Introduce yourself here!

Wanted to say "Hello" to the club members. I just purchased a 1999 VX. I found it on a web search at a local dealership (Atlanta). They didn't really know what it was - had never seen one before they took this one in on a trade. I had first seen the VX in 1999. At that time, I had just purchased a new '99 Nissan pickup. Three days after buying the pickup, I happened to drive by an Isuzu dealership and noticed a VX they had on their lot. I stopped to take a look at it and was immediately drawn to the design of the vehicle. I did a little research after that to learn a little more about the VX. At any rate, the pickup and I were together for five years, but recently I decided to get rid of it. I looked at some other "popular" SUV models, but they all seemed to be stamped out of the same mold. However, in the back of my mind, I always remembered that first VX I looked at five years ago. So from the web search I found the '99, drove it, and bought it. No modifications to report, other than new CD system. Being a first-time owner, I may have several less than intelligent questions over the next few months. I've read several of the posts on this site, and you guys really seem to know your stuff, so hope you will bear with me. While I'm at it, I might as well ask my first question.

My VX is in good mechanical condition, has been well maintained and runs well. The ride was improved with a new set of Bridgestone Duelers. Here's my question: The temperature guage consistently runs steady within the normal range. However, I've noticed that the engine puts off a lot of heat, and requires a heck of long time to disipate that heat once it's shut off. Can you guys give me some feedback as to whether this is normal for the VX 3.5L-V6? Would really appreciate any comments.

Ya'll have a good one.

I always wanted an Amigo. When the time came in May 1999 I started a little research into invoice pricing, dealerships, etc. etc.. That is when I found the VX or, as it is known to my friends and family, the GRYPHINMOBILE.

For those of you who may not know, a gryphin has the head, talons, and wings of a giant eagle and the body of a lion. The gryphin is able to fly like a bird yet has the strength and power of the lion. It has been my personal totem since I was a kid and the vehicross (cross between a sports car and a jeep) seemed therefore to be preordained as my "car".

I have enjoyed every mile of the 111,000 I have driven but of late have considered moving on. Well not any more! I had no IDEA there was such an organized community out there dedicated to this vehicle. I have spent the last few days reading your posts and hearing your stories. I am renewed.

I look forward to joining your ranks. I have long wondered about mods for my gryphinmobile and am looking forward to starting some projects like those who have gone before. I want to do everything… Lights, fogs, blinkers, sun roofs, wheels, tires, stereo, video, turbo, supercharger, heated seats… think that’s it.

This is going to take a lot of work! ;)

Hello Everyone,

I am Andrew. From Arizona and have been interested in the VX since 1999. I use to post on the old board and just recently found out of this new board. I have read just about every post catching up with all the great information on this site.

well i just became a member after finding this site about a month ago. thought i'd say hi.....hi

i'm on my 2nd VX now....i blew up my 1st one when i tried to go thru a rather large pool of water during a flood. it was a 99 astral silver with the red and black interior. i only had 20k miles on it. motor sucked in water and it hydrolocked. destroyed the motor and dealer said it was totaled. i heard someone bought it at auction for 13,000. guy was gonna try and drop a trooper motor in it.

but i came out ok...insurance covered it and i bought a 2001 kaiser for insurance check and 2k, brand new. have had it for almost 2 yrs now.

well i'm sure i'll have more to say and ask later.....i'm thinking about coming up for midwest thing in april....we'll see

I have been meaning to introduce myself to the rest of the members, but I get too busy sometimes. I fell in love with the VX when I first saw one at a car show. In fact, I liked it so much that I traded my 99 Mustang Cobra to get mine. It is a great vehicle that is still years ahead of the competition in many respects. Since buying mine new in Dec '99 I have made quite a few modifications to it. I now have a SA Alpine Supercharger, Autometer guages, Razo shifters, custom exhaust, tire upgrade, and a few other items and I continue to make additional modifications almost every month. It just gets better and better!!!
I have seen and read about the VX gathering in Moab in May and I am hoping to be able to drive down there. Since I live in Utah I have the poorest excuse not to attend. I hope to meet many of you that I have read about in the forums. Remember, when you drive a VX "You ARE the exception, NOT the rule" VXtreme

Hello - I'm a new VX owner - and new to this site. I recently purchased a 2000 VX - Firefox Red Mica (not my first color choice) - with 35K miles. I believe this vehicle orginally was a leased vehicle - in the mid-to-eastern part of PA. It now has a home in in Western PA - north of Pittsburgh.
.

