Suzuki has already discontinued the Jimny in the United Kingdom, and has asked its British dealerships to stop taking orders for the SUV
Since its launch back in July 2018, the current-gen Suzuki Jimny MK4 has received an outstanding response all around the world, especially in the European markets. However, it looks like the Jimny’s days in Europe are numbered. Suzuki has taken the Jimny off the market in the UK, and other European markets are expected to follow too.
The reason for this is the stricter CO2 emission norms that will come into effect next year. The European Union (EU) legislation has set a mandatory emission reduction target for all cars. From 2021, phased in from 2020, the EU fleet-wide average emission target for new cars will be 95 g CO2/km.
As of now, the Suzuki Jimny in Europe is offered with the K15B 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine that emits 154 g/km when paired with a 5-speed manual transmission and 170 g /km when had with the automatic gearbox. Both the emissions are relatively higher than what has been defined by the EU, and hence, Suzuki has decided to axe the Jimny altogether.
Since commercial vehicles in the N1 category in Europe do not have to comply with the stringent 95 g CO2/km emission norms, Suzuki will relaunch the Jimny in the European markets next year as an N1 commercial vehicle. For this, Suzuki will be removing the rear seats of the Jimny, as well as slightly alter the car’s cabin. However, the Jimny will continue to draw power from the same 1.5-litre petrol engine as the now-discontinued passenger vehicle.
Suzuki’s Indian arm Maruti Suzuki is also planning to bring the Jimny to India, but unlike the three-door version sold in the foreign markets, the India-spec model is expected to get five doors. Initially, Suzuki will be producing the three-door Jimny in India for export purposes but soon, production of the five-door India-spec model will commence.
Maruti Suzuki was previously expected to launch the Jimny in India by the end of this year. However, given the current economic scenario, we expect the Japanese manufacturer to launch the said SUV in the country in 2021.