Suzuki Jimny tested: Great off-road just don’t crash it

Suzuki’s fun-sized off-roader has cool retro styling and some serious off-road ability, but its crash test results are a real worry.

At last count, 36 small SUVs were competing for your love and money. If, however, you’re after a small 4WD — as in something with real rather than pretend off-road ability — your choices are few.

Actually, less than few. Only two qualify for fair dinkum 4WD status.

Jeep’s Renegade Trailhawk, loaded with clever 4WD tech, will get you off the bitumen in style. Nobody’s buying it because $40,290 is a too ambitious an ask for a small wagon.

The 2019 Suzuki Jimny, in comparison, is simple, tough and cheap — keeping faith with its predecessors in a model line that stretches back almost 50 years.

Value

Priced from $23,990, the Jimny looks too cute and toylike to take seriously but it’s the real 4WD deal.

It runs similar heavy duty hardware to the ultimate hardcore off-roader, Toyota’s 70 Series LandCruiser: separate body-on-frame construction, part-time 4WD, dual-range transfer case with manual rather than electronic selection and live axles at both ends, albeit sprung with coils rather than the big Toyota’s leaves.

The Jimny will win over buyers with its cute retro looks.

Olde worlde mechanicals are overlaid with 21st-century tech, including hill descent control, hill holding and a traction control-activated limited-slip differential function that works diagonally across both axles.

A 1.5-litre petrol four-cylinder with a five-speed manual (tested here), is standard. A four-speed automatic adds $2000.

The Jimny’s equipment list is about as short as they come apart from infotainment, which includes a seven-inch dashtop touchscreen, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, stand-alone navigation and responsive voice control.

Comfort

A short, tall, skinny box engineered to do a passable impersonation of a mountain goat is never going to be the last word in serenity or luxury.

The Suzuki, though, is surprisingly comfortable, in part because its lack of fat (it weighs just 1090kg) means it can get away with relatively pliant springs. Bitumen-biased 165/80 Bridgestone Duelers on 15-inch alloys also put lot of air and rubber between you and the bumps.

The Jimny has a number of handy driver aids including hill descent control.

Sure, it’s fussy and firm, but I’ve tested a few cars — and a lot of utes — that are less comfortable than the Jimny.

Engine noise is intrusive at freeway speeds. Turning up the volume on the tinny two-speaker audio just adds to the racket.

The back seat is torture for adults. With all seats up, there is next to zero usable boot space; fold the seat backs to yield a hatch-sized load area, lined in durable grey plastic as befits Jimny’s get-it-dirty brief.

A full-size spare hangs from the light, one-piece, side-hinged tailgate.

Safety

The Jimny’s three-star crash rating is a worry when you dig into the details. According to ANCAP, the cabin “lost structural integrity” in the 64km/h frontal offset crash, the airbag failed to prevent the driver’s head hitting the steering wheel and chest protection was rated as “weak.” Passengers don’t fare well, either.

The Jimny’s interior is pleasant but simple.

Driving

Minimal mass and short gearing allow the 1.5 to shift the Jimny along at a reasonable rate around town, as long as you keep busy with the light, precise gearbox.

It’s sluggish below 3000rpm, which corresponds to 100km/h in fifth, so the Suzuki can hold its own on the open road. Expect 6-7L/100km on the highway, and 7-9L in town, on regular unleaded.

The old Jimny and Sierra were a couple of the most terrifying cars I’ve tested. Their response to being pointed at a corner was to roll over, eliciting an assortment of oaths and requiring immediate, vigorous corrective action at the wheel.

The Jimny’s dimensional DNA still makes it inherently twitchy in quick changes of direction, now compensated for — in part — by indirect steering, plus stability control as a safety net.

It is still a handful, even in a straight line, on rough, corrugated dirt roads, where the live axle suspension often loses control, especially at the rear, which can threaten to swap places with the front.

The Jimny’s low weight make it perfect for going off-road.

Front discs and rear drum brakes lack power and are wooden in feel.

I didn’t take it to the beach but the Suzuki would work brilliantly on sand, where weight is your enemy. In low-range, the 1.5 can drag it up all but the steepest inclines without needing to be thrashed.

Steep clearance angles mean the Suzuki can crawl across gnarly terrain with the big boys. You have to be careful not to drop a wheel — or two — into a Jimny-sized hole or drop-off, otherwise you might find yourself upside down.

All-terrain tyres would extend its off-road capability far beyond the standard rubber’s modest limits.

Without the rear seats folded down there is minimal cargo space.

Heart says

I want a car with that elusive, designer-driven, feel-good factor but I can’t afford a Mini or a Mustang. I love the Suzuki’s retro simplicity. I’ll probably never take it off-road. Who cares?

Head says

I want something that’s cheap and fun, with serious off-road chops. What else is there?

Alternatives

Jeep Renegade Trailhawk from $40,290

Jeep has cut prices on the Renegade since its 2015 launch but it’s still expensive. That said, it’s also much more sophisticated, comfortable and spacious than the Jimny. 130kW 2.4-litre/nine-speed auto/dual-range.

Verdict 2.5/5

As a good time off-roader, the Suzuki is in a class of its own and great value. Take off-road capability out of the equation, though, and you’re left with a primitive, unrefined, below-average drive, with highly questionable crashworthiness.

Suzuki Jimny

Price: $23,990

Warranty/servicing: 3 years, $2452 for 5 years/100,000km

Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cyl, 75kW/130Nm

Safety: 3 stars, AEB, camera, lane departure warning, auto high beam

Thirst: 7.0L /100km

Spare: Full-size

Boot: 377L