Awards usually go to new vehicles, but not always…

Suzuki’s Jimny small off-roader that’s been around in New Zealand since 1999 in essentially unchanged form has just picked up a major government award in Japan.

In the fact the award’s name seems almost as long as the Jimny’s lifespan. Japan’s Ministry of International Trade and Industry has named it the 2008 Long Selling Good Design Award winner.

The award citation says that “in line with the key words small, light and powerful, the Jimny gives brisk performance and embodies excellence as a compact, lightweight four-wheel-drive vehicle.

“Its ongoing evolution is characterised not only by improvements in quality and performance but also by efforts to accommodate contemporary needs through improvements in lightness, fuel economy and recyclability.”

Suzuki sells three Jimny models in New Zealand – the JX manual ($17,800) and the higher-spec Sierra which is available as a manual, with standard anti-lock brakes, for $21,500, or as an auto at $22,900.

Jimnys run a 63kW/110Nm four-cylinder engine and have body on chassis construction, four-wheel coil suspension and selectable four-wheel drive.