Well, I am not a Vx owner but more of an enthusiast. I have signed up here to learn more about the Vx after having my interest peaked driving my fathers. He is a member of this board by the name of Chopper.

I have been a DSM enthusiast for going on 8 years now but it can never hurt to get schooled in one more platform.:cool:

I was looking for my first car ever in 2000, and i saw a brand new black VX in the isuzu showroom and instantly loved it! the only problem was the $34,000 price tag it had brand new (hell of a mark up huh?) I got a rodeo because they were cheap, but never forgot about that VX i saw. When my rodeo lease ran up recently, i was already shopping for a VX. I am proud to say that after an almost 4 1/2 year wait, i have my own 2001 Charcoal Grey VX and couldn't love it more!

But now comes the problem of mods, which i know nothing about, since i'm clueless about fixing cars, etc., but want some specific mods for my VX. For instance, i would love a cold air intake, but i'm told that no application exists for the VX. I would also love mud guards, a halogen light kit, factory roof racks, and God would i sell my soul to have one of those VX-4 center console set-ups. There are lots of basic mods i want, but i have absolutely no clue which kind to get of what, and to be honest, could really use some help from you all, so please email me with any help you can give, as a fellow VX addict. Thanks for reading,:thanx:

My new (used) VX gets delivered tomorrow. I've been an interested observer on the sidelines for some time now. I decided the time was ripe to get in the driver's seat, and I can't wait. I'm looking forward to participating here too.

Just purchased a "wife's car" 1999 Astral Silver with 57K miles. Not a mark on it, never off road and "only in the snow once". Looks like it has never been sat in. Also have a 1998 Amigo V6, 5 speed, with 80K miles that I have never had a problem with. Also a 1971 Marcos (British car, 2000lb, V6, 4 speed, 41 inches high, right-hand drive).

I've gleaned a lot of info from this site both before and after my purchase. Need a new intake gasket and dealer is installing under warranty (492 miles left).

I live approx. 3 hours north of San Francisco on Rt. 101 in the Redwoods (Willits). 35 miles from the Pacific.

Don

This site is amazing. It ahs everything. My name is Dustin and I am 20 and live in Anchorage, Alaska. I bought my vehicross about 2 months ago. I was in the market for a new car. When I saw this at the dealership I new I had to have it. I have had 19 differant vehicles since age 15 and i like thes better than all of them put together. I love my vx and cant stop putting $ into it. I'm now an addict. Thanks for all the helpful info.
-Dustin

New Vehicross owner here... Not a new VX of course, but a '99 ebony which has been beat about pretty well. A bit of a fixer upper you might say. I say, "I've been wanting one of these for a long time, and the price was reasonable" So I fanally have a Vehicross.... Back in '99 I dragged my wife to the local Isuzu dealership to check out the new VX's... She tolerates my caraholism pretty well, but with a price tag of $32K, it just wasnt going to happen... Not just then at any rate., but I knew.... some day.... Well that day has come! As a long time Isuzu customer I consider the VX to be the best thing Isuzu has ever done... ( Dont even get me started on the pathetic state of affairs Isuzu seems to have found itsself in lately.... So sad...)
I've owned "86 Trooper, '88 trooper SE, '89 Amigo, '89 Amigo XS 4x4, and currently own a '95 Trooper(Paris Dakar Limited edition, black) As nice as a trooper gets.... But it aint no Vehicross! Am I right ? Yea? Allright! I won't bore you all with the list of cars I've owned,(it would take all night) just the pertinent ones! I also currently own a '94 Dodge Cummins 4x4.... (will somebody please tell me where I can buy Biodiesel?) and a '97 Jeep Wrangler(rockcrawler) I guess the Vehicross is as close to driving a 'car' as I'm gonna get!
Catch ya'll later!

Hello everyone, my name is Mike and i don't have a VX but i do have a 2002 Axiom XS that i have started to extensivly modify. I started with a set of 20x9 Chrome Eco Evos with 275/45/20 Goodyaer GT2s.
http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-...vers_front.jpg

Then i added a 2002 WRX hood scoop that i made functional to aid in "flushing" the engine bay air to help keep it cool after my turbo project.

