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Junkyard Gem: 1992 Isuzu Amigo

After some success providing General Motors with small Faster pickups badged as Chevrolet LUVs in North America (plus some Chevette-related Geminis labeled "Buick/Opel by Isuzu," which confused everybody), Isuzu began selling vehicles under its own name here in the early 1980s. At first, we just got I-Mark subcompacts and P'up pickups. Then the Trooper SUV appeared in 1984, and Isuzu joined the suburban-commuter truck game in a big way. For the 1989 model year, the little Amigo three-door convertible SUV landed on our shores. Here's one of those early trucks, found in still-rad condition in a San Francisco Bay Area self-service yard recently. Once Isuzu made a version with five doors and a solid roof, giving it Rodeo badges in the process, the Amigo became more of an afterthought in the North American Isuzu world. Amigo sales halted here after 1995, then resumed for 1998-2000 (after which the three-door became the Rodeo Sport before disappearing in 2003). Starting in 1996, Isuzu replaced its Amigo-platform-related pickup with a rebadged Chevy S-10 known as the Hombre. That meant that Spanish-speaking Isuzu shoppers could be disturbed by the prospect of buying a friend or a man. The Isuzu company itself was named after a river in Mie Prefecture. The Suzuki Samurai kicked off the "cute-ute" craze for the 1986 model year, with the Suzuki Sidekick/Geo Tracker appearing in 1989. Around the same time, irritating pastel colors and squiggly graphics became trendy. This — and other unfortunate 1980s fashions — continued well into the 1990s (One man's "irritating" and "unfortunate" is another's "delightful" - Ed). This odometer can't be right! I suspect a broken speedometer cable. The engine is a 2.6-liter inline-four rated at 119 horsepower.  Unlike Honda's VTEC, the variable-cam-timing system that made its debut in the 1989 Honda Integra, Isuzu's I-TEC name just stood for an electronic fuel injection system.  The only transmission in the Amigo for the first couple of years was a five-speed manual, which is in this truck. That three-pedal setup kept the Amigo's appeal limited to the small group of American drivers willing to work a clutch. The optional automatic became available for 1992. You could get the Amigo with four-wheel drive, but this one is the cheaper rear-wheel-drive version. This interior looks so nice that perhaps this Amigo really did get junked with 57,000+ on the odometer.

Junkyard Gem: 1988 Chevrolet Spectrum Sport Coupe

Before General Motors created the Geo brand for cars built or designed by its overseas partners, the Chevrolet Division put its badges on U.S.-market versions of the Toyota Corolla Sprinter, the Suzuki Cultus and the Isuzu Gemini. Those cars were known as the Nova, the Sprint and the Spectrum, and all became Geos starting with the 1989 model year. Today's Junkyard Gem is one of the last Chevy Spectrums ever sold, found in a Denver self-service yard a few months ago. Midway through 1988, the Chevrolet Spectrum abruptly became the Geo Spectrum and was assigned to the 1989 model year. This car was built in May 1988, making it one of the very last of the pre-Geo Spectrums. The Chevrolet/Geo Spectrum was available as a four-door sedan and as a three-door hatchback, from the 1985 through 1989 model years. For 1988 only, a Spectrum Sport Coupe package, featuring some trim upgrades and these rad decals, could be had on the hatchback. This car was essentially identical to its Isuzu-badged counterpart, the I-Mark. In 1988, the MSRP for the cheapest possible Chevy Spectrum hatchback (the stripped-down Spectrum Express) was $6,495, while its somewhat better-equipped I-Mark twin started at $7,439 (that's $17,128 and $19,617 in 2023 dollars). Meanwhile, the base Hyundai Excel hatchback listed at $5,295 and the Yugo GV cost a hilarious $4,199 ($13,963 and $10,941 in today's money). Power came from this 1.5-liter SOHC four-cylinder, rated at 70 horsepower. A turbocharged version with 110 horsepower was available as well. You could get an automatic transmission in the Spectrum, but this car has the base five-speed manual. This car didn't get the optional air conditioning, but at least it has the traditional Isuzu HVAC control icons featuring blow-dried hair and high-heeled dominatrix boots. Just over 170,000 miles on the odometer. Someone installed a pretty good (for the 1980s) Blaupunkt Charlotte CR148 cassette deck in the dash. This was a necessity if you wanted to enjoy full appreciation of the music of the era. The Spectrum is special! It's as slick as city rain. "I didn't spend a lot of money but with my Spectrum it looks like I did." Joe Isuzu mocked Toyota salesmen when pitching the I-Mark. As was nearly always the case during the 1980s, the JDM ads for the same car were much more fun. They should have recreated this commercial with Spectrums.

16 things I learned about the Isuzu VehiCROSS

There are plenty of cars I remember existing, but actually know very little about due to the passage of time or just not particularly caring when they were new. Take the Isuzu VehiCROSS, which I fondly recall as this wackadoo off-roader from the late 1990s and early 2000s. But honestly, that's about it. So, since I've got a little extra time kicking about, I decided to fall into the rabbit hole labeled Isuzu VehiCROSS for an hour to see how much I could find out about this SUV (or "sport/utility" in 1999 parlance) that shared labeling with the watch I wore in 1999. Enjoy. 1) The VehiCROSS was not based on the Rodeo, as I always assumed, but rather the Trooper RS. Oh, so that bigger, boxier Isuzu they turned into an Acura? No, no, no. The RS was the two-door Trooper, and specifically the second-generation two-door Trooper, which I just discovered was a thing. And what a gawky, dorky, that-has-to-be-Photoshopped thing it was. Apparently, the Trooper RS was sold in the United States from 1993 to 1995, and in very small numbers. That is not surprising. 2) It was probably obvious, but the VehiCROSS was based on a concept car. Specifically, a concept car shown at the 1993 Tokyo auto show.  3) The quick turnaround from concept to its Japanese market introduction for 1997 was the result of some innovative manufacturing methods at the time (it arrived in the United States in 1999). According to the Motor Trend first drive, "There would be no time-consuming clinics, no 'courtroom drama' with the finance department, and to oversee the project, a 'Zip Team' consisting of 15-20 members was given the task of developing the vehicle in about half the normal time." Among its accomplishments, the team came up with a way to more quickly and cheaply produce the VehiCROSS' unique body pieces. Again according to Motor Trend, Isuzu used carbon stamping dies inside of the conventional cast iron dies. Though the carbon could be used far fewer times and result in a reduced overall capacity, they cost one-third to one-half as much and could be made in about six weeks – the cast iron ones would take four months and run about $1.5 million in 1990s dollars. Isuzu estimated they'd only be able to produce 2,400 VehiCROSSes per year until the carbon dies wore out. Then that would be it. According to sales data on Wikipedia, Isuzu managed to sell 2,005 in the U.S. alone in year 1 and 4,153 in total. In Japan, there were 1,805 sold in total.