Owners have filed 115 complaints on the Isuzu Axiom, covering 2002–2004. The system named most often is Structure (24 reports). Worst years by volume: 2002, 2004, 2003; cleanest: 2003, 2004, 2002. 15 reports describe a crash, 2 a fire. On average the car was 6.1 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Isuzu Axiom
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 115 Axiom complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Structure 24 Read
Why were the last two years of production(2003-2004) of these vehicles not recalled to be treated to slow rusting components in the undercarriage/frame on all isuzu rodeos, honda passports and isuzu axioms. Although a limited production, the final two years are still going to fail from salt/chemical contamination. I…
The contact owns a 2003 isuzu axiom. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken for a routine oil change when the dealer advised that under rust was found on the rear passenger side of the vehicle, as well as the frame bracket. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The…
2002 isuzu axiom. 85k miles. Same frame as isuzu rodeo/honda passport driving down the highway the road car started to grind. Upon pulling over I discovered that the drivers-side rear traction bar had completely rusted off the frame. The frame was so rusted that I don't know if there will be anyway to repair the car…
Power Train 20 Read
PCM or powertrain control module error. Obd2 code p0602. As a result was shut off vehicle's all power, all dash light icons were on suddenly. First ABS and then air bag, brake, battery, check engine etc. Vehicle was died in seconds right in the middle of busy highway I-80!! It was horrible. No problem was occurred…
The contact owns a 2003 isuzu axiom. The contact experienced extreme difficulty shifting the gear from park. The dealer stated that the shift lever and switch accessory failed. No repairs were made. The current mileage was 115,000 and failure mileage was 2,000
Spent 2800 for new transmission. Transmission replaced 2x on 2003 isuzu axiom
Suspension 16 Read
Isuzu axiom 2002. My wife was trying to merge onto james river freeway in springfield, mo from hwy 65 n. It was raining but her speed was less than 40 mph. She attempted to accelerate to merge into the traffic pattern and the SUV spun out of control and sent us down a boulder embedded embankment of about 30 feet. The…
We have owned our axiom for 3 months, after approx 1000 miles we noticed that when starting the car occasionally right after the vehicle started it would buck, back fire,smoke and have no power at all for approx the first 1-2 minutes of running. We did'nt think to much of as it was brand new and had not been broken in…
The vehicle is very unstable at any speed when you take a bump on the road, it start swinging it difficult to matain high speed on this condition. The brakes sounds everytime is used
Service Brakes 13 Read
The car was being pulled into the garage and the brake had been applied. The engine accelerated uncontrollably and the car sped up hitting the main support for the house and damaging the vehicle
Was traveling 5mph & had applied the brakes, in the rain, which failed. Vehicle ran into back of school bus. Had severe front end damage. Took to dealer for repairs. Dealer refuse to repair because of accident. Had insurance adjustor come in and took vehicle for test drive. Declared nothing was wrong with brakes to…
I was involved in a collision, where the gas pedal was stuck and the brakes did not function properly. There were not any road conditions that should have prevented this vehicle from standing still. I was at a stop sign and the vehicle took off hitting a another vehicle in the side body. I have called the dealer and…
Engine And Engine Cooling 13 Read
The contact stated while driving 55mph in normal conditions, the check engine lamp illuminated. Seconds later, the contact smelled smoke and felt extreme heat coming from under the dashboard. The contact immediately pulled to the side of the road and evacuated all passengers. The vehicle was completely engulfed in…
After driving vehicle and stopping for 1 hour; when restarting, the engine stalls after driving a short distance. When I pulled out into traffic, nearly had a major accident when the engine stalled. This began on 5-18-2004 with 3563 miles on the odometer. Since then I have had the vehicle back to the dealer for the…
The contact stated while driving in normal conditions, the vehicle intermittently stalled. This occurred with no prior warning at 10mph and above. The engine restarted and was able to be driven. The vehicle was taken to the local dealership for inspection. However, the dealer could not duplicate the problem. Updated…
Air Bags 6 Read
The contact owns a 2003 isuzu axiom. While driving less than 20 mph, the contact rear-ended the preceding vehicle. The front end of her vehicle was damaged. The air bags failed to deploy. The driver sustained minor neck, leg, and back injuries. The vehicle was towed to a repair shop and could possibly be labeled as…
Driving in a large parking lot, hit a large cement pole doing 20 miles per hour.air bags did not deploy. Had not put my seat belt on yet & hit & shattered the windshield knocking out all of my front upper teeth. Fractured maxilla .why did air bags not deploy?
We were involved in an accident on i270 in st.louis, mo. A semi- truck doing approximately 35 mph struck us in the rear and forced us into the pick up truck in front of us. The air bags did not deploy, despite the square front to rear impact. The front passenger seat in my vehicle broke, twisting the passenger to the…
Tires 4 Read
On 10/17/03, I was driving on a wet road with a small hill when my 2002 axiom skidded, first to the right, then across the road into the path of a car causing a collision. There was no reason for my car to go into a skid traveling at 25 mph. On 10/02/03, my dealer checked a screech in the left front wheel only to tell…
Vehicle spun out on 2 occasiions on wet road due to poor traction of goodyear integrity tires
On 9/19/03, I was driving on a wet road with a small hill when my 2002 isuzu axiom skidded, first to the right, then across the road into the oncoming traffic lane. There was really no reason for my car to skid. I was traveling about 25 mph, the speed limit. Fortunately, no one one was coming in the opposite direction…
Steering 4 Read
Loss of steering, car went into ditches when brakes applied. Which ever front wheel grabbed when brakes were applied the SUV went that direction. Then back on the road , across it and into a embankment and back onto the road. Finally rolling to a stop because the driver was afraid to re-apply the brakes. Driver…
2002 isuzu axiom purchased april 2002....after a few months, vehicle taken back many times for vibrations while driving and three times to date for leaking grease from right front wheel. Sept 2002. Rack & pinion was found defective and was replaced. Wheels were balanced many times by dealer and also aligned. Rear…
Also have loud creaking noise from underneath the front side of vehicle when turning left, right, or going over small bumps. Problem fixed once out of 4 dealerships that were tried. Noise went away after service tech tightened bolts connecting the cross bar/beam to the 2 long torque bars that run down the length of…
Axiom years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Electrical System,engine,fuel/propulsion System | 2 | — | |
| 2003 | Air Bags | 2 | 1 | |
| 2002 | Air Bags | 11 | 1 |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 44 |
| Average complaints per series | 2.6 |
| Worst single series | 8 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 6.1 years |
A model average of 2.6 hides a worst series at 8. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
- The original window sticker and factory options
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How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the Axiom?
By complaint volume, 2002, 2004, 2003 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which Axiom years are the cleanest?
2003, 2004, 2002 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Isuzu Axiom have?
115 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2002–2004. Of those, 15 describe a crash and 2 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.