Good GMC Isuzu

The History of Good GMC Isuzu, Inc.

Conducting business since 1978, Good GMC Isuzu, Inc. is based in Wyoming and the greater Grand Rapids area, and has grown to become the premier GMC truck dealer and Isuzu truck dealer in West Michigan. Throughout our tenure we have strived to include the best possible customer service with top-notch auto repair/auto maintenance work and comprehensive new truck, van, light duty truck, medium duty truck, and SUV inventory, as well as an equally impressive used car, truck, minivan and SUV inventory.

Over the years, Good GMC Isuzu, Inc. has grown in Wyoming and the greater Grand Rapids area, as we now offer a state-of-the-art showroom, Parts & Service Centers manned by the most qualified people available, and a Finance Department capable of handling any credit situation. Whether you are in need of a new GMC truck or Isuzu truck, or parts / service for your current car, truck or SUV, Good GMC Isuzu, Inc. of Wyoming is here to assist you with all of your automotive needs!

At Good GMC Isuzu, Inc., we look forward to serving you, our valued customer, for years to come. Please stop by our dealership, located at 4800 Clyde Park Av SW, Wyoming, MI and speak with one of our representatives today!

The History of GMC (General Motors Corporation)

In 1901, Max Grabowski established a company called the "Rapid Motor Vehicle Company", which developed some of the earliest commercial trucks ever designed. The trucks utilized one-cylinder engines. In 1909, the company was purchased by General Motors to form the basis for the General Motors Truck Company, from which GMC Truck was derived.

Another independent manufacturer purchased by GM that same year was Reliance Motor Car Company. Rapid & Reliance were merged in 1911, and in 1912 the marque "GMC Truck" was first shown at the New York International Auto Show. Some 22,000 trucks were produced that year, though GMC's contribution to that total was a mere 372 units.

In 1916, a GMC Truck crossed the country from Seattle to New York City in thirty days, and in 1926, a 2-ton GMC truck was driven from New York to San Francisco in 5 days and 30 minutes. During the  Second World War, GMC Truck produced 600,000 trucks for use by the U.S. military.

In 1925, GM purchased the controlling interest in Yellow Coach, a bus manufacturer based in Chicago, Illinois which was founded by John D. Hertz. After purchasing the remaining portion in 1943, GM renamed it GM Truck and Coach Division, and it manufactured transit and inter-urban buses in Canada and the United States until the 1980s. GM faced increased competition in the late 1970s and 1980s and stopped producing buses soon after. In 1987, GMC later sold their bus models to Transportation Manufacturing Corporation (also under Motor Coach Industries in Canada) and later NovaBus.

In 2002, GMC released a book entitled, GMC: The First 100 Years, that explained the company's complete history.

GMC currently manufactures SUVs, pickup trucks, vans, light-duty trucks, and medium-duty trucks. In the past, GMC also produced fire trucks, ambulances, heavy-duty trucks, military vehicles, motorhomes, and transit buses.

Today, for the most part, GMC offers a Professional Grade version of the trucks available under the Chevrolet brand. A Sprint, for example, was an upgraded Chevrolet El Camino, the Sierra is an upgraded Chevrolet Silverado, etc. In the United States GMC is usually sold by dealers in combination with Buick or Pontiac, typically at lower volumes than the equivalent Chevrolet trucks.  GMC's trucks, vans, and SUVs offer more options and standard features than Chevrolet, while Chevrolet is often offered as an entry-level car. In Canada, GMC is sold by Pontiac-Buick-GMC dealerships, usually at volumes equivalent or greater than the comparable Chevrolet trucks. In 2007, GMC introduced the Acadia, a crossover SUV, which is the company's first unibody vehicle.

The History of Isuzu

For now, Isuzu SUVs and trucks are all that you'll see at your local Isuzu dealer; it's been quite a few years since there's been an Isuzu car. The company's specialized lineup is more a function of circumstance than choice. In recent years, Isuzu has seen its share of hard times; a lack of funding for both new product investment and marketing has forced the company to rely heavily on its partnership with GM. Both of the models in its line are derived from existing GM products.
Isuzu, which means "50 bells," is the name of a river that flows through a province dotted with ancient Shinto shrines in Japan. The company's roots date back to 1916, when Tokyo Ishikawajima Shipbuilding and Engineering Company first decided to broaden its business to include automobile manufacturing. The company forged a technical union with the U.K.-based Wolseley Motor Company in 1918. Its debut licensed offering, the A9 car, soon followed, as did its first truck, the CP. By 1949, the company's name had been changed to the more succinct Isuzu.
In the postwar years, production of Isuzu trucks boomed. The company's vehicles played a significant role in Japan's reconstruction effort, and were used to ferry clothes, food and other essentials. In 1953, Isuzu rolled out the Hillman Minx passenger car, the product of a technical union with Rootes, a U.K. outfit.
The 1960s saw the launch of passenger cars like the Florian, the Bellett and the 117 Coupe, as well as trucks like the WASP. In 1971, Isuzu entered into a partnership with General Motors. The Gemini, released a couple of years later, was the first Isuzu vehicle to be produced from the pairing.
By the 1980s, Isuzu had landed on American shores. The Pup was the first Isuzu sold in the U.S. market. The Trooper, an SUV available in two- or four-door form, was introduced in 1983 and quickly became popular in that new market segment. The company entered into a joint venture with Subaru in 1987, a union that spawned the Isuzu Rodeo and the Isuzu Pickup. Less popular than the trucks were the cars, such as the dated I-Mark sedan and the handsome, Italian-designed Impulse sport coupe.
The company's sales were relatively strong in the 1990s, thanks in part to the increasing success of the Trooper, which by that time had grown in size and luxury. The Trooper was one of the models responsible for the massive popularity of the SUV vehicle category during that decade. In 1999, GM upped its stake in Isuzu to assume the role of majority shareholder.
The new millennium brought bad news, however. Previous bestsellers like the Rodeo and the Trooper were outclassed by newer, fresher competition, and sales plummeted. The Rodeo and the Axiom (a crossover SUV) were dropped from the lineup in 2004. Currently, Isuzu's lineup comprises just two vehicles - a truck and an SUV, both of which are based on GM products.






"GMC (automobile)." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 25 Jul 2007, 01:52 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 29 Aug 2007 <http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=GMC_%28automobile%29&oldid=146897715>.

"Isuzu Overview." Edmunds.com. 18 Aug 2007, 11:49 UTC. Edmunds, Inc. 12 Sept 2007. <http://www.edmunds.com/isuzu/history.html>.