Car review: Suzuki Jimny SZ5

The new Jimny is about to arrive, and it’s a little cracker, says Mike Stone

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10 November 2018

For nearly half a century some people have been getting Suzuki’s Jimny wrong. They think the lightweight 4WD car is a bit flimsy (wrong, it’s tough as boots) and underpowered (wrong again, it’s light as a feather).

Now, after three generations and getting on for three million Jimnys sold, the new version is about to arrive, and it’s a little cracker.

Slightly shorter, but wider and taller than before, technical advances include Dual Sensor Brake Support, Hill Descent Control, Lane Departure Warning and six airbags. Suzuki seems to be concentrating on the practical virtues of the Jimny, and its styling is boxy, slab-sided and butch with a more upright windscreen and a functional, no-nonsense black interior.

There are plenty of faux screw heads in the cabin – it looks as if you could whip the dashboard out with an allen key in about 30 seconds.

Good ground clearance and short front and rear overhangs slightly improve on the last version’s approach and departure angles and it truly comes into its own when it goes offroad. But first, what is it like on the road?

With its high-profile tyres on 15-inch rims it can be a bit bouncy, and the gearing is low geared, so on a motorway it does feel like you are in a lower gear than top (fifth). But the car has so much charm you could forgive it almost anything, and it is only when the Allgrip Pro selectable four-wheel-drive system gets to work that you realise that the Jimny is much more than a cute style statement.

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Power is from a new 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine which delivers 101PS. It retains a ladder-frame chassis but body rigidity is now 1.5 times that of the previous Jimny. You can switch from two- to four-wheel-drive and there is a low-ratio gearbox for really challenging terrain.

Once off the Tarmac the Jimny scampers around like a mountain goat, and only the long, hot summer prevented us from fully testing it out on any serious mud at the car’s international launch in Germany. You won’t bump your head when the going gets rough because it has exceptionally generous headroom.

The two trim levels available when the car arrives in January will be SZ4 and SZ5, and four-speed automatic transmission will be an option on the SZ5. There are plenty of creature comforts including a 4.2-inch LCD screen, sat-nav with a seven-inch display screen. Smartphone linkage, automatic air conditioning and electrically adjustable heated door mirrors are all included as well as cruise control, hill hold control and high beam assist.

The chunky, Tonka-toy look is helped by large wheelarch protectors and an upright, almost Jeep-like black front grille. The styling is not just practical, it is also attractive and it looks much more purposeful than the softer, more rounded lines of the outgoing Jimny.

A lot of hardened, difficult-to-impress motoring journalists were getting ready to reach for their chequebooks at the launch. And I for one don’t blame them.

Details: Suzuki Jimny SZ5

Top speed: 90mph

Combined mpg: 34.6mpg

0-60mph: Not quoted

CO2: 181g/km

Price: TBA

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