Insurance Group: 15
MPG: 38.7
CO2: 167
0-62 Mph: 17.2 secs
BHP: 84 BHP
Range: 341 miles
PROS: Good off-road capabilities, cute looks
CONS: The 1.3 litre engine is noisy and short on puff, the ride is uncomfortable and the quality of the interior is way below par.
The gutless 1.3 litre four cylinder engine manages just 84bhp at 6000rpm and 81lb-ft of torque at 4100rpm. A 0-62 mph time of 17.2 seconds and a top speed of 84mph are woeful figures that reveal all you need to know about its performance. The coarse engine needs revving hard in order to make any kind of progress and this fills the cabin with an unacceptable level of noise.
The Jimny works well off road and copes with demanding terrain like a proper little 4x4 but back on the tarmac it performs very poorly indeed. The ride is uncomfortably firm and has a tendency to bounce on all but the smoothest of surfaces. On the open road it becomes dreadfully noisy.
The Jimny is a cute-looking car. It looks like the baby of a 4x4 family with all the right DNA – a high roofline, high ride height, robust bumpers, swollen wheel arches and plastic mouldings cladding the lower half of its little doors and a general air of utilitarian toughness. It looks like a car built for off-roading.
The dashboard is simple and well laid out but feels cheap and the quality of the materials is poor. Standard kit includes a CD player, part-leather seats, remote central locking and electric front windows as standard. It also comes with alloy wheels, an immobiliser and front fog lights.
The front seats have enough head and legroom for all but the tallest of people but the narrow cabin may see them rubbing shoulders. Rear passengers will be very uncomfortable thanks to poor rear legroom. Boot space is also minimal at 113 litres however the rear seats can be lowered to increase it to 286 litres.
The Jimny comes with just two airbags as well as ABS.
Suzukis have a good reputation for reliability and the car comes with a three year 60,000 mile warranty.
The Suzuki Jimny 1.3 SZ4 Auto 3dr is fairly cheap at £13,310 for a bona fide 4x4 but its running costs are higher than you might imagine for such a small car. You'll get 38.7mpg on the combined cycle and CO2 emissions of 167g/km push the Jimny up into VED band H. On the plus side, insurance should be relatively cheap under group 15.
The Suzuki Jimny 1.3 SZ3 is built like a tank – tough and durable; unfortunately it handles a bit like one as well, with a very firm, bumpy and noisy ride, and a lot of lean in corners. Off-road i...
If you are looking for a car with decent off-road credentials for a low price, the Jimny is a good option. However, if you're never going to venture off the blacktop, buy something else.
You might want to read reviews for other Small 4x4 cars that you can then compare to the Suzuki Jimny. Here are some popular Suzuki Jimny alternatives:
