Suzuki Jimny XL 2023 Review

The new five-door 2023 Suzuki Jimny XL is priced from $34,990 plus on-road costs for the manual version, while the automatic starts at $36,490 plus ORCs.

To the credit of Suzuki’s Australian distributor, those prices mark a pretty honest $3000 premium over the regular Jimny 3-Door, which is again subject to continued wait times after a recent stop-sale was lifted this week.

Whereas the three-door Jimny is built and assembled in Japan, the five-door XL is pieced together in India using Japanese-built parts, the manufacturer says.

Now, if you want to get your hands on a Jimny XL, you could be waiting a while. Suzuki already holds nearly 3000 orders for the newcomer at the time of writing, meaning you’ll likely be queuing between six to nine months to get one, according to Suzuki Australia.

In any case, the new five-seat version is offered solely in GLX trim, with standard features including 15-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights, Bluetooth, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, cloth seat upholstery and a leather-trimmed steering wheel – mirroring that of the three-door.

On the safety front there’s a reversing camera, six airbags, autonomous emergency braking (AEB) and lane departure alert.

Over and above the three-door, the XL scores a larger 9.0-inch touch-screen display (up from 7.0-inch), a four-speaker audio system (instead of two-speaker), a wireless Apple CarPlay connection, DAB digital radio and rear parking sensors.

Another key upgrade is a new binocular camera system in place of the 3-Door’s monocular camera and a laser radar system, which means the XL scores adaptive cruise control (automatic only) and night-time pedestrian recognition.

The Jimny XL is yet to be crash-tested by ANCAP, so it remains to be seen whether the upgrades would lift its rating above the poor three-star result the Jimny 3-Door achieved in 2018. We don’t expect so, given ANCAP’s testing protocols are much tougher today than they were five years ago.

One thing that is completely unchanged is the engine. Offering up 75kW and 130Nm – paltry by modern standards – the 1.5-litre naturally-aspirated four-cylinder is mated to either a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic.

The familiar part-time 4x4 system has also been carried over untouched, meaning consumers are still presented with 2H for road use, 4H for unsealed surfaces and 4L low-range for hardcore terrain.

That said, Suzuki has made some bigger underbody changes including stronger springs, recalibrated shock absorbers and a larger stabiliser bar to help deal with the XL’s extra 90kg in heft, along with an upgraded front braking package now featuring ventilated discs for better heat management.

To maintain chassis rigidity and manage the increased payload, the Jimny XL’s ladder frame features an extra crossmember that’s paired with stronger running gear (automatic transmission and propeller shaft) and upgraded front suspension to maintain composure in all conditions.

The Jimny is backed by a five-year/unlimited-kilometre factory warranty in Australia. Servicing will set owners back $2265 over five years/60,000km according to the manufacturer, based on 12-month/15,000km intervals.

Well for one, the alterations made to the Suzuki Jimny platform have been done tastefully, and with an eye to maintaining everything that is great about the Jimny blueprint in the new XL.

Subjectively, the 2023 Suzuki Jimny XL looks quite cool in the flesh, too.

Dimensionally, the XL measures 3985mm long (with spare wheel included), 1645mm wide and 1720mm high, and has a 2590mm wheelbase.

That makes it 340mm longer than its three-door namesake, which is absorbed completely by the wheelbase.

As a result, approach and departure angles are very similar at 36 degrees and 47 degrees respectively, while breakover angle drops from 28 degrees to 24 degrees. Ground clearance is unchanged at 210mm.

The larger body has imposed a 90kg weight penalty across all models (now 1185kg for the manual and 1200kg for the automatic), while the turning circle grows from 9.8 metres to 11.4m.

But what’s most favourable about the Jimny XL is the way it drives, still singing to the same tune as the three-door.

The five-speed manual is a refreshing antidote to the ubiquitous automatic transmission, with relatively clean shifts, a light clutch take-up and a superior spread of ratios. And above all else, driver engagement.

The body feels moderately well controlled in everyday conveyance, with a regular nod to its off-road origins thanks to approximate steering and some lean and pitch through corners and under brakes.

But the big talking point here is how well acquitted the five-door is off-roading. We hit some moderate climbs, descents and water crossings at the national launch this week, whereupon the Jimny XL impressed with its wheel articulation, clearance and breadth of capability off-road.

The engine is again a bit of a sticking point, with its lack of immediacy in clearing low-speed obstacles, while the hill descent function arguably lacks the finetuning required to be useful on really difficult descents.

But all things considered, this is a handy off-road machine indeed, based on a very brief taste test.

Additionally, the bigger body means there’s more rear seat room and more cargo space, which is now rated at 211 litres. The 50/50-split folding rear seats don’t create a flat floor, but the gas-strut-assisted horizontal tailgate is a handy inclusion, as is the rear-mounted spare.

The wider rear seats are a welcome inclusion, too. Even without rear air vents and the fact the rear window switchgear is mounted in the first row, the two second-row seats are accommodating for kids and smaller adults alike.

Those passengers will probably need to be light, too – given payload is rated at 345kg (20kg more than the Jimny 3-Door).

There’s nothing especially bad about the 2023 Suzuki Jimny XL, but there are a couple of minor areas of compromise to consider that might persuade buyers back into the three-door camp.

The additional size and weight has imposed some small penalties with respect to ride and handling.

The solid rear axle and coil spring combination is subject to constant ‘tremoring’ over smaller amplitude imperfections on account of the rear size and weight over the rear – almost akin to a dual-cab ute.

Over harsher bumps like cats eyes or road joins, there’s a bit of occasional thudding too. Though nothing disconcerting.

Additionally, the 1.5-litre engine really struggles for mumbo under harder acceleration. In the case of the four-speed automatic, especially, the four-pot can feel quite thrashy and languid during acceleration and overtaking, piling on the revs while not exactly piling on the speed.

We reckon these traits would only be accentuated with a full load of passengers and some luggage.

Having such a small engine means fuel use that is nothing to write home about, especially for a small car. We averaged 8.6L/100km on a short on-road loop – and if you do the maths with the 40-litre fuel tank, that means a theoretical range of barely 400km.

As we’ve already mentioned, the jury also remains out on whether the Jimny XL would offer improved performance in the event of a crash compared to the 3-Door, which received a below-par three-star result in 2018.

If you’re after a fun and capable little off-roader that won’t break the bank, then yes. Yes, you should.

The 2023 Suzuki Jimny XL extends all the great characteristics of the Jimny nameplate, and importantly does so while holding onto the same increasingly sacred value equation.

The three-door Jimny is probably still our pick for outright quirkiness and authenticity, but the new five-door makes a practicality argument that many will find irresistible.

2023 Suzuki Jimny XL at a glance:
Price: $36,490 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol
Output: 75kW/130Nm
Transmission: Four-speed automatic
Fuel: 6.9L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 161g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Not tested