Isuzu Trooper from hell..

[cmondieyoung]

My good buddy Cowboy Billy owns this '94 Trooper, bone stock, that is an absolute BEAST on the trail.

He's a country boy, and has been wheeling trucks since he was old enough to see over the steering wheel.

The things he can make that truck do are jaw-dropping. He plowed through Hole in the Rock, taking most of the more difficult lines, without ever getting stuck--with 3 passengers and a trunk full of camping gear. Upper Heldorado, same thing. Elephant Hill in Canyonlands had me in tight spots two or three times, and I'm no neophyte behind the wheel, but Billy was just making every 33-shod TJ look bad. He towed out a locked up '71 Bronco with swampers that was mudding with us in Cortez, CO, and towed my ass out several times.

It's a 3.2 V6, with 255/75s, IFS, and a gas tank that's like 6 inches off the ground. What the hell? Have any of you owned/driven one of these? The thing just DOES NOT get stuck. It's incredible. I'll have some pictures eventually to post in Trips...

Maybe Isuzu resurrected Newton himself and learned a few things.

 

[bri]

Pretty amazing what a good driver can do eh? But if he's running 255, it ain't stock.

Bill Burke had me over all of those trails other than hellderado in a bone stock D1, stock tires too. The only thing I did was take off the air dam. I was a complete neophyte, virtually no experience, merely did what Bill told me to do. We did Hole in the rock, cliff hanger, behind the rocks, elephant hill... can't remember all of them. I think Poison Spider was in there.

IMHO the driver is the biggest influence in getting a rig through a trail.

 

[curtis]

Upper Heldorado, same thing.

Good driving goes a long way, but I am thinking you mean LOWER Helldorado. Very very few rigs make Upper with body panels intact...which is why most of the ones that do only have exocages. Either way, I would seriously doubt a Trooper with 255's could even make it to "the wall" in Upper.

 

[koby]

Didn't the newer Isuzu Troopers come with factory limited slip diffs?

 

[utahdog2003]

Pretty amazing what a good driver can do eh? But if he's running 255, it ain't stock.

IMHO the driver is the biggest influence in getting a rig through a trail.

Tire Rack confirms Troops were shod with 245/70-16s, so 255s on a stock truck seems likely, and hardly qualifies as a mod (unless you're the SCCA). I agree with you though, that driver skill is a huge factor in clearing an obstacle.

 

[cmondieyoung]

Good driving goes a long way, but I am thinking you mean LOWER Helldorado. Very very few rigs make Upper with body panels intact...which is why most of the ones that do only have exocages. Either way, I would seriously doubt a Trooper with 255's could even make it to "the wall" in Upper.

Might have been Lower Helldorado. My mistake.

 

[nosivad_bor]

yes some of that vintage do have a stock rear LSD.

 

[DeanBrown3D]

My friend has one, maybe a little more recent than 94, but he came to the pine barrens with me and a bunch of other discos. His truck SUCKED on everything, from the hill climb to water crossings. Basically only momentum would get him up a hill that the D2 could crawl up in low first.

 

[cmondieyoung]

If the Trooper isn't the miracle rig I thought it was, this Bill Burke fellow has a Copenhagen spittin' twin brother down in SW Colorado.

 

[ChrismonDA]

I had a 1986 Trooper II turbo diesel man that thing was a dog. If you wanted to get onto the Interstate you really had to get on it it was no performance vehicle, but when it game to going off road it was amazing considering it was bone stock. When I sold it in 1992 it had over 260k and still ran like a champ and parts for it were very cheap. I would love to find another vehicle like that but the chances of finding one in decent shape is pretty unlikely.

 

[Discojunky]

O.K. now the stories start. I was at tellico a few weeks ago and was going down trail 4 towards trail 5 (by the river crossing) and a stock looking jeep liberty came down the trail I just was on and it was pretty tough. Little rain tires, stock bumpers, the whole nine yards! I was so busy looking for body damage I didn't think to talk to the driver as he smiled and went down the trail. Good driver? Lucky? Bill Burke? Or did they sneak through a side trail I don't know about? The world may never know but it is true.

 

[Timmy!!!!!!!]

I had a 1986 Trooper II turbo diesel man that thing was a dog. If you wanted to get onto the Interstate you really had to get on it it was no performance vehicle, but when it game to going off road it was amazing considering it was bone stock. When I sold it in 1992 it had over 260k and still ran like a champ and parts for it were very cheap. I would love to find another vehicle like that but the chances of finding one in decent shape is pretty unlikely.

parts were cheap for your trooper? mine has been a butthole i have a 1985 with the 1.9 carb. it sucks down the gas and is on its third engine and always overheats. now the starter has gone out again. my land rover has been a much better vehicle. oh how nice it is to move on up you want the old trooper. recently painted black. i may be able to convince my dad to sell it.