2002 Isuzu Axiom | Retro Review 

Now I'm heading down the "Isuzu Axiom" RU-vid rabbit hole. Thanks Motorweek!!

I always thought this was a cool looking vehicle.

Completely forgot about these. Still looks good after 22 years!

The axiom looks way better than the second generation Durango which came out just two years later.

“But then, when was the last time you took *your* SUV on anything rougher than gravel?” This quote aged.

Design of this thing was ahead of its time

Axiom would still look good in 2024. Clean lines.

I always liked the look of the Axiom, it looks like it could have come from a decade later. It was very forward thinking without being overstyled, although that digital compass display was a little much. Of course, Axioms were rare back in the early 2000s and now they are as hard to find as Waldo in a candy cane factory (maybe it should have been called the Idiom?) If any remain in near mint condition, that would be amazing, but even in a country as vast as the USA, I have to believe there aren't that many left. It's too bad this vehicle didn't enjoy more success, it was probably better than a lot of other smaller SUVs on the road at that time. Love those comfy-looking seats.

I helped build these at SIA in Lafayette, Indiana...

Spy Kids truck aged kinda well now that everything has huge grills

I have seen a few of those vehicles around my neck of the woods. Not recently, but they are around. I may be young (born in 1990), but I do remember these vehicles well in the early to mid 2000s. I even remember the funky looking Isuzu Vehicross.

The design look better and modern at that time

If you told me this Isuzu was made in the late 2000's or early 2010's, I would still believe you. That design is still a looker. The side profile barely shows its age!

These had such potential. Unfortunately they'll probably just be remembered for the movie Spy Kids haha.

So my family worked at SIA where they built these things. We had a 98 Rodeo that was t-boned in 2001 and the Axiom was coming out at that time so the family bought an 02 Axiom EXACTLY like the one shown here, Blue Mica i think was the color name. Base model 4x4 with the "sport" leather trim that had a two-tone black and beige coloring on the seats. The TOD 4WD came in handy in the midwest. You can tell the Axiom shown in the vid is a really early model because Isuzu changed the wheel cap from the protruding center caps to flush-mounted ones in the middle of 02'. By the time it was passed down to me it had started to develop an issue with heavy oil consumption, to the point that the engine sometimes wouldn't start because of low oil pressure and i would have to keep re-filling it (even driving it after only 1000 miles from an oil change). This was about 2014 or so. It eventually got a foot in the grave when i took an off-ramp a little faster than i should have and the engine was getting low on oil again, but it exasperated it by sliding all the oil in the pan away from the pickup tube inside and starved something. Probably the crank. It still ran but made an unhealthy ticking noise. I kept driving it because we knew it would cost a fortune to repair and had other cars to drive. It finally died around 2016 on the highway. Last pic i have of it is being winched onto the back of a recovery truck. Anyway, i do miss our Axiom. It wasnt fantastic or anything but it kept on ticking (heh) and had a bit of an under-dog character to it. If there ONE thing Isuzu did really well that i havent experienced in any other brand Is how SOLID everything was bolted down. Like i mean even in 2015 going over rough rocky roads and bumps it NEVER rattled. My 2003 LS 430 driver's window rattles more against the weather-stripping when i got it in 2016 than the Axiom did when it died. Shockingly ours didn't rust (except the exhaust but what exhaust doesnt rust after 15 years here) at the weak spots even though it lived its entire life in the rust belt. Honestly if they drilled the oil holes in the pistons and block a little larger so it wouldnt cause the issues with the oil consumption, and went with Aisin transmission (which they did in 2004 but too little too late) instead of the gawd-aful GM transmission they stuck in, i think i would still be driving it around today. PS - when Isuzu proper was winding down its US market in 2004 they were trying to get rid of everything in the office at SIA and supposedly my mom was offered a bunch of stuff like Trooper front seats and fog lamps and wheels and what not. I'm still salty that she didnt take any of them up lol.

Miss Isuzu here in the USA. Always liked them. My dream was to have a Vehicross iron man edition

Grew up with a loaded 03 in Maroon. God I miss Isuzu and that Axiom

This was ahead of its time.

it looks much more modern than a 2002. impressive.

Saw these on the spy kids movie and fell in love with them

This SUV seems like something out of the 2010s and not the 2000s! Way ahead of its time!

I had an Isuzu Amigo. Thing was awesome.

