Maruti Suzuki Jimny

The new fourth-generation Jimny is a smash hit in global markets and we have been crying to get one here ever since its launch. Maruti thought it would have limited appeal as a three-door (the Mahindra Thar says Hello) and decided to do its own extended wheelbase version with five doors instead and finally, it's here. India is the first market to get the 5-door and it will be exported to many others from now on. Last month, we drove one in Dehradun and came back impressed.

While it doesn’t have the presence of a Mahindra Thar or the imposing size of a Gurkha, the Jimny is bristling with character. It's not as cute as the three-door we wanted, but Maruti engineers have done a great job in making the Jimny 5-door look the part. The front end has the five-slot grille which is now a Jimny trademark and the Indian version gets chrome inserts inside each one.

The front end has the five-slot grille which is now a Jimny trademark and the Indian version gets chrome inserts inside each one.

The flat bonnet and upright windscreen go well with the rest of the boxy shape. The alloy wheels are 15 inches and the lower trim gets steel rims. The Jimny has seen a 340mm increase in wheelbase and overall length now stands at 3985mm including the spare wheel at the rear. You’ll be surprised to know that the Jimny is narrower than a Celerio, at 1645mm!

Climb into the cabin and the Jimny feels just as exciting as the outside. The cabin has several design elements like a passenger side grab handle, exposed faux bolts, meaty knobs, etc. The instrument console has two round dials housed in square pods like in a Gypsy. The steering wheel is similar to the one in the Grand Vitara, but doesn't get reach adjustment. Plastic quality isn't great, but that's alright. The driver seat is narrow and can't be adjusted for height either, but you will still be comfortable here. The rear seats are best for two and while legroom is adequate, under-thigh support isn't. They have skipped load sensors for the back seat, so you have to keep the seatbelts buckled in, even if there aren't any rear passengers or it will keep beeping. The boot is 219 litres with the rear seats in place, but a 50:50 split gives you some flexibility. The top-end trim gets LED headlamps with headlamp washers, keyless entry, push-button start, a 9-inch touchscreen with wireless Android Auto and Apple

CarPlay, cruise control, climate control, tinted windows, rear wiper and washer, electric foldable outside mirrors and reversing camera. Safety kit includes ESP, ABS with EBD, hillhold assist, hill-descent control, six airbags, brake limited slip differential and ISOFIX child seat mounts.

Under the Jimny’s hood is a 1.5 litre four-cylinder naturally aspirated petrol engine producing 103bhp and 134Nm torque. It's not the new dual injector K15C unit as the new Brezza, but the older K15B – a motor that has torque characteristics better suited for the Jimny’s off-road requirements. It is tractable and pulls well from low revs. Although it's sufficient for urban use, the engine isn't particularly strong in the mid- range. When you want to accelerate hard on the highway, it leaves you wanting. It lacks the punch of modern turbocharged petrol engines but its simplicity and robustness are what most people will want. The transmission choices are either a 5-speed manual or a 4-speed automatic and both deliver power to a proper transfercase that sits in the middle of the chassis. You can manually shift from 2WD to 4WD and 4H in this 'All Grip Pro' four-wheel drive system. The manual gearbox is a bit notchy and the clutch isn't very light, making the automatic the obvious choice for city dwellers.

The three-link suspension has good wheel travel and the car with its stiff chassis and high-profile tyres, feels robust enough to take on most beaten paths. The capable fourwheel drive system and decent wheel articulation means it is very capable off-road.

The Jimny rides better than most body-on-frame SUVs, thanks to the amount of re-engineering it has received for India. There is a bit of harshness at low speeds and that's to be expected from a rigid axle setup. The on-road han- dling is predictable and body roll isn't too bad, but you'd not want to drive this one fast. It reaches the limits of grip fairly easily and the slow steering rack doesn't give you much confidence. Where the Jimny excels is when you take it offroad. It gets a 36-degree approach angle, 47-degree departure angle and 24-degree ramp breakover angle along with 210mm ground clearance. It gets electronics like hill-start assist, hill-descent control, ESP and electronic braking differentials. The three-link suspension has good wheel travel and the car with its stiff chassis and high-profile tyres, feels robust enough to take on most beaten paths. The capable four-wheel drive system and decent wheel articulation means it is very capable off-road. Couple that to the lightweight chassis that only weighs 1200 kilos and the narrow width and small turning circle, and the Jimny can go places where most established, big off-roaders cannot.

At the time of writing this review, the prices aren’t out but we expect it to be in the Rs.12-15 lakh bracket. It may not do well against other compact SUVs in terms of comfort, ease of driving or rear seat comfort, but buying it for all of that is completely missing the point. The Jimny is for those who want an exuberantlooking, compact, fun, lifestyle SUV that can be taken anywhere - from dropping the kids off to school every day and going for an off-road adventure during the weekends, to taking on an overland trip across the country. And once you have experienced it offroad as we did, you'll not have to think twice if you are in the market for something like this