Suzuki Jimny Lifestyle Drive Review: The Off-Roader For On Roaders

November 18, 2024

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Here are my thoughts after the Suzuki Jimny Lifestyle Drive 2024

So Suzuki Cars Malaysia had invited us for a quick day trip from PJ to Janda Baik for a quick drive and lunch for the Suzuki Jimny Lifestyle Drive along with a couple other media friends and about 20 Suzuki Jimny owners and it was a fun experience. My only gripe would be that it was held early on a Saturday morning and I prefer having my weekends free.

That said, it was a pretty good drive and experience and the owners as well as the good staff over at Suzuki and Naza Eastern were all very friendly and the car was definitely a lot of fun to drive too. Despite being a bit small for my liking, it was overall a pretty good drive because the car managed to handle the poor road conditions very well.

The Overview

Okay, so let’s start the review. The Suzuki Jimny 3-door is powered by a 1.5-litre naturally aspirated engine and while it is by no means underpowered, it does feel very sluggish. However, this is probably not the engine’s fault though, it is likely the outdated 4-speed automatic transmission.

Now, I know I sound like a broken record saying this, but power is one of, if not the most, important factor in a car to me, personally. This may not be the case for everyone, but I genuinely do not care how uncomfortable a car is, as long as I can overtake anyone at any time, I am satisfied with my car.

Moreover, it is not that the Suzuki Jimny is uncomfortable, it is really very comfortable. Despite being presented as an off-roader, the car had soft seats and the suspension was not too stiff either, however, the acceleration was a bit slow for my taste but given that the convoy was cruising at low speed, it was a very quiet and comfortable drive.

Naturally, NVH is not the best in cars like the Suzuki Jimny and yes, road noise and engine noise was definitely just lingering around and could be heard at almost all times, but it was quiet enough and was never actually loud at any point until the accelerator pedal was to the floor. This is to be expected though so overall, it was quieter than I thought it would be.

Performance

I want to get this out of the way first since the Suzuki Jimny was not built for performance, but rather to be a comfortable and lifestyle oriented off-roader but also a pretty decent everyday car as well. In this regard, it really does the job well. The only problem for me was the lack of on demand power which made overtaking very hard.

However, the car did manage to go once it got started so unless you need to overtake from very low speeds, you would not really notice the car being slightly underpowered for my personal taste. Overall, I’d say while performance is not the Suzuki Jimny’s strong suit, it is definitely powerful enough for the average Malaysian.

Design

The design of the Suzuki Jimny is definitely very deeply tied to the boxy and square off-road standard as the car is also able to off-road when in a pinch. However, looking at most of the owners and the way the convoy was just cruising around for the most part, most will just use the car as a daily driver in the city.

The Suzuki Jimny looks aggressive and has square elements almost everywhere but the round headlights add a nice contrast and more shapes to the otherwise almost entirely square car. With a rugged and off-road emphasis on the overall design, the Suzuki Jimny sits high off the ground and has a very sturdy look despite being quite small.

Interior

On the inside, the Suzuki Jimny is the complete opposite of its exterior design. Despite the outside of the car being very traditional, the inside is quite modern and tech packed. Not only is there a very convenient central infotainment screen, but there is also wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto to make the drive more convenient.

The dashboard and centre console is very well laid out and all the buttons including the ones on the steering wheel were all very thoughtfully placed and intuitive to use. ALthough some may say the interior design is very simple, I like it as it is not overly complicated or confusing in the way some new cars are.

Now, boot space on the Suzuki Jimny is near non-existent but the rear seats are more than adequate enough to use as a boot and with the rear seats folded down, this becomes a very spacious and practical 2-seater. However, being quite compact, spreading your feet out on the floor of the car becomes very difficult unless you are below average in size.

The Quirks

So despite being a very conventional daily driver and a capable albeit very compact off-roader, the Suzuki Jimny is still a very unique car overall. Remember how I mentioned that there is no real boot space to speak of? Well, this car works better as a 2-seater anyway since more passengers will only make life hard inside.

What I mean by this is that there are only enough USB ports up front and if you really do need more boot space and seats for 4 to 5 adults, well the Suzuki Jimny 5-door is an option so I recommend treating this car strictly as a 2-seater for the most part.

On top of that, there is really no explaining the fun you have driving one of these “toy cars” as the Naza Eastern boss put it. You really just have fun sitting so high off the ground but being in such a small car. Plus the off-road control knob going from 2WD high gear to 4WD high gear to 4WD low gear is a fun touch to remind you that this comfortable cruiser can also off-road.

Naturally, the way the Suzuki Jimny looks is also a real talking point. Pulling up to any event in one of these head turners is definitely going to be a guaranteed conversation starter and can also really help you make friends, particularly with the outdoors-y and active types who often go hiking and off-roading, so there is also that.

The Conclusion

So in a nutshell, I would say that if you want a daily driver that can also off-road when you really need it, then the Suzuki Jimny is definitely for you. However, if you want an off-roader that can also carry many people and things, well, you may have to look elsewhere. However, as a 2-seater, the Suzuki Jimny 3-door is more than adequate enough.