It has been a very strange road for Isuzu over the past several years. Once the buzz in the small SUV segment, Isuzu peaked in the early 1990’s and it’s been downhill ever since. In the 90’s Consumers were demanding SUVs and at least on paper Isuzu should have remained a success with their line of compact SUVs and sturdy looking trucks. So what happened? Well for starters the inexpensive compact pickup market dried up. Buyers could buy larger more powerful mid-size trucks for about the same price as compacts. This also held true for compact SUVs verses larger mid-size offerings like the Ford Explorer. At a critical time Isuzu didn’t have the larger more powerful vehicles buyers were craving. Another factor was that when the memorable “Joe Isuzu” commercials went off the air, Isuzu advertising for the most part disappeared as well.

Coming back

However, Isuzu has hung on after rumors of its demise and the continual paring of its product line. Last year sales totaled just 8,614 units in the U.S., but things are looking up. For the first six months of 2007, Isuzu Pickup sales (including both the i-290 and the i-370) are up 21.5% versus the same period a year ago. Pickup sales last month were up 3.4% over May 2007, and are up 71.4% over June 2006. In the tough state the auto industry is in those gains are notable.

I recently tested a base Isuzu i-290 Extended Cab 4x2 pickup, which for all purposes is a rebadged Chevy Colorado pickup with minor styling differences. Now that’s not a bad thing as IntelliChoice singled out the i-280 Extended Cab S as the “Top Winner” in its class for lowest repair. Class competitors consist of the Chevy Colorado/GMC Canyon, Ford Ranger, Dodge Dakota, Toyota Tacoma, Nissan Frontier, and the Mazda B-Series

The i-290 is available in base S trim, with Preferred Equipment, LS and Luxury packages optional. The base “S” model tester came with the Preferred Equipment package, which consisted of AM/FM/CD radio, carpeted floor covering, rear jump seats with a stowage compartment, rubberized floor mats, deep tinted windows and cloth seats.

All-new, more powerful engine

This year the i-280 Extended Cab 4x2 became the i-290 because it now features a 2.9-liter five-cylinder engine. Standard on all models, the new 2.9-liter DOHC four-cylinder engine is rated at 185 horsepower. The new engine brings 10 more horsepower and 5 more pound-feet of torque than the old 2.8-liter engine.

The test truck came with a four-speed automatic that yielded 17 mpg in the city and 24 mpg on the highway. I would’ve liked a bit higher mpg.

Payload and towing numbers are modest at 1,532 pounds and 2,100 pounds respectively.

Inside, less is less

When I opened the door of this truck, a sea of gray greeted me, broken only by the black gauge cluster. The i290’s instrument panel has large, easy-to-read analog gauges, with switches and controls designed for easy operation with gloves. The front cloth seats were comfortable and manually adjustable. In the rear the jump seats did not pass the kid test. Your head basically rests on the rear window so when there is a quick stop or takeoff you bump your noggin. This truck also had roll up windows, which really seem antique in today’s marketplace regardless of the fact that this is a work truck. Overall the build quality was average with material and switch quality following suit.

At the business end of the Extended Cab truck tester there is a 6-foot 1-inch pickup bed with tall sides that provide best-in-class volume for deep storage and higher overall payload. The bed offers two-tier cargo loading and a tailgate that opens fully to almost 90 degrees. With a low bumper height on the 2WD model, I was able to load (with the aid of ramps) a large and heavy 12 horsepower front and rear tine rototiller.

Pickup with some pick up

Surprisingly the i290 accelerated well when unloaded, zipping along quite well, and the five-speed manual will wring even more power out of the engine. Hydraulically assisted rack-and-pinion steering; large front disc brakes with twin-piston calipers; coil-over front suspension and torsion bar front suspension are what this truck comes with. The i290 uses a stiff frame as the basis for a smooth, isolated ride that provided predictable handling, but the P205/75R15 all-season radials are too skinny. 

Safety is the same across the board

From the S-work truck test vehicle to the top of the line Extended Cabs, i290s come with standard dual-stage frontal air bags with a passenger sensing system. The Dual-Stage frontal air bags are designed to help reduce the risk of air bag-induced injury. When the air bag system’s control unit detects an impact, it determines whether the crash is severe enough to trigger a deployment, and whether the primary amount of inflation is sufficient. The primary stage alone will deploy in most frontal impacts requiring the supplemental protection of an air bag, while a secondary stage is designed to deploy in more severe frontal collisions.

Price is the name of the game

To purchase an Isuzu you have to look around a bit as there are only seven located in the Chicago metropolitan area: Berwyn, Crystal Lake, Evanston, Elgin, Matteson, Orland Hills and Schaumburg.

While this review is about a work version of the i290, Isuzu offers bigger better-equipped models like the i370 model that match the competition with similar levels of comfort and convenience features. Isuzu also sells a version of the Trailblazer SUV called the Ascender.

When you look at the i290 S you’re looking at a value leader. The base work truck started at $16,989 and added the optional automatic transmission for $1,089 and the preferred equipment package for $699 along with $685 for destination charges, the grand total came to $19,463. For this price you get a decent 2WD mid-size work truck with a seven-year/75,000-mile powertrain limited warranty and matching 24-hour roadside assistance coverage.