Any chance of Isuzu returning to market

[H3_VX]

Does anybody believe Isuzu could make a comeback to the US market again? Maybe when the economy gets better and car sales improve? Wouldn't it be great to get some new VX's, Rodeo's, Trooper's, Amigo's, etc.?

[Gussie2000]

Into the US market......almost impossible.

In order for isuzu to gain market again must do what they never did while they were here..

1st An whole line up of new vehicules with lots of improvement and techology along with.

Better engines.More into the high performance side,
Vehicules with radical and atractive designs,more and better engeneering,no engine blowing up or oil compsumtion,no water pool under floor carpet could be a good start.

[Grif]

Not to mention the prototype ceramic molds they used to stamp out the VX body are now broken. They manufactured the VX as long as the molds would last then discontinued production. Keep in mind the VX was a concept car that used that new ceramic mold process, it was a just a beta-test to them.

[WormGod]

They probably could considering their commercial delivery market, but it's really a question of, would it be worth it. Definitely not worth the gamble with this economy, so, maybe in 30 years, heh.

They had some solid models and were generally basic in tech, design, and functionality, which isn't a bad thing for price, value, and maintenance. Reliability was average, as we all know, heh. So when ya think about it, they fit the bill of other like-minded small/medium manufacturers like Hyundai, KIA, and Subaru. The problem would be, apparently SUV sales have been slowly dropping in the past years so they would have to re-think their lineup since, IMHO, they led the SUV market (biased.... I had 4 ISUZU SUVs ).

[circmand]

Into the US market......almost impossible.

In order for isuzu to gain market again must do what they never did while they were here..

1st An whole line up of new vehicules with lots of improvement and techology along with.

Better engines.More into the high performance side,
Vehicules with radical and atractive designs,more and better engeneering,no engine blowing up or oil compsumtion,no water pool under floor carpet could be a good start.

was kick GM to the curb which they finally did. Gm instead of helping Isuzu with their distribution they actively stomped on Isuzus credibility and strengths.

[RickOKC]

Anything is possible. I would never have expected that Fiat or Alpha Romeo would return.

Article on Fortune mag

[vt_maverick]

Personally I can't see it. The amount of investment capital that would be required for showrooms, manufacturing facilities, ad campaigns, etc. would be daunting to say the least. Plus as Gussie and WG have pointed out, they would need to engineer an entirely new lineup of vehicles that would be successful in the current North American marketplace. 20 years ago Isuzu had a solid niche in the then-small SUV market segment, but today they'd be re-entering a marketplace fraught with SUVs from nearly every manufacturer. Successfully penetrating a now crowded market segment would require significant innovation - basically an entire line-up of vehicles each as cutting edge as the VX, but with styling cues more suited for mass consumption. Hard to believe Isuzu (or any manufacturer) could/would raise the funds required for such a high-risk venture.

Let's just hope their medium/heavy-duty truck sales keep them afloat so the OEM parts keep flowing.

[H3_VX]

Maybe if a few more brands close their doors.

Already in the past year its been Pontiac, Saturn, Hummer, Mercury. Saab being up for sale and finally sold. The thing I don't understand is why car companies are raising prices even though they are already not selling cars.

Anyway, its just wishful thinking I guess that I could have more of a selection of VehiCROSSes.

[blacksambo]

The Boston Globe article from recent past ( mentioned on this site) pretty much identified why they could not succeed in the USA, and forced them to bow out. ( The old 1996 Trooper roll over story, that nobody could forget on the cover of Consumer Reports.)That said, perhaps with a cooling off period they might just put their big toe in again. After all, the USA is the biggest market in the world....how do you justify staying out of it????

[Ascinder]

Why would they even worry about SUVs when pint sized electric hybrids are the new coolest toys on the block. With isuzus already leading the way in truck diesel technology, they just need to attach a generator and a really good battery stack and behold a truck that now gets a bagillion(yeah I said it) miles per gallon. Same with any vehicle they decide to produce. I don't see the giant problem here. They design and produce vehicles already in many other world markets. What's to prevent them from shipping over a couple existing designs while they come up with something more specific to the US market?

[samneil2000]

The Boston Globe article from recent past ( mentioned on this site) pretty much identified why they could not succeed in the USA, and forced them to bow out. ( The old 1996 Trooper roll over story, that nobody could forget on the cover of Consumer Reports.)That said, perhaps with a cooling off period they might just put their big toe in again. After all, the USA is the biggest market in the world....how do you justify staying out of it????

China's the biggest market now...

[circmand]

China's the biggest market now...

China is the fates growing market in sales vs the prior year. The USA still has the most vehicles per person and the most vehicles on the road. However as it is a mature market in that population is stable and most buyers are replacing vehicles vs China new people who never owned a car are buying make China fastest growing. Also the Chinese are keeping most non Chinese vehicles out and selling Chinese junk which makes you wonder how much of the market is available to outside China companies and can they produce a cheap enough vehicle

[Ascinder]

All I know is that when I was over there, the only things I saw besides the Chinese cars were Japanese imports(mostly Mitsubishis) and I had been told they got raped on import fees. Also a couple Italian cars in Hong Kong.

[blacksambo]

The USA accounts for 23% of the total world consumption of goods, no other country is even close. How do you stay out that market and succeed in a global economy? Isuzu still sells us parts and will continue to do so to protect their remaining image. Other car makers like Fiat stopped selling parts to the USA and had to buy Chrysler to get an image that would fly in the USA again. Remember when FIAT stood for "Fix It Again Tony". Americans don't forget, and that's what Isuzu is afraid of confronting any too soon.

[RallyDude]

I wish Subaru would have taken over Isuzu. Subaru known for reliable AWD, but no true off-road vehicles. It seems like it would have been a good fit.

And true, sadly not in this market, nor in the fuel requirement and federal regulation. The day of the SUV is over.