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Bad survey comments about 2nd gen Rodeo

2K views 19 replies 9 participants last post by  TKEPA251 
#1 ·
Sounds like we all have these problems with the 2nd gen Rodeos:

http://www.carsurvey.org/reviews/isuzu/ ... /comments/

Thanks to this forum, I either have fixed or prevented the problems I've had with my 2nd gen. But in reality though, this truck is pretty UNreliable if you're not a mechanic or not mechanical-savvy.
 
#2 ·
I disagree.

130K on my Rodeo, never had a breakdown. Besides routine maintenance the only repairs I've done, is replacing the starter, replacing the fuel pump, replacing the fan clutch, and just last month my A/C compressor bearing/pulley crapped out. Really none of those are engine related, just accessories. The engine itself has been dead-nuts reliable.

As for oil consumption, using Rotella 5W-40 I burn about 2.5 quarts in 5K miles. Yes it's more then I'm used to with other vehicles I've owned, and more then I'd like. But it's the only complaint I have. I'm thinking of switching oil and see if it makes any difference as far as consumption.
 
#3 ·
Sags said:
I disagree.

130K on my Rodeo, never had a breakdown. Besides routine maintenance the only repairs I've done, is replacing the starter, replacing the fuel pump, replacing the fan clutch, and just last month my A/C compressor bearing/pulley crapped out. Really none of those are engine related, just accessories. The engine itself has been dead-nuts reliable.

As for oil consumption, using Rotella 5W-40 I burn about 2.5 quarts in 5K miles. Yes it's more then I'm used to with other vehicles I've owned, and more then I'd like. But it's the only complaint I have. I'm thinking of switching oil and see if it makes any difference as far as consumption.
i'm just referring to the non-automotive savvy people out there, this truck isn't really reliable. people like us are, so we are able to keep these trucks on the road longer.

my new low mileage engine burned the rotella t6 5w-40 too. i switched to conventional Peak 5w-30 and so far it's liking it. the oil level on the dipstick hasn't gone down since last oilchange. i think my A/C compressor pulley/clutch/bearing went out too. does yours make a knocking noise not engaged and whine at higher rpms when engaged?
 
#4 ·
98HPasSport said:
Sags said:
I disagree.

130K on my Rodeo, never had a breakdown. Besides routine maintenance the only repairs I've done, is replacing the starter, replacing the fuel pump, replacing the fan clutch, and just last month my A/C compressor bearing/pulley crapped out. Really none of those are engine related, just accessories. The engine itself has been dead-nuts reliable.

As for oil consumption, using Rotella 5W-40 I burn about 2.5 quarts in 5K miles. Yes it's more then I'm used to with other vehicles I've owned, and more then I'd like. But it's the only complaint I have. I'm thinking of switching oil and see if it makes any difference as far as consumption.
i'm just referring to the non-automotive savvy people out there, this truck isn't really reliable. people like us are, so we are able to keep these trucks on the road longer.

my new low mileage engine burned the rotella t6 5w-40 too. i switched to conventional Peak 5w-30 and so far it's liking it. the oil level on the dipstick hasn't gone down since last oilchange. i think my A/C compressor pulley/clutch/bearing went out too. does yours make a knocking noise not engaged and whine at higher rpms when engaged?
How low mileage are you talking ***warning controversial subject ahead*** if it's a brand new engine you probably shouldn't run synthetic oil during the break in period. New engines need a bit more friction to seat the rings, and get a proper finish on the cylinder wall. Most folks only recommend synthetic for high(ish) mileage engines. Of course other folks will tell you that newer engines are manufactured to such high standards that they do not need a break in period.

My A/C was working fine, till one day it started very suddenly making a grinding racket of a noise, and then I smelt burning and pulled over to find smoke pouring out of the compressor clutch. I've bypassed it with a shorter belt now and am suffering the heat. I can tell now that the pulley bearing is toasted, there is about 1/2" of play in the bearing just wiggling it with my finger.

