Isuzu does not build many cars like the Isuzu Axiom: a 5-door SUV with 3.5 L GDI 6VE1-DI V6/3.5 L 6VE1 V6, built from 2001 to 2004 in the decade of stability control, dual-clutch gearboxes and the first serious hybrids.
The story
The Isuzu Axiom is a mid-size SUV introduced by Isuzu in 2001 for the 2002 model year. The Axiom is derived from the Isuzu Rodeo and was intended to be Isuzu's response to the popularity of car-based SUVs, such as the Toyota Highlander, replacing the Trooper as Isuzu's flagship vehicle in the United States.
Exclusively sold in the United States and Costa Rica, the Axiom was built alongside the Rodeo in Lafayette, Indiana, at Subaru Isuzu Automotive, Inc. The peculiar styling and truck-based platform was poorly received in the marketplace. The Axiom was discontinued and replaced by the Chevrolet TrailBlazer-derived Isuzu Ascender in 2004, leading to Isuzu's withdrawal from manufacturing and selling passenger vehicles in North America in 2009. The Axiom had two trim levels: the base and the up-level XS. The XS trim had features like fog lamps, a sunroof, heated front seats, an auto-dimming mirror with Homelink, 12-speaker premium audio, and leather upholstery. The name "Axiom" was determined by a naming contest held by Isuzu and won by Dr. Hakan Urey from Redmond, Washington, who suggested the name and won his own Axiom in 2001. The word means an established, accepted, or self-evidently true statement or proposition. The Axiom is available with a Torque-On-Demand four-wheel drive system, a direct-injection 6VE1-DI V6 engine and an Aisin Warner AW30-40LS automatic transmission was added in 2004, boosting power from 230 to 250 hp (172 to 186 kW). A new chrome bar grille and liftgate chrome that stretched tail light to tail light was also added. The Axiom was discontinued in J
What is underneath
Under the skin sits 3.5 L GDI 6VE1-DI V6/3.5 L 6VE1 V6. The gearbox is a 4-speed automatic AW 30-40LS / GM 4L30-E transmission. The wheelbase is 106.4 in. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
Its place in the line
Where it sits in Isuzu's history is not in doubt: the Isuzu Trooper came before it; the Isuzu Ascender (short wheelbase) followed it; it was built at Lafayette, Indiana (Subaru Isuzu Automotive), United States. On a showroom list of its day it stood against the Honda Fit, the Mazda Mazda6, the Citroën C3. Nearby in the Isuzu catalogue sit the Isuzu Gemini and the 4000 Series Medium Duty.