I am in the middle of a system install where i am building custom fiberglass boxes for 1 12" suba and my EQ, i mounted two jbl amps in the hatch. I had to replace the stock shocks with stronger stainless shocks with custom machined brackets.http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-...s_in_hatch.jpg
http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-...ck_bracket.jpg

here is a link to the thread about my fiberglass boxes:
http://www.fordexplorer.net/viewtopi...351&highlight=

I am also in the middle of machining new center caps for my Wheels, since i hate the orignal ones, here is a link to that thread:
http://www.fordexplorer.net/viewtopi...618&highlight=

The next big project is the turbo kit. I will be building a complete custm stainless kit for a single Garrett T3/T4 turbo, i will be using a custom intercooler i built, morgan-tec muffler, HKS blow off valve, Greddy boost controller, Defi gauges in a custom modified stock A piller gauge pod, 16" electric fan, etc. I am fully expecting around 300hp at the tires since i am going to be running around 8-10 psi. I was going to go with the Alpine S/C but for the money i can build a sweet turbo kit and be a lot different and faster.

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-5/195531/turbo1.jpg


So please let me know what ya think of my Axiom and feel free to ask any performance related ? since that is my field.

;Dr;

I am the proud new owner of this incredible VX.
http://www.vehicross.info/forums/sho...&threadid=3606

I've been eyeing this board for a couple months now, as well as autotrader and ebay. Although I wasn't exactly ready to purchase one just yet, this seemed too good to pass up. So after about a month of whining and begging, my wonderful wife gave in and let me get it.

On the three hour ride home, I'm not sure if a smile ever left my face. The exhaust on this thing is killer. It has a rumble that stands out to say the least. I got home shortly after midnight, been up since about 7am. Spent at least 1/2 hour after I got home cleaning up the bugs that didn't evade my front end on the freeway. And now spending time telling the VX community that I am finally part of it, when I have to be to work at 6am.

And So the Obsession Begins...

I`ve wanted a VX since I read the 1st reports in the magazines several years ago.Well,last Thursday evening,I was perusing the newspaper and one was listed at a local Infinity dealership.I got up the next morning at 4:30 and went to look at it.Two hours later I went back to look at it.Three other men were in the lot stalking the VX also,and this was 6:30 in the morning.At 10:30 I went back and took a test drive.I had to have this thing!It only had 45K miles on it.I offered the salesman $12K,he accepted,and I gave him a $500 cash deposit to get it off the lot and start the paperwork(I had to get to work).Six hours later,I became the proud owner of a 99 black Vehicross.This thing really turns heads.I also own a two-tone `73 VW Thing,but the VX gets much more attention!

Hi all!
I came across this site though google, and it seems to be a very helpful and useful.
I'm from Russia, and I'm in great need of some parts for my white VX, which has been in a serious accident. If anyone could recommend a dealer/vendor in NY/NJ area (or anywhere around) whom i could buy them from, I'd be very thankful. I need front fenders, front bumper, hood, radiator - everything that can be damaged in a head-on collision.
Any reply regarding where those can be ordered would be very appreciated. Dealers don't have to be able to ship to Russia, that will be taken care of by my friend in the States.

Hello Everyone.

I have just purchased my first VX. I have wanted one since first seeing the commercials on TV. The VX is a 2001, Ebony Black with 24000 miles. It is in excellent condition, and can't wait to add personal touches to it. This webiste is full of information and I hope to extract as much as I can to make my VX my own. Look forward to sharing information with all of you.

I just purchased my '01 Ebony VX last Friday. It's in almost perfect showroom condition, and I feel like I got a good deal on a great vehicle. I'm spending the next few days installing my stereo equipment (if I can find a spot for the 2nd amp), then I'll start making my list of "essential mods". First is a 2" receiver hitch!

Thanks for a good site with great information! Would like to meet up with anyone here from the Houston, TX area!

Eric Underwood
Houston (Katy), TX

I'm an electronic musician and perl programmer, and purchased my Black 99 VX last September. I've loved every moment since, and I've loved lurking on this board. I have a couple of pics of stuff I've done to my VX and the things I want to do.