Still don't agree with your "isn't really reliable" statement. I think Isuzus are pretty much on par with the average reliability for their respective times. Mines 11 years old and I've abused it pretty hard at times, it still runs fantastic, and ANY vehicle, whether owned by a mechanically inclined person or not requires routine maintenance to keep it on the road.

What are you comparing your Isuzu to that makes you think they "aren't really reliable"? Comparable vehicles to my Rodeo would be stuff like Cherokees, 4runners, Explorers, Blazers, Pathfinders, etc. and I think it's at least as reliable as any of those.
 
#5 ·
I'm sure every Rodeo out there is different but.... Mine has 168K on it and stock EVERYTHING. Timing, gaskets, thermostat... Etc. The only thing new is the a/c compressor I installed.

Aside from changing fluids (ATF/Oil) there hasn't been anything else done to it. It runs like a champ!

Though, I should probably knock on wood.. With my luck my timing belt will snap and I'll have a blown headgasket the next time I start her up!
 
#6 ·
Sags said:
My A/C was working fine, till one day it started very suddenly making a grinding racket of a noise, and then I smelt burning and pulled over to find smoke pouring out of the compressor clutch. I've bypassed it with a shorter belt now and am suffering the heat. I can tell now that the pulley bearing is toasted, there is about 1/2" of play in the bearing just wiggling it with my finger.
Care to post a part number so that those of us who may be stuck someday with a bad compressor in a town that has belts, but no compressors can get home?

-Tad
 
#7 ·
Like to add some input on the 1st gen. troopers. We have an 85 in the family since 1988. It is on the second engine and has 270,000 miles on it. The clutch and running gear are all original as is the catalitic converter. Air went out some years back. Has original ball joints, but getting ready to replace them. Over-all...Very satisfied...Hope to continue driving it.
 
#8 ·
Sags said:
98HPasSport said:
Sags said:
I disagree.

130K on my Rodeo, never had a breakdown. Besides routine maintenance the only repairs I've done, is replacing the starter, replacing the fuel pump, replacing the fan clutch, and just last month my A/C compressor bearing/pulley crapped out. Really none of those are engine related, just accessories. The engine itself has been dead-nuts reliable.

As for oil consumption, using Rotella 5W-40 I burn about 2.5 quarts in 5K miles. Yes it's more then I'm used to with other vehicles I've owned, and more then I'd like. But it's the only complaint I have. I'm thinking of switching oil and see if it makes any difference as far as consumption.
i'm just referring to the non-automotive savvy people out there, this truck isn't really reliable. people like us are, so we are able to keep these trucks on the road longer.

my new low mileage engine burned the rotella t6 5w-40 too. i switched to conventional Peak 5w-30 and so far it's liking it. the oil level on the dipstick hasn't gone down since last oilchange. i think my A/C compressor pulley/clutch/bearing went out too. does yours make a knocking noise not engaged and whine at higher rpms when engaged?
How low mileage are you talking ***warning controversial subject ahead*** if it's a brand new engine you probably shouldn't run synthetic oil during the break in period. New engines need a bit more friction to seat the rings, and get a proper finish on the cylinder wall. Most folks only recommend synthetic for high(ish) mileage engines. Of course other folks will tell you that newer engines are manufactured to such high standards that they do not need a break in period.

My A/C was working fine, till one day it started very suddenly making a grinding racket of a noise, and then I smelt burning and pulled over to find smoke pouring out of the compressor clutch. I've bypassed it with a shorter belt now and am suffering the heat. I can tell now that the pulley bearing is toasted, there is about 1/2" of play in the bearing just wiggling it with my finger.

Still don't agree with your "isn't really reliable" statement. I think Isuzus are pretty much on par with the average reliability for their respective times. Mines 11 years old and I've abused it pretty hard at times, it still runs fantastic, and ANY vehicle, whether owned by a mechanically inclined person or not requires routine maintenance to keep it on the road.

