Cover photo: Suzuki Auto South Africa, with thanks. The only picture we found with both bodies in one frame.
Suzuki sells the current Jimny (2018 on) in two lengths. The 3-door came first, in November 2018. The 5-door arrived in November 2023. Same engine, same 4x4, same face. What changes is the length, the back doors, the boot, and the price.
Owners have argued about this since the 5-door arrived. The 3-door camp says the short one is the real Jimny. The 5-door camp says it is the one you can live with. Both are partly right.
This guide puts the two side by side with Suzuki South Africa’s own numbers. It shows what each asks on live listings today, new and used. Then it tells you who should buy which.
The short answer
- One or two people, town and tight trails: the 3-door. It turns tighter, weighs less, and a new GLX can have auto braking.
- Anyone in the back seat every week, or long trips: the 5-door GLX. Rear doors, a boot with the seats up, and a calmer highway ride.
- Under R300,000: a used 3-door. Almost no 5-doors ask that little.
- Cheapest new Jimny: the 5-door GL, if you accept two airbags.
Side by side: what changes, and what does not
The 5-door is the 3-door with 340 mm added between the wheels. That extra length goes into the back doors, the back seat and the boot. Here is what changes.
| 3-door | 5-door | |
|---|---|---|
| On sale in SA since | November 2018 | November 2023 |
| Length | 3,485 mm | 3,820 to 3,985 mm |
| Wheelbase (between the wheels) | 2,250 mm | 2,590 mm |
| Turning radius | 4.9 m | 5.7 m |
| Breakover angle (belly clearance over a crest) | 27 degrees | 24 degrees |
| Weight, empty | 1,095 to 1,110 kg | 1,185 to 1,215 kg |
| Boot, back seats up | 85 litres | 211 litres |
| Boot, back seats folded | 377 litres | 332 litres |
| Boot, packed to the roof | 830 litres | 1,113 litres |
| Trims on sale new | GLX only | GL and GLX |
| Airbags | 6 (new GLX) | 2 (GL), 6 (GLX) |
| Auto emergency braking | Optional on GLX | Not offered |
| Towing (Suzuki SA figure) | 1,300 kg braked | Not published |
| Claimed fuel use, from | 6.3 l/100 km | 6.4 l/100 km |
Figures from Suzuki Auto South Africa’s spec pages and 5-door brochure, checked on 23 September 2026.
And here is what stays the same.
| Same on both | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.5 petrol, 75 kW, 130 Nm |
| Gearboxes | 5-speed manual, 4-speed auto (5-door GL is manual only) |
| 4x4 | Part-time 4x4 with low range, ladder frame |
| Ground clearance | 210 mm |
| Approach angle (nose) | 36 degrees |
| Departure angle (tail) | 47 degrees |
| Fuel tank | 40 litres |
| Seats | Four |
| Warranty and service plan, new (currently) | 5 years or 200,000 km, and 4 years or 60,000 km |
The two cars also come from different factories. New 3-doors come from Japan and 5-doors from India. Nobody has shown a quality difference between them, so do not choose on that.
The boot: it depends on the back seats
This is where most buyers get the wrong idea, and some magazines have printed the numbers the wrong way round.
With the back seats up, the 5-door wins easily. It takes 211 litres, about two and a half times the 3-door’s 85. That is the gap between a couple of soft bags and a proper load for four people. TopAuto got about four travel-size suitcases into a 5-door boot, stood on end.
Fold the back seats down and it flips. The 3-door takes 377 litres and the 5-door takes 332. So a couple who fold the seats, or take them out, get a bigger flat boot in the short car. Plenty of 3-door owners do exactly that. Packed to the roof, the 5-door wins again, with 1,113 litres to the 3-door’s 830.
So ask yourself one question. Will the back seats be up most of the time? If yes, buy the 5-door. If they will be folded, the 3-door gives you more room, not less.
Short of space in either one? Our storage and drawers guide covers how owners pack a Jimny.