After visiting this site regularly for nearly a year while I looked for the right VX, I finally purchased one on Ebay and last week drove it from Long Island, NY to Michigan. The seller was great and the vehicle is everything I thought it would be. I've owned 240Zs, CJ-5s and a Rodeo and this is better engineered and more fun by far. This site is outstanding and lots of help. Seems like there are some pretty nice people involved and I'm looking forward to meeting a few and seeing if the VX can handle the dunes on Lake Michigan...and some other challenges. Like many others I need a roof rack and will be looking for the best bike carrier for my Tone 2" hitch/receiver. Keep up the great site and I'll keep visiting for good advice.

Typing this from the road. Drove from Philly to Boston to buy my Foxfire VX. 2001, garage kept beauty with only 12000 miles.

Mass. is a pain in the butt to buy a car in if you're from out of state. No temporary transfer plates to legally drive it home :mad:

Had to find an auto transport company and drop it off at a holding depot 15 minutes after it was mine that was run by two hillbillies that looked like they dropped out of the movie "Deliverance";eekg;

Gonna drive home today and pray that it shows up next week
;Db;

Arrived home without my VX. Now I just have to wait for it to arrive; it could be quite a while before a truck comes our way.

I'm really excited about it coming and wish I could have driven it home. It was just too far to go without legal plates however.

I really tried to figure out a way to drive it. PA won't let you register a car until you show up title in hand and MA has no temp plate whatsoever (hard to believe - seems like common sense to have one - of course in Boston they don't believe in road signs either).

Mass. seems very unfriendly to out of state car buyers. If you're a resident of MA you can drive for 10 days with another car's plates on your vehicle (to get it home) but it's not OK to swap out of state plates. It's illegal to swap out of state plates to the car until it's really registered in that state (I talked to two MA state troopers and the Mass. RMV to be sure about this).

The only legal way to get a car you just bought out of MA is to flatbed it or have dealer plates.

Go figure.

So I wait with my fingers crossed; wish me luck.

Hello out there in VX land,
I first saw the VX as a Hotwheels car & thought it was kinda cool, then forgot about it.......until Feb.2002
I was driving by a local "used" lot when I saw "IT"....a test drive & some wheeling & dealing on the price & It was on!
Upside: VX w/ 8750 on the clock. Great truck, LOVE it!!!!!!!!!!!!
Downside: Had to sign papers & take delivery the day my dad died (other interested party).
A yr. & change later I'm glad to be a VX'er & look forward to getting to know y'all.

LDubya,

Nice to know ya. :D I missed this thread before, so consider this a belated introduction of myself:

My name is Steve. You all know the story of how I found my VX (I started a thread on it). Been a VX'er for a few weeks now,and I'm lovin' it.

Hi!

Hi yall, just signed up as a "site supporter"!!! I just drove my second VX home this monday-a Proton 2001 that is in mint condition.

dark-blue bold italic small times
Hello Everyone,
Rookie over here to this site and a new owner of a Black VX. YES! Just wanted to say Hi. This is a Puerto rican from NYC (Maspeth, Queens) and I have been in love with the VX since it came out back in 1999 and now I finally got my hands on one. So as of right now I'm going crazy thinking about what I want to hookup on my VX. But I do have 1 question...How & where do I post up my pictures? Please advance...Thanks!

The baby is a Kaiser ’01, red interior, now 19K miles. She’s near mint. Very clean. Probably never been off road, unless very thoroughly cleaned afterwards. No scuffs on any plastic inside or out, no leaking seals, solid shocks, holding her oil (at least in the last 800 miles). It’s been driven, but seems babied. There’s just 1 or 2 rock chips on the hood, a funny little crack on the gas door near the hinge, a little flaking on the inside of one wheel but THAT’S IT.

I can’t believe my luck in finding it. I started shopping around, thinking I could find a ’99 or ’00 with low miles for around 15K. I test drove a black ’99 and was totally hooked from that time on. I tried to get a Proton ’00 with 16K miles on it, but my offer didn’t make it. I think it sold for 16,900. Still a pretty good deal, but I guess I wasn’t too keen on getting a yellow one. I saw Robert’s ad on AutoTrader.com and realized after talking to him that he’s a member here too. His Kaiser ’00 sounded real nice, well maintained and had a bunch of good extras. I just had to wait until he was ready to sell as he is/was going to be moving out of the country.

