Isuzu Trooper

by Carlos Abascal
(San Diego, Ca)

It is sad that the Isuzu Trooper has been sabotaged out of the market for newer models. I have owned both a 1989 and a 1999 model and they have been a lot of fun.

In the category of the SUV's I looked at the roomy-ness and off road performance and although they don't count with having a kitchen and toilet facilities or a shower (Like the old hippy and the yuppy joke), what I personally like about the Trooper is that aside for the insane amount of room inside, it looks cool and it really comes ALIVE off road for those hard to get to surf spots in Baja, there is plenty of space so you can put big tires on it, and if you want to lift it, it only takes the higher springs (About $130 for a 1" lift) and adjusting the front torsion bars and they have plenty of luxury to go around, on the older 1989 LS model you can even lay down the back seats and remove the headrests and place them at the base of the seats as an extension to make a comfy bed inside instead of having to take the back seats out to sleep in the back.

My only other choice for a surf mobile in my humble personal opinion would be a 4x4 Westfalia but the price difference is hughe, you can get your hands on a used trooper that looks and runs good for about $3500 to $5000 add your choice of surf racks and bigger tires and you have a mean off roading/surfing machine.

They may look like fancy grocery getters and have the appearance of riches to some people but beneath the truck there is the man, and beneath the man, is his, nucleous, just kidding. But seriously now, if you ask anyone that has owned and driven a trooper off road, you'll know what I'm talking about. To me, as Nacho Libre said, the trooper "Is the Best".

Carlos
San Diego, CA