Suzuki Jimny 1.3 JLX

I've owned my 2007 Jimny Jlx for a couple of years now and had no faults other than a burst top radiator hose and that's after 82000 miles on the clock, so not bad for such a small engined 4x4 that's worked pretty hard. There are a few rattles from the dashboard now but other than that undue noise is at a minimum and the interior is hard-wearing and as fresh as when it was new. On the outside the headlights need a polish and wax every few months just to stop them yellowing as they are cheap plastic lenses, the rest of the bodywork especially the plastic cladding on the doors is tough enough to withstand small knocks and to protect from car park dings.

I personally think the car is ideal for use anywhere, wether off road where it is astonishing or in town where you will be amazed at the tiniest spaces you can park this thing in, the turning circle is great too. Although don't plan a shopping trip in it if you have people sat in the back, the boot is tiny and only suitable for 2 or 3 shopping bags! With the back seats folded flat I've had a large tumble dryer in the back, so not all bad!

The only place I'm not overly struck on using the jimny is the motorway...it's short, it's tall and it's light and it hates crosswinds which batter you about like mad. Couple that with the fact the 83bhp engine has a top speed of 86mph, anything over 60mph will have the engine revving at nearly 4000rpm. It's ok for occasional motorway use but it's best where it was designed for, country lanes in bad weather and off road.

I constantly fight with my wife for the keys. Although I drive a Astra 2.0 turbo, her Jimny gets more of my attention!! Absolutely great off road, will beat most standard off road vehicles. Agree not the best on-road but hey we have to get to the dirt somehow. Remember you can go fast, but I can go anywhere. Please do not follow me as you will not get there.

It's not an urban car..If you live in a city or an urban environment then perhaps you are better with an ordinary car, because ordinary isn't what a jimny is..For the Yorkshire dales and getting home through 3ft snow drifts or tramping across soft ground then the thing is the bees knees. Sure it won't fly round corners at silly speeds but so what? I have driven it up and down the motorway to Malvern from hawes and then up through Wales to Anglesey and found no issues with wind noise or anything else.

Never had any issues with reliablity, and just done the normal servicing, replacing the front wheel bearings at 45k ( suprisingly not sooner given the hammering off road it's had )

It's a bit of a bouncy ride and a little firm, but it has to be it it is to be any good off road.

nice to see plenty of good reviews about the jimny. for those who are experiencing bad faults with the car REMEMBER !! theres bad cars in every manufacturer. i had a mitsubishi and it ended up costing me a arm and a leg. same when i had a 2009 ford. this is the second jimny ive had and ill tell you its amazing in the snow. even better than my warrior. its eco and reliable. the insurance is cheap and its brilliant to park. what more do you want!!!!!!!

Having had a series of company cars over the years, everything from, Audi's, BMW's, Volvo's and Jaguars, I decided to buy a 4x4 vehicle as my own, due to my change of circumstances,and having looked at most other 4x4's in the lower end price bracket, mainly small second hand SUV's, I decided on a brand new Jimny as my new fishing truck. I paid my deposit and waited, and then I started to read the various reviews, from ones that said the vehicle was a load of rubbish, to others that said they were just plain dangerous, to others that said they were brilliant.....oh dear what have I done I thought.

I have had the Jimny now for about 5 weeks, what do i think you may ask?

I think it is great, it is the very car I always wanted, brilliant off road vehicle as everyone states, comfortable tarmac slogger, fairly economical, and plenty fast enough for me, Yes it demands a different driving technique on bends and islands due to its short wheel base and High centre of gravity, you basically drive slower around these, but I like that, its calmed me down, I just love this strange little utilitarian tough truck, it has a bigger car feel inside, a great high driving position, brilliant breaks.

I thoroughly recommend the Jimny, just remember it isnt no Golf, BMW or Focus, it aint no Freelander, its a Jimny, put the back seats down and its a load lugger, why did I doubt this vehicle, some of the reviews (especially the professional reviews)are misleading and dont do credit to the car, would I recommend it, as I said most thoroughly!

I bought my 2007 Jimny with just 25,000 k's on the clock (at 7mths old) and I was soooo proud of my beautiful 'new car'. I loved the height of the seat, excellent petrol economy, easy parking, if fact, I really liked absolutely everything about it. Then at around 35,000 k's it developed a bit of a shudder in the steering which got progressively worse and the short story is that over 2 years, 4 different mechanics and 1 4wD specialist all tried to find and fix this steering problem which kept returning after between 1,000 to 10,000 k's. It got so bad the car was a death trap!

