Price £12,195
MPG 39.8
Top speed 87mph
Years ago my wife and I hired a Suzuki Jimny for two weeks’ holiday in southern Spain. We’d opted for a Fiat Panda as that was the cheapest vehicle on the list, but were “upgraded” to the Jimny. As a 4x4 fan, I was delighted, my wife less so. We drove at least 1,500km in a great loop around Andalucia, swerving off road to explore the dirt tracks between the whitewashed towns. After visiting Jerez, she managed to empty a bottle of fino into the footwell and for the rest of trip the car smelled of Tio Pepe.
Two decades later and the only thing that seems to have changed about the Jimny is it no longer stinks of sherry. Climbing into it was like doing the time warp. The “updated” model boasts a few superficial changes – the bumper, grille and bonnet have been refreshed and there’s an air intake that looks like it means business – but essentially Suzuki has left its sturdy little workhorse to fend for itself. And that, depending on where you stand, is either a good thing or a very bad thing.
Compact, practical and undeniable value for money, the Jimny hails from an era when offroaders were built to go off road. These days most 4x4s have lost that battle-hardened edge and have grown softer and more and more car-like. Not the Jimny. Oh no, it’s still a clunky and chunky no-nonsense customer with a tough, unbreakable feel about it. Uncompromising is the word. And if you’re a farmer or live in splendid rural isolation, I imagine it would soon become your BFF. If you don’t, then you’ll find yourself driving a noisy wee beastie that struggles to cope with flat, fast roads. Its handling is woeful and cornering is a heart-in-your-mouth affair. It leans terribly and seems to have as much contact with the tarmac as a Fathers 4 Justice dad has with his kids.
The low-revving 1.3-litre engine may well cope with muddy tracks and boulder fields, but show it the motorway and it gasps and grunts like an asthmatic Shetland pony. The only mercy is that road and wind noise is so loud you can barely hear the coarse engine. You can select 2WD or 4WD, which means you can boost your fuel economy. In normal driving conditions you can expect about 40 miles to the gallon.
Testing the Jimny outside its native habitat feels unfair – like asking a fish to ride a bike. It simply has not been designed for the road. Its narrowness (you can lock the passenger’s door without stretching) results in it feeling unsteady on the flat, but it has been designed to allow access to rough, tight areas that larger, more-expensive off-roaders couldn’t get near.
The interior is super basic. But it’s supposed to be – hard, hose-down plastics abound. The driving position is brilliant. Despite it being so small, you still climb up and into its cabin. It feels like driving an old Land Rover Defender. The boot is also small, but you can fold down the back seats and create quite a sizeable space.
It’s quirky and authentic, distinctive and whimsical. To some die-hards it’s a cult classic. Rent one for a week, enjoy a holiday romance, sherry and all, but when it’s time to go home you’ll be pleased to give it back.
New child seat, new wheels
It’s almost 20 years since Britax co-developed the pioneering Isofix technology in conjunction with Volkswagen, revolutionising child-seat installation for parents across the world. Back then only about a third of seats were installed correctly. I can certainly remember fiddling about with a seat belt while trying to hold the car seat in place with my knee. Isofix uses a simple and sturdy latch system that connects the child seat directly to the vehicle’s chassis, making installation a breeze. It also leaves you reassured that your precious cargo is safe from the offset. To celebrate this, and to draw attention to the importance of child seats being properly installed, Britax has been running a competition. Buy a child seat from them and you could win a Range Rover Evoque. Can’t be bad, can it... The competition runs until 31 March 2015. To enter and see terms and conditions, go to Britaxwinacar.
Email Martin at martin.love@observer.co.uk or follow him on Twitter @MartinLove166
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