cheap minimalist vehicles in general would be nice, but would require undoing 40 years of useless legislation sadly cars can't be built like this today because of that... :(
@@FloppyDiskMaster I've had 4 and drove the hell out of them and never once was one a rollover hazard. And I am not a dirt road off roader, I'm more of a "hold my beer and watch me jump this" kinda guy
You think a normal Samurai is unkillable you should have seen the hybrid monstrosity that my dad built about 20 years ago when I was growing up. He dropped a Toyota 22r in it and it's still running today
Last week I saw an absolutely spotless, immaculate light blue Samurai with chrome wheels (and spare) and black roof rack with spot lights, in a parking lot in Seal Beach, CA. Took a few pictures of it. Someone loves their Suzuki. :)
To be honest it's kind of sad that you can't get manual cars a lot of time now. Especially on the used market here in the US it's practically impossible unless it's either a truck or sporty cars/ exotics.
Why would you want a slower, less efficient means of changing gears? I get it, you guys need to have that ball and shaft in your hands to yank around, but not everyone is a flaming fruit.
I've got a Suzuki Samurai 1987 that has 253,000 original miles on it and looks and runs like new,it had its original engine replaced at 149,000 miles for a 1.6 liter but the 1.3 was running fine but the original owner wanted to up grade the motor because this guy drove it all over the US. When the original owner hit 84yrs. of age he thought it was about time for a change and he sold it to me and I snapped it right up because this guy was a fanatic about maintenance and he kept it in pristine condition all the time. I'm 71 so I will probably keep it for the rest of my days and will pass it on to my son who likes it even more than I do!
I had a Samurai for over 10 years, 175K miles. Never once did it ever show any signs of any instability, it was an extremely reliable little burro that went everywhere I sent it. All the way from the forests of Northern California to the deserts of Northern Mexico and everywhere in between. Yes, its rough riding, its basically a WW2 Jeep suspension, but I never once ever needed a wheel alignment and I scoffed at potholed roads. Yes, its slower but back then speed limit was still 55, but I could cruise mine at 65 easy Yes, its noisy, but no noisier than a soft-top Jeep Wrangler of today, and buying the sloped sportback soft-top solved that, my aftermarket radio and speakers was always great even with the full top on. Yes, it was spartan, but thats partly the point. Nothing to steal. The only time I ever had anything stolen from it was a cassette tape case from out of the open back, typical issue even with Jeeps. (if you dont know what cassette tapes are children, ask your parents) but, it was utterly reliable, it was sturdy, it went almost everywhere.The only thing I regretted about it was not ordering the AC when I purchased it. AC would have been very desirable driving thru Texas. All in all, I NEVER should have sold it.
+KlunkerRider On point. I bought an 87 tin top when I lived in Washington State 8 years ago, and drove it all the way back to Wisconsin without any issues. Sadly it's been sitting in storage for the last 4 years, lucky for me my buddies won't let me get rid of it. A day will come when I have the spare cash to give it a good freshening up and make it road worthy again, until then she sits.
Well hopefully you get it going again. Everything for them generally is damn cheap if you go through the right parts suppliers. Had one of the biggest aftermarket and OEM parts place in the country just three miles away. Still have a great parts supplier that took over from them an hour away in Medford, OR
Dwayne Peterson Thanks for the encouragement. I actually went over to where I store it a few weeks ago, threw in a battery, gave it three pumps of gas and it fired right up with 8 year old fuel. Bombed it around my buddy's property, felt good. I've got one more semester of college, maybe after that I'll have the spare cash to breath life into again.
I had an 87 JX Soft Top for 8 years. I learned to drive a manual on that car. It was great, cheap transportation for high school and college, and I could put a ton of stuff in it. It was super-reliable. Aside from replacing tires, battery, and radios (theft), I never had to do anything but regular maintenance. I gave it to my brother at 150,000 miles, and it was on the road for at least another 50,000 after that before he sold it. Suzuki still makes the Jimny/Samurai. I wish they would bring it back to the US.
