Isuzu Trooper Owners Poll

[4Wheelexplorer]

Having owned a First gen (1990 LS V-6/Auto) before, and contemplating adding a second gen to the family in the near future. I would like to get some feedback from owners on their experience, issues, and things they would do differently if they did their rig builds again. Positive and negative points appreciated. TIA.

 

[Dilldog]

I would say stay away from the second gens. The 3.2l v6 is an oil drinker and the 3.5 isn't much better. Also they run a 4l30e auto trans which has no business being in a truck. It's a shame really, they are amazing rigs, also parts support for Isuzu light trucks has gone way downhill.

 

[Highplainsdrifter]

Having owned a First gen (1990 LS V-6/Auto) before, and contemplating adding a second gen to the family in the near future. I would like to get some feedback from owners on their experience, issues, and things they would do differently if they did their rig builds again. Positive and negative points appreciated. TIA.

Ask @TrooperAdam he has owned several I have helped with a couple repairs on one of them the one he has now is very capable with ome lift and seems to be running pretty good past 150,000

 

[bamakojon]

If you can find one with the manual 5-speed transmission and a reasonable amount of miles, then I'd say it's definitely worth considering very seriously. The MUA-5 transmission is great. You can fit up to 33" wheels before you need to lift (according to a chart available on planetisuzoo.com), and the 3.5L V6 makes good power. It is notorious for using oil, but even that can be helped. Heck, for the price of an 80 series land cruiser, you could buy a lower mileage trooper, have the engine rebuilt with the modification to fix oil consumption for good from the get-go, and still probably come out ahead with a vehicle that gets better (not good, but better) fuel economy, will probably ride better on the road, and will be able to do 95% of what the cruiser can do. I'm a huge fan of land cruisers, but their fuel economy and up-front cost is a huge turn off for me and for a lot of other people.

As for aftermarket things go, well, sometimes you do need to get a bit creative. For instance, the wheels that I have on mine are from a 2014 4Runner (they fit and look great). I've had my 1998 trooper for a while now and been very pleased with it. I haven't had to do anything to it save for oil changes (and keeping an eye on the oil level and topping it off every couple of tanks). I got mine for $2,000 with a little under 200,000 miles on it. For some, that's maybe too many miles, but if that's the case, then most land cruisers will be out of the question as well, as most of the ones going for reasonable money for a 20 year old truck (i.e. under $10,000) have well over 250,000 miles; some over 350,000.

My trooper now has about 203,000 miles on it, I average 16-17mpg, and add oil maybe every 700-800 miles. I haven't modified it at all since getting it, and honestly haven't needed to. A completely stock one ought to serve just fine for what most people are interested in doing. Feel free to PM me if you want any more information!

 

[4Wheelexplorer]

If you can find one with the manual 5-speed transmission and a reasonable amount of miles, then I'd say it's definitely worth considering very seriously. The MUA-5 transmission is great. You can fit up to 33" wheels before you need to lift (according to a chart available on planetisuzoo.com), and the 3.5L V6 makes good power. It is notorious for using oil, but even that can be helped. Heck, for the price of an 80 series land cruiser, you could buy a lower mileage trooper, have the engine rebuilt with the modification to fix oil consumption for good from the get-go, and still probably come out ahead with a vehicle that gets better (not good, but better) fuel economy, will probably ride better on the road, and will be able to do 95% of what the cruiser can do. I'm a huge fan of land cruisers, but their fuel economy and up-front cost is a huge turn off for me and for a lot of other people.

As for aftermarket things go, well, sometimes you do need to get a bit creative. For instance, the wheels that I have on mine are from a 2014 4Runner (they fit and look great). I've had my 1998 trooper for a while now and been very pleased with it. I haven't had to do anything to it save for oil changes (and keeping an eye on the oil level and topping it off every couple of tanks). I got mine for $2,000 with a little under 200,000 miles on it. For some, that's maybe too many miles, but if that's the case, then most land cruisers will be out of the question as well, as most of the ones going for reasonable money for a 20 year old truck (i.e. under $10,000) have well over 250,000 miles; some over 350,000.

My trooper now has about 203,000 miles on it, I average 16-17mpg, and add oil maybe every 700-800 miles. I haven't modified it at all since getting it, and honestly haven't needed to. A completely stock one ought to serve just fine for what most people are interested in doing. Feel free to PM me if you want any more information!

I have the same love/hate issue with Land Cruisers, love the rig, but the price of a starting point is ridiculously high. So I looked that direction, but having had a first gen trooper and its ability, I know they can do most things very well on a most budget build. Independent4x is probably the most readily available source for many build parts, but their are a few others as well. I have seen a couple of 5-speed later models for sale lately, so that is an option.

 

[bamakojon]

I have the same love/hate issue with Land Cruisers, love the rig, but the price of a starting point is ridiculously high. So I looked that direction, but having had a first gen trooper and its ability, I know they can do most things very well on a most budget build. Independent4x is probably the most readily available source for many build parts, but their are a few others as well. I have seen a couple of 5-speed later models for sale lately, so that is an option.

Land Cruisers are amazing for sure, and if I could afford one (especially a turbo diesel) I would buy one in a heartbeat, but the trooper is also a very solid choice. The second gen ones will probably be more comfortable than first gen, as well as more powerful. The 3.5L v6 has in the 1998-2002 has issues with oil consumption, however, so that's something to consider. If you can find a 5 speed for sale for a good price, I say get it, see if you like it, and if you don't you can sell it for the same money you put into it. At this point, all troopers are so old that they've done almost all of their devaluing, so it's not going to go down much.