The Isuzu Ascender is a

mid-size Mid-size—also known as intermediate—is a vehicle size class which originated in the United States and is used for cars larger than compact cars and smaller than full-size cars. "Large family car" is a UK term and a part of the D-segment in t ...

SUV built by

General Motors General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing f ...

for

Isuzu , commonly known as Isuzu (, ), is a Japanese multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture. Its principal activity is the production, marketing and sale of Isuzu commercial vehicles and diesel engines ...

. The 7-passenger Ascender was introduced for the 2003 model year as a replacement for the

Isuzu Trooper The Isuzu Trooper is a compact SUV that was produced by Isuzu between September 1981 and September 2002. In the domestic Japanese market it was sold as the Isuzu Bighorn, the car was exported internationally mainly as a Trooper but it also rece ...

. The 5-passenger Ascender was introduced for the 2004 model year as a replacement for the Isuzu Rodeo and the Isuzu Axiom.

Overview

The Ascender is the only one of GM's GMT360-based mid-size SUVs that was not GM-branded. The Ascender LWB was dropped after the 2006 model year. Reviews warned of a thin dealer network for warranty repairs, and the Kelley Blue Book projected a relatively low resale value similar to the TrailBlazer. However, Isuzu offered a seven-year/75,000-mile powertrain warranty as well as substantial factory incentives. The Ascender ended production on June 6, 2008, as part of Isuzu's withdrawal from the United States market. Engines: * 2003–2008 4200 4.2 L (256 in³) LL8 I6 * 2003–2004 5300 5.3 L (323 in³) LM4 V8 * 2005–2007 5300 5.3 L (323 in³) LH6 V8 with

Displacement on Demand Active Fuel Management (formerly known as displacement on demand (DoD)) is a trademarked name for the car, automobile variable displacement technology from General Motors. It allows a V6 or V8 engine to "turn off" half of the cylinders under ligh ...

File:2005 Isuzu Ascender.jpg, Rear view of five passenger Ascender File:Isuzu-Ascender-5Pass.jpg, Five-passenger Ascender File:Isuzu-Ascender-7Pass.jpg, Seven-passenger Ascender File:2008 Isuzu Ascender Luxury, rear right, 07-17-2023.jpg, Isuzu Ascender Luxury

Recall

In 2012,

and

recalled more than 258,000 SUVs in the U.S. and Canada to fix short-circuits in power window and door-lock switches that could cause fires. The recall covered

Chevrolet TrailBlazer The Chevrolet Trailblazer is an automobile nameplate used by General Motors for its Chevrolet Chevrolet ( ) is an American automobile division of the manufacturer General Motors (GM). In North America, Chevrolet produces and sells a wide ra ...

GMC Envoy The GMC Envoy is a Mid-size car, mid-size SUV manufactured and marketed by General Motors for the 1998 to 2009 model years over two generations. Adopting a Envoy (automobile), nameplate used by GM Canada, the Envoy was phased in as a trim variant ...

, Buick Rainier, Isuzu Ascender and

Saab 9-7X The Saab 9-7X is a compact luxury crossover SUV that was manufactured by General Motors for the American market and marketed under the Saab Automobile, Saab marque, then owned by GM. The 9-7X was first presented at the New York International Auto ...

SUVs from the 2006 and 2007 model years. The SUVs were sold or registered in the United States, including Hawaii and Alaska, and Canada. General Motors announced the recall of 316,357 vehicles in late 2014, primarily in North America, to fix malfunctioning headlights. According to the company, a problem in the headlamp driver module could have led to temporary or permanent malfunctioning of the low-beam headlamps and daytime running lamps. This increased the possibility of an accident. However, the high-beam headlamps, marker lamps, turn signals and fog lamps are not affected by the issue. The vehicles that were covered under the recall are the 2006–2009

Buick LaCrosse The Buick LaCrosse is a four-door, front-wheel-drive sedan manufactured by Buick since model year 2005, and marketed variously across four generations for the North American and Chinese markets. The first-generation LaCrosse replaced the Centu ...

sedans; 2006–2007 Chevrolet Trailblazer, GMC Envoy and Buick Rainier SUVs; and 2006–2008 Saab 9-7X and Isuzu Ascender SUVs.

References

* {{Isuzu United States Ascender Mid-size sport utility vehicles Cars introduced in 2003