I think no other 4x4 was so long in production and so often customized by his owner! Still build today in India as Maruti. Mine Samurai is now near 520 000 kilometers (second engine) !
I miss my 87 tin top...It was the perfect ride for my teenage years...We called it the *STABBIN' CABIN* all it needed was sawdust on the floor to be a true rolling brothel. If it's still out there you'd be able to see it from space under a blacklight.
Drove one in Cuba, felt like nothing worked as it should, yet it's the car I always remember. Seating position was perfect, great side mirrors, great with the top down. It's the way all things came together that made it a perfect fit and you always remember when something - or someone - fits you perfectly.
Ive had one for about 6 years now, 260k miles with no major issues. Yes its slow, Yes it doesnt stop well, but its not a rollover hazard. I drive mine way too fast on the backroads and it handles just fine. Its a shame we live in a country where the citizens cant have something we might want, because some people got together and decided to kill it off. Land of the free, my ass. Every aspect of our lives is controlled and has been decided for us, this is just one of the many ways. Its a shame too, because Jeep never has understood the point of the ACTUAL jeep, the Bantam designed vehicle built by Willys and Ford. Small, light, low power, plucky, and go anywhere. I guess I will just have to keep this old Suzuki running forever.
I don't know what this idiot down here is talking about bringing politics into this but I just like to report that the odometer quit working at 380,000 miles, and I never bothered to replace it because at that point it was just my off-road toy. It was well over 400,000 miles when I finally drove it into a creek that was too deep and hydrolocked the engine. Bent the number four connecting rod. If it wasn't for the powers-that-be I might be able to buy a new Jimny in this country but that's never going to happen. Also, when you let your political ideology get in the way of facts or decency, you become the problem.
@@deejayimm emissions control is political when our chinese overlords are the ones to decide which is which. china being the largest anti-pollution campaign sponsor is also the largest producer of non biodegradable plastic and silicon wastes. see the irony?
My sister had one of these I think in '86 when they were introduced to North America. It was teal with a hot pink stripe down the side and white top and wheels. Talk about a girl's car! We were both young and I went everywhere with her in that thing and while she never took it off road I could tell by its ride and stiffness it was an extremely capable off roader. She made the mistake of ordering it without AC and it was her daily so she couldn't tolerate it in the summer and had to trade it.
I want one...1988.5 model! I was a parts driver at a large dealer (Scott Cars) in Charlotte, N.C. during summer break one year, and they had to purchase a huge lot of land just to store the hundreds of pre-sold Suzuki Samurai inventory. They sold like crazy! They shipped with no a/c, but it was an option that could be installed at the dealership...a "bolt-on" option. A blast to drive, especially down south/warmer climates! I really hope Suzuki will bring the Samurai or variant back to the States. If not, I will have to purchase a pre-owned one and restore it. I personally do not think the styling of them has aged. Still as sharp looking as ever. Oh, never heard of any customers complaining about roll-over hazards nor reliability issues. Yes, it felt sluggish, but when expected...so what, still a blast to cruise in, especially with the top down/off.👍
I think I visited that dealer! He let me take one out on the lot and play in the dirt lot. It was a fun little car, but I stuck with my CJ7. I needed the room and didn't want to give up removing the doors.
Consumer reports ate this car alive when it came out...although there is some evidence they may have been paid off to give such a negative review. I personally love these things!
If a vehicle is fun then you can pretty much depend on Consumer Reports giving it a thumbs down. I think these little suckers are cool, especially with the hard top.
