Every man dreams of building something – for car enthusiasts, bringing back a car to its original form is the ultimate flex. Well, Erick Wokabi has embarked on one of those historical journeys, breathing life into a 1985 Isuzu Trooper. 90s kids know this car too well, and if Wokabi is one of them, childhood nostalgia must be the driving force behind this build.
The 1985 Isuzu Trooper is quite a popular car on Kenyan roads, and more so during the early 90s. It was the favorite choice of car for government parastatals, and according to Wokabi, Nairobi University bought this unit from General Motors (Currently Isuzu Kenya) 39 years ago. I have to admit it’s got quite a fascinating story behind it.
A little background check on the 1985 Isuzu Trooper reveals that it was developed by Isuzu between 1981 and 2002 (two generations). The unit Wokabi is restoring is a three-door full-size SUV that features a turbo-diesel 2.2-liter C223T engine paired with a 4-speed manual transmission good for 87 hp (64 kW).
“We needed a car that would be a good offroader, economical on fuel, and space-efficient so that we could even ferry our camera crew. Basically, a versatile vehicle is needed to be able to go for adventures and shoot across the country,” Wokabi revealed the end-game of the project.
According to Wokabi, this 1985 Isuzu Trooper had 170,000 km on the odometer, which is either impressive or highly suspicious.
The entire restoration project will be filmed in a series format. In his recent video on his YouTube channel, he introduced the vehicle at Donga Car Bakery, which we assume is a specialized car restoring establishment in Nairobi.
This vehicle looks mint, and it seems the restoration won’t be too chaotic. We were a little worried about where they plan to get parts, but Wokabi was quoted saying this particular model’s parts can be sourced from the local junkyard in Kariobangi, Nairobi. I’d have cold feet if I were to put the faith of my entire restoration on an informal car graveyard, but he seemed content with the idea.
This is a phenomenal fete. We hope he goes through with the restoration and finally gets to use the Trooper as his adventure caravan and not sell it in the end. Kenyans are very opportunistic individuals—we won’t be surprised if someone offers Wokabi handsome pay for the 1985 Isuzu Trooper after the restoration is complete. It’s happened before!
After the teardown, it was surprising to see the 39-year-old offroader was still in great shape. It has zero rust at the bottom, with just a few spots on the upper edges. The floor is solid, and fortunately for the YouTuber, the classic SUV’s body hasn’t lost its contours.
We can’t wait to see how this restoration turns out. Let’s hope Donga Car Bakery does justice to this car and turns in a majestic completed 1985 Isuzu Trooper. You can catch all that action and more in the video below.
