New Suzuki Jimny leaked
Undisguised at last, here's the mini G-Wagen for people who actually go off road
As the world succumbed to the apparently irresistible charms of the SUV, so the little Suzuki Jimny continued to tread its own path. Simple yet mightily effective and diminutive yet capable, it has captured the heart of many an off-roadist over the years.
It's pleasing, then, to see these first undisguised pics of the next Jimny appearing to show a similarly back-to-basics 4x4. This fourth generation retains the boxy, functional aesthetic of the third-gen car, albeit here slightly larger and with updated styling. Autocar is suggesting that Suzuki is keen to retain and prioritise the Jimny's off-road prowess, which should come as no surprise, and explains the short overhangs, bluff edges and generous ride height. That's a theme that appears to continue inside (in the one grainy pic currently seen), with chunky, durable controls and a simple design.
The Jimny is likely to be powered by the new range of Suzuki Boosterjet engines, which should bring drastic improvements in power, torque and efficiency over the old 1.3. Beyond that very few mechanical details are known.
While these leaked pics from a Facebook fan page show a car that looks very close to production, the Jimny Mk4 is not expected over here until early 2019. With more modern technology, it's predicted to surpass the old car's sales of around 1,200 a year in the UK. Quite what else the first Jimny update in more than 20 years will bring isn't quite clear just yet, though we'll be sure to update you on the latest developments as 2019 approaches.
Finally, should you want one of the last available examples of the current generation, this white SZ4 has delivery miles and is for sale at £15k. If you need a genuinely rugged and reliable off-roader, there remains little better...
Doesn't the new Jimny look brilliant? Some have said it's like a scaled down G-Wagen.
I'm so glad they've kept it tiny and designed primarily as an off-roader with all the self-evident pros and cons.
Although I never drive off-road, hypocritically I find it immensely appealing: it's cheap to buy, it would be a different driving experience, it looks great (baby G-Wagen), easy to park and until the apocalypse comes it will be cheap to run. Then, when the apocalypse comes, I and most of the family will have something in which to escape (we have three children, however, so may have to make some tough choices).
Suzuki is an awesome company: utterly focused on making small cars profitably. VW bought a stake nine years ago because that is something with which they (and the vast majority of car makers) really struggle but the relationship collapsed. Osamu Suzuki was CEO for 37 years and only stepped down in 2015 at the age of 85 - quite a character and sports spectacular eyebrows. He remains chairman.
^^^
Please tell me that's the official unveiling ceremony: three guys with a tarpaulin in a coned-off parking space outside the company HQ?
If so, it's cooler than the Geneva Motor Show with all the dry ice, lasers, orchestral fanfare and scantily-clad models by a factor of gazillions.
king smart. May have to reconsider my interests!I have spent a lot of time in India and to the OP's point, Suzuki are massively low cost orientated and seem to be the #1 player there, low cost reliable cars for emerging markets with enormous dealer networks.
For Europe and where we have a fairly wide choice of options that aren't blighted by import taxes and local content rules, I don't think Suzuki cars make a lot of sense to most people as they aren't particularly nice at all, but then again I doubt Suzuki see Europe as a key market and are content to be reasonably niche.
I would presume that they are pretty tough underneath the cheap visible bits as the road conditions in India are pretty awful and owners subject the vehicles to some rough treatment!
Maybe it is just the colour though and need to see it in the flesh.
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