General Comments:
I always do preventative maintenance, sometimes earlier than the manual says.
I installed an auxiliary transmission cooler, did a drain and fill on the trans, drove it 30 miles, then dropped the pan and replaced the filter and re-filled. Buy a fluid suction gun from a parts store, this job is CAKE if you have one of those!
Also replaced the front and rear differential fluid, and the the transfer case fluid. Don't forget the limited slip additive in the rear diff!
It uses about 1 3/4 quarts of oil between the 3,000 mile oil changes, not too bad really, considering some of the horror stories you hear.
Considering the mileage on mine, it is running and driving awesome, I replaced the front brake pads at 87,000 and I think there was at least another 10,000 left on them, and I live in the mountains.
It has great power considering it's a V6, put the transmission in "power" mode and you never feel like its sluggish in the hills.
This vehicle has TONS of room inside, I have been amazed on a few occasions what will actually fit inside it!
Resale can be tricky because these get a bad rep, If you can handle checking the oil, you can save the engine, if you blow up the motor from having no oil, sorry, but that's your own fault! it takes a whole 2 minutes to check the oil, and once you get a feel for how much it uses, its even simpler. I agree that most cars you don't have to babysit the oil level, but if you read the manual of any car, it says to check the oil at every fuel up!!
The 4x4 in this thing works awesome, I made it up roads that other 4x4's needed chains to get up, mine has the limited slip rear axle, it makes all the difference! The Torque On Demand works pretty well, but if you really need 4x4, use the 4 LOW, then its 100% locked in, of course 4 low is meant for off pavement slow going, but for normal slick roads, the T O D works just fine.
Wind noise is noticeable, I adjusted the drivers door a little and it cleared up nicely, barely hear any wind noise now.
Overall I think it's a great vehicle!
15th Mar 2011, 20:45
This is our second 2001 Trooper (the first one was hit by another driver in the snow and ice, and totaled). This latest one had a recall done on the entire engine. Isuzu slid an entire new engine in @ about 27,000 miles due to excessive piston slap noise and oil consumption. The newer engine runs smoother, gets about 15 mpg in town and 19 on the highway, and @ 245hp, is spritely enough. It is a hefty rig, but is dead-nutz tough. The Torque on Demand system is spectacular, and has gotten us through everything short of 24" deep snow.
Very comfortable, roomy, though the driver's seat should go back about 2" further. I may "modify" that feature. As well, the unit body is very tough and safe. I once saw a rolled and totaled Trooper and the injured driver had simply opened the sunroof and crawled out that way. It still opened after rolling down a steep 100' cliff!
I only hope we can keep it running and in good shape when the parts supply runs out!