What are you comparing your Isuzu to that makes you think they "aren't really reliable"? Comparable vehicles to my Rodeo would be stuff like Cherokees, 4runners, Explorers, Blazers, Pathfinders, etc. and I think it's at least as reliable as any of those.
Comparing it to a Toyota or Honda....i mean there's a reason why Isuzu is not at the top of the import car market right? the name Isuzu doesn't even really come to mind anymore when you think of reliability to the likes of Honda or Toyota. The main problem is the Engine....

"Occasional problems on this vehicle are failure of the Intake Manifold Gaskets, the Fuel Level Sensor and the Engine Short Block. Failure of the Intake Manifold Gaskets may cause a rough idle, or the Check Engine Light to illuminate. Failure of the EGR valve. Failure of the Fuel Tank Sending Unit may cause the Fuel Gauge to be inaccurate and may turn on the Check Engine Light. Lack of maintenance can cause the pistons rings to stick resulting in excessive engine oil usage. This engine oil usage can lead to piston rod bearing failure resulting in replacement of the Short Block. The cost to replace the Intake Manifold Gaskets is estimated at $46.00 for the parts and $149.50 for labor. The cost to replace the Fuel Level Sensor is estimated at $359.58 for parts and $162.50 for labor. The cost to replace the Short Block is estimated at $4,280.00 for parts and $1,235.00 for labor. All prices are estimates based on $65.00 per flat rate hour and do not include diagnostic time or any applicable sales tax."

i was a victim to rod bearing failure due to oil consumption already and this 2nd "newer" engine still burns oil no matter how low mileage or clean it is....if i have to keep worrying about it (a low mileage engine for that matter) before the next oil change...doesn't that mean UNreliable?? unreliable because of bad piston design. ok so i made it worse by jacking it up and putting big tires on it...that just makes it 2x more unreliable. if it has to rely on me more than i can rely on it = unreliable....no matter what brand manufacturer it is. i make a living off unreliable cars, Mercedes...i know what unreliability is lol. well at least on my truck it's just the engine...all others are just normal wear and tear items on an old high-mileage truck like any other.

if it weren't for the oil-burning bad piston design problem...i don't doubt this engine will be very reliable enough to go 250,000 miles or so. but it DOES have this problem...that makes it unreliable.

i'm even starting to worry if the knocking noise isnt the a/c compressor(s) at all (i tried 2)...i might have another minor rod bearing failure in my hands when the oil was at the tip of the dipstick (about 1.5 qt left) in about 1500 miles since i put it in with 5 qts oil to begin with....i'd be real pissed if that's what it is. i'm starting to think this engine was pulled at 25k miles due to oil consumption and im the dumbass who bought it thinking it'd be more reliable cus it's low mileage.

here's also what one isuzu mechanic said:

