isuzu pickup- DIESEL

Y'all will never guess what I found when I was out walking. I found an old Isuzu diesel pickup-
FOR SALE!!. He wants $1,800US. I think I could offer him 1,350 and likely get myself a little diesel pickup truck.

Good find. If there's one thing Isuzu is good at, it's building a reliable diesel engine. Any wonder why tractor-trailer refrigeration units use Isuzu diesels more than any other.

Friend of mine got over 500,000 out of his P'up diesel. It went to the yard not because it didn't run, because he couldn't do any repairs himself. It had a sticky throttle cable. Too bad he never replaced the shocks or seats...it was a terrible ride!

steve a

I have been looking for a rusted-out diesel truck for the drivetrain- would put it into a fresher
gasser chassis.

I like Japanese cars a lot- Isuzu is lowest quality Japanese make IMO

Originally posted by banzai:

I like Japanese cars a lot- Isuzu is lowest quality Japanese make IMO

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">You've obviously never driven/owned a car built by Mitsubishi!

Pardon Me?????

Mitsubishi parts are common and CHEAP since they appear in a lot of Dodge/Chryslers etc.
Am looking for a good early Montero.

Isuzu is by far and away the crappiest of any Japanese branded vehicles! I've serviced them all, Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Mazda, Suzuki, Isuzu, Subaru.

Mitsubsihis are not bad cars, the just had horrible valve guide problems on most all of their engines...and that comes up quite a bit since their engines found their way into many Chrysler products, some Mazdas, most Hyundais.

They also have weak automatic transmissions in the FWD cars. But they are still much better built and designed than anything wearing the Isuzu badge! Of course, Isuzu is the Japanese arm of GM, so what can you expect?

I should add, too, that the Mitsu Van pictured above is a fantastic little van, despite its funky looks. Easy to service (yes, that's what I said!), peppy, fun to drive, and very reliable. If every Caravan made was built as good as those little Mitsu vans I'd be out of a job!

[ February 11, 2003, 15:08: Message edited by: oilhammer ]

I had a Dodge Colt I liked. It had for 150K and never had any problems with it. But since you mention vavle guides, it did smoke a little at start up towards the end. I always thought Mitsubishi pushed their motor designs too much. It seems they managed to squeeze a little more HP out of each liter then the other guys.

I hear the new Outlanders, that are just coming off the boats now, have an oil consumption problem. It seems that the first few boat loads all ready have to be fixed by the dealer before customer delivery.

The Mitsu van is mine- is fantastic machine.

Mitsubishi is not tops for Japanese quality- but they are built well and solid enough.
Better than older Mazdas too.

I am looking for an older 1980's/90s Montero- Smithers had the perfect one but too far away from me

I had many friends with Isuzu trucks/Troopers- they always seemed to have problems/axle problems/broken frame problems.

[ February 12, 2003, 16:10: Message edited by: banzai ]

Originally posted by banzai:
Pardon Me?????

Mitsubishi parts are common and CHEAP since they appear in a lot of Dodge/Chryslers etc.
Am looking for a good early Montero.

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I guess I should have been more specific and said Diamond Star Motors. The home sourced Mitsu's seem to hold up better than the one's made here. Ask anyone with an Eclipse or Talon.

An interesting find would be an early 80's Mitsubishi Mighty Max/Dodge D50 with the turbo diesel engine. I've seen one. Dunno how rare they are.

[ February 12, 2003, 17:27: Message edited by: PackRat ]

I have seen swapperoo stuff regarding the 2.6L Mitsu motor (chain timing-) and the turbo setup in the Sapporo (?) swap all the parts around.

Mitsu van has G64 2.4 Gallant engine and 4sp auto RWD- Pretty bombproof will put used Japanese import motor into it (L300/Delcia van is available as TD but not in USA)

The D50/MightyMax line of trucks are usually a good value.
I would buy a Diesel Isuzu if it was not all rusted/rotted out! Don't pay too much for it!