I remember selling Isuzu Troopers (I-Marks and Impuses too) one summer during high school. The vehicle was ahead of its time, but Isuzu never really had the dealer network, or marketing power to succeed in North America.

There's three of these running around my city, all different colors. I have no idea why, but it makes me happy every time one appears. I see Rodeos and Troopers frequently, as well. I miss Izuzu.

I remember a church member buying one of these. I can remember how much I really liked it.

Last time I saw one of these, it was sitting in a salvage yard. I had seen these around in the past very rarely, but I had never really been up close to one. The interior was a lot nicer looking than I would have thought

I remember how futuristic this looked out on the road when it came out. Now it looks like any SUV out there, which goes to show how ahead of its time this SUV was.

I don't remember the last time I saw one of these, absolutely wild.

Thanks for making the Isuzu Axiom one of my favorite Isuzu models. I love how it carries a lot of cargo behind the back seat. And speaking of back seats, the Isuzu Axiom has a pretty roomy back seat that can seat 2 adults or 3 small children. The back seat also has plenty of room to stretch out.

Bring back the trooper!

I miss this era of SUVs. While perhaps the Axiom with it's fancy suspension isn't the best example, it was straightforward design and engineering. No high revving turbo 4 cylinders or complicated electronics or 4wd/awd systems, just capable body on frame with V6 or V8 engines.

My buddy had a Rodeo in the early 2000’s. I thought it was great. Capable.

A beautiful, modern design but riding on an old Rodeo platform. This definitely held it back.

I miss the late 90s and early 00s when odd car companies still had cars on the road. Seeing Isuzus, Saturns, and etc driving around certainly gave flavor to everyday traffic. Now everything is either a Toyota, Hyundai, or a Chevrolet

I had a black 2001 XS: for long distance trips the seats were hard and uncomfortable and for me, didn’t go back far enough, but I did love the styling and the engine. After two years the “chrome “ rims were chipping badly after the salted winter roads and Isuzu refused to do anything about it( well within warranty) after a couple of dealership visits. So I reported them to the N.Y attorney general consumers division and Voila: within 2 weeks got a call from their North American headquarters in California as to when would I like to come in at the dealership and have my rims replaced with new ones.

Wow, and here I thought I knew all about quirky Japanese cars. What a find

The design really was ahead of its time.

Isuzu was such a good brand. I miss them. And I'll keep driving my 86 trooper til the wheels fall off

You could drive this car today and still look good, timeless design.

9.3 0-60 is much slower than I’d expect for 230 horses

If you show the exterior design of Axiom to the people outside the US and tell them this is a 2017 or 2018 model, they will believe it. Still a good looking vehicle.

Isuzu axiom was a rugged 4 x 4 that was also built to handle the city. While other companies we're bringing out crossovers that car based that were good just for gravel roads.

I always liked the look of these. Didn't think they were body on frame. I wish I'd have looked closer at Isuzu 15 years ago, because they're quirky and uncommon. This is definitely the closest I've looked at one and I like it more than I thought I would. I like the vehi-CROSS, too but I'd go thru a truckload of trimshine keeping that plastic nice.

I always loved those. Always wanted one. They didn’t sell very well unfortunately

Always did and still do like this suv

I bought a white 2004 Axiom S base model with only about 5000 miles in 2007 for $15800 which was a steal considering the MSRP was somewhere over $28000 back then. Obviously Axioms depreciated horribly. It had been sitting at a dealership for 2 years. I showed the dealership a couple comparable low mileage Axioms for sale on the internet to secure the $15800 sale price because they were still asking much more for it. I sold the Axiom in 2013 with about 130,000 miles. It had been a reliable vehicle other than both of its TWO catalytic converters needing to be replaced JUST after the warranty on the cats had expired. There were no aftermarket options that I could find back then (maybe because the vehicle was so rare... not sure if it shared cats with Rodeos) so I had no option but to pay about $1000 each for the cats at one of the few remaining and quickly-dying off Isuzu dealerships back around 2010.

Have not seen one of these in years

This Isuzu axiom 2000-2005 years small size front grill is similar to the 2005-2010 Isuzu Panther Capsule 4J41 diesel direct injection 5 speed manual and 4 speed automatic transmission

The 3 times I've ever seen one of these i thought they were so cool. Would've loved one back then but I was 6yo lol. Id still take on today

I remember the first time I saw one in the parking lot of a grocery store in late 2001. I was 12 at the time and thought it looked like it came from the future. I’d never seen anything like it

I remember thinking the headlights looked futuristic when this thing came out as a kid

I forgot these even existed. Pretty cool looking though; I never knew they were body on frame.