I owned 4 off them. 2 were my daily drivers. 2 were dedicated off road machines. I hate when people say that it's under powered. Before getting in the vehicle. You should already know it's got a 1.3 litre engine that produces less than 70hp. So it isn't a surprise what kind of power it has. Don't like the numbers? Drive something else
J Bouchard Exactly. I had a 1984 VW Vanagon, that had a 1.9 fuel injected 4 cylinder pancake motor, and it made 80 horsepower, but the way it was geared, it had good toque for the size. When it was tuned good, it ran smooth and had enough power for going through trails and up steep hills. Mine was only two wheel drive, but I could still go nicely through trails and over objects like some down trees and such. It had good ground clearance, and the suspension had a long travel and was fun bouncing over stuff, especially that you were sitting right over the front tires. I used to fly over steep, railroad crossing intersections, catch air and come sown so smooth, and never even feel the impact. That was fun. And there was plenty of room in that van, since the engine was in the back, and the fact that it was mounted low. The entire space inside was usable, no engine hump, like what afflicts front engine vans. I'm sure our vehicles had about the same capabilities, except yours is 4WD. I plan on getting another 1984 Vanagon in the near future.
Do they roll over? Absolutely. I rolled mine at 20 mph around a wet corner back in 1990. It was tipsy as hell. But to its credit the vehicle had little damaged and I suffered no injuries. Good Samaritans helped flip it back up and I drove it home 15 minutes later. True story.
Yep, that's how things were back then. You just rolled your car over and went on with what you were doing. There wasn't 20 bored cops showing up because there wasn't anything else to do, and there wasn't any insurance paperwork, you went hope, put some duct tape on it, and went on with your life.
@@automachinehead yeah, they won't help, they'll just pull out their phone and record you and yell for someone else (not them they're recording a video) to call the cops.
This brings a tear to my eye, I miss my 410 so much :( It was slow and loud, with flimsy metal panels, but it still felt soooo good to drive. And it had lower gearing than the 1.3 samurai, so I could crawl through some even tougher conditions :) Memories...
Ted Bundy used to cry over this Beetle, it's a common trait with psychopaths, that they'll morn objects because they can't relate with people. If you were tearing up and 'missing' a car, then you're likely a psychopath.
If Consumer reports he their way, we'd all be owning self-drive car's and they wouldn't allow a seat in front of the steering wheel to sit in. Either that or they would just simply have perfected the transporter system and abolish all cars. Not sure which one would be their main prefernce.
CR has ALWAYS rated the CJs and Wrangler at very BOTTOM in their tests. The scores are right around 40 out of a possible 100. The reason all these Jeeps are so popular(lowest depreciation) is because they are icons. They were used by American Soldiers in all the wars since WW2. I doubt very much that our soldiers would have driven Suzukis in WW2 in fighting the Japanese. The CJs and Wrangler are descendants of the original Willys and Ford jeeps. As far as reliability goes, the Suzuki wins hands down! The same reason that the Taliban and Isis use Toyota pickups vs American pickups, RELIABILITY!
+RedNekLvr22 what type of vehicle are you talking about that has you "sitting in front of the steering wheel". When I drive a car, I PREFER to be sitting BEHIND the steering, except going in reverse. I wouldn't have to turn my head to see whats behind the car. Great idea about abolishing ALL cars. We would be saving a lot of lives and money!
My first car at the age of 15 in 93' hands down the best car I've ever had....I was the talk of the town in my convertible....hot as hell in the summer though...please bring them back...
My dad had one when I was growing up and when I was around 12 or 13 we'd jump in the samurai and he'd go get some beer and then have me drive him around on backroads it was the best.
I have the LWB version of the Samurai called the Gypsy King in India... its a 1.3 liter Fuel Injected version with 80bhp. Although pretty crude by today's standard and lacks even the basic comfort, its still a fun vehicle to drive and has its own fan following in this country and the best thing is that it is still produced in India, although there are rumors that production will end soon. What i like about this vehicle is the light weight chassis , body and engine which makes it really fun vehicle to maneuver especially in the mud,.
After seeing this video I’ve realized how little motor week shows driving with other cars present. It’s so funny seeing all of these classic cars just being driven around in the background
A friend of mine has one that is lifted a couple inches with larger tires. It doesnt go past 50mph with the bigger tires on, we used a GPS to track the speed as the speedometer was off do to the tires.
