ISUZU

The company was founded in 1916 as a joint venture between Tokyo Ishikawajima Shipbuilding and Engineering Company and Tokyo Gas and Electric Industrial Company to produce automobiles. By 1918, it was already manufacturing trucks and cars under license from the British Wolseley Motors.

In 1937, it was reorganized as an independent company named Tokyo Motors, and in 1938 began producing trucks under the Isuzu brand, named after the Isuzugawa River in Mie Prefecture (the word Isuzu translates to “50 bells”). In 1942, truck production was separated into Hino Motors, while Tokyo Motors continued to produce chassis and diesel engines.

In 1949, the company was renamed Isuzu Motors. In the early 1950s, supplying engines to the U.S. Army during the Korean War provided a major boost to its development. In the latter half of the decade, it began producing cars under license from the British Rootes Group. During the 1960s, Isuzu introduced a number of new car and truck models, but by the early 1970s its financial situation had weakened.

In 1971, General Motors acquired a 34.2% stake in Isuzu, and from 1972, some models were sold through GM’s dealer network in the United States. In 1974, Isuzu began producing the Opel Kadett C for the U.S. market. In 1989, together with Subaru, it built a plant in Lafayette, Indiana. While Isuzu struggled in the U.S., it was highly successful in Southeast Asia, particularly in Thailand, and launched successful joint ventures in Indonesia, Malaysia, Australia, and Egypt. By 1987, Isuzu had become the world’s largest truck manufacturer.

However, the company began incurring losses in the early 1990s. To address this, GM shifted its focus to trucks and diesel engines, phasing out passenger car production, which had been unprofitable. In 1998, GM increased its stake to 49%, investing $456 million and beginning construction of a new DMAX diesel engine plant in Ohio.

In 2006, General Motors sold its stake in Isuzu, retaining only the DMAX joint venture in the United States. In 2008, Isuzu announced its withdrawal from the U.S. passenger car market.