Is the Jimny overpriced? Enthusiasts & owners share their thoughts

Despite the discounts on the Jimny, the Thar has managed to consistently outsell the Maruti SUV month-on-month

BHPian shankar.balan's query:

I don't really want to speculate but can’t help thinking; is it that Maruti is unable to sell Jimny at the present price?

BHPian pqr recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Despite discounts, Maruti Jimny suffered a sales decline during the ongoing festive season. IMHO, Maruti overpriced Jimny by INR 1.5 lakh. Mahindra Thar data for reference.

Here's what GTO had to say on the matter:

I absolutely love the Jimny. It's cute, chuckable and capable. That being said, Maruti has priced it optimistically. They thought they'd get away with it. After all, before the 1.5L variant was launched, the Thar too was very premium priced for a 2-door impractical Jeep.

But a 2-door impractical Thar outselling a 4-door Maruti offroader says a lot. These purchases are purely driven by the heart and IMHO, the Jimny simply doesn't have that massive "oomph" factor of the Thar. Yes, the Jimny is desirable, but the Thar way more so. The Thar also has the advantage of better engines, better ATs, a bigger size/street presence and a diesel option.

Personally, as much as I love the Jimny, I'd never buy it because it's too small for my tastes, while the engine + transmission feels 20 years old. OTOH, my kid brother is looking for a stylish city car for my bhabhi and I'm pushing him for the Jimny.

Here's what BHPian Emvi had to say on the matter:

Maruti got Jimny's pricing horribly wrong, there are no two ways about it. And if they claim that they are happy with whatever they are now retailing and target only a niche market, I don't think there can be a bigger lie than this. The very fact that they developed the 5-door version proves what Maruti was aiming for, which is a wide customer base and volume.

The current discount and probably a bigger discount in the foreseeable future would not do any good for brand Jimny and the first lot buyers. What the manufacturer can do instead is, give the 5-door version a powerful turbo-charged engine, if feasible, at the current price point. And probably launch the 3-door version with the current powertrain at a much lower price point. This will keep the targeted consumers interested, not just that, when Mahindra eventually launches the 5-door Thar at a speculated price band of 22-25 lakh, Jimny might seem to be value for money then.

Maruti's forte has traditionally been the mass market, not the niche market, and it would serve them well to play to their strengths.

Here's what BHPian arjab had to say on the matter:

It is not only the price. A close friend of mine who works with a top Tier-1 to Maruti says that several issues are bunching up together to put a brake on Jimny's sales. Apparently, they had been part of several recent high-level strategy meets and ideation sessions to find ways to increase Jimny's sales.

First, is the price. Apart from a select niche of customers, who know what the Jimny is all about, Maruti is finding a hard time to pull in, let me put it this way: "non-Jimny-aware-prospects".

This segment of buyers, who would get in the volumes & thus drive the economies of scale, are getting put off.

Apart from pricing, the narrow rear bench has come in for a lot of criticism. People understand that this is an off-road focused vehicle but to get to the "adventure destination" potential folks do not seem to be favouring perching themselves on a sliver of fabric masquerading as a rear bench.

Surprisingly, these same people seem to.be gravitating towards the Grand Vitara AWD which is not very far in pricing from the top-end Jimny and is pretty capable in the rough stuff & at the same time offers higher levels of comfort.

Maruti's original plan for the Jimny was that it should achieve around 5000 units in monthly domestic sales. At present it is doing less than half of that, with average sales hovering around the 2000 units per month mark.

In the short to medium term, Maruti needs to rejig the product, (increase rear seat squab support and length). This can be done on the existing rear seat frame by tweaking the cushion/squab length and under-thigh support. I don't think any tooling change is required to add a bit more cushion.

Second: Maruti should expand the grade-walk. Jimny needs an LXi, VXi, or ZXi equivalent.

LXi can come with only AC, front power windows, and basic central locking.

VXi can remain to be the present-day Zeta. And ZXi can be the present-day Alpha.

Automatically concerning the above, prices will get rejigged,.lowered and spread out, widening the potential customer base.

Will Maruti do it? No one knows. Corporate egos are of Himalayan proportions and I'm sure the blame game & finger-pointing has already started within Maruti because of Jimny's lacklustre sales.

On the ground, NEXA dealers are under tremendous pressure to push Jimny's sales. Factory offtake of Jimny's per dealer is being increased & stock is being pushed down the dealer's gullett.

I have been receiving almost daily calls from NEXA dealers offering Jimny test drives and whatnot. What is funny is that these were the same dealers, who all in the early part of this year, were thumping their chests and even refused home test drives!

I have a feeling early 2024 will see good discounts on Jimny if not an official price & variant correction. And also to get rid of 2023 stocks.

Interesting times ahead

Here's what BHPian R.Daroga had to say on the matter:

Returned to this thread after a few weeks and I'm quite amused with the discussions. My few cents:

1. I own an Alpha MT. It is my only car. For only kids in the backseat, it is perfectly fine.
2. A very close friend has an Alpha AT. I drove his car which now has a throttle controller installed and the difference is day and night. The car, especially the AT gearbox now responds much quicker to our intentions. Leave it in auto mode and it works beautifully. Fuel efficiency has improved as well.
3. We went for an off-road training course in his Jimny along with some Thars, other Jimnies and a Wrangler. There was no difference between how all cars managed the obstacles. So for off-road use, Jimny, Thar, Wrangler, Hilux, Defender. They're all equal. Let your wallet decide. Jimny's advantage is the narrow track which allows us to dodge rocks and obstacles rather than go over them.
4. The narrow track helps in city driving. It's a very practical city car that you can drive to work or go grocery shopping with. Just don't put adults in the back seat for too long.
5. If you're sitting on the fence about whether or not to buy the Jimny, go for it if you have a family of up to 4 with no more than 2 adults. With the right basic mods involving the air filter, spark plugs and the controversial throttle controller, the Jimny can ride, crawl, dance and fly the way you want it to.
6. As an owner, for the joy it has brought into my life, I do not find it overpriced. Not. One. Bit!

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