Cafe Au Lait: 1982 Isuzu P’up Diesel
If you ever open the radiator cap on your car and see something the color of coffee with milk, you know you are in trouble. If you haven’t seen that, consider yourself lucky, but lemme tell ya, that is the last thing you want to see inside your engine. HOWEVER, if you see the outside of a car covered in a paint that looks like a delicious iced coffee from Dunkin Donuts, then that’s okay. Like this diesel powered Isuzu P’up that is in way better condition that it deserves to be. Find this 1982 Isuzu P’up Diesel bidding for $5700 with a few hours to go, located in Dawesonville, GA via carsandbids.com.
From the seller;
Highlights
THIS… is a 1982 Isuzu P’Up MPG Plus Diesel, finished in Cafe Au Lait with a tan interior.This Isuzu is equipped with a 4-speed manual transmission.
Equipment includes 14-inch wheels with hubcaps, vinyl upholstery and flooring, manual windows and locks, and manual steering. Modifications reported by the seller include a JVC head unit, aftermarket speakers and antenna, and a recovered bench seat.
Isuzu introduced the second-generation Faster to North America in 1981, where it was sold under the P’Up nameplate alongside the rebadged Chevrolet LUV. It was available with a short or long bed, 2 or 4-wheel drive, and with a gas or diesel-powered four-cylinder engine. The MPG Plus model was capable of returning up to 49 mpg on the highway, and offered up a payload capacity of 1,500 pounds, making it a practical choice for hauling cargo.
Power comes from a 2.2-liter diesel inline-4, rated at 58 horsepower and 93 lb-ft of torque. Output is sent to the rear wheels through a 4-speed manual transmission.
See a better way to drive an Isuzu? tips@dailyturismo.com
What a nice clean lil pickup. Of course you’d hear it coming a mile away and the average athlete could outrun it but hey……..as long as you stay in the slow lane you should arrive alive…..unless you’re rear ended by a vintage bug screaming along behind you.
Literally all I care about here – and what’s missing from the description – is how a sober, bare-bones stripper of a work truck designed to be used, abused and thrown away like a soiled rag has survived the decades in such coddled condition.
I look at cars like this and wonder whether someone has worked out a method to shuttle forgotten cars and trucks through wormholes in the space/time continuum.
Whoever did the prep and masking for that paint job deserves great praise. Unless it’s the same person who put a big scratch in the fresh paint but still I’m impressed. Pretty nice job on the interior too.
Perhaps a school auto shop project on a donated fleet truck? I can’t imagine any other reason for restoring this.
My friend had one of these things in college, the damned thing was built to last and got 40mpg.