1998 Isuzu Oasis Review - A RARE, Rebadged Honda Odyssey!

[@zmoorer]

Great vid. Minor point to make: The 1st Gen Odyssey ran 1995-1998. The Oasis ran 1996-1999.

[@bcob8989]

Didn’t he mention that? Or you saying when production started for each

[@zmoorer]

@@bcob8989 I thought he said the Oasis ran from 1995-1998. It didn't start til the 1996 model year. I was making a very nitpicky correction. And I could have misheard him.

[@damilolaakanni]

@@zmoorer he mentioned 1995-1999. And that the Odyssey was redesigned in 1999 while the Oasis kept the first gen Odyssey body style.

[@stiggy186]

I sold this van to Tony, and I love how well he's treating it and it's so cool to see it pop up on here lol

[@dannysullivan3229]

Do you know what size and offset the wedsports are?

[@stiggy186]

​@dannysullivan3229 I do not. It was modded many moons before my time with it. I believe somewhere out there in the depths of tuner forums exists a build thread about this van, but where you'd find it, I couldn't possibly tell you.

[@kwasia4882]

I didn’t even know this car existed. Nice find. i do think the Passport and SLX were really rebadged as Hondas, originally Isusus

[@theschof96]

Wasn't the Passport an Isuzu Rodeo?

[@jefferysmith3930]

My daily driver is a ‘97 Odyssey that was given to me. It is a great vehicle which I love. Not fast, but smooth and comfortable. Only had a tach on the last year ‘98 Odyssey that also made the switch to a digital odometer

[@sheldonlamey7010]

Im glad you reviewed this van, you don't see them very often. I also appreciate the Wedsport wheels the clear taillights and the lip spoilers all around I think they might be Mugen (In house tuning co for Honda). The owner probably went through a lot to get those since they're japanese market only . I would love to know how this engine in this feels, if it's underpowered or adequate

[@TonyAllen1988]

I'm the owner, the aero is a VIS racing kit. Thank you for the kind words though! The F23A is sufficient, it doesn't feel underpowered.. but it could definitely use another 35-45 HP to feel less anemic. The RA chassis is significantly heavier than the Accord it is based on. The equivalent Accord is about 2900~lbs - where the van is over 3400 lbs!

[@TonyAllen1988]

Eventually when I have the funds, as I don't want it to be down any longer than it has to.. I want to swap a mild K24 into it, just to give it a little more power, and better gearing for highway mileage.

[@bikerjon8934]

Tony, do you still have this van? If so would you ever sale it??

[@dannysullivan3229]

@@TonyAllen1988do you know the size/offset of the wedsports? I love the look

[@romandelacruz8662]

My Wife and I own a 1998 Honda odyssey with 189K miles and still running strong, Factory AC and Cassette player still work! we use it as our daily driver transporting our 7 month old everywhere! I love this thing. reliable as all hell!

[@enhancedutility266]

There's a 98 Honda Odyssey on Facebook marketplace in my area I'm looking to buy they want $3,500 do you think it's a good buy?

[@romandelacruz8662]

Depending on the miles it has on it. 3,500 seems pretty high for these cars, however if it looks cosmetically great and has around 150K miles I would say well worth it. Now sitting at 201K and still have not had an issue!

[@enhancedutility266]

@@romandelacruz8662 according to the post it has 144,000 mi on it

[@isuzudiesel2937]

Yes! Finally an Isuzu! Isuzus are actually quite interesting like the Gemini with Lotus tuned suspension

[@sybsygstgstsgysg5330]

Those oasis must be near impossible to find, it’s hard enough to find the odyssey version

[@Ray-hs2dq]

i swear isuzu cars like these are very underrated

[@dno5779]

We had a '96 Odyssey - 190k miles, great car. That trans was grade sensitive and would move thru mountains and the freeway traffic very well for such a small engine. Our 2005 Odyssey with 240hp got about the same gas mileage with much more power. I would buy another gen 1.

[@davinp]

It's a mini-mini van. It's smaller and doesn't have sliding doors as other minivans do.

[@yiyoink]

MPV

[@dave11686]

So cool! Always liked the 1G Odyssey/Oasis

[@alialqawasmi6347]

I have one my self these are such great cars

[@rovert94]

I grew up in the Odyssey version of this, a '97. My parents drive cars into the ground, so it stayed with us until 2010 and 275,000 miles. We gave it to my cousin who drove it for another 100k miles. Eventually the gasket gave out and was leaking oil. One long road trip and no one adding oil killed the engine unfortunately. It was a truly great car. What made it unique was the smaller size than a normal minivan, it had normal doors, and the rear seats folded directly into the floor. It kind of toes the line between MPV and minivan which is why my parents were drawn to it in the first place.

