1995 Isuzu Rodeo from North America - Comments

Relay for rear defrost melted when purchased (76,000 miles)

Seals in transfer case leaking when purchased.

Valve cover gasket leaking when purchased.

Clutch slave cylinder replaced at 85,000 miles.

Blower fan motor and relay replaced at 85,000 miles and subsequently replaced relay 3 more times in the next four months and finally replaced blower fan motor AGAIN because it was drawing too many amps and blowing the relay.

New clutch at 94,000 miles... dealership also broke transmission cone while trying to get the clutch out and it was a 3 week wait for the parts!!

Master cylinder leaking oil at 96,000... FSBO!!!

This is a fun SUV to drive... easy to handle, but that's the only good thing I can say about it. This is by far the WORST vehicle I have ever owned. I have owned it less than two years/20,000 miles and have already put more money into than all my previous vehicles combined. Even my mechanic wants me to get rid of it. There's always something going wrong, and it's expensive to fix.

Oh yeah, as far as the 4WD goes, you can't switch on the fly and you have to back up to unlock the hubs (and even that only works part time... I usually have to back up twice to get the hubs to disengage).

It's a dog towing even the lightest trailer if there is a hill to climb.

I have a 1998 Rodeo and switch into 4wd on the "fly". It's a push button.

I'm sorry you're having so many problems with your Isuzu, but at your purchase in acquiring it at over 70K miles, one has to wonder how well the original owner took care of it. It doesn't sound like it was taken care of, thus you're ending up with the headache, and that's too bad, because I've had 3 Isuzu's - bought new, or with less than 20K - and I've gotten well over 150K on all with little problems.

I also have a 1995 Isuzu rodeo. I also had to replace Master Cylinder and LOTS of other things. It is a definite lemon!!!!!!!I would not recomend this vehichle to anyone. It is only good for its looks.

I'm amazed at the comments. If you buy something used, you are taking a risk because you are not sure what the maintenance history is, no matter what kind. I have a 93 Rodeo and eventually did a major tune up at 125,200 miles, which makes sense. It's a 4wd S model (or "Spartan" model, I say). It's a fun drive from point a to point b. Nothing special, but did the job. Strictly a commuter truck.

You should not complain about a problems you face with a used car with higher mileage. Obviously, the previous owner/s treated the Rodeo poorly. I drive a rodeo with 144,000 miles and have had very few problems. I have put 45,000 of those miles on myself and the car is a real trooper. Definitely the most rugged vehicle I have ever owned... you really can't hurt the thing. Would recommend it to anyone.

I feel for your misfortune, I bought a Subaru outback, having three Subaru's before I did not do any research on the 99 outback and got myself into some maintenance trouble, bottom line when buying used Make damn sure you know the model history and inspect the crap out of it, do not buy a vehicle with problems and them blame the vehicle that's just wrong.

I have a 95 Rodeo. It had 143,000 miles on it when I purchased it. I have put 50,000 on it since then. It's a great SUV! I have had some issues, but mostly due to mileage. The worst thing was the engine tap. Took forever and $$$ to figure it out. Runs like a charm now.

I've owned a 92 Rodeo 4cyl./5 speed for 8 years, bought it with 113.000 mile, replaced slave and master once, timing belts and tune-ups as needed, nothing else.

Finally at 237.000 miles, the head gasket let go, well... it was time.

Whe wife and kids love it and so do I, it has always been my daily driver, so now we own 5 of these things - a 95.5, 96 & two 97's, some auto & some 5 speeds, some have valve noise, but they all keep on pulling as in their younger days.

Great for the trips from California to Oklahoma, plenty of room & enough power to get me in trouble a time or two.

Very durable & friendly interiors, easy on maintenance and very upgradable, well built and very safe.

I'm now looking for a 4x4 extended cab pick-up. I have a sweet V6 with only 47.000 miles waiting to drop in. Well I'll let you guys know how it turns out.

p.s. are any of you in a rodeo club? or know of one? please post a link, thank you.

Well

I still own my Rodeo 1995 with V6 3.2 engine, manual transmission. I purchased it almost new with 15000kms. I have now 240000kms on it and I did not have one problem with it except the following: changed alternator twice, changed one wiper arm, replaced rear brake disks. I still have original clutch, master & slave cylinder, brake cyl, calipers, etc. The maintenance on it was done by myself, changed oil on 5000km intervals, used Castrol oil (not synthetic), changed oil filter at every oil change.

It's a fun truck to own and drive. By the way I also towed my 4000 lbs boat (and 2 axle trailer) many times, had no problems (again I am still on my original clutch).

I guess sometimes we get a lemon... but with the cars is like that. I purchased another car, but I decided to keep my Rodeo and give it a relaxed 'retirement' since it served me so well and never gave me any trouble. I might be a bit sentimental and also think of it as it has a soul somewhere inside... but that's the way I am..:)

Cheers to all,

Zoran, Montreal, Quebec.

I bout a used 95 Isuzu rodeo 4wd v6 and I love it... it now has 245k and still runs great!

I have a 1995 Trooper, by far the BEST vehicle I ever owned. Same engine/tranny in many Rodeos.

In 14 yrs I replaced transmission solenoids ($500), power steering hose, alternator, and 2 widow regulators that broke when kids grabbed the window as mom tried to roll it up. That's it. 185000 miles with NO trouble except for those things. Hydraulic valve lash adjusters stick and make noise due to varnish; annoying but not non-functional for last 80,000 miles.

No wear in front end linkages, etc. No need for alignment, ever. Small cracks in dash from sun/shrinkage. Upholstery and plastic is in great shape, rubber, paint, exterior trim etc is all in great shape. Isuzu built these RIGHT, to last. It's a wonder too with GM transmission that it held up, but it did great.

10,000 miles towing a 5000 lb boat too. At ~130,000 miles when the tranny solenoids were replaced the shop said "its looks like new on the inside"

It's a shame GM ruined Isuzu.

We'll I just bought a '95 Todeo from my neighbor for $500 and it's awesome, I had it for about 4 months, and had to fix a few things like O2 sensor, wiper arm, muffler, and a tire. I have a rejection sticker because the front axle is all messed up, but I can't tell, I think for $500 you can't go wrong.