Looking at a high mileage Isuzu VehiCROSS

[vintageracer]

Looking at a high mileage 1999 Isuzu VehiCROSS Ironman.

Know little to nothing about these vehicles or the 3.5 Isuzu V6.

Seller says it needs a water pump. At 180K miles probably a timing belt. Does not run right now. Gotta be a reason!

What are the pro's/con's that I should look for in this none running 1999 Isuzu VehiCROSS OR should I "Run Forrest Run"?

 

[Ozarker]

BUY IT!

You're probably right, a timing belt!

They were ahead of their time. I missed buying one after 2005, I think they were in country for 4 years, you can look it up.

They had tons of power, a sports car of SUV's, blast to drive on or off road, I did drive one.

The Ironman was the most sought after, an additional off road package.

1999 Isuzu VehiCROSS SUV - 87K MILES - CLEAN CARFAX - RARE - BEST DEAL ON EBAY! | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 1999 Isuzu VehiCROSS SUV - 87K MILES - CLEAN CARFAX - RARE - BEST DEAL ON EBAY! at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

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now

 

[plainjaneFJC]

BUY IT!

You're probably right, a timing belt!

They were ahead of their time. I missed buying one after 2005, I think they were in country for 4 years, you can look it up.

They had tons of power, a sports car of SUV's, blast to drive on or off road, I did drive one.

The Ironman was the most sought after, an additional off road package.

1999 Isuzu VehiCROSS SUV - 87K MILES - CLEAN CARFAX - RARE - BEST DEAL ON EBAY! | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 1999 Isuzu VehiCROSS SUV - 87K MILES - CLEAN CARFAX - RARE - BEST DEAL ON EBAY! at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

now

That thing has a decent amount of rust.

 

[DirtWhiskey]

I've been sorta looking at these. Seems like I haven't seen a single one without an oil burning issue. Sellers usually say "typical". I know nothing so YMMV

 

[kperras]

You'll find your answers on Planetisuzoo. Not sure if the Vehicross forum is still up and running.

The isuzu V6s are known to burn oil, sometimes at alarming rates, due to both clogged and insufficient number of drain ports on the pistons. The timing belt is an easy fix. With the water pump it's only a couple hundred in parts and the engines are non-interference so you can't damage anything if you screw up the timing on your first attempt. The water pump is also front center and easily accessible.

The chassis is shared with the 2 door 2nd gen Trooper, which is also mostly shared with the 4 door version which is much more common. This means chassis parts are common, but might be hard to source since Isuzu left the continent 20 years ago. Rock Auto and GM dealers still carry some parts since it was a joint project. There's also something to be said about GM quality in the early 2000s.

The vehicross came with GM 4L30 auto transmissions, which are a bit light duty for the application. It helps that the vehicross is much lighter than the 4 door Troopers but those 4L30s are still not known to be reliable. There's a reason why you see lots of Trooper ads that have recently rebuilt transmissions.

Lastly, at 25 years old, these Japanaese SUVs are prone to rust unless they've lived a gentle life in Arizona.

I'm a bit of an Isuzu Trooper fan, but I would not get one unless it was a) a 5spd manual and b) not my daily.

 

[Ozarker]

But they are soooo cool!

 

[Ozarker]

That thing has a decent amount of rust.

Which one are you talking about, the one I posted looks pretty good.