[@johnjones393]

In the late 90s I was prepping new cars at a dealership that sold Honda and Isuzu. We sold a boatload of Odyssey vans, but only a few Oasis vans came through. Never appreciated these vans back then but I do today. Much like the 99-00 Civic Si. I must have prepped 20 of them during those two years and never thought twice about them. Today the EM1 Civic is my unicorn.

[@DannyRagington]

my dad owns an isuzu oasis and he got it when i was 13, im now 18 and i drive this down the streets and feel so good with it bc its all intact

[@wkpad1]

I love your videos especially the older cars, Pre 2010 It would be nice if you could take the camera with you to the backseat

[@bradleymeyer9775]

The second generation Honda Odyssey is the only generation where the windows on the rear doors do not roll down.

[@jeaves8131]

Love this style! Such a cool vehicle :) I remember going to the Saturn/Saab/Isuzu dealership as a kid and seeing the Troopers. It’d be great to see some more GM products from the 90s/2000s like that. Keep up the great work bud 👍👍

[@brendano7563]

i remember seeing the wikipedia page for this claim that the oasis was rare. i didn't think it was _too_ rare because i saw one twice around the same time. that was the last time i saw one, and that was in 2015.

[@bwofficial1776]

A Nardi wheel in an Isuzu/Honda minivan is a curious choice. The compact minivan never really caught on here, this and the Mazda 5 and the Mazda MPV and the Kia Rondo.

[@TonyAllen1988]

It was on there when I got it, I like it but it doesn't really fit the car for me. Like he said, I'd really like to find an OEM Isuzu wheel but have had no luck as of yet. I need to re-finish the center of the wheel anyway.

[@tlak]

I have five of these Hondas. 1995, 1997,1997, 1998 Odyssey and a 1999 Isuzu Oasis. Not bragging it was just a reliable, easy to work on and cheap, at the time, vehicle. Both the 1998 and 1999 have the next gen transmissions and both are conked out. In the older ody the transmissions are geared different than cars and may have other changes, but these are strong transmissions and only ever had one fail in the 1994-1997 and it was an Accord. The 1995 was relegated as a parts vehicle and there's not much left. There was a nice red Oasis at pull a parts but they don't sell whole out of there. Any transmission people, can you tell me if the Accords running the vtec of 1998-2002 have the same transmission as the 1998-99 ODy. I suspect they are since the Accords were heavier and running the V-Tec in the 98-02.

[@tlak]

And the rear is A/C only.

[@LilDiabloRob]

Last time I’ve seen one of these was last summer at the local Pick-A-Part yard. I was in awe. But sadly living up here in the northeast, it was rusted through everywhere.

[@joshcorrea4951]

Where exactly in the Northeast? 👀

[@LilDiabloRob]

@@joshcorrea4951 PA

[@joshcorrea4951]

@@LilDiabloRob shit, what yard?!

[@PeterHernandez-lg2eh]

I have a 1995 Honda odyssey ex with 412,000 miles runs great very handy

[@christheimprezive2866]

Isuzu had another minivan for the JDM market called the Isuzu Filly, which was a rebadged first generation Nissan Elgrand. It's a much more traditional minivan with sliding doors and a more blocky appearance, though of course the name is what makes it fairly weird.

[@damilolaakanni]

5:50 so did the original Mazda MPV in the 80's and 90's, but those had three doors instead of four.

[@andrewstanley4831]

Great review! I love the rear doors as well.

[@navinstrument8353]

In indonesia this type of odyssey is still around. It was very popular at one point.

[@TonyAllen1988]

Yeah, the RA chassis still exists, it has evolved in the RB and RC chassis now though.

[@g2.integra108]

Love the RA1.. only “minivan” I would ever bat an eye at. Snagged a rust free sage green 1995 from my work for 500 bucks that was traded on a new Nissan Rogue. Couldn’t believe my eyes when it rolled in while working on a Saturday. They are so unique and SO reliable. Nice video I have lots of plans for mine down the road. 👍🏻

[@kaitospence18]

9:55 you forgot to mention the Honda Accord had an Isuzu rebadge as the Aska

[@Life_of_A_Man]

Man, this thing is rare. I might have seen just one in real life. I still see Odysseys from that era. Honda was the first to tumble back 3rd row. It became an industry standard that eventually Toyota, Ford, and Dodge/Chrysler adopted into their minivans. I'm not sure if the GM vans ever had it. Later model Nissan Quests had these quasi folding seats similar to crossovers and SUVs. What made Dodge/Chrysler different was that were able to find a way to hide the 2nd row. Hence, the "Stow n' Go" seating. I would imagine that Honda and Isuzu had some type of "relationship". I remember the Rodeo being a copy of the Passport. It seemed I saw more Rodeos than Passports. It reminds me of the Geo Prism/Toyota Corolla.