The back seat and the doors
In a 3-door, the back seat is reached by tipping a front seat forward. That is fine now and then. With a child seat every morning, it gets old fast.
The 5-door has two proper back doors. The longer body gives rear passengers much more legroom. CAR magazine found four adults had fair head, knee and shoulder room on a trip to Golden Gate. 4x4 Afrika spent five weeks driving a carload of teenagers around in theirs. The extra doors and room made that fairly easy, they said.
Both bodies seat four, not five. Both have two ISOFIX points for child seats. The difference is getting the child and the seat in through a door that opens.
One SA dad put his name down for a 5-door for one reason. His child could now climb in and out without help.
Safety: the part most buyers miss
Airbags and auto braking are not the same across the range, and it is easy to miss.
| Jimny | Airbags | Auto emergency braking |
|---|---|---|
| New 3-door GLX | 6 | Optional pack, R15,000 on list |
| Used 3-door, built before March 2026 | 2, in front | No |
| 5-door GL | 2, in front | No |
| 5-door GLX | 6 | No |
In March 2026 Suzuki made the 3-door GLX only and gave it six airbags. It also added an optional safety pack. Suzuki calls it DSBS II. It brakes the car for you if a crash is coming. It also warns you if you drift out of your lane, and it spots people on foot and on bikes. No 5-door in South Africa offers it, at any price.
So a family buying a 5-door should buy the GLX. The cheaper GL gives up the side and curtain airbags.
A used 3-door is a two-airbag car, unless it was built from March 2026. Almost every used 3-door for sale today is an older car. For some SA owners, the six airbags were the whole reason to buy a 5-door GLX. One said it came down to how taxis treat you at intersections.
On the highway
Here the owners mostly agree. SA owners who have driven both nearly all say the 5-door feels steadier at speed. The longer wheelbase helps in a crosswind, on rough patched tar and when a truck passes. On a wet, windy trip over Magoebaskloof Pass, 4x4 Afrika found the wind pushed the 5-door around far less than a 3-door they had driven before.
One owner had one of the first current 3-doors in SA. It never felt settled at speed, even with better suspension. One test drive in a 5-door fixed that for him.
But keep it in proportion. CAR found the 5-door leans a little more in corners. Owners who have both say neither drives like a normal car. And many “it felt wobbly” test drives come down to tyre pressures. Owners say dealers often hand over Jimnys with the tyres pumped too hard, so check the pressures before you judge either one. Our tyre size guide has the right numbers.
The steering feels the same on both. Owners of both say the only difference is that the 5-door needs more room to turn.
Off-road: closer than the forums say
The 3-door camp is right about two things. The short car turns in less room. Suzuki gives it a turning radius of 4.9 m, against 5.7 m for the 5-door. On a narrow jeep track, that can be the gap between a three-point turn and a five-point one. It helps in a mall parking garage too.
The 3-door also clears sharper humps. Its breakover angle is 27 degrees, against 24 for the 5-door. In plain words, the longer car’s belly touches down sooner on a sharp crest.
That is the whole list. Ground clearance is 210 mm on both. The nose and tail angles are the same, and so are the engine, the gearbox and the low range. The 5-door is about 100 kg heavier, with the same engine.
South African testers found the 5-door gave up very little. CAR took one up a level 3 trail in Golden Gate Highlands National Park. It handled the rocks, dongas and slippery climbs, and only the tow hook touched a rock. TopAuto said that in practice the two work almost the same off-road.
The 5-door even wins in one spot. An SA owner drove a 3-door and a 5-door over the same obstacle near Uithoek. He found the 5-door much steadier on a side slope. Either body gets more tippy with a lift and a rooftop tent, so keep the weight low.
For how either Jimny stacks up against other 4x4s, read our guide to whether the Jimny is a good 4x4.
Towing, load and the roof
Towing. Suzuki SA publishes a towing figure for the 3-door only. It is 1,300 kg with trailer brakes and 350 kg without. Suzuki SA publishes no 5-door figure. So if you plan to tow, the 3-door is the one with the paperwork. Some owners solve the tiny boot this way: a 3-door and a small off-road trailer. Our towing and specs guide has the details.
