The pint-sizeJimny is Suzuki Australia’s best-selling model, and the Japanese brand’s local boss says he desires to expand the boxy little off-road SUV’s range to incorporate business vehicles like utes, panel vans, and even small trucks.
“A Jimny ute could be awesome in Australia. A Jimmy anything is awesome in Australia,” Suzuki Australia general manager Michael Pachota told CarExpert on the national launch of the brand new Fronx Hybrid light SUV.
“As I’ve mentioned, Jimmy three-door and Jimny XL sales are consistently growing and, with that said, if I just added to that product lineup, whether or not it’s a utility, or a panel van, or whatever it could be, I’ll take it.”
Because it stands, the Jimny range comprises only a small wagon available in either three-door or five-door XL body styles. No business versions of the present fourth-generation Jimny are in production, though Suzuki Recent Zealand has offered an aftermarket ute conversion since 2020.
Suzuki also has a protracted history of compact utes, including the Nineties Caribian Sporty from Thailand and the Mighty Boy sold in Japan and Australia within the Eighties, and prospective buyers have been kept interested in concepts just like the Jimny Sierra Pick Up Form of 2019 (pictured above).
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ABOVE: Second-generation 1981 Suzuki Jimny 1000 cab-chassis
This can be a far cry from the three preceding Jimny generations, which were populated by several different body styles, including the third-generation Canvas Top in Europe and the second-generation SJ40 pickup, which was also sold because the cab-chassis Holden Drover.
Suzuki’s tiny first-generation Jimny Soft Top, which resembled the utilitarian Willys Jeep, was also sold in Australia because the Suzuki Stockman.
Lots of these models were built to Japan’s diminutive kei automobile engine and size specifications, very like the present Japanese-market three-door Jimny – different bumpers and wider fender flares are added for export markets.
Consequently, Australian-market three-door Jimnys measure 3480mm in length, 1645mm in width, and 1720mm in height. The five-door Jimny XL adds 340mm in length, which continues to be nearly 2m shorter than a Ford Ranger, while being roughly 250mm narrower.
In fact, Australia’s love for utes is dominated by larger vehicles just like the Ranger and Toyota HiLux, but that hasn’t stopped Mr Pachota from predicting a robust following for a Jimny ute, echoing the SUV’s passionate fanbase.
ABOVE: First-generation 1972 Suzuki Jimny Soft Top
“I even have my fingers crossed and hope and pray that Suzuki Motor Corporation looks down that path, because there’s an enormous market here for Australia,” he told CarExpert.
Mr Pachota also suggested the small dimensions of a possible Jimny ute would suit many applications where more traditional pickups are too large, drawing inspiration from Victoria’s Goulburn Valley wine region, where Suzuki hosted the aforementioned Fronx launch.
“We’re sitting in a winery at once, and you may just see the width of those vineyard lines. A Jimmy ute would fit down that line perfectly,” he added.
“So the agricultural need in Australia… I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s one on the property based on the old Jimny Stockman, because there was a utility.
“So with that said, if there was something, possibly there will likely be something again in the long run. We haven’t been told. Suzuki keeps their product development fairly near their chest… but I’d definitely welcome one.”
This Article First Appeared At www.carexpert.com.au