Then I came across mine. The owner posted it on Ebay 2 times as a 3 day auction, and I happened to see it. I nearly bid on it, seeing it was a ’01, with 18,200 miles, factory warranty still in effect, etc. but I couldn’t get over the thought of bidding like 15 or 16K on anything sight unseen. It was located inside my 300 mile (or so) driving radius to be able to go see it too. So I bit my lip & watched the auction expire without the reserve being met. I contacted the owner outside Ebay to see if it was still available. It was. He said the reserve was set at 17,500/17,900 or something like that but then quoted me 16,500. So I had to take a ride to go see it. It was worth every penny... (Jim, if you’re reading, thanks again, man.)

For those still out there shopping, I know it’s tough to be patient, but the right one will come along. (haha sounds like dating advice…) This board is a wealth of info and gave me great encouragement in getting a VX of my own by seeing others’ personal experiences & passion for the vehicle. I had no idea the VX had such a following and this board is a great resource to draw from and contribute to with other VX owners.

Thanks

howdy, from seattle at the moment! i have perseverated over this vehicle since i saw the ads during the eco challenge adventure racing back in '99. i've followed them on ebay for over a year (though i could never discern what an particular one ended up selling for).

i have had my 2000 proton for about a week now + am mostly thrilled. the only unfortunate bit so far is the original sales person + manager left the dealership prior to my taking possesion of the lovely vx which has only 20k miles on it. the original manager promised me the mats were in the back + all would be "up to snuff" so to speak before i took possesion. this also included replacing the cracked (dried-out) serpentine belt on the engine. in my haste (+ excitement) i did not closely examine all of the tires. i looked at the rears that seemed a little worn but passable. also, i supposed i had in mind that w/ 20k miles what could be that bad? well, later when i inspected things more closely i found that 1/ the front tires had considerable wear + one had a good chunk missing on the sidewall from possibly hitting a curb, + 2/ there was no oil to be found on the dipstick. 3/ mats have still not been found.

on going to a tire dealer i was told that they would only replace all 4 tires because 2 new tires would be out of the tolerance for specs that would insure that the tranny would be safe.

i reported this + the lack of oil to the new manager who thinks that the tire guy is full of it (it made sense to me) + will let me know if the oil was changed, etc. prior to my driving off. the s-belt was changed, the manager told me that a hose was also changed. i am waiting even as i write, for his response to all of this. i did buy an extended warranty but i have read about some of the headaches folks have had here on the forum.

is there any one else in the seattle area out there icould chat with? i've seen at least 1 ebony + 1 kaiser in the past few months. please pm me, i'd love to get together for an outing somewhere.

I remember thinking, "wow, that was awesome!". This was after seeing the silver VX pass up that rocket car out in the sands. In 1998 I came across one, the only one in our local Isuzu dealership. I saw the price tag and it was way out of my league. I ended up buying a new 98 Ford Mustang. All it did is get me in trouble. On the first night I drove it to work, got out of work, raced a thunderbird and got citation for speeding within 12hrs of owning this new car. I knew this was going to be trouble, so two years later I decided to look into something more conservative. I just happened to come across the same Isuzu dealership and there it was all over again. The same silver 1999 VX was just there. I bought it the next day, actually I'm still paying for it. I've contemplated selling it this past year, hopefully you guys can convince me to keep it. I so badly want to, but I now have a family and sticking my baby girl back there is hard as hell. Better yet, getting anyone back there is hard as hell!
I met up with Rickster at the Spring break soundoff competition and told him about my windows; he told me about this website and sure enough, found the rememdy to my windows and a whole group of dedicated VX owners.

Folks I'm Victor and it's nice meeting 'ya.:)

Hey my name is Tad, some of you might know me as TroopTad on the 4x4wire.com forums.

Just picked up a 2000 black VX and its unspeakably awesome.

I had no idea what I was missing.

