Dressed to impress

Anyone who’s ever driven an Isuzu Trooper will swear by its performance. We were fortunate enough to have been given the chance to ride around town in the ruggedly-handsome mid-size SUV pace-setter on a regular basis not too long ago (Thanks for "lending" me your Trooper for two years, Dad!). My little tryst with the Isuzu Trooper is all but over now. I have since moved on to riding in the comforts of a Japanese M-class from the stables of Nissan (a Nissan Cefiro Elite, which despite having plied the streets of Metro Manila for all of five years, is still a fantastic car). From time to time, however, I still miss the Trooper.

Our friends from Isuzu Philippines Corporation (IPC), who’ve known me since my Trooper days, recently gave me the chance to take home, if only for a week, the Trooper’s baby brother — the Isuzu Crosswind. Now, having been spoiled once upon a time by the Trooper’s enviable mix of ruggedness and opulence, this writer wasn’t really expecting much from the AUV. What a difference a week makes, however.

IPC sent us the top-of-the-line XUVi variant, which is the beneficiary of a facelift meant to extend the Crosswind’s grip on its target market even further. With multi-reflector combination headlamps, stylish new chrome-finished mag wheels, side illuminators on the bumper over rider, a new rear spoiler with a third brake lamp and chrome garnish, a chrome tail pipe finisher, and a redesigned spare tire cover, the Crosswind XUVi packed even more garnishes than my trusty Trooper once did. It may not be quite as stunning as a Trooper per se, but at least it had enough juice on the outside to make it a lot more visually stunning than its competitors.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that the black and gray leather seat combination had also vastly improved in terms of comfort — at least from the previous Crosswind’s stiff yet sturdy interiors. An upscale Pioneer 6550 audio head unit also greeted me, the audiophile driver. My passenger, however, was much more spoiled. With a remote controlled back massager installed in the passenger front seat, my wife had a particularly grand time whenever we drove home from a stressful day at work. Oh, and this time around, a keyless entry alarm system came standard, too. The 2004 XUVi, without a doubt, was dressed to impress, both inside and out.

The only time one realizes he’s got a universally impressive looking vehicle, however, is when other people take note. In my case, unequivocal commendation was thrown the Crosswind XUVi’s way from the most unexpected of venues. One day, while having the usual existential discussion with my barber, whose knowledge of cars is as expansive as Jacques Derrida’s vocabluary, the XUVi got the five star rating — at least as far as looks go. "Ang ganda ng sasakyan niyo, sir. Ang layo talaga ng itsura nitong Crosswind sa ibang AUV. Magkano ang ganyan, sir?" he asked. "P1,030,000," I answered back. "Sulit, no?" he quipped. And with those two words, he said what I’d been trying to say with around 500. Sulit, indeed.