Suzuki Jimny Long Coming In 2022 With Five Doors And Turbo Power?

The Internet's favorite little off-roader, the Jimny, is getting ready to spawn a bigger version with rear doors and a longer wheelbase. As a reminder, the cutesy 4x4 is a kei car in Japan, measuring 3,395 millimeters (133.7 inches) long, 1,475 mm (58.1 in) wide, and 1,725 mm (67.9 in) tall. The global version (Jimny Sierra in Japan) is slightly larger but still lacks rear doors and decent rear legroom. Thankfully, a more practical derivative is inching closer.

Japanese website Autoc-One cites Suzuki officials saying the five-door Jimny will finally be out in 2022. It was originally scheduled to debut at the Tokyo Motor Show this October, but the event has been canceled (like many others) due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It will reportedly go by the official name of Jimny Long and live up to its newly added suffix by stretching the wheelbase by approximately 300 mm (11.8 in).

The family-friendly Jimny will be heavier following the growth spurt and Suzuki will compensate for the added bulk by fitting a more powerful engine. The engineers are reportedly adding turbocharging into the mix, along with a mild-hybrid setup. These changes will come at a cost as Autoc-One believes the Jimny Long will be 300,000 yen (nearly $3,000) more expensive than the JDM-spec Jimny Sierra.

Excluding the rear doors, the styling changes will be kept down to a minimum as the only other major modification will be a redesigned front grille with a single horizontal slat replacing the current five-slot vertical setup. Interestingly, Suzuki is allegedly cooking up a more expensive version to make the Jimny Long look like a baby Mercedes G-Class, but take this info with a heavy dose of salt. Meanwhile, tuners have already made this conversion.

The Jimny Long is expected next year when Suzuki will also give the current three-model a mid-cycle facelift. Expect to see both initially in Japan before heading to global markets. If the engine will indeed be turbocharged and electrified, one can only hope it will pass Europe's stringent emissions regulations so that the company will once again be able to sell the SUV in a passenger configuration. For the time being, it only exists on the Old Continent as a two-seater commercial model.