"I have rebuilt several of these Isuzu Trooper 3.5L engines (6) that have failed from engine oil loss. All seem to show the same problem when dismantled. I agree with everything that is said above. But, let me elaborate from personnal experience that few others have to share with everyone! Yes, it is very true that the Isuzu Trooper 3.5L engine (1998-2002) is sensitive to low oil level in the crank case! However, the root cause that underlies oil consumption on these engines are two-fold in conditions. One, is the use of "mineral based oil" (that is regular automotive oil) instead of the much better synthetic type of engine oils. The other reason is not paying attention to oil change intervals and oil levels on the dipstick. Back to the first reason. As I said, "mineral base oil" is much more a problem than synthetic oil. Why? Mineral base oil oxidizes much more rapidly than synthetic oil in an engine, and when it does it makes something called oxidation products, more commonly known as oil sludge or oil "gums". If synthetic oil is used there is much less tendency to form these products! So, what does the sludge/gum do? The sludge/gum formation causes the oil rings to stick in the oil ring grooves. This is definately not a normal and wanted condition! The oil rings need to be able to move freely in and out of the groove. Synthetic oil should be used in the Trooper 3.5L, it is a much better oil because it does not form sludge/gums in the oil ring area, hence the oil rings will continue to work as they should "oiling" the cylinder walls much better than if mineral oil is used. On a side note here, Isuzu should have specified to use synthetic oil in these 3.5L engines from the very day the newly manufactured Trooper was first filled with engine oil. That way oil rings would last much, much longer without gumming/sticking. But why do the piston oil rings gum up when other auto engines don't seem to have this problem? The reason is in the construction of the oil rings and the grooves they ride in. The oil ring groove on each piston has too few "holes" (there are only 4 per piston) to permit sufficient oil drainage from the oil ring area. Not only are there too few holes, but the holes are too small (being 1 mm in diameter). Having too few and too small drainage holes causes oil to linger in the oil ring groove area. Hence, the engine oil heats up from lack of oil flow and forms those all so deposits of oxidation, aka GUM on the rings. The rings, once coated with gum formation can then no longer expand to scrape oil from the piston walls as they should; instead they stay in the collapsed position and engine oil is pumped by them up into the piston combustion chamber. The more gum formation in the piston oil ring area the greater the amount of oil consumed. In fact, the gum build up and oil consumption can happen so fast that the oil level drops between oil changes to some dangerously low level. Once, the dangerous oil level has gone unnoticed the oil pump can no longer suck up oil from the crank case and it then fails to deliver oil to the engine. End of story, the engine is destroyed. The second reason I speak of is neglect to change oil at regular intervals as specified by Isuzu. This action is like throwing fuel on a fire. It enhances gum formation because the additives that prevent gum formation (yes, there are some additives in good oil that do this) are consumed at about 3,000 miles! Take if from me, use sythetic oil, check your oil at each gas tank fillup, change your oil faithfully at manufacturer's specified interval, and you can easily drive an Isuzu Trooper 3.5L well beyond 200,000 miles. It' true. I've done it."
 
#9 ·
Tad said:
Sags said:
My A/C was working fine, till one day it started very suddenly making a grinding racket of a noise, and then I smelt burning and pulled over to find smoke pouring out of the compressor clutch. I've bypassed it with a shorter belt now and am suffering the heat. I can tell now that the pulley bearing is toasted, there is about 1/2" of play in the bearing just wiggling it with my finger.
Care to post a part number so that those of us who may be stuck someday with a bad compressor in a town that has belts, but no compressors can get home?

-Tad
Napa belt, part # 060798. 80-3/8" long.
 
#10 ·
I've got 161,xxx on the clock in my '98. She burns a little oil, but with some Lucas oil stabilizer I can go around 2,000 miles after a change without burning a drop. I've recently replaced the intake manifold gaskets. I also discovered intake manifold gaskets are a common failure on most vehicles. I replaced the alternator and idler pulley, but the alternator is an electrical part, therefore unreliable. The idler pulley was a ball bearing pulley, bound for failure with time.

O yea and the 4L30E crapped out on me around 155,000 miles. An improperly maintained automatic transmission is, inevitably going to fail, and with the difficulty of maintenance for these things well the nails in the coffin for us.

Also, GM makes **** transmissions, IMO.
 
#11 ·
well at least one good news -- i tracked down the knocking noise from the ac compressor....turns out one of the bolts for the ac compressor bracket came loose and couldn't see it cus it's covered by the ac compressor. musta came loose from vibration, so i put blue loctite on the threads this time on all the bolts - problem solved.

so no damaged rod bearing...bit the bullet this time. but it still burns a quart of oil every 1000 miles. i just have to live with that. this should be a "reliable" truck now that i know everything bad that goes on with it...and be able to prevent it and upkeep it.
 
