1999 Isuzu Trooper from Iceland - Comments

Nothing major until 120.000 km. Then everything went south.

It's now in it's third transmission, the second one fell to the ground (at 210k km), stick and all.

Shocks have gone on all four wheels at least once, 7 shocks in all.

Turbine gave up at 150.000 and again at 211.000.

Seat belt, driver side, stopped working at 219.000.

Passenger seat coils are wearing down considerably.

It sometimes won't start. I have taken it to the dealer several times and they can't find anything, usually it works like a charm there. It only seems to break down when I'm in a hurry...

This SUV handles like a cow in a skating rink, not very well. It has a tendency to 'jump' sideways at around 90 kph, which forces the driver to remain 100 % focused on the drving (not that that is neccessarily bad).

It makes so many extra noises that I can't discern what is what or where.

The seats are very uncomfortable, especially since I often have to drive it for 6-8 hours per day.

It's very sturdy though, and rough handling over mountain tracks, doesn't seem to wear it down much.

It has a lot of torque, but the acceleration sucks, sometimes I wonder why it has a speedometer, a calendar would suit it much better.

This is a company car, and therefore probably has worse maintenance than most, but still... three transmissions!

My co-workers and I will soon get a new SUV, Hyundai Santa Fe, and the repair cost for last year could have paid for half of that car.

Alas someone else who has found them to be very unreliable. I have found out to my detriment that the lovely car I bought 11 months ago (and broke down6 months ago) has had nothing, but a catalogue of disasters since it was first made. The engine blew up at 22000 miles and had to be replaced and again just before I bought it. Both times the turbo had exploded. It also wouldn't start in cold mornings, but the garage couldnt find anything wrong, the 4x4 didn't work and a back shock has gone.

I currently own a 1999 Isuzu Trooper which I purchased about 5 months ago. Some of the problems are starting to happen as you all have mentioned. It burns about 1 quart of oil every few weeks and I have to constantly check it to make sure the engine doesn't burn up. On top of this, it is burning out of the exhaust quite badly. The engine runs very rough and makes strange grinding like noises that are there for no apparent reason. Every once in a while on random occasions it decides to not start, so I give it a few tries and then it eventually starts. Besides all of this trouble, it has excellent room for storage and it is good in the rain safety wise. What I don't understand is: Why are there so many problems that have not been addressed by the manufacturer or any that they have admitted to?

I found out that starting the engine is kinda tricky. There are around a dozen sensors attached to various parts of the engine that need to "green light" an engine start. If one of those fails...

Seven of these have failed in the one I had. It recently auctioned for $1000 (6 years old).

Never again.

I have a 1999 Isuzu Trooper, which was a lease I purchased back in 2002. The car ran like a charm until about 75000 miles. Then I had to really keep a close watch on the oil.

The oil consumption is huge in this car. I found myself adding and/or changing the oil every 500 miles. Eventually, the engine seized on a highway while on the way home from vacation. I replaced the engine for about $3600. I still have to watch the oil, but it seems better. It does burn quite a bit out the exhaust.

My starter went about 8 months after the engine replacement, which ran me about $500 and now my fluid lines attached to the transmission are severely rusted. Another $200 I may need to spend to fix so my transmission doesn't blow.

I'm stuck with the decision to fix or just trade it in. I now have 106,000 miles on it.

On another note, it is a very comfortable car and handles well in the rain and snow. The 4-wheel drive is excellent. I will never buy another Isuzu after this as they don't stand behind their product.