Bulldust

MORE THAN $30K FOR A SUZUKI JIMNY … WHO’DA THUNK IT?

- Dean Mellor

THEY SAY fortune favours the brave, but in the case of Suzuki Jimny ownership, I reckon fortune favours the patient. The pint-sized 4x4 used to have a pint-sized price tag, but it seems that solid local demand for the little offroader, and limited supply, have seen people paying big bucks to be one of the first to nab a new Zook.

I can see why Jimny demand is outstripping supply: not only does the new Jimny look bloody fantastic, it has ‘genuine’ off-road credentials that few vehicles can match these days including a ‘proper’ separate chassis, live axles front and rear and decent low-range reduction. Architecture like this is rare in the 21st century, where even old stalwarts like the Land Rover Defender are expected to go the way of semi-unitary body construction and independent suspension (although I hope I’m proved wrong).