I agree, the 2.8 GM motor in the Trooper was a joke! But a GM 3.4 from a Camaro is an easy swap and it really wakes up the old Boxy Troopers II 's. Which BTY the old Troopers are 1000 lbs lighter than the newer 96'er and up ones.
I'm shopping for one of the newer 3.5 Troopers now. My plan is remove the body off it and put the entire frame, running gear, suspension and wiring harness under, and into one of my 89 Trooper II's bodies. (I have a friend who has a supercharger on his 06 Trooper and it flies. Imagine what his truck would be like if it were 1000 lbs lighter!)
Another project in the works is for the 2.2 L Turbo Diesel engine and intercooler I have in the shop. Some day I'll swap that engine into my "86" Trooper 2 door. (2.3L gasser with a bad block) It will also get an 89 trooper frame under it with a new MUA5 transmission (equipped with Tera Lows) and the better running gear. The reason to do all that to the 86 is to upgrade the weak 8 bolt/ 10 bolt diffs and suspensions to a 10 bolt/ 12 bolt, with 4:77 geared diffs. The only drawback for of the 2.2 L TD engine is it's only 86 HP and won't rev too high without grenading. My engine even has the 2.0 rods in it and I'm still leary about winding up the motor. But how much fun it will be when I can run it on waste corn oil like my Dodge pickup and my converted to diesel Class A Motorhome. I already have ALL the parts for this swap, all I need now is time to do it.
I have spent many years cutting up and modifying Isuzus and love them. They are way overbuilt and never fully appreciated for what they were. (Which makes parts cheaper for me, but are getting harder to get!) The frames are fully boxed and double wall reinforced in key stress area. It takes a good supply of sawzall blades to chop up a frame. I know that for a fact!
I can show you pictures if anyone is interested in seeing a cross section of an Isuzu frame. I've got little pieces all over my shop.
Had Isuzu NOT had a bad lapse in judgement and gotten in bed with GM they would still be selling in the US. But, after the anal sexing they got from GM, and since the majority of their buisness is in Aisia they thumbed their nose at us and kept their toys closer to home.
Only the Isuzu Light Truck Division remain in the US market, and they are one of the best delivery trucks in the World. The only reason they still sell here is ONLY because GM couldn't get their slimy hands on that Division too.
Oh and BTY, just to tease you guys a little, my commuter car, is an 89 Isuzu FWD 'I-Mark'. It's powered by an Isuzu 1.5 L Turbo Diesel with a 5 speed transaxle. It's a nice front wheel drive 4 door sedan with real 'Recaro' seats. And it's THE ONLY FWD TD 'I-Mark' in the US. Yes I know, 'I-Marks' were sold in the US with Diesel engines, but they were all rear wheel drive. And mine is factory FWD Turbo Diesel. I did swap out the 3 speed automatic for a custom geared 5 speed to utilized the power band better. Talk about a fun car. I get 50 mpg out of it on corn oil if I can keep my foot out of the turbo. Not bad for a car built in 1989. :drool:
If you guys want to build a fun, classic boxy 4WD truck, get an old round eye Trooper and transfer that body over to a newer Trooper frame like I'm gathering parts for. They are almost a bolt on job. (Yea, I've compared the frame specs for this swap)) This way you get the superior 3.5 L engine and TOD transmission and much better linked rear suspension. Just transfer the wiring harness over to the older and much lighter Trooper II body and you've got yourself a rocket in a box. And while I'm telling all, the Round Eye front end, which is more desirable, is an easy swap over to the rectangle headlighted Trooper II. Headlight Buckets and round eye grill are all that's needed. :victory:
I won't even start boring you with the details of my Expedition built 93 Rodeo. But I will tease you a little. It has a Marlin Crawler 20 speed Transmisson and has ARB's in both the SAS Toyota Axle and FF Dana 44 rear axle. :wings:
Anyway, sorry for the rambling. I have several Isuzus and enjoy them all.
It's snowing here in Texas and I've got too much time to play on the computer today. Don't feel like working on my steerable independantly suspended trailer I'm building. (Yea, it's made from an old Isuzu Puckup frame.)
(I"ll start a build thread on this Forum after I get enough of it done to hold every ones interest.)
Always wanted a VX. They are an absolute blast to drive.
As for the original post!
The Trooper you saw may have had Mexican Tags on it and that would mean it may be a different Trooper than was ever brought to the States. Take some pictures the next time you see it. I'll bet we can identify it.
God Bless!
Curtis