Load. The bigger boot does not mean the 5-door can carry more weight. Suzuki lets each body carry about the same, roughly 320 to 360 kg, people and luggage included. Four adults of 80 kg each already weigh 320 kg. A 5-door full of people and bags can be at its limit before you add a fridge.
The roof. Suzuki SA’s 5-door brochure allows 30 kg on the roof, and the rack counts towards it. A longer 5-door rack weighs more, so it leaves less for your gear. Suzuki SA publishes no roof figure for the 3-door. Our roof racks guide and rooftop tent guide cover what that means in practice.
What each costs new
Suzuki’s list prices, checked on its own site on 23 September 2026:
| New, list price | 3-door | 5-door |
|---|---|---|
| GL manual | Not sold | R439,900 |
| GLX manual | R444,900 | R467,900 |
| GLX manual with auto braking pack | R459,900 | Not offered |
| GLX auto | R466,900 | R489,900 |
| GLX auto with auto braking pack | R481,900 | Not offered |
On list, a 5-door GLX costs R23,000 more than a 3-door GLX. The 5-door GL is the cheapest new Jimny, R5,000 below the cheapest 3-door. But the gap has flipped since launch. In November 2023 the cheapest 3-door was R39,000 below the cheapest 5-door. In March 2026 the 3-door went GLX only, so the cheap 3-door is gone.
Dealers rarely ask list price. Here is what new cars ask on live listings.
| New, live listings | Adverts | Asks about | List price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5-door GL manual | 52 | R405,000 | R439,900 |
| 3-door GLX manual | 15 | R407,000 | R444,900 |
| 5-door GLX manual | 83 | R435,000 | R467,900 |
| 3-door GLX auto | 30 | R430,000 | R466,900 |
| 5-door GLX auto | 173 | R460,000 | R489,900 |
Live listings analysed on 23 September 2026. Asking prices, not selling prices.
The table tells you three things. New Jimnys of both bodies ask well under list, so ask for a deal. GLX for GLX, a new 5-door asks about R25,000 to R30,000 more than a new 3-door. And the cheapest new 5-door and the cheapest new 3-door both ask about R405,000.
A few new 3-door GLX autos with the auto braking pack are on sale too. They ask about the same as a new 5-door GLX auto. So for the same money, you choose between the extra doors and the auto braking.
Suzuki SA sold 971 5-doors against 235 3-doors in the 5-door’s first four months. South Africans voted for the long one, even when it cost R39,000 more to get in.
What each costs used
Look at all the used adverts and the 5-door seems to cost far more. Used 5-doors ask about R375,000, on 350 adverts. Used 3-doors ask about R310,000, on 414. But that gap is about age, not doors. Every 5-door is from late 2023 or newer. Most used 3-doors for sale are 2018 to 2022 cars.
Compare cars of the same year and the gap all but disappears.
| Used, same year | 5-door: adverts, asks about | 3-door: adverts, asks about |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 21, R350,000 | 93, R345,000 |
| 2024 | 249, R370,000 | 54, R370,000 |
| 2025 | 79, R410,000 | 29, R390,000 |
Live listings analysed on 23 September 2026. Few used 3-doors from 2023 on say “3-door” in the advert, so the 3-door column counts the adverts that do not name the body. It will hold a few 5-doors.
In 2023 and 2024 the two bodies ask the same. Only 2025 shows the 5-door dearer, on few 3-doors. So a used 5-door does not cost more than a 3-door of the same age.
Where the used 3-door wins is price of entry, because older ones exist.
| Used 3-door | Adverts | Asks about | Typical km |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 30 | R287,000 | 104,000 |
| 2020 | 72 | R300,000 | 59,000 |
| 2021 | 107 | R310,000 | 63,000 |
| 2022 | 186 | R320,000 | 52,000 |
Under R300,000, you are buying a 3-door. On the day we checked, 182 used 3-doors asked less than that, against 4 used 5-doors. Most used 5-doors ask R340,000 or more.
