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- Suzuki Jimny 1.3 JLX
- rallymad03's review
Have a picture of Suzuki Jimny 1.3 JLX?, please send it to us.
Picture courtesy of Menahem Yaniv.
| Performance | 6.1/10  |
|---|---|
| Practicality | 6.2/10 |
| Reliability | 8.4/10 |
| Value for Money | 8/10 |
| Reviewer Rating | 7.5/10 |
| Overall Rating | 6.9/10  |
By rallymad03 on 12th Dec 2006
| Year Manufactured | 2000 |
|---|---|
| Length of ownership | 1 Year |
| Doors | 3 |
| Performance | 4/10 |
| Practicality | 4/10 |
| Reliability | 3/10 |
| Value for money | 2/10 |
| Overall value | 3/10 |
 rallymad03's recommendation | |
Fun car with bags of personality.
Basic off-road use is good
It copes well as long as the standard tyres are replaced.
Fuel consumption is painful to the wallet.
Reliability is poor.
Various underbody items fail with no real testing.
Various problems seem to characterise the Jimny, including King Pin failure.
On the road the car is noisy - 3800rpm at 70mph.
This really did put a smile on my face for the first few months of owning it. Easy to drive and a HUGE personality, both on and off road.
Off-road, the Suzuki Jimny went well, although in 4WD, understeer is a major problem, so unless in serious muck, 2WD is best. The on-road capabilities is its downfall. There is no grip - at all. The car rolls around like an over-inflated bouncy castle, and when the petrol tank is 1/2 empty the back end jumps out if you're a touch enthusiastic.
Fuel wise, the best I had was 34mpg on a long run not going over 60mph, basically pacing trucks. Worst was 16mpg when I was enthusiastic but not daft.
The interior build quality was appalling. Lots of rattles and squeaks, made even worse by off-roading. The mechanicals of the vehicle are also poor. Its major problem is the King Pin Bearing on the front of the vehicle. This fails on most Jimny's after 40000 miles. I also had problems with a front ball joint. The seal failed, emptied the oil and seized. The front CV joints were also worn on the drive shafts. The catalytic converter also went; costing £500 to replace as there were no after-market products available. The back box also went - again no after-market products and another £100. So £600 for a full system, and God knows how much on other things - I had to stop caring. This, on a car that was 4 years old and I owned for a year!
DO NOT BUY ONE unless you're prepared to fix the thing. If you want a 4x4 for on road, get a Nissan or something similar. For off-road get a Landrover Defender!
| Helpful | Unhelpful | Agree | Disagree |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total Respect: +1
