Junkyard Find: 2002 Isuzu Axiom
Remember the Isuzu Axiom? Of course you don’t, because this Rodeo-based SUV was sold (in tiny quantities) for just the 2002-2004 model years and was then replaced with the Chevy Trailblazer-clone Isuzu Ascender.
Oddball, 21st-century marketplace flops are interesting to me, for whatever reason, so we’ll follow up the Kia Rondo Junkyard Find with this Denver wrecking-yard inmate.
The owner’s manual was still inside, and it included this mysterious graphic.
I’m hoping to find a Suzuki Equator next.
Even Joe Isuzu himself couldn’t move the Axiom out of Isuzu showrooms.
There is at least one Axiom with Lambo doors and 22s out there.
Murilee Martin is the pen name of Phil Greden, a writer who has lived in Minnesota, California, Georgia and (now) Colorado. He has toiled at copywriting, technical writing, junkmail writing, fiction writing and now automotive writing. He has owned many terrible vehicles and some good ones. He spends a great deal of time in self-service junkyards. These days, he writes for publications including Autoweek, Autoblog, Hagerty, The Truth About Cars and Capital One.
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Fun Fact - with the SUSPENSION warning lamp illuminated, a Axiom suddenly transforms into Dynaride mode. A blast to drive.
The VehiCross was the unicorniest of the Isuzu SUVs. Limited production combined with actual offroadability means that these have quite a bit of collector value, if you ever see one for sale. The styling was pretty shocking in 1999 but it seems to have worn pretty well. These are recent enough that there would probably be quite a bit of utility left in these.