Compact 4WD SUV of the Year: Suzuki Jimny

News and General

It’s the very definition of a cult 4WD. Suzuki’s mighty Jimny is a firm favourite among all who own it. The launch of the five-door version at the start of 2024 basically doubled the Jimny’s market appeal and its buyer audience.

Five doors, decent cargo space and no dilution of the Jimny’s rugged charm – a winner all the way.

Driving the Jimny is an experience like nothing offered by any other 4WD on the New Zealand market. Its superb approach and departure angles and its light weight enable ‘the five’ to tackle and defeat gnarly bog holes uphills and descents far beyond what others might manage, and it retains the three-door’s ‘wheel at each corner’ format that makes driving – and parking – in town a breeze.

It’s not an angry track chewing torque monster – but it doesn’t have to be. It just gets on with the fun.

The Jimny range now includes manual and auto transmission versions of both three-door and five-door models, all with the 1.5-litre fuel injected engine.

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