On-sale date announced for Suzuki Jimny

Suzuki has announced that its long awaited new Jimny will officially go on sale from Australia Day 2019.

The importer is yet to reveal pricing, although it's expected the 2019 Suzuki Jimny will be more expensive than the model it replaces. A local media launch is scheduled for the week prior to the on-sale day, and it's anticipated that local pricing for the Jimny will be divulged then.

Michael Pachota, Suzuki Australia's General Manager for Automobiles, said of the 2019 Suzuki Jimny that it will live up to "a strong heritage and following in Australia..."

The Jimny is already attracting plenty of attention from prospective customers, according to Pachota, with Suzuki Australia holding many advance purchase orders for the new model.

Also scheduled to go on sale the same day is the revised (Series II) Suzuki Vitara, which was confirmed for release in Australia a couple of months ago. As noted at the time, the upgraded Suzuki Vitara will see the end of the Vitara RT-X Diesel in the local range.

Pachota insinuated at the time that because diesels had fallen out of favour, the way was left open for the importer to bring in hybrid and plug-in models at a later date.

"The Vitara RT-X Diesel has sold in the Australian market for a number of years. But as consumers continue to make greener living decisions we've listened to the voices of our customers and made an informed decision to discontinue the Vitara RT-X moving forward," Pachota was quoted as saying at the time, in an official press release.

"The Vitara that Australians know and love only gets better. Aesthetically, Vitara Series II is characterised by bold new styling beaming with strength and energy, a choice of new colours plus improved technology. The all-new Vitara is sure to impress."