Isuzu Piazza Impulse ads (first generation)

The first three are from Japan.  Irmscher apparently is a German aftermarket tuner.  The last ad is from America, starring Joe Isuzu.  The Japanese and American advertising strategies were disparate, to say the least.

I Want to Be A 1980s PBS Car Show Host

Motorweek's John Davis on the set with an Isuzu Impulse.

Carspotting (26): 1984 Isuzu Impulse Piazza Special Edition

I got lost today. As I looked for a sign to the highway, I saw this parked on the street. It's my first car, the Isuzu Impulse SE. The Special Edition is charcoal gray and comes with these gorgeous gold rims. Classy. It was touted as rarer than a Ferrari. Incidentally, the existence of this car shoots down Hagerty's recent assertion that the Impulse is extinct.

I briefly spoke to the owner, who graciously stood aside while I snapped these shots. Surprisingly, he wasn't too excited about the Giugiaro styling. He likes his car because of its excellent fuel economy.

This Impulse differs from mine in four respects.

1. Mine was an automatic.
2. This one has tinted windows.
3. This one has an aftermarket CD player and is missing the OEM equalizer.
4. Mine had an aftermarket sunroof.

All in all, this was a very satisfying find.

Endangered Car List

1984 Isuzu "Rarer Than A Ferrari" Impulse SE, taken in 2006. Mine had the same charcoal gray paint and gold rims (it was a Special Edition, after all). Unlike the one pictured, mine had a leaky aftermarket sunroof.

Hagerty provides classic car insurance and created a few interesting lists for us to ponder. It started with a list of mass produced cars (any car model built in numbers greater than 10,000). It then culled through its customer database for those cars. It then created three lists:

• "Threatened": Hagerty currently insures fewer than 25 of those cars.
• "Endangered": Less than 15.
• "Extinct": No examples insured.

My first car, a 1984 Isuzu Impulse SE, was on the extinct list.

Here is the article.

In Search of the Holden Piazza Book

I just read In Search of the Holden Piazza, which follows two Taswegians' quest to find every Holden Piazza (first generation Isuzu Impulse) in Australia. Their 21,000 km, 2 1/2 month journey in a poorly maintained Piazza is epic. The book is part One for the Road and part The Ridiculous Race. Overall, it's a fun and fast read, even if your first car wasn't an Isuzu Impulse.