By: Dave Abrahams
Geneva Motor Show - Suzuki, best known for really small all wheel-drive vehicles, has unveiled this mini-4x4 concept, the iM-4, hinting at a new-millenium a successor to the LJ series of the 1970s and the SJ of the 1990s.
The theme of the project, it says, is: “Shape the Inspiration”, the iM-4 is designed as a personal vehicle that opens up new possibilities and new ways to have fun. It's intended to simple but tough and reliable, yet offer the latest in fuel-saving technology, with permanent all-wheel drive, high ground and hip point, and a user-friendly interior and luggage area.
It's built on an all-new platform with a completely redesigned underbody that increases rigidity while reducing weight, part of a strategy to consolidate Suzuki's four existing platforms into three and introduce modular component designs, making it possible to develop new models in pace with fast-changing markets.
MILD HYBRID
The iM-4's mild-hybrid powertrain combines a 1.2-litre turbopetrol four with a newly-developed integrated starter generator that starts the engine, supplies extra power under acceleration and regenerative braking on the overrun, charging the lithium-ion batteries as it does so.
Like all Suzuki mini-jeeps, the iM-4's styling is plain and slightly angular, although there is a whiff of Evoque to be sniffed out here and there. The concept is 3693mm long on a 2438mm wheelbase, 1709mm wide and1566mm high, with flared bumpers, and 215/45 tyres on 18-inch rims, right out at the corners of the body to plant it firmly on the ground.
The front treatment, says Suzuki, is intended to resemble a pair of sunglasses, and the roof a helmet, but mostly it's made up of straight lines and plane surfaces, finished in ice white to make it look futuristic - George Lucas' Galactic Empire has much to answer for.