Suzuki is gearing up to launch the fourth generation of its long-running Jimny small SUV 20 years after the third-generation model went on sale.
Pictures released by Suzuki show that the company has kept to the same angular two-box design that has characterized the Jimny since the first model was launched in 1970.
Suzuki gave no details of launch timings for the car for Europe, but reports in the UK media say the car will be unveiled at the Paris auto show this autumn with sales following soon after.
The current Jimny, launched in 1998, is being wound down and sales have already stopped in some markets, including the UK. Suzuki sold 14,444 Jimnys in Europe last year, according to figures from JATO Dynamics market researchers. Suzuki has sold 2.85 million Jimnys worldwide in its 48-year history, the company said.
The current model was built for Europe in Suzuki’s Iwata plant in Japan. Suzuki didn’t give a production location for the new model.
The new Jimny will stick to the previous model’s mechanical layout engineered more for off-road ability than on-road comfort. It will use a ladder chassis with separate body, a picture released by Suzuki showed. Models will come with a part-time four-wheel-drive system with a low-range gearbox for better off-road traction.
Suzuki didn’t release information about the engine lineup, but it’s likely to be a small four-cylinder gasoline of either 1.0-liter or 1.3-liter in size. A mild-hybrid version is also likely.