I remember seeing a Suzuki dealer in the early '90s (this was a couple of years after that infamous CR review) and there were a bunch of Samurais marked down to around $4000. They had to have been a couple of years old and they never sold them.
$4000? They must have been used. Also Suzuki still sold a lot of these after the CR review. If I saw one for that money in that time frame I would have gotten one, if it was new and for that price, but I never saw anything close to a deal like that. Instead I got a stupid used Hyundai Excel for like $2500 and it was the biggest piece of junk on earth, and probably slower than a Samurai.
$6,895. *weeps in 2019* my dad had one growing up. i remember unsnapping the soft top or rolling up the plastic back window and going for a ride down the country roads.
Interesting little vehicle. I can tell you that if these were on sale when I finished university, I would have bought one with little hesitation. The later versions available everywhere else in the world was very nice looking.
Samurai was such a great small off-roading and commuter for daily use. It is sad to see Suzuki gone. Hope Suzuki will come back with the new Jimmy soon.
they could bring this back keep the same body style with some of today's good stuff more powerful engine better seats better safely standards and Bluetooth sound system ect and a good price tag and I bet it would sell ...
+Frank Hockaday Sr naw man look what they did to the jeep brand they don't sell to genuine off road users anymore it's not there market. They sell to urban people who want the look and luxury's at the same time. personally the lj80 that came before was better then this. (smaller simpler)
My sister had one of these for years. It was fun to sport about town in but was slow. In the winter it was COLD. I always did the oil changes and tuneups on it...it was very easy.
To everyone talking about the rollover risk like idiots. The Consumer Union story was fabricated, the Samurai was actually the most stable out of the group in their testing.
FantomLightning just like three wheelers. It’s the users fault, not the manufacturers. Thank the dumbasses who don’t know how to drive for suzuki to stop selling the samurai
My dad restored an '88 model to tow behind his RV in the 90s. Cute, but grossly underpowered. The replacement to the Samurai, the Sidekick, was a much improved vehicle.
Suzuki should have stayed in north America and went after wrangler. Someone at Suzuki made a real bad decision leaving the North American market. Look how well wranglers sell... they cant even be kept on a lot, Suzuki could have made themselves a real pretty penny had they done the right things and stayed.
the sales dropped after Jeep paid Jay Leno to make jokes about them and consumer reports to make false claims about them being "unstable." that's why wranglers sell so well - they have no competition.
A lot of Suzuki's issues did stem from the bad press from CU but worse yet later for them was the issues with the partnership with GM's plant in Canada pretty much killed them. That coupled with the Korean car invasion which brought us the Hyundai and Kia. I would say Kia really killed them with cheaper pricing and competing in the same market here in the US.
I just bought an 87 and I love it, we live in Mexico and it is great for the desert and beaches, plus I paid 1500 for it. A great little 4x4 for a great price.
My buddy had one of these back in the day and it was really good off road. I remember being impressed with it's off road capabilities for such a cheap little Jeep-wanna-be at the time
I've had every type of off road vehicle from land rover defenders to humvees and electric golf carts and by far the best off road vehicle for hunting quietly is the samurai. I have 3 samurais
My parents claim to have had one as a rental on their honeymoon in '87... it had no radio and no AC and they had it on the Islands but they said it rode nicely.
Had a 1987 one in Alaska, best 4wheel drIve I ever had. It was lightweight, fuel efficient and never got stuck in winter. Even drove it up the Stampede Trail. I turned around after seeing a 12 inch grizzly bear print in the creek bed.
For some reason I can't help but think of John Davis as someone I can picture seeing as a manager of a company where he is well liked and respected by everyone.
Omg, flood of emotions. I had the exact same green hard top in this ad (right hand drive) and a blue convertible (left hand drive) regret ever selling them.
These little Suzuki's were just about unstoppable, could go just about anywhere offroad. They could also fit into some tight spaces, that larger trucks could not.