Great, now I'm craving one of these.

They found the "infotainment" system hard to use. Imagine if we dropped them into a 2024 car 😂😂😂😂

Looks modern, way ahead of its time

Isuzu was a hidden general motors product. They sold the storm cool sporty economy car. Helped with the development of the Isuzu Duramax diesel. In the Chevy Colorado and trailblazer later.

This thing looks ahead of its time

Did anyone have the Axiom R/C car from Spy Kids?

I like your narration

In Patagonia Argentina 🇦🇷 I have an Isuzu Rodeo 99 V6 3.2 LSE 4X4 AT that shared a platform with that Axiom and is a Japanese tank assembled by American hands in Lafayette. Isuzu builds vehicles to last even though its alliance with GM sank it. Don't forget that in your country the NPR light truck is the best seller year after year, from 1986 to date. Greetings brothers and good 2024🙏

These cars looked rugged and rather futuristic i want one

I considered buying one of these in 2004. I never see them on the road anymore.

Love this car's front end especially its bumper!

Really interesting looking SUV for the time. I can’t think of the last time I’ve seen one of these, I really don’t see many Isuzu’s where I am period. Maybe an occasional Trooper or Rodeo here & there, but that’s about it.

I loved these. I always thought there were one of the nicest SUV designs....the look was premium even though the vehicle wasn't. I actually saw one last weekend.Still looks good.

that base price in March 2001 is $45,483.63 today adjusted for inflation

looks like a gx470.. it aged really well.. still looks good now, one might say, better now..

Isuzu was a brand that was relatively popular but all of a sudden vanished from the passenger vehicle market (thank GM!). Now they focus on solely their commercial trucks here in the US, although they still sell the D-MAX and MU-X in other parts of the world such as Australia. They are missing out on the US market as people are buying what they are selling: trucks and SUVs! They should definitely consider making a comeback, although the chicken tax may prevent the D-MAX pickup from being sold here.

Only seen about 3 of these in my lifetime. One was my neighbor’s in black. I remember this suv was in spy kids 😂

I'd buy one..

I remember thinking this truck was so cool. Especially the name.

Nice looking SUV…. I would like to find a well preserved example even today

Damn this ad from 2001 has sold me on an Axiom ngl

These look cool triple black !

My mom bought one new. Thing would haul it. Didn’t know it was 260hp. Makes me want a Vehicross.

Car looks ahead of its time lile Aztek

I've only ever seen 1 of these things out in the wild

Still looks good, could be passed as new today.

Yep. Never heard of this thing.

I always loved the trooper and I like the axiom too

I don't know the actual sale numbers, but I think the Axiom must have sold even worse than the Rodeo. Rodeos were a fairly common sight, but I can probably count the number of Axiom sightings in 20yrs on one hand.

If you've seen the original Spy Kids movie, you know what this is. :D

It looks really nice and modern, in today dollars 25000 adjusted for inflation is 43,000 in today's dollars

I didn't know they were 2 speed transfer case + low range + body on frame. I always thought they were unibody with AWD

Fun fact: The first Honda Passport in the 90's was just a rebadged Isuzu Rodeo.

According to Joe Isuzu, this had America's longest AND SEXIEST warranty!

Great Wall Motors must have bought the tooling from Isuzu because that side profile/doors/glasshouse looks mighty familiar

Super nice suv ❤

looks like a Dodge Nitro with the front of a Dodge Intrepid (just stretched vertically)

This would even pass for today's styling. Almost giving Porsche cayenne in the front and Toyota 4runner in the back

This vehicle was a thing of beauty. The Isuzu Vehicross, not so much!

Also, I think one of these was saved during Cash for Clunkers.

Saw this car in Spy Kids as a child. Though I don't think the real one changes into a submersible :c

Still a very cool looking suv

The GM 4L30E transmission in these cars in 02 and 03 were so bad. I had one that I had rebuilt a few times and failed. Had dark transmission fluid like it overheated and burnt smell multiple times. Most likely this car didn't have an adequate transmission cooler.

Beieve it or not, the Axiom was rebadged in China as the Great Wall Hover! Also Haval H5. Really they copied it. But it does use an Isuzu engine.

Very handsome.

Nver knew this existed!

I don’t think any of these are left on the road now. Plus, these didn’t sell well when they were on the market either.

I never seen this on the road