[@damilolaakanni]

Actually the original Honda Passport was a rebadged Isuzu Rodeo. It was Honda's first mid sized SUV (the CR-V was in production at the time) along with the Acura SLX (Isuzu Trooper) before they designed the MDX for '99 and the Pilot for '03.

[@Life_of_A_Man]

@@damilolaakanni I had it the other way around thanks for clarifying.

[@damilolaakanni]

About the Rodeo and Trooper...it was Honda who rebadged those SUVs. Isuzu was the original producer of those ones. The only Isuzus that were rebadged Hondas were the Oasis and one other that was based on the Accord...I can't remember the name though.

[@LouisSubearth]

Isuzu rebadged the Accord as the Aska

[@damilolaakanni]

@@LouisSubearth thanks for the reminder. The Aska was based on the 1993-1997 Accord though.

[@darthdarthbinkss]

@@LouisSubearth Wow. Didn't know that existed

[@unfadeablecivic]

I just picked up a mint 99 Oasis from a guy that wasn’t even planning on selling it. I also have a 97 odyssey so now I have both versions of this van. 😊

[@alialqawasmi6347]

I love you bro That's my favorite car dead Serious

[@carexpertandy]

I knew a family that had an Oasis. Then around 2005-06, they traded it in for a used 2001 Odyssey. With this one having the aftermarket steering wheel, it obviously eliminates the driver airbag, but most of these people don’t seem to care. But if the owner can one day find an Isuzu steering wheel, I wonder if it will be installed with an airbag or not.

[@tag206]

Poor Isuzu, got tossed around in the 90s. No one wanted to be with them, but everyone wanted them.

[@tag206]

@Frank Dux Split design. But yeah Isuzu helped shape what duramax is now.

[@TheRealE1337ist]

I grew up in a first year Odyssey, but I’ve seen exactly one Oasis, in Connecticut, at least 10 years ago. Wish I knew how rare it was then, I would have taken a pic!

[@g.c.brooks7214]

Gen 1 Odyssey is pretty cool I think it's the perfect size. After that the US got the Big Mac version of the Odyssey which is behemoth. Nothing like the original

[@Cbsaiyan]

IDK where my buddy got that valve cover, he gave it to me for my f23 love it cuz it's rarely seen

[@markjuarbe1048]

Beautiful minivan chrysler actually started doing the stow and goo in 2005

[@ridinglacs]

05 or 95?

[@bricegraham8256]

I swear everything from Isuzu or Suzuki is something rebadged.

[@The_gear_head_]

As a wagon lover i would not mind on these or other wagons without sliding doors

[@watchingitallhere]

My father had a 90' Isuzu rodeo. Which was a rebadged Honda Pilot sorry Passport I believe. Great car and very reliable. Thank you for bringing us these interesting fringe cars.

[@COYGunners]

It was actually the other way around. The Passport was a rebadged Rodeo

[@fijitears]

There is a blue one next to my house rn, it’s at a Mexican tire shop. It looks awesome the Isuzu rims caught my attention then I saw it said Oasis LS lol. It’s pretty damn sweet I might leave a note on it to purchase it.

[@19guitarshredder]

There's a first gen odyssey for sale near me and I'm so tempted.

[@hoover2501]

You got a few details wrong on rebadged vehicles. Isuzu received the Honda Odyssey in exchange for Isuzu giving Honda the Isuzu rodeo. Also, the Acura was an Isuzu trooper and not the other way around. It may sound like semantics but if you bought these rebadged Isuzu as Hondas you were receiving inferior products versus picking up an Isuzu Oasis and getting a much better product than anything else in the Isuzu showroom. It's a well-known fact that that Honda really took it on the chin with those rebadged Isuzu rodeos / Honda passport. This was a cooperative much like Toyota has with BMW and Subaru today.

[@TonyAllen1988]

Badge engineering is very easy to get confused - Honda also did that with Sterling/Rover back in the day. It didn't work out well

[@justanotherday1205]

cool!

[@tuxedozak]

I missed the part where he talked about the huge break calipers 😆

[@Arnoldee002]

What happen to the trunk???

[@ridinglacs]

Was the ashtray missing from the rear? I have one for sale lol

[@jdmandsuch6739]

Awesome vid... And it's on old school jdm wheels ... That screams 90s early 2000s

[@hrvstmn31]

I can believe the 10k sales, minivans are kinda unpopular. My brother got a used sedona because his pullout game is hella weak and I'm suprised he even found one, only 30k were sold that year, some years like 2013 they didn't even break 10k. I was pretty sure I had seen most of them sold in the US in St. Louis, because they came in all the friggin time to our dealership.

[@celljinx6753]

Could you do a 2006 chevy uplander

[@Mintman83]

I did not know they made these after 1997. I have seen maybe 2 of these cars outside of the Isuzu dealer.