It has cost me a ton of time, so much grief and over $2,500. just trying to FIND the problem not to mention 2 sets of tyres - a direct result of this problem! By the way, even though the car still had 4yrs 5mths warranty on it when I bought it, I was the second owner and therefore was entitled to nothing - a painful discovery. During this time I took it to a Suzuki dealer workshop, asked for help - they had never heard of this happening and said Suzuki would not cover costs because of the warranty issue and they themselves had never worked on the car so it was going to cost me again. I found on the net that Suzuki put out a "kit" to rectify this problem in both the UK and Australia. I showed them that info and all the copies that I had of 100's of Jimny owner's comments on forums stating the EXACT same nightmare that I was experiencing with my Jimny, which I found by googling various combinations of: jimny, steering wobble, death wobble; you got the idea. I've taken it back twice to them and am now told that this is something that I will constantly be dealing with for the life of the car and I should expect to pay every year for various rectifications to the steering because it is a design fault - and I will need to be vigilant to get it back in before the new set of tyres begin to wear unevenly, again! Two mths ago I had the steering "fixed" again and payed over $500. I was told that my next expected yearly steering problem will be around $700.00 minimum because the tightening that they had to do will cause another part to wear quicker than normal blah..... blah..... blah. The steering was a lot better for about 3 weeks, it's now 8 weeks since then and the wobble is already happening again!!!!!!!

But WAIT! Two weeks ago it started jumping out of 4th gear - not fun in the fast lane doing 80 kph in traffic!!!! The first time was a near death experience - I came close to being run over by a truck but after that I fixed it quick each time it jumped out. In the past 2 weeks the car has had escalating whineing and grinding noises, in the front which has been assessed as "the gearbox has s**t itself Love! You'll need a second hand one!" I'll be lucky to get out of THIS PARTICULAR MESS for under $1,200.00 .....

I now have NO CAR! Am desperately trying to find a gearbox! The Steering saga continues! and I forgot to say that it's always been serviced; never been off road and it's only got 90,000 k's on the clock! To be fair I would like to give Suzuki the opportunity to buy this car back from me - at my cost price! I think that's fair.

I'm so sad.

I am writing this because I have never had such bad experiences with a car.I bought my 2006 jimny in 2008. Since then, the power steering has gone - twice1;the clutch has had to be replaced;the gearbox has leaked; the rear axle has broken and the front axle has also had to be replaced, and , today, it has broken down completely and needed towing for the 4th time - I don't yet know the cause but the gears roared and screeched, something underneath groaned and rattled and it gave out completely.

Every car place I take it to, I am told how great it is and how reliable, it will go forever apparently...

I consider some of the experiences I have had in my Jimny to have been extremely dangerous eg. when the rear axle broke a couple of weeks ago and the car swerved dramatically back and forth across the road and when the power steering gave out.

It's a cute car but my god, it's so not worth it!

As others have said, a vehicle that has exceeded all my expectations! I have a Jimny SZ4 Automatic purchased new in Dec 2010.

Around town the elevated driving position is superb and there is good all round visibility. Compact dimensions,good sized door mirrors and minimal front & rear overhangs make the Jimny a doddle to park or move through traffic.

The rear boot area is modest with the back seats up but drop the seats and there is a good sized stowage area. Although there is some legroom for rear passengers it's fair to say the seating in the rear is more suited to children/ smaller adults or occasional use.

The 1.3 engine is not fast, but it is adequate for the job. Coupled with a smooth auto box & modern stop/start driving is less of a chore! The car is far more refined than I would have expected with very little engine noise in the cabin. Road noise is surprisingly low too. For anyone unfamiliar with 4wd vehicles the suspension/ body roll will feel a little odd but despite the relative height of the car to its width/length I have found the car stable even on motorways & comes to life off road.

Having taken the car out in the winter snows of 2010/11 around the Pennines, Yorkshire dales & through North Wales, the car never missed a beat, coping superbly with snow,ice, mud & sleet, while other cars were stranded by the roadside.Anyone considering the auto transmission should not be afraid- it works really well in 4wd mode!

3 months in and the car still makes me smile- fun to drive, practical & pretty economical- I seem to getting 39+mpg around town now the engine is getting run in- that's as good as I was getting from the Smart Fortwo I traded in.

Anyone looking for a small runaround should give the Jimny some serious thought- it does all the average eurobox urban runaround can do and much more besides!

One of the best vehicles I have ever driven !! Since the day I bought this amazing piece of machine I enjoyed my life more than ever.

The extreme off-road capabilities together with on-road comfort always made me very confident on "go anywhere - any time - do whatever I want and return back safely". This small rugged mighty 4X4 is far ahead of most expensive SUVs in the market with this hybrid capabilities.

That's true that there are bunch of SUVs in the market labeled as "4X4", but this little monster all-rounder could easily beat most of them with its well focused 4X4 design which has been armed with a strong ladder chassis and front and rear differentials.

However, if you are someone who expect a SUV which is comfortable as a car, this is not for you. However, the key point you should keep in mind is, you can't ever expect "the car comfort" from a true 4X4 like Suzuki Jimny or Landrover - Defender.

Give it a go, you will never be disappointed !

My new (July 2010) SZ4 has exceeded all expectations. The "exp rts" may not like them but I love it. The engine was a little tight at first but now it has run in the performance is excellent and the engine is quiet and smooth. The ride is far better than I expected and considerably better than my old Terrano. Off road the Jimny comes into its own. I spend a lot of time in southern Spain and I have found its off roading capabilities whether in mud, on steep rutted tracks or in deep dust exceptional. The little car just keeps on going, unfalteringly. Fuel consumption is good at around 38mpg. The interior is well fitted and the seats are comfortable. I love it.