REVIEW

Suzuki Jimny SZ5 Auto

Hey – you, yes you. Stop laughing at the back. Stop it. We subscribe to the theory that small is beautiful here at BOTB and you don’t get much smaller than the new Suzuki Jimny. The previous generation was known as being surprisingly good off road, but looked pretty rubbish and was very cheap inside, but now Suzuki has learned from what Mercedes has done with the G-Class and gone retro.  In fact it has more than a passing resemblance to the G-Class, if you squint a bit. Suzuki has basically realised that rugged is what people want out of their small off-roader, so the Jimny is now more angular, with a boxy body, big black wheelarches, a Jeep-esque front grille and bumper and a traditional side-hinged rear door with a spare tyre mounted on it. The interior looks fantastic too, all exposed screwheads, simple controls and wipe-clean surfaces. This isn’t some gas-guzzling SUV though, the nimble little Jimny has a 101bhp 1.5 litre engine so is incredibly economical. But what impresses most about the Jimny is that it will embarrass probably 80% of the AWD off-roaders on sale when you actually get into the muddy stuff.

Abarth 595 Competizione

We love a hot hatch here at BOTB and along with the Mini Cooper, the Abarth 595 is about as iconic a hot hatch as you can get, with the Abarth 500 stretching back as far as the 1960s. The modern Fiat 500 takes the style of the original and makes it cute, but Abarth turn cute into aggressive with all their styling touches and the latest 595 Competizione really looks the part. Add in a 178bhp turbocharged 1.4 litre engine and a raspy exhaust note, not to mention darty handling and you have a seriously fun little car.