The trade-off is age. A 2020 or 2021 3-door is out of its service plan and near the end of its warranty. It has two airbags. A 2024 5-door is a young car. Most used 5-doors have under 40,000 km, and it may still have plan and warranty left. Ask a Suzuki dealer to check what remains using the VIN, the car’s ID number.
Both bodies sit on the market for about seven weeks. Most sellers who change their price cut it, usually by about R10,000. There is room to haggle on either. For more on used prices, see our price by year guide and resale value guide.
Buying used: count the doors
Many adverts for 2023 and later cars do not say which body they are. Check the photos and count the doors. Then check that the licence papers match the car in front of you.
Watch for adverts that cannot be right. The 5-door did not go on sale in South Africa until November 2023. An advert for a “2021 5-door” has the wrong year or the wrong body.
And test drive both if you can, with the tyre pressures checked. As one owner said, a ten-minute drive with a salesman aboard tells you very little.
Parts and accessories for each body
The 3-door had a five-year head start with the parts makers. The 5-door has caught up. On 23 September 2026 the SA stores we track listed more parts named for the 5-door than for the 3-door. That includes roof racks, rock sliders, bumpers, lift kits and boot decks.
The catch is that most body parts come in two lengths. A 3-door rack or slider will not fit a 5-door. Check that the part says 5-door before you pay. The longer versions usually cost a little more.
| Same part, both lengths (store) | 3-door | 5-door |
|---|---|---|
| Des Sol rock sliders (Des Sol, JimSA) | R8,999 | R10,999 |
| Des Sol roof rack (Des Sol, JimSA) | R11,500 | R13,500 |
| RAW 40 mm lift kit (JimnyworX) | R24,840 | R28,395 |
| Wildog rock sliders (JimnyworX) | R9,350 | R9,700 |
| Des Sol seat covers (Des Sol) | R6,250 | R6,999 |
Prices seen on each store’s site on 23 September 2026, VAT included.
A few things are still 3-door only, such as the gullwing rear window. Our guides to roof racks, lift kits, rock sliders and bumpers and accessories in general cover both bodies. The live prices are on our accessories pages.
Who should buy which
| You | Buy | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A couple, weekends away, seats folded | 3-door GLX | Bigger flat boot with the seats down, lighter, tighter |
| Tight, rocky trails | 3-door | Turns in less room, clears sharper humps |
| You tow a small trailer | 3-door | The only body with an SA towing figure |
| You want auto emergency braking | New 3-door GLX with the pack | No 5-door offers it |
| Under R300,000 | Used 3-door | Almost no 5-doors ask that little |
| A child seat, or four adults often | 5-door GLX | Back doors, a real boot, six airbags |
| Long trips with four aboard | 5-door GLX | Boot with the seats up, steadier on the highway |
| The cheapest new Jimny | 5-door GL manual | Lowest list price, but two airbags |
| A young used car with plan left | Used 2024 5-door | Same money as a 3-door of the same year |
Buying a Jimny for a young driver? Our first car guide goes deeper on safety. For life with the long one, read our 5-door review. For the trims, see our GLX vs GL guide.
The bottom line
The 3-door is the better Jimny for two people. The 5-door is the better Jimny for four. Off-road, they are closer than the forums suggest: the long one needs more room to turn and touches down sooner on a crest. That is all.
New, the 5-door GLX asks about R25,000 to R30,000 more than a 3-door GLX. Used, cars of the same year ask about the same. Under R300,000, it is a 3-door. And whichever you pick, check the airbags. The 5-door GL and older 3-doors have two.
Ready to look? Browse the 5-doors or the 3-doors for sale, and compare cars of the same year. The live market page shows how prices are moving, and our valuation tool tells you what a car is worth. For every model and year, see the current Jimny model guide.
A big thank you to Suzuki Auto South Africa for the photos of both bodies, and to 4x4 Afrika and Anton Willemse for the pictures from their five-week 5-door test. Go and read their work.
