2007 Suzuki Jimny from Australia and New Zealand - Comments

Nothing has gone wrong with the car. Runs like a dream.

The car has great fuel economy getting me around 14.5 km per litre. Even though the tank is only around 40 litres all up, I easily get 400 kms and still have a quarter tank to go.

It's not a race car so won't burn off competition at the lights, but it easily gets up to highway speed - 100 kph - before the merge lane ends. And comfortably holds that speed even going up moderate hills in 5th gear.

The instrumentation is well illuminated at night and the headlights are also superb. High beam especially lights up dark roads quite well. And the high mounted stop light give extremely visible notice that you have hit the brakes to those following you.

The seat adjustment is hard to access while the driver's door is closed. But let's face it, how often do you adjust a seat? And the door pocket could be bigger, sure, but how much stuff do you really need to put in it?

Vision is excellent. The front windscreen gives a broad unimpeded view - and I'm 6'2 and found the Jimny and Swift were the only two small cars I could sit in, not bump my head on the ceiling and still see out the windscreen well. And the side mirrors have just the right bow in them to allow me to see traffic on both sides, and to successfully merge into lanes, without needing to look over my shoulder.

The ride is more reminiscent of a van - a tad bumpy compared to, say, a 6 cylinder family sedan. But it's not bone jarring or uncomfortable. And after a few days you don't even notice it unless the road is particularly bad - in which case you curse the road and not the car.

The power steering is not overly sensitive. And the brakes work just fine and stop the car quite quickly when needed.

Have never had four people in it, but two people with luggage is handled well. And it also handles long trips - over a couple hundred kilometres - with ease.

It handles the wet well. And the only time I had wheel spin was when I was leaving an intersection, accelerating too harshly and having my front wheels turned too sharply to turn a corner. This is the exact same result as obtained from a van without anything in the back. It is not a fault of the vehicle, but rather a fault of the driver not driving it correctly.

Another reviewer has mentioned their Jimny rolling over at slow speed. The laws of physics dictate that at the claimed speed the car will not roll twice when one side hits a gutter edge. The reviewer was, in my opinion, driving much faster than claimed (assuming the rollover story is true) and seems to protest the Jimny way too much to be genuine (as if they work in some way for another manufacturer to dissuade people from Suzuki - their Swift review is also overly critical, which makes me suspect considering the popularity of the Swift and the large number sold which would certainly be hurting other manufacturers).

Me, with over 23 years behind the wheel and more than 1 million kilometres driven, and having driven large station wagons, sports cars, delivery vans, family sedans, four wheel drives, trucks, motorcycles, small hatchbacks and now a Jimny, I blame negative incidents on the driver not driving the vehicle correctly - all vehicles must be driven differently, according to their individual intrinsic handling capabilities. A Jimny is not to be driven like a large four wheel drive nor a small hatchback nor family sedan. It is to be driven more similarly like a van is driven. Because, like a van, the engine weight is at the front with a light rear end providing the driving force.

Also, if you, as the driver, are concerned with wet roads, a few second push of the four wheel drive button will put the vehicle into four wheel drive mode and increase handling ability. If you leave it in two wheel drive and try to take sharp bends at too high speed in the wet, it's your own fault if something goes awry.

I traded in my Land Drover Discovery for the Jimny and am pleased as punch. In fact, I prefer it to the Disco despite the diminished interior space. And if my Jimny was destroyed in a freak tornado, I would certainly buy another.

I drive it on a mix of highway and suburban roads daily. And it goes bush at least once a month and it has never skipped a beat. Handles dirt roads well too, even when they are wet.

There are a couple of Driver Alert Alarms to be aware of. If you leave the lights on, turn off the ignition and then open the door, you will hear a beep noise letting you know you have left the lights on. Also, if you put the key in the ignition with the door open there is an intermittent beep - this disappears when you close the door and also with the engine running, even if the door is open.

Overall, this car is a gem. And despite its small size, tall people can fit in it well and drive it comfortably. I intend to keep my Jimny for many years to come.

I was the writer who rolled the Jimny, and I can confirm that the report is totally genuine, and the vehicle rolled at 25mph after oversteering on an island exit and clipping the kerb, going over onto the roof and again on the soft verge.

I am in no way biased against Suzuki at all, whatsover so I find that hurtful. Look at all the rollover evidence available!

I also have covered well over a million miles with a professional licence including skid pan training for large vehicles, cars and motorcycles. 25mph is hardly excessive.

If it happens to you - which I hope it doesn't - you will suddenly understand. As I said, it is a well built little truck ideal for challenging off road situations, but not a safe road car. You have been fortunate not to have lost grip suddenly and unexpectedly like I did, on a grease spot on an island exit, which resulted in an instant rollover due to the rear end sliding into the kerb and the momentum of the tall vehicle then flipping it over.

Admittedly, I would never, ever have believed it until it happened to me. Please, please be careful.