The Suzuki Jimny is one of the most favourite go-anywhere off-roader in the international market. After a long wait, it’s no secret that the Japanese auto giant is set to launch the 5-door version of the Jimny in India soon. The upcoming SUV competes against the likes of Mahindra Thar and Force Gurkha.
Suzuki Jimny is a nameplate of a line of 4x4 mini off-roader SUVs, manufactured by the Japanese manufacturer Suzuki. Since its first launch in 1970, the long-serving Jimny is now in its fourth generation. The company has marketed around 2.85 million Jimny in 194 markets through Sep 2018.
The Indian market is all set to see the Maruti Jimny launch in 3-door and 5-door versions in the coming months. The 5-door Jimny is expected to be launched sometime this year and comes as an aggressive rival of new Mahindra Thar or Force Gurkha BS6.
Maruti Suzuki remains tightlipped about the Indian launch of the Jimny off-roader and continues saying that it is still under evaluation for our market. However, various reports revealed that the final drawings of the new model have been completed actually. The exact launch timeline of the Suzuki Jimny is yet to be known but media reports expected that it could arrive in late 2021 or early 2022. Therefore, the new Suzuki Jimny 5-door will be on sale by July 2022.
The Maruti Jimny 5 Door will be available with petrol engine option. It will get the power from a 1.5-litre K15B petrol engine churning out 103 BHP against 138 Nm of torque. This mill also powers the Maruti Vitara Brezza, S-Cross, Ertiga and some others. With this 1.5-litre petrol mill, the Maruti Jimny 5-door will not qualify for the incentives on the sub-4m segment.
The Maruti Jimny will sport major design changes to keep it fresh enough in the Indian market. It will boast of new front design that is in line with the brand’s global design language. A new front grille, revised bumpers, refreshed headlamps and wheels are expected to be carried out on the new model.
The India-spec Suzuki Jimny will be developed on the Jimny Sierra unveiled at the Auto Expo 2020. Compared to the global-spec crossover, the Sierra is marginally longer, wider and higher. However, both the cars will share the same wheelbase of 2,250 mm.
As far as the any-terrain off-roading SUVs are concerned, the Suzuki Jimny will face just one competition from the Mahindra Thar which has just received its new generation. While the Mahindra Thar is arguably the most popular SUV of sorts currently, it will be interesting to see how the Jimny makes the game more competitively. Apart from the Thar, the Suzuki Jimny will face the rivalry from the BS6-compliant Force Gurkha.
