Thinking about a cheap Jimny. Tips?

[camel_landy]

However, back to the original point...
...trying to steer it back on-topic and away from the bun-fight...

It sounds as though the OP is already fully aware of the Jimny's failings but if the OP has always fancied one, there is only one way of scratching that itch...

Take one for a test drive and see if it's comfortable enough.

M

[Spare tyre]

Ive had a couple

Would take people out on tours of Salisbury plain, it did really well

Only mod I did was some all terrain tyres

I paid around £1000 for each, no major problems

Sold for a profit each time


Much less stress than all my mates with land rovers and similar

[300bhp/ton]

Timbuktu said:

If the point is that you want a slow, gutless, bad handling vehicle with no space inside then I'm very happy it miss it.

There are many better alternatives and I'm just trying to counter all the replies that will be in favour of these horrible little vehicles.

But I suppose it's like a Defender. It has a big following and woe betide anyone who dares to talk badly of it.

Talking badly and talking bks are not the same thing though

[Timbuktu]

Just because someone talks negatively about a vehicle you covet so much that you have one in your PH profile fantasy garage, it doesn't mean they're talking bks.

Anyway, we are trying to discuss the pros and cons of the Jimny for the OP's benefit, not result to a bun fight, as Mr C. Landy quite rightly points out.

[caelite]

300bhp/ton said:

Can't believe you've been in one. They run as well or better than a Tdi 90

And there is pretty much nothing that compares. The Cherokee is cool (have owned one), but that is a bit like saying an Impreza STi is a direct alternative to a Caterham.

That is the comparison I like to make, particularly when folk less experienced with offroad driving ask about it, imagine the Jimny as a Lotus &, say a LR Disco as a Ford Focus RS or Impreza STI. The latter is quicker in a straight line, but the former can change direction far quicker and can take more liberties with it's cornering lines.

The comparison is the same offroad, the big LR points it nose where it wants to go, presses the loud pedal & can use it's momentum and heft to just plow forwards, the Jimny can be more creative, it doesn't have the momentum on its side, but it can dart around finding patches of grip.

The one thing I recommend in a Jimny for offroad, is a tyre with good shoulder lugs, I've found the Jimnies party trick is putting one wheel into a rut, then the other wheel up on the centre line, then turn the steering wheel slightly towards the centre line as you drive along, so the inside side of your 'rut' wheel grabs at the edge of the rut and seems to produce a tremendous amount of grip. Quite often the inner side of the centreline tyre grabs at the edge of the other rut, it puts a load of pressure on one small edge of the tyre which, with the right tyres, let's it really dig in for grip.

As for the Jimny on the road, it's no slower than any other 1.0-1.3L runabout, engine plays best around 3000-5000, it cruises well at 65, edging towards 70-75 and it gets buzzy and a little squirmy, it does get battered a bit by crosswinds on the motorway due to its side profile, the seats, like the seats in a lot of small runabouts, leave a lot to be desired, however Recaros out of Suzuki Ignis' are an easy & common mod & add massive amounts of comfort. It is solid axle front and back, which, if you haven't driven a solid axle vehicle before take some getting used too, the front tends to 'float' a bit and can feel vague, which isn't confidence inspiring, when you hit say a pothole with your left wheel it reverberates across both sides these two reasons are why many manufacturers are now opting for independent fronts for comfort & driving dynamic.

However once you get used to its road handling it can be quite satisfying provided you are progressive with your inputs, you can really chuck it about, it leans, but when you load up the tyres you do get a good sense of available grip, if you do push it to far on the road they tend to spin before it will roll (which is terrifying by the way), of you are snappy or abrupt with your input then the driving dynamic falls a part, as it does with most 4x4. The advantage of those solid axles is it is neigh invincible to anything you will encounter, tracking issues, sheared tie rods, broken springs, shredded tyres, all the other things we face from UK quality roads simply don't effect the Jimny, to even knock the tracking off you'd need to hit something with a force that would write off many cars, I got a good 30-40cm of air out of mine after hitting a plowed snow drift that was a bit more solid than I thought it was and it still tracked straight and true, they are fantastic winter dailies.

Oh and the biggest advantage over aforementioned land rovers, Mitsubishi and jeeps is running costs, everything on the Jimny is cheap and robust, it uses big pickup truck sized tyres with weight ratings exceeding the kerb weight 4 fold, so they simply don't wear, I took at set of Bridgestone H/Ts off of mine that had been on the vehicle for 110k miles, brakes, fuel, engine bits etc etc, are all priced comparable to any other 1ton, 1.3L runabout, rather than a 2-3ton light commercial.

Edited by caelite on Saturday 26th October 11:57

[drgoatboy]

Jimny's are a hoot. Buy one.
You will be a bit cramped inside ( you will bash your leg on the pocket on the door card), they are not fast, they handle terribly but if you are anything like me you won't care as you will be laughing the whole time. Then you take it off road or out in the snow you will be flabbergasted at what they can do (with some decent tyres)

They rust. The automatic front hubs like to not work. You can get wheel wobble normally caused by king pins or badly balanced wheels.