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Originally Posted by rahul4321 I ended up booking and buying a Jimny Zeta Manual - all in 8 hours. It was a completely head over heart purchase. |
I completed my first major service (10 thousand kilometer one) today so thought it would be a good idea to write a short ownership review of the Jimny and what exactly do I think of it after lusting over the Thar but deciding to take the plunge with the Jimny (courtesy the discounts) and if I still lust over the Thar now or have I accepted the Jimny as a part of my life.
I wanted a vehicle for touring to complement my Himalayan 411. I have taken the Himalayan to a lot of places without the motorcycle breaking a sweat and always felt that I should also have a car which could do the same. I do not offroad in the usual sense of the word which is to go looking for obstacles. Instead my preference is to tour, work from various places in India and visit places which may or may not require me to venture off the beaten path but I should not have to turn back because of the terrain. In essence - I required a vehicle which can take anything and everything in its stride and get me to my intended destination IF I am venturing off the road on broken ruts, trails, washed out roads or mountains. That for me was the ultimate purpose.
I am single; plan to stay single, have 2-3 close friends so for me the Thar 3 door is more than enough. In any case, I usually travel alone so I am never confined by the luggage capacity of any vehicle whatsoever. All of this led me to lusting after the Thar Diesel 4x4 MT. However at almost 19.50 Lakhs onroad, it was out of my budget so I was passively looking for pre-owned examples and not having much luck finding them (not at the price point I was looking at anyway)
Come December 2023, the discounts led me to take a test drive of the Jimny and I booked it straight away. My rationale was very simple; at a price difference of almost 8 lakhs (and no struggles of BS6 DPF), it made the Jimny very tempting. I liked the car but did not fall in love with it. Atleast not at first – maybe not even right now.
At almost 9500 kilometers as it stands today, I have now driven the Jimny extensively enough to write a detailed review about it. First things first; the engine – It is competent for the job it has to perform. My touring on the Himalayan 411 – has led me to understand that I love low end torque and am happy sitting at a cruising speed of 90 km/hr. The Jimny is almost the same. The Low end torque is not that great in 1st gear but it is enough – especially in 2nd gear and 3rd gear. The cruising speed is exactly the same as the Himalayan. Enough for me. I would have loved the extra horses of the Thar but for me it would have been a “nice to have”. I would still probably tour at 90 km/hr with my elbow hanging out of the window taking in the cool breeze.
Second is the suspension and the ride quality. Now I’ve not driven the Thar that much to genuinely compare but everybody and their uncle states that the Jimny’s ride quality is much more sorted than the Thar. I genuinely believe that. In isolation – the Jimny’s ride quality is very very good. It does not crash into deep potholes but rather jumps around softly like a rubber dinghy on a fast ride in a water park. Yes if you do run over a unscientific bump, the rear crashes with a loud thud but I have come to accept that. Also my previous Bolero DI (with leaf spring suspension on all 4 wheels) did the same. Coming from the Bolero, the Jimny’s suspension and ride quality feels like a Rolls-Royce. In relative terms ofcourse.
I love to drive the Jimny on B-roads. It feels like it is in its element there. Small ruts, potholes, small bumps; it will just cruise along without noticing them. The stock tyres do their duty well and as I have the Zeta- I know the Steel rims can take a lot of abuse if the situation demands it. On the Highways, it is slow, no doubt about it. However, I am usually in no hurry to get anywhere.
Today was the 3rd service of the Jimny. In both of the earlier services, I softly insisted that the Jimny go through a preventive oil change but the service advisor was adamant that there is no need for it. He told me that Maruti is completely confident of the 10 thousand kilometre service interval and with the new processes they employ at the factory – the engine does not need the preventive oil change to flush out the metal shavings as there are no shavings in the engine due to the new processes. I didn’t really believe him but I did not push him either. Today at the 10k kilometres service, I was watching the old engine oil like a hawk. It was dark brown – almost black in colour but I really did not see any metal shavings in the oil gunk. The cost of the service came up to 1900 rupees which is pretty reasonable. The oil used was Suzuki Ecstar OW16
I also wanted to take a look at the propeller shaft for the infamous markings but there were none in my car. Considering the fact that I do not use the car for offroading (read as hunting for obstacles), I am not really surprised. In comparision to most Jimny owners, I must have used no more than 40% of the Jimny’s offroad capabilities uptill now. Additionally, as I travel light (and its mostly just me in the car), the suspension and the frame is not under a heavy sag.
I have taken it to a nearby river bed three or four times – but that is just to ensure the 4x4 Hardware is being used and it does not fail when I really need it. In my experience, Lack of usage always tends to deteriorate things faster than Over-usage. I have done a few modifications; have got the grill blacked out with the exception of 1 slot which I have painted to red. I also got the Suzuki “S” blacked out. In addition, there is a Bimbra roof rack, a Bimbra rear ladder and a Bimbra Armrest.
All in all- I don’t think I am there yet where I can say that I love the Jimny. I still turn my head to look at a Thar everytime one passes by (and there are a lot of them so my neck is always twisting and turning). There is just something about the 3 door Thar which makes it so butch to look at. My heart still pines for one. But in my head; I have now accepted the fact that I have made a better choice. (a) (a) Less money, (b)No BS6 DPF worries, (c) Better ride quality, (d) better mileage, (e) better offroad capability due to low weight (debatable), (f) more robust and hard wearing interiors (g) 2 extra doors but most of all a (h) fill it, shut it, forget it functionality which I never got even in my basic Bolero DI – it was always plagued with issues. All these positives; against 2 negatives – (a) less power (b) lesser butch looks.
I am happy. I think I ended up making the right choice. Not by choice but maybe by compulsion. I still lust after the Thar and may just pick up one someday (or I will fear I will come back to haunt Mr. Mahindra) but in my head – I think I have finally found a vehicle which is perfect for the kind of usage I do.