Go for it I say... I have looked at the Jimny long and hard albeit the newer models 2009/2010 and over er in China where like the US of A they continue to drive on the wrong side of the road... that aside, the Suzuki Jimny is a well constructed and thought out 4x4- yes it has the full 4x4 capability and will handle almost anything you can task it with. That being said, it does have the 1300cc engine, which can naturally lead to a few issues but they're not big ones at all. Actually before I bought my new Suzuki Swift 1300cc back in 2007, I really wanted a 4x4 (having owned half-a-dozen) back in NZ and OZ and used them for exactly the purposes they're designed for... mud plugging, forest trails and no trails at all... (you may get the idea). The Jimny was really the ideal candidate for all things China, given the nature of the terrain, city issues like parking, fuel use (since I can often do two-three fuel fills per day when I'm on my adventures here). Aside from the purchase pricing here (RMB140K), which resulted in me deciding against the foreign branded 4x4/SUV, Suzuki or otherwise. The Jimny along with the Vitara are the only Suzuki models not being built in China currently, so import duties/taxes apply which basically double the price as found in most overseas markets. Consequently the Vitara & Jimny options were put aside for the sexy little swift which is built here and cost half that of the Jimny. If I could say I'd be staying in China for XX number of years I'd have gone with either of the Suzuki 4x4's. The Swift is great, if a little low slung and not being a 4x4 does pose some limitations at times (though I held my own in a mountain with snow last week, where a ute ahead of me slid towards the ditch while I stayed stable steering my way round the bend without incident, plus I have had the swift on some crap tracks, mod bogs and also did some snow ploughing in the mountains west of Yiwu and east of TongLu).
My first choice would have been (only slightly ahead) the grand Vitara SWB, over the Jimny mainly due to the Jimny having less rear space (for passengers and loads) than the Swift - the Jimny is slightly narrower and a tad shorter than the Swift and weighs like 100kg more from memory - it shares than same engine and the Swift is no slouch!!! There are some real diehard SJ410 thru to Jimny converts around in NZ & OZ (check out some forums) you'll find that some pulled out the lower powered engines on the forerunners to the Jimny and replaced them with Datsun/Nissan 1600cc ;) though these tend to be for real serious offroading types.
I'm also looking at possibly returning to OZ in the not too distant future and have been thinking about getting 2007+ Jimny or Vitara complete with towbar so I could possibly tow a trailer with a 2010/11 Yammie XT1200 perched on the rear.
I have to say that you could buy a lot worse... but then in OZ vehicle prices are somewhat higher than say NZ... dollar for dollar, where IMO one can get more bang for the buck.
Just my thoughts...
