Merlin's Wisdom--- Collectible Automobile VX Article
Some of you may have seen the August 2011 edition of Collectible Automobile on the VX. Since the article harps pretty heavily on parts availability issues I thought I'd ask an expert (something the magazine obviously had not done). Here' s his verbatim remarks:
Hello again,
After reading these articles, I wanted to offer you my candid opinion on this issue. To clarify the headlamp issue, the author actually mentions “headlamp buckets”, which usually refers to the metal structures that support each headlamp from behind, not the headlamps themselves. As with most modern vehicles, however, the VX uses a one-piece panel that supports both headlamps, grille, radiator, a/c condenser, etc. This support panel currently shows three in stock in the U.S., but is not listed as discontinued, which normally indicates stock can be still be found overseas.
I’ve worked in this industry 17 years now, and for the last 12 years have been supplying through this dealership original-equipment parts for VW, Nissan, Saab, Suzuki and Isuzu. As such, I understand the limitations of owning a vehicle that has limited parts support beyond the OE manufacturer. Shortly after I started here, for example, VW discontinued parts support for any air-cooled VW, instead selling most remaining stock to aftermarket companies. With Nissan, we’ve slowly been reaching a point where OE parts for the 240/260/280Z models are also no longer available. Granted, these examples are all over 30 years old now, but there were tens of thousands (if not hundreds of thousands in VW’s case) of these models produced over the years, so the aftermarket can easily make a solid business case for continuing to support them.
While I certainly agree that the author of this article seems to take a jab at the VX, history tells us that Isuzu will not continue to support this vehicle for decades to come. Luckily, the running gear is closely shared with other models, so the aftermarket will do a fine job of providing mechanical bits to at least keep these running for quite some time. VX-specific parts such as body panels, interior panels, headlamps, etc. will not get the same support, however, and will make restoring one of these trucks down the road a tough proposition.
As I’ve said before, for the immediate future I wouldn’t predict anything more dire than a continuation of the long delays we sometimes experience in receiving parts from Isuzu. The long-term might be a different story, but I don’t think it’s worth anybody losing any sleep over. If the fear is that this article may have hurt resale value, it’s important to understand, as most in this industry will admit, that cars are simply not an appreciating investment anyway- save for a few ultra-rare examples of a few select classics.
In fact, this article reminds me of the saying “there’s no such thing as bad press”. Here we have a full-color, multiple-page spread that in my opinion does little more than simply highlight just how capable, unique, and rare the VX really is!
Regards,
Merlin Richardson
Assistant Parts Manager
St. Charles Automotive
636-441-4481, ext. 204
