Maruti Gypsy owner checks out the Jimny:Why I prefer the manual over AT

Having just stepped off the Thar ownership bandwagon after 3 full years, I reiterate that had they launched the Jimny at the time they launched the Thar, I would have chosen the Jimny like a shot.

BHPian shankar.balan recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Dad and I went to the local Nexa in the Gypsy today. The Gypsy still turns heads there is no doubt about that. And we took another muddy dusty sandy test drive in the Manual Jimny. Nexa had two- both in the same Kinetic Yellow colour but one was AT and one was MT.

The Manual Jimny is superb. We went onto some large patches of the area being cleared for some giant future construction. It looks like a mining site at the moment and offers any Jeepy thing a solid workout.

The best thing is despite the kind of ruts and soft sand and loose concrete jelly surfaces, the Jimny did everything in 2H. It is only because I wanted to, that I engaged 4H for a short time and did a couple of light, dry skids on that soft sand.

It is a modern Gypsy with all the essential creature comforts. It eats up everything one throws at it, variegated ruts, corrugated roads, mud, slidey soft sand, potholes on tarmac, concrete jelly-laid tracks, and so on. It has that excellent narrow body that can squeeze through typical city traffic and get you somewhere real quick.

And in my opinion, the manual transmission is far superior to the AT. It is much more responsive and you can control things much better. Old school. But that rifle bolt click of the Gypsy is missing.It is a softer and mushier gearbox in the Jimny as compared with the Gypsy.

Having just stepped off the Thar ownership bandwagon after 3 full years, I reiterate that had they launched the Jimny at the time they launched the Thar, I would have chosen the Jimny like a shot. It is a far better engineered and superior vehicle and suits my ‘want’ state admirably much better than the Thar ever could. Honestly.

If the Maruti folks had even indicated straight that they would give us the Jimny in late 2021, I would have definitely waited rather than spent all that money on the Thar. (Ok I did enjoy the Thar for sure, but the Jimny just makes my heart very much happier.)

If the Maruti people had an ounce of sense, they should have launched a limited number of just 3000 3-door Jimnys in India just around the time of the end of Covid. And the reaction and reception to the Jimny, by the Indian public would have been totally different than it is now. They could have always followed up when ready with the 5-door Jimny.

Yes, in my case, it is just a matter of time - The Gypsy will yield space to the Jimny at the appropriate juncture in my life. Of course, one cannot under-estimate the superb utilitarianism and functionality and ‘lightness’ of the Gypsy, but the Jimny is much more liveable on day to day basis for me, in my alter-ego avatar - that of an ageing, (past 50), hat-wearing, jeep-driving, wannabe Indiana Jones/ John Wayne although in truth I am only a normal working middle-class urban-dweller, with a penchant for hill trips.

My choice would be the Manual Alpha. And after some time I would buy the Zeta Steel wheels and sell off the Alloys. I would be hard-pressed to choose between the Grey, White, and Blue shades.But then hey, one can always do a wrap job later! (Another thing, I am seeing several Jimnys in the Second Hand Market. It may actually be more sensible to consider one of those.)

The Sarjapur Nexa folks were kind enough today at my special request, to position both their test drive Jimnys next to my Gypsy so that I could take some more photos of Grandpa and his Twin Grandsons

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