Tanked in India, bumper hit in Japan: Why Suzuki Jimny is rage in Samurai land

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The Jimny has been renamed Nomad in Japan and while there isn’t much to differentiate the India-spec model from the Japan-spec version except the name change, the response to it in both countries has been very, very different.

Japan has had the three-door version of Jimny for quite some time but the added convenience of dedicated rear doors on the Nomad may have struck a chord with Japanese buyers. It is reported that Suzuki received 50,000 orders in just four days since the reservation window was opened. This has prompted Suzuki to suspend the reservation process for now. “We apologize to customers considering the purchase of the Jimny Nomad due to the suspension of orders. Thank you very much for your interest in our products,” a post on Suzuki’s Japan website reads. “Jimny Nomad has been very well received, and we have received orders that far exceed our production capacity. As a result, we will be temporarily suspending orders.”

(Also read: Maruti Suzuki Jimny drive review)

Jimny – three and five-door versions – is currently available in over 100 countries and has been on global roads for half a century. The five-door version of Jimny, however, is only available in India and now in Japan. Units for Japan are manufactured at the Maruti Suzuki plant in India’s Haryana (Gurugram). It is the second Suzuki SUV model – after Fronx – to be exported to Suzuki’s home base from India. Experts mostly attribute Jimny’s success in Japan to factors like preference for SUVs with a small footprint while still being massively capable to tackle off-road conditions. Pricing is a crucial factor as well and the Nomad is priced upwards of 26,51,000 Yen (approximately ₹14.80 lakhs) onwards. This is in line with the pricing of such vehicles in the country. But then why did Indian buyers not shower love to an SUV that is much likes elsewhere?

Why Maruti Suzuki Jimny failed to take off in India?

There are several factors why Jimny failed to impress the vast majority of Indian buyers who otherwise have an intense love affair with SUVs.

• The Jimny was launched in June of 2023 at a base price of ₹12.74 lakhs (ex-showroom) and ₹15.05 lakhs (ex-showroom) for the top-end Alpha AT with dual-tone hues. These price points were higher than what many expected and while new-age customers in the country are willing to pay a premium, there were comparisons drawn to the Mahindra Thar rear-wheel drive (RWD) version which had a base price of ₹10 lakhs (ex-showroom) at the time.
• Comparisons with Thar continue till date. The Jimny has a smaller footprint making it nimble enough in congested Indian city spaces and practical enough on the hills. A favourable power-to-weight ratio also helps the SUV. But it just doesn’t have the road presence that Thar commands. For many image-conscious buyers in the country, the Jimny just didn’t cut it.
• The Jimny isn’t exciting to drive. Many have pointed to the 1.5-litre naturally-aspirated engine to be dull, especially when put up against the 2.0-litre turbo petrol unit on the Thar. Besides, there has never been a diesel unit which means a large section of lifestyle SUV buyers are kept at bay.
• A very niche product, the Jimny is surely not an SUV for families because of its cramped cabin. This is an argument made against Thar too but Mahindra hit back with the Thar Roxx in 2024, a model that offers doors for rear-seat passengers, more space and a bigger cargo area.

The Jimny ought to have fared better than what it has so far in India. Its fans maintain that the Indian audience may not be mature enough to understand how practical and capable the machine truly is. And while Maruti Suzuki has offered several price cuts on the Jimny in past months, the sales rate has not been much to write home about.