(L300/Delcia van is available as TD but not in USA)

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Wonder how hard a swap would be. Are they the same chassis?

I guess I shouldn't dog Mitsubishi so much. My Colt is one. Aside from some oil burning, it's taken abuse from my parents and I with good humor.

I think one of the Click n'Clack Magliozzi Bros. has a Colt Vista Wagon (I would only want a cool 4wd one) so that is high praise enough.

Obscure diesel parts are hard to find- how available are Isuzu truck parts?

Originally posted by banzai:
I think one of the Click n'Clack Magliozzi Bros. has a Colt Vista Wagon (I would only want a cool 4wd one) so that is high praise enough.

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I wish I had the 4wd one. I'd be using that as my winter beater for sure! We bought the only 2wd Colt Vista the dealer had on the lot. I still don't know why we didn't get the 4wd. IIRC, it might have been because my mom didn't like where the spare was mounted in the 4wd, although in hindsight, having the spare inside the passenger compartment would be nice considering how grimey it gets downstairs.

Obscure diesel parts are hard to find- how available are Isuzu truck parts?

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">There's enough trucks out there both Isuzu and the brief time they made the Chevrolet LUV truck to have parts available. My dad had no trouble finding stuff for his 88 gasser Isuzu p'up.

For sh*ts and giggles, you could look for a turbo version of that motor. I think towards the end of the 80's, Isuzu offered a TD version in the pickups as well as the Trooper.

Or try to shoehorn the bigger version from a wrecked NPR truck, but I dunno if it would even fit.

I think the Dodge Colt's were a Toyota Tercel.

Originally posted by Frankenwagen:
I think the Dodge Colt's were a Toyota Tercel.

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">The Colt Vista wagons were carbon copies of the Mistubishi Space Wagon(Europe)/Chariot(Japan, Australia, Pacific areas). The only difference being engine choices. The Space Wagon even had a turbo diesel option for European customers.

The Space Wagon/Chariot is still sold.

I am sure that Turbo-Diesel engines would bolt right into many Japanese cars- look at this link from New Zealand- all familiar models TD
http://www.dieselcars.co.nz/stock.html

I like old Dodge Colts from the 1970's and 1980's- beastly tinny little POS but they ran and ran-

Cars have come a long way in a few years......

The Dodge Colts were made by Mitsubishi. The Plymouth Arrow was also a Mitsu sourced vehicle. I owned a 1977 Plymouth Arrow GT. I think the GT stood for "Good Tires" because there was nothing sporting about it, other than maybe the looks. The one I had was red, with a white vinyl top and Racing stripes. 1.6L 4 cyl engine. You could also get a Fire Arrow with a bigger engine.

Best Regards,
Rob

I had a '79 Dodge D-50 w/90K troublefree miles on its 2.6 liter engine and an identical '85 Mitsu SPX Sport and drove 270K _ and never had the head off. The guy who bought it put 30K on it before it seized.

Anyone ever drive the Mitsu. diesel p/u of mid-80s vintage? Saw one in the showroom _ and didn't consider it because of Calif. smog restrictions that tanked its economy _ but never on the road.

My Montero was a decent truck considering it had 185K on it when I sold it. The timing belt only cost $200 including parts, too. Great 4WD capability also. I got the opportunity to pull a Blazer out of the ditch one snowy night.

Banzai, wish you could have bought it. A friend just saw it on the road the other day. A rear seal and a little valve work and it'll be good for another 100k. I (briefly) considered doing a diesel swap. My bro-in-law's brother is a Mitsu dealer in Peru and could have scored me a crate engine for about $3,000. Too pricey.

I think the new Monteros are sharp.

[ February 19, 2003, 22:24: Message edited by: Smithers ]

I liked your Montero (and $3000 for a decent one is average around here- lots of burnt junk around)

Rebuilt Mitsu V6s are well known in redneck circles from Chrysler Minivans- $1400 for rebuild