Junkyard Gem: 1997 Acura SLX

By the second half of the Nineteen Nineties, the large gross sales success of the Ford Explorer (launched as a 1991 mannequin) and Jeep Grand Cherokee (launched as a 1993 mannequin) had made it clear clear that the way forward for the American street could be vehicles. Any automotive producer not promoting a full line of SUV-ish equipment right here could be irrelevant quickly after the daybreak of the brand new century, and the car-and-bike-centric American Honda Motor Firm was subsequently in huge hassle. The Civic may very well be used as the premise for a small crossover SUV (which debuted right here because the 1997 Honda CR-V), however Honda wanted to purchase time to design and produce the platform that will underpin the 2001 Acura MDX and 2003 Honda Pilot. That point was bought through a deal to promote rebadged Isuzu vehicles as Hondas and Acuras. At this time’s Junkyard Gem is a kind of Honda-ized Isuzus, present in a Colorado boneyard.

Honda started promoting the Isuzu Rodeo because the Passport (recycling the identify they’d used on the U.S.-market Tremendous Cub bike) for the 1994 mannequin 12 months, and Acura sellers began shifting SLX-badged Isuzu Troopers within the 1997 mannequin 12 months. Simply to make issues fascinating within the Isuzu-Honda world, North American Isuzu sellers offered Honda Odysseys with Isuzu Oasis badges on the similar time.

Isuzu had gone all-truck for the American market after the final Styluses (and intently associated Geo Storms) had been offered right here as 1993 fashions. Sadly, Isuzu’s ultimate (non-commercial) new automobiles offered right here had been rebadged Chevy Trailblazers and Colorados, greater than 30 years after Chevrolet started promoting Isuzu Sooner pickups right here with LUV badges.

Honda by no means did construct any body-on-frame vehicles, however that proved pointless so as to make some cash in the course of the CUV/SUV period. The SLX by no means offered significantly properly, but it surely gave Acura sellers a luxurious truck to park subsequent to the Integras, TLs, RLs, CLs and NSXs of their showrooms.

After 1999, the SLX was gone, leaving simply the 2000 mannequin 12 months as a clean spot for Acura-badged SUVs.

This truck held collectively like an actual Honda product, getting pretty near the 300,000-mile mark (I’ve discovered junkyard Accords with higher than a half-million miles on their odometers, plus one apiece Civic and CR-V that bought previous 400,000 miles throughout their lives).

The unique proprietor’s manuals had been nonetheless within the glovebox when I discovered this truck.

On the finish, it seems that it was towed away for being parked illegally. Perhaps the engine or transmission failed and its ultimate proprietor simply walked away.

The 1997 SLX bought Isuzu’s 3.2-liter V6, rated at 190 horsepower. For 1998 and 1999, a DOHC model of this engine made 205 horses.

American consumers might purchase ’97 Troopers with guide transmissions, however its SLX sibling got here with a compulsory four-speed computerized.

Strive that in your Integra!

The MSRP on the 1997 Isuzu Trooper Restricted 4WD was $37,990 (about $72,993 in 2023 {dollars}). Its Acura SLX Premium sibling was only a bit extra, at $38,300 ($73,589 in right this moment’s cash).