.com I'll check it out though for you.

-mike

jbkennedy

tntmyth-How long ago did you purchase your Trooper? I just talked to a women today who was told by my Houston dealer, that the 0.0% for 60 months incentive expired on May 31st, and that the current incentive is for a maximum of 36 months, which is not as good of a deal as we received!

paisan

I think the extended deal is for east coast only. Although I'm not postive.

-mike

tntmyth

JBKennedy - I grabbed the 0% for 60 months on June 4th the last day they offered it here in Florida. It was supposed to end May 31st, but they extended it to June 4th....That was the main factor that made me take the plunge. Looks like they are offering 0% now for 36 months or 3.9% for 60 months. But I also think that the dealers have more incentive or rebate now that they did not offer when the 0% 60 months prom was out. So the deal is still pretty close. I have also heard of some incredible deals to be had when they bring in the next years model. A guy in my office got a 2000 Trooper I for like $20,500 but with regular financing. So you can probably negotiate a good deal to offset the 3.9% and if not, you will have more leverage on a 2001 when the 2002 comes out. They will probably dump the prices to get the old ones off the lots. If you want to check the current promotions, go to www.izuzu.com and click on "Price One" and then "Special Offers". Then punch in your zip code. That will bring up a list of all the official special offers and financing by Isuzu for your area and the dates they are valid. You can use this to your advantage because some of the dealers won't tell you when the offers end. But the official Isuzu dates are right on the web site. Good luck!

sasquatch_2000

Maybe it is because there is no / at the end of it?

raydahs

Hey gang, If your interested, I stumbled onto this new topic over in Smart Shopper section.
dana "Isuzu - Your Experiences?" Jun 14, 2001 8:48am

paisan

10-11pm EST. Come chat with other Isuzu Owners. If you are an owner, or prospective owner, you don't want to miss this opportunity to get in touch live with other's who have real world experience.

http://www.edmunds.com/chat/isuzuchat.html

-mike

maw1982

I am currently looking at a used '94 Trooper SE. It is white ext. with dark grey leather and has 70k miles. It is being offerred at the moment for $5900. What is everyone's overall advice and opinions on this vehicle.

Also, does this model have a factory keyless entry system. Edmunds does not list it in its equipment list but I saw a remote that came out of a '94 Isuzu for sale on ebay.

keepontroopin

maw1982 I sold my 94 white S model back in January for $5,500. Mine however had 152,000+ miles on it. No leather though...it had the grey cloth seats. The vehicle was in great shape except for occasional tapping in the engine. Not sure if it was the lifters or the timing belt but it didn't bother the buyer so I didn't really care. The Trooper sold the first day it was listed in the Auto Trader magazine to the first caller. In hindsight I wish I had asked for more, because I had at least 20 calls on this car after I sold it. So to sum up.....I would say that $5,900 sounds pretty fair for the vehicle especially considering it only has 70k miles on it. I am assuming it is in great shape....right. If so i would snatch it up.

Take care and hope to have you join the Trooper family soon. Oh by the way.....I bought a 2000 Trooper in December and that is why I was getting rid of the 94. SO far the 94 was the best damn vehicle I have owned. If you have any question about the 94 model year feel free to send me an e-mail. chapla.t@mellon.com

wlbrown9

I guess they changed it...back in #1032 I posted that I went to the Edmunds rebate page and found the 0% for 60 months expired 7/2/01. Now they must have changed it to 3.9% for 60 mo. or 0% for 36 months max. Bummer if you were ready to take advantage. Though 3.9 for 60 mo. might still be slightly better than taking the $1750/2000 cash back. I think they had 3.9% for 60 mo OR $2500 dealer incentive when I bought my LS last June... That deal worked out to less than $1 mo. difference vs. 8.25% or so.

grichardson

I recently saw a 1998 trooper 4X4 for sale, $13000 with 62k miles.. What are some problem areas to check with the 98 model? Also does it seams as if no one has any bad things to say about the trooper. Whats the deal? Is the truck that reliable?

paisan

But if you are looking for a "bad" thing, I'd have to say the worst thing we've come across here is the possibility that *some* of the troopers burn oil, as much as 1Q/1000-1500miles. That is about the worst thing we've found. Which means you need to check the oil regularly. I also found that switching to Mobil1 has increased this to about 3/4Q/3500miles which is much more reasonable. Check out the FAQ page on http://isuzu-suvs.com for more info on trooper related problems/issues.

-mike

afisher3

I bought a new '99 Trooper 4wd one year ago. The best gas mileage I've ever gotten is 14 mpg (at night, down hill!). In the city it's about 12 mpg - and no - I'm not driving in 4wd mode. The service shop at the dealer said it would probably get better after engine break-in. I don't know how they define 'break-in', but my Trooper has 7,000 miles on it. I love this car in every other way, but it's never come close to the estimated mileage that was on the window sticker. What kind of mileage is everyone else getting?

emiura

On my '99 Trooper with 31.7K, I get from 14 to 18 mpg (daily city driving to freeway driving in 2wd). Using low range 4wd, I get 8.5 to 11 mpg. I guess using TOD would be somewhere in between. It's been like this since new. I use regular oil (not synthetic).

paisan

Summer-time after 10K miles I get 12-14 city with a lead foot and TOD engaged. Winter-time after 10K miles 10-12mpg city, lead foot, TOD engaged.

Summer-time after 10K 14-16 highway with TOD, semi-hilly interstate (upstate NY) @ 77mph. 18-19mpg @ 60-65mph TOD engaged. Winter subtract 1-2mpg.

Summer-time after 10K 17-18mpg flatter terrain (ohio and michigan) 83mph 2wd.

I do run synthetic but it hasn't changed my milage at all. Also tried 92 v. 87, no noticeable gas milage figure changes, perhaps 1-2mpg.

All the highway milage figures are taken at full cruise without traffic, basically 99.9% of the time at a constant RPM.

-mike

cwmoser

I get a consistant 17-18mpg - some city driving but mostly highway 70-75mph. I have it set in "POWER" mode and no TOD. Tire pressure at 35psi and tire pressure will make a small difference.

conman2000

I just bought extra remotes for the factory keyless/alarm system(01 Trooper) for $25 each from the dealer. If you don't have the keyless system already, I would suggest going to a stereo shop and get a aftermarket one because it will be much cheaper than the factory unit. Aftermarket Keyless only system bare(un-installed) runs under $40 or installed seems to be in the $99-130 range. Keyless and alarm run bare $65-200 or installed run about $130-299 depending on the options you get.

Good Luck,
Con

P.S. I think the 92-97 plus the 98-99 did have keyless entry option. The 00 and 01 has both keyless entry and "alarm".

erinsquared

'99 Trooper S in 2WD mode: combined mileage city/highway driving I average 16 MPG. Driving a constant 70 MPH on flat interstate yields 18MPG - which I feel is right in line with the EPA numbers. Remember, the highway mileage cycle is done based on an obsolete 55MPH interstate speed which is no longer relevant. EPA should revise their testing to encourage manufacturer's to design the cars to run efficiently at the speeds we drive the vehicles.