I kinda liked that little bugger!! It was the perfect size to go almost anywhere you wanted! And it still looks good by today's standards. Kinda like a miniature version of the Jeep Wrangler :-)
My uncle has a white 88 Samurai JX , he bought it brand new and still has it the thing was great in the snow. Now he uses it around his property which is over 5 acres, it wouldnt pass inspection, the rust unfortunately took its toll, thats part of living here in New York State.
I am sort of amazed at how people here are complaining because it is low powered and complain that it rolls over...People use some common sense... They are not meant to be put on a freeway with powerful fast vehicles they are a 4x4 utility vehicle for country and off highway use. As far as rolling over how did it perform in the test it just showed. They are great little rigs and It is quite evident that it got a bad review by consumer reports because someone wanted it to look bad. I have a 1992 and it hasn't come close to turning over. Mine does have reversed rims and wider tires so it does have a wider stance but it has been lifted 6 inches also and mine is EFI and I can guarantee you it gets to 60 MPH faster than 17 seconds.
"Suzuki has no plans for an automatic transmission" I wish I would hear more of that today, would certainly decrease the number of accidents today make you actually have to drive.
Wow and I just bought a samurai all stock with AC that works, interior is not dry rotten and no rust under it (Arizona) runs amazing, for $ 5000. At 6800 new It seems to hold it's value. I put historic plates on it, shined it up and now it's a little off road weekend get away car.
I had I think two of these- they are super reliable. We used to off road these things like crazy and then mow down trash cans and shopping carts lol. Never had any issues these things rock and are like little tanks in the winter.
I had an 87 hardtop........it was incredibly fun. I could go places Jeeps and other could not, simply because it was lighter and smaller. Sucked on the highway. Actually had to shift DOWN to 4th frequently. Still, despite al the shortcomings, it was a total blast to drive. I miss it.
Had two of these great little cheap 4x4's. I had a soft top and a hard top. not the fastest cars in the world but very handy and surprisingly good off road.
In spring 1986, I lived in Connecticut. That was the first time I heard about the Suzuki Samurai. In late 1992, I lived in Colorado, and that was the last time I heard or saw anything about a new Samurai.
I use my 100% stock samurai to go rock climbing and go down old mining trails where the brush is so overgrown jeeps can't make it through it it sure is a lot cheaper than buying one of those 2 seat rail cars that usually costs about 15 to $20,000 plus I can drive my Suzuki in the street legally
These things are worth gold here in Puerto Rico. Even wrecked ones are up for more than $3k! Original stock ones are up for 5 digit prices. Usually, normal condition ones go for around their price when new! A lot of them here have rotaries swapped in and they are many of these running the 1/4mi under 10 seconds running rotary gear. I wonder how much do these go on the States!
I miss my old Samuri. I had a black one with red and silver stripes my senior year of high school, and my dad had two different ones at different times. Mine had a whopping top speed of 83mph with the top on and 86mph with a bikini top or the top off, according to the speedo. I was lucky, my dad knew a guy that had a whole barn full of factory accessories and replacement parts from a dealership that went out of business. My old one is still driving around my home town still owned by the guy I sold it too, though its painted green now and lifted up
Years ago, my best friend had one - I remember it well. While it's simplicity and low cost was nice, it was very slow and in a way that was a good thing since they had a bad habit of constantly trying to roll over on you in a turn.
Spain is still crammed with these indestructible cuties. They even produced them theirselves under the Santana 410 moniker, offering large wheelbase and 1900diesel engine installed. They're a dream to drive as they are softer to drive with serious loading capacity. A favourite amongst hunters, 'cause it's still supernarrow😉
This little Samurai is technically a truck. You've got to exercise a bit more caution when driving a truck. These things were awesome little beasts! I want one!
I currently own one and use it as a daily driver. Recently did a 1.6 16v tracker swap and it makes a huge difference. Instead of being half to 3/4 throttle everywhere you go, you can just barely touch the gas to keep up with traffic and if you need to accelerate quickly just step on the gas and it will go.
My uncle had one of these he kelped down at his beach house here in N.C outer banks (cape hatters) & it was a tough little 4×4 that carried him anywhere in the deep sand.