If you'll excuse me I'm going to go reclean the engine with a toothpick :P

HI, I'm Denee' and live in Houston, TX. I saw my first VX in Hawaii (Maui) while on my honeymoon and immediately knew I wanted one! When getting home, I started looking for one and bought a '99 silver VX! I was dissappointed when finding out that they're not made anymore! and also amazed of how many where/are for sale throughtout the U.S. Mine is kind of plain, but cool looking! Has 80k miles,but in very good condition! I love its looks and the power it delivers! I must say the visibility is quite poor and the back seat is a rather rough ride, but I'm usually alone when going places; so it doesn't really matter to me! It's my VX! I would like to know if anyone lives here in the Houston area or close by? Anyway, I bought a trailer hitch from ToneMonday and hope to get it installed this upcoming week and I have an EX500 that I do trackdays on that I need to be able to tow. I'm rambling! Nice to see this site exists!
Denee'

Hello, I'm new to this board. I'm going to Memphis in the morning to pick up my VX. It's my first and I can't wait to get behind the wheel.

She's a 99 Ironman with all of the goodies. I will be adding some modifications in the upcoming months.

I really do like this site. My wife and I own our website biz down here in the Arkansas Ozarks. I will be building my own VX site soon.

I am using the name "ThunderChicken " because I am also into monstermowers. You guys probably don't know what I'm talking about but we are in the process of forming a monstermower racing association that will be known as ARM (American Racing MonsterMowers) We will racing just like the monster trucks.

I may have the only VX in the state of Arkansas, who knows. I want to attend some rallys soon. Are therer any coming up in my area?

I too am new to the VX world, having driven my very own '99 Astral Silver version home from the dealership just this past Monday. This is the car that I have craved for the past SIX YEARS, and still have trouble believing that is it actually mine.

I am loving this car more and more with each passing day, a feat i didn't think was possible. I had passed on an opportunity earlier on to pick up a '99 white Iron Man edition, and was thinking that my best opportunity had come and gone. Lo and behold, while checking AutoTrader.com one day, I came across one for sale at a dealership literally 5 minutes from where I worked! How is that for "meant to be?"

Anyway, its a pleasure to meet all of you, I hope to be a consistant contributer to this board for a long while.

And if there's any other VX owners in NW Arkansas area, i'd love to hear from you!

Later!

This is amazing. I am also from Arkansas. I live near Harrison. I have had my VX for about three weeks. I did get the 99 White Ironman edition. I got mine from Memphis. I too, found mine on Auto Trader.

I know the VX you bought. My wife and I checked it out before we bought ours. She wanted thw white and I wanted the Ironman.

We will have to get together sometime. I want to put a little VX meet on sometime next year in Branson.
Are you interested?

The VX has got to be the most awesome,head turner SUV ever built!!!

I think the vx would make an ass-kicking riding mower. You'd have to come up with some humongus dual-blade system -- something looks like of like what those street-sweepers have, except with blades instead of brushes.

Got my VX in 99 had it pre ordered for like 6 months. love this truck. just need ur guys help to make it faster/more power.

Hi all. From Westminster, CO. Bought my VX used in Boulder. 12,458 miles!!! Look forward to chatting it up with you in the near future.

Thanks to this site I've already had a lot of the notorious VX 'issues' fixed under warranty: windows, fuel pressure reg., gas gauge, hood insert (cracked), fuel injectors, small annoying noises, (gasp!), etc. Anything else I should know about? (grin)

TAKK.

Hi, I am new to the world of VX! I live in Salt lake city, Utah...

I don't own a VX but I am currently looking for one. I am specifially looking for a 2001 with low miles, in good condition.
If anyone can help me out, please do!

I first set my eyes on the VX back in 2000 when I met a friend of mine who had one. I have loved it ever since. For some reason I never thought that I would be able to find one, but now I see that it is possible!

Thanks a lot for this place!

Sorsha ;pp;

I purchased my first Vehicross today from a dealership in Pensylvania. It is the 2001 Ironman edition. Can anyone tell me if the shocks are adjustable. I feel every bump in the road.

Hey all, new to the forums, although I'm sure I've run into some of you in the past on other forums. I've got a Dragon Green 2001 in Denver, CO with very few mods. My VX loves the city and loves dirt roads at high speed. Not really into the slow off-road thing unless I'm trying to get somewhere, but hey, it does that too :) Nice forums... thanks.