Some of this stuff might be slightly out of order. My memory is not what it used to be.
I purchased my 1988 Isuzu Trooper LS (with 89k miles on it's 2.6l 4 cylinder and 5 speed manual MUA5 gearbox) from it's second owner in the spring of 1998 for the sum of $4000. I looked at another slightly newer LS that was an auto with a V6 and power windows, but decided on mine based on price, transmission, grille guard, and the fact that it had the covers under the dash next to the radio (silly, right?).
I used (and abused) it over the course of the next 2 years until one day, it started running really poorly. Based on the advice of a family friend, I took it to a shop which diagnosed the issue as a cracked block (yikes!). They recommended replacing the whole engine, so I did (this set me back another $3000). The clutch was replaced also at this time. The shop took 3 months to complete the work (allegedly because the block could only be sourced directly from Isuzu, and it was on backorder). After getting it back I used it for another year. During this time I was in two separate accidents with it. The bumper and exhaust were primarily damaged when I was hit on the left rear side (not my fault). The second accident was a front collision (my fault) where the left front fender, grille, hood, bumper, and front valance were damaged (the grille guard was not attached at this time, or it would have been damaged too).
Crunch:
Fixed up a little:
I'm not sure what I was doing with the sawzall...
A pic when I still had my Bronco II
One day, it (again) started running very poorly (it seemed like it was running on only 3 cylinders).
I had, at that time in my life, some basic mechanical skills. I had kept up with regular maintenance items on the truck (oil, brakes, etc). I had even replaced one of the frozen calipers myself! But I was not at a place where I felt that I could successfully diagnose it's current condition (that coupled with the fact that I didn't want to put a ton more money into it). My decision was to park it, and buy something else (a 1996 Nissan Pathfinder XE).
*Edited 5/17/23 to fix photos
I purchased my 1988 Isuzu Trooper LS (with 89k miles on it's 2.6l 4 cylinder and 5 speed manual MUA5 gearbox) from it's second owner in the spring of 1998 for the sum of $4000. I looked at another slightly newer LS that was an auto with a V6 and power windows, but decided on mine based on price, transmission, grille guard, and the fact that it had the covers under the dash next to the radio (silly, right?).
I used (and abused) it over the course of the next 2 years until one day, it started running really poorly. Based on the advice of a family friend, I took it to a shop which diagnosed the issue as a cracked block (yikes!). They recommended replacing the whole engine, so I did (this set me back another $3000). The clutch was replaced also at this time. The shop took 3 months to complete the work (allegedly because the block could only be sourced directly from Isuzu, and it was on backorder). After getting it back I used it for another year. During this time I was in two separate accidents with it. The bumper and exhaust were primarily damaged when I was hit on the left rear side (not my fault). The second accident was a front collision (my fault) where the left front fender, grille, hood, bumper, and front valance were damaged (the grille guard was not attached at this time, or it would have been damaged too).
Crunch:
Fixed up a little:
I'm not sure what I was doing with the sawzall...
A pic when I still had my Bronco II
One day, it (again) started running very poorly (it seemed like it was running on only 3 cylinders).
I had, at that time in my life, some basic mechanical skills. I had kept up with regular maintenance items on the truck (oil, brakes, etc). I had even replaced one of the frozen calipers myself! But I was not at a place where I felt that I could successfully diagnose it's current condition (that coupled with the fact that I didn't want to put a ton more money into it). My decision was to park it, and buy something else (a 1996 Nissan Pathfinder XE).
*Edited 5/17/23 to fix photos