2017 Suzuki Jimny – only 100 available for sale

Suzuki’s little battler Jimny, one of the few last remaining live-axled 4WDs for sale in Australia, is in short supply for 2017. This is because of a voluntary FCAI (Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries) code that limits the sale of vehicles without side airbags to only 100 units.

Seeing as the little 1.3 litre-powered fun machine has been around since around 1998, the Jimny doesn’t have much in the way of safety (or much else, to be honest).  Suzuki managed to move on 514 units in 2016 and 1,098 in 2015. Therefore, basic logic dictates that the $20,000 4X4 will be in pretty hot demand.

Why are people still buying the Jimny? They are good value, more fun than ball pit to a five year old, and have all of those old-world 4X4 ingredients that some of us still savour.

Click here to read our Suzuki Jimny long-term roadtest

This probably means that 2017 will be the last year for the Jimny as we know it. 2018 will bring on a whole new model to the tiny 4X4 segment. Word on the street is that it will still have the basic ingredients of low range, a ladder chassis, but none has been officially confirmed, including whether it will shift to an independant suspension setup.

Can you use a Suzuki Jimny for touring? You bet your arse you can.

So if you want a Suzuki Jimny this year, you’d be well served in calling up your local dealership now and trying to secure one. Suzuki has only listed two sales so far for 2017, so there theoretically should be 98 still available to sell.

Suzuki’s recent Ignis small car has tapped into the company’s fun and retro vibes quite well, so we expect that a new Jimny will attempt to do something similar (albeit with ground clearance and low range) for young, fun-chasing and budget oriented buyers.

Suzuki Jimny specs