| Manufacturer | Isuzu |
|---|---|
| Production | 1967-1983 |
| Predecessor | Isuzu Bellel |
| Successor | Isuzu Aska |
| Class | Intermediate |
| Body style | 4-door sedan 4-door station wagon |
| Engine | 1.6 L PA20 I4 1.8 L PA30 I4 1.8 L PAD20 diesel I4 2.0 L C19 diesel I4 |
| Transmission | 3-speed manual 4-speed manual 3-speed automatic |
| Wheelbase | 98.43"[1] |
| Length | 174.41" |
| Related | Isuzu 117 Coupe Isuzu KB |
The Isuzu Florian was an intermediate car manufactured by Isuzu Motors Ltd. in Japan from 1967 to 1983. The Florian's body remained essentially the same through its unusually long life cycle, being afforded only two moderate facelifts. Isuzu Florian is closely related to the Isuzu 117 Coupe, with which it shares the complete chassis.
The Florian was originally available as a 4-door sedan and a 4-door station wagon (the latter was later dropped). The Florian replaced the Isuzu Bellel and was in turn replaced by the Isuzu Aska (originally marketed as the "Florian Aska") in the Isuzu lineup. There were only 145,836 Florians produced during the 15 years of the model's existence. The Florian was only sold in limited markets across the globe as Isuzu's passenger products were, for the most part, not sold through General Motors' channels.
However the pickup derivative, the Isuzu Faster, was widely exported using Isuzu's relationship with General Motors and enjoyed a considerably greater market penetration than the sedan. The pickup was sold in North America as the Chevrolet LUV, in Europe as the Bedford KB and in Australia, through Holden dealerships as both the Chevrolet LUV and later as the Isuzu KB.
| Sales (Japanese domestic market)[2][3] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | ? | 1973 | 5,055 | 1979 | 3,080 |
| 1968 | ? | 1974 | 2,780 | 1980 | ? |
| 1969 | ? | 1975 | 1,442 | 1981 | 490 |
| 1970 | 9,486 | 1976 | 763 | 1982 | ? |
| 1971 | 6,977 | 1977 | 1,571 | 1983 | ? |
| 1972 | 6,931 | 1978 | 6,195 | ||
The Florian was not named after Saint Florian, but rather after the fictional Lipizzan white horse belonging to the Emperor of Austria, which is the focal character of Felix Salten's (the author of Bambi) 1934 novel, "Florian - the Emperor's Stallion". In 1940, a movie based on the book was released, entitled simply Florian.