[@SURF4LIFE84]

I have exactly the same car and it's called honda shuttle :)

[@patchnotesforlife]

what? this is pretty sick

[@RapideWombaticus]

Was someone stabbed in the trunk? Lol Cool review mate. Nice lil mods too

[@OnlyTheFinest125]

Never knew! So cool!

[@CRAPO2011]

Liking those wheels look rally-ish . Also look like 2000 civic type R wheels somewhat

[@18pestilence]

For someone who does this for a living, your research is very poor. Isuzu built the Isuzu Rodeo. Honda rebadged it. Same for the Trooper. Not the other way around. Also, as of the late 90s, Isuzu was part of GM, the European Opel/Vauxhall Frontera was a straight-up rebadged Isuzu Rodeo. They also lended engines to those brands, such as the ridiculously bulletproof and frugal (although woefully underpowered) 1.7 DTi engine you could find on Astras was Isuzu-built. They also lent the 1.9 CDTI diesel engine to Honda for the European Civic's 7th generation. That was before Honda had an in-house diesel engine. Good content overall, but don't rush it and do your homework.

[@botcmchc3527]

oasis 素敵❤

[@adamogden5212]

the Isuzu trooper was not a acrua/Honda product the Acrua Slx was a rebadged trooper

[@JustinLeeMarine]

That is a cool minivan. The Japanese do it the best🎉

[@gabrielrogers2971]

This is one of my favorite Hondas and izusus everrrrrrrr dude i want one so baddddd

[@colbywalsh4610]

I enjoy the video. However, as the proud owner of an Isuzu vehicle myself, it should be noted that the Honda passport and Acura SLX were actually rebadged Isuzu rodeo and Isuzu trooper. Not the other way around. The 3.2 L V6 that is used in the rodeo and trooper are actually Isuzu designed engines. They are not Honda designed. And in the late 80s and early 90s, the rodeo and trooper use the Chevrolet 2.8 L and 3.1 L throttlebody fuel injected V6 is. The Isuzu hombre was a rebadged Brazilian market Chevrolet S 10 that was re-sold here in the states starting in 1996. The Isuzu oasis was a rebadged Honda Odyssey sold here in the states between model years 1996 and 1999. The Honda passport was a rebadged Isuzu rodeo sold between the model years 1994 and 2001 I believe. And the Acura S Alex was the trooper sold between model years 1994 or 1995 and I think 1998 or 1999. I am not as familiar with the Acura SLX because you don’t see too many of them. The Isuzu rodeo originally came here to the United States as a 1991 model during the 1990 calendar year. And I believe the original is Zouzou trooper to which is what it was called and was a two door model came as a 1984 model.

[@VitaliyKofman]

Never knew it existed:)

[@ridinglacs]

I’m building a turbo manual trans first generation odyssey, see it on my channel

[@kevinruger8819]

The Honda Passport was a rebadge Isuzu Rodeo…Not the other way around

[@The_04_Cherokee]

Hey your in indiana, were at. Bc i live here also

[@ShootingCars]

Im actually from the Chicago suburbs but I go to Indiana a lot!

[@bidartbauer8581]

Hello, did you have to buy a special frame to fit that radio? Or did you just put the radio and it was fine?

[@francocagayat7272]

How good it could been if it got a 3.0 V6 gas with 197 HP from the Japanese-market Odyssey back then, it could have compete well with the Nissan Quest V6, Toyota Sienna V6, Mazda MPV V6, or even the Grand Caravan/Grand Voyager/Town & Country trio too,

[@CRAPO2011]

Fabric looks to be better quality than 2nd gen as my door cards don't look in as good condition as these

[@yerocal30]

I thought that was a 2.2L engine? HONDA had a 2.2L.

[@matthewhodgetts6783]

The Trooper was not a rebadge of the SLX it’s the other way around

[@jlr194]

I remember the Isuzu Impulse

[@GeeEm1313]

I knew someone whose parents drove an Oasis.

[@BLACKOMAMBO]

Seem alot of folk believe every Isuzu are rebadge Honda, the Trooper and Rodeo where Isuzu own creation, they dont look like honda product at all

[@diamondlarrabee1880]

My wife owns a green 1997 Honda Odyssey

[@isaacstonesguitarsandstuff2755]

Actually not quite right about the chrome bezel I have 1998 honda odyssey and it has it and that's from factory

[@jesselopez5541]

I knew that Isuzu was part of Honda

[@cgarrett2212]

This guy lives in Indiana it’s for sale !

[@Dankcatvacs]

4 bangER!?

[@ja-kaz]

Um. Is that blood in the trunk.

[@mumwifeteacher]

not a mini van

[@AbdiPianoChannel]

That's not Isuzu. It's 100% Honda Odyssey. Rebatching killed American cars

[@jonathanratcliffe1924]

I enjoyed the review but dude, brush your hair, or at least put a hat on.

[@SnarkyRC]

Those wheels are the wackest