2024 Suzuki Jimny Five-Door

Little Jimny has grown a pair… of doors. The new five-door version is now about a Footlong Subway longer than the three-door. Well, 34cm to be exact. And there’s a bit of mission impossible going on with that extra 34cm.

This new Jimny is a veritable Tardis. Two extra doors, comfortable rear seat legroom and 211 litres of boot space. It’s even multi-suitcase capable… with a bit of Tetris-like stacking.

All of this from a mere 34cm! Umm, excuse me Suzuki Team, the math isn’t mathing here – how is this humanly possible?

We recently had the opportunity to test the new five-door Jimny on the 22km Skippers Canyon Road in Queenstown. Due to the narrow gravel road and extreme vertical drops, it is considered one of New Zealand’s most dangerous roads. Rental cars are not permitted (or insured) to drive this rickety old goat track.

But the folks at Suzuki are a trusting bunch and I’m happy to report that no Jimnys were harmed during the making of this review. The drivers, however, may have discovered a newfound respect for vertigo.

Visually, not much has changed from the formula that made the three-door Jimny popular (other than the extra doors) and three million Jimny sales over five decades are a testament to its enduring charm.

Thankfully, the latest evolution has not lost its Jimny-ness. If a Hummer and a Jeep had a love child, you would name it Jimny. It’s still got that cheeky 4x4 allure that exudes a ‘do not pass go, drive directly to the nearest Hunting and Fishing store’ kind of vibe.

 Front on, you will notice it gets a shiny chrome grille which allows for aesthetic separation between the shorter cousins. Also new is the 12” infotainment screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, plus, finally, a much-needed reversing camera. The Automatic version also gains radar cruise control.

Caveat: the five-door Jimny is still a four-seater, for a couple of reasons. First, width is still the same as the three-door at 1,645mm so it’s only comfortably wide enough in the rear for two average adults. Second, GVM is 1,545kg and curb weight is 1,200kg. That leaves a payload of 345kg for humans, dogs, cargo and whatever else you wish to chauffer.

In a nutshell, if your three best mates happen to be in the front row of a rugby team, one of them is going to be catching an Uber. The dimensions still make it a compact vehicle; the overall length of the five-door is only 3.8m, so it’s shorter than a Toyota Corolla.

The new Jimny comes in five-speed manual or four-speed automatic. Both versions’ default is RWD (two high). Flat-towing behind an RV is possible with the manual version only. The 4WD system features Suzuki’s own ALL GRIP PRO technology and both axles are rigid, with coil springs allowing for optimal articulation and off-road grip.

 Four-wheel afficionados will be happy to hear that the five-door has retained the same approach and departure angle as the three-door (36 and 47 degrees) with only a small change to the ramp breakover angle due to longer body overhang (24 degrees compared to 28 for the three-door).

Suzuki has rejected the modern-day trend of a monocoque chassis structure, opting to retain the 50-plus-year tradition of body-on-ladder frame. Introduced on the original 1970 Suzuki SJ410, this design is truly Old Testament, dating back to the dawn of the first automobile, the Model T.

Clearly, Suzuki comes from the ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ camp and it’s hard to argue with the amount of four-wheel punishment this frame has endured over the past half century. In fact, there are still plenty of the original SJ410s holding their own out there in the back of beyond each weekend.

The power plant is the same K15B as the three-door, which is a modest 1.5 litre 75kW, 130 Nm. You can make a cup of tea faster than the 0-100km time, but anyone buying a Jimny won’t be envisaging a drag race with a Porsche.

The manual gearbox makes the drive a tad more exhilarating, especially climbing up the Skippers track in second gear (max torque hits slightly above midrange at 4,000 rpm, while peak power will need to be at the tail end of the rev range – 6,000rpm!).

 If you were fussy, the manual gearbox could be improved with a shorter throw, and ratios tweaked to deliver improved open road performance, but, overall, both transmission options deliver acceptable propulsion characteristics.

Suzuki has opted for the five-door not to be crash tested, quite an anomaly for a new car in the year 2024. This means the official ANCAP result will show as ‘unrated.’ Let’s be honest, the optics of this aren’t great, and one could argue a potential low star rating is still better than having no rating at all. The three-door version was ANCAP tested in 2019 and achieved three out of five stars.

But to be fair, safety systems have advanced for this model. The five-door comes with a re-designed front bumper for pedestrian protection, lane departure warning, collision detection camera (DCBS), sway warning, improved front and side impact absorption and ESP.

Pricing

Pricing for five-door Jimny starts at $40,990 for the manual and $44,990 for the automatic (this is a $5,000 bump from the current three-door pricing).

The Verdict:

Jimny has grown up and mysteriously transformed into a Tardis on wheels that easily accommodates extra passengers, luggage and almost the kitchen sink. You won’t be setting any land speed records in it, but who cares – the quirky aesthetic and four-wheel utility is undeniably cool, whether you are driving in the real jungle or the concrete one.

Article and images by Avon Bailey

Avon has spent three long decades doing everything there is to do in the car universe, from the car auction podium to wrenching on a race car team, he has seen it all. He brings an open mind and a sharp pencil to give an honest review of anything with four wheels.