#12 ·
98HPasSport said:
well at least one good news -- i tracked down the knocking noise from the ac compressor....turns out one of the bolts for the ac compressor bracket came loose and couldn't see it cus it's covered by the ac compressor. musta came loose from vibration, so i put blue loctite on the threads this time on all the bolts - problem solved.

so no damaged rod bearing...bit the bullet this time. but it still burns a quart of oil every 1000 miles. i just have to live with that. this should be a "reliable" truck now that i know everything bad that goes on with it...and be able to prevent it and upkeep it.
If you aint already done it switch your oil over to Rotella 5w-40 or 15w-40 and start changing it every 2500 for the next 2-3 oil changes. I'd also say add that Lucas Oil Stabilizer. Its a little pricey, but well worth it.

Depending on how many miles you've got on your odometer you may want to look into changing your intake manifold gaskets between 150,000 and 160,000. It took me about 5 solid hours from tear down to build up. I'll warn you to be EXTREMELY cautious when doing this not to let anything fall into the intake ports in the heads, and to document every bolt you remove.

Also watch for the 2 10mm's on the back holding a fuel line bracket on. The passenger side is a royal PITA to get out.

BTW great lookin 2nd Gen Rodeo! Black is a great color for these trucks!
 
#13 ·
my 3.1L GM motor is starting to look realllyyyy good right about now...
 
#14 ·
RandyAM said:
my 3.1L GM motor is starting to look realllyyyy good right about now...
except for the weak 120hp and the fact its a GM.

Remember kids, GM underlines the problem in their logo!



my 3.2 burns no oil and purrs like a kitten. Runs strong.
 
#16 ·
TKEPA251 said:
98HPasSport said:
well at least one good news -- i tracked down the knocking noise from the ac compressor....turns out one of the bolts for the ac compressor bracket came loose and couldn't see it cus it's covered by the ac compressor. musta came loose from vibration, so i put blue loctite on the threads this time on all the bolts - problem solved.

so no damaged rod bearing...bit the bullet this time. but it still burns a quart of oil every 1000 miles. i just have to live with that. this should be a "reliable" truck now that i know everything bad that goes on with it...and be able to prevent it and upkeep it.
If you aint already done it switch your oil over to Rotella 5w-40 or 15w-40 and start changing it every 2500 for the next 2-3 oil changes. I'd also say add that Lucas Oil Stabilizer. Its a little pricey, but well worth it.

Depending on how many miles you've got on your odometer you may want to look into changing your intake manifold gaskets between 150,000 and 160,000. It took me about 5 solid hours from tear down to build up. I'll warn you to be EXTREMELY cautious when doing this not to let anything fall into the intake ports in the heads, and to document every bolt you remove.

Also watch for the 2 10mm's on the back holding a fuel line bracket on. The passenger side is a royal PITA to get out.

BTW great lookin 2nd Gen Rodeo! Black is a great color for these trucks!
Thanks man! You could say I've been there, done that. Still burns the Rotella T6 5w40. I was running Rotella on the last engine and it burned it all and damaged the rod bearings. Now I'm on my 2nd engine that's very low mileage and it still burns any oil I put in it. Yes I also use Lucas oil stabilizer.

Here was my buildup of my truck and 2nd engine I put in:

http://forum.planetisuzoo.com/viewtopic ... sc&start=0
 
#17 ·
94Rodayo4x4 said:
RandyAM said:
my 3.1L GM motor is starting to look realllyyyy good right about now...
except for the weak 120hp and the fact its a GM.

Remember kids, GM underlines the problem in their logo!



my 3.2 burns no oil and purrs like a kitten. Runs strong.
 
#18 ·
Chevy sucks, Ford sucks...Mopar rules all.

Except Isuzu.
 
#19 ·
TKEPA251 said:
Chevy sucks, Ford sucks...Mopar rules all.

Except Isuzu.
come clean the coffee i just projectile spat all over my computer screen. :lol:
 
#20 ·
Taylor one day you're gonna have to accept the fact that Mopar trumps all
 
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