When Simon acquired his 5-door Jimny I immediately began scheming. I had been pondering a Jimny project for a long while. It is just Irene and I that need to be catered to so the essentially two-man 3-door Jimny held a lot of appeal. After all, we tour on motorcycles, hello? By comparison, a 3-door Jimny has tons of space! I owned a Gen 3 Jimny as well as an SJ410, so travelling a little slower down the road less travelled does not phase me much. The phenomenal off-road ability and legendary reliability of the little Suzies more than makes up for its lack of speed. It will get you there and back, every time! Chatting to Simon he made me an offer that I couldn’t refuse and I took ownership of the ZA Bikers 3-door.
Those of you who know me well will know that I am very particular about my vehicle care and maintenance. I always say that I wish I could buy all my second-hand vehicles from me! The Jimny is still on a service plan with Suzuki, but I want to know that everything is in ship shape and up to scratch. Enter Motul. Arguably the most vital engineering in your engine is the coolant and the lubrication. If either of those entities doesn’t pass muster you are lining yourself up for some serious poo, especially if absolute reliability is demanded of that vehicle. I have already mentioned in one of my Motul Memories blogs where we took small displacement air-cooled bikes around Botswana in the hottest month of the year that I insisted that all the participants use Motul 5100 on the trip. Developed in the cauldron of motorcycle Endurance racing, I had faith in its ability to keep the hard-working little motors alive, even in the 40-degree plus heat and running all day close to the redline.
I decided on an oil change and coolant swap. My Jimny is going to be used to traverse some seriously challenging parts of Southern Africa and I need to know that I have done all in my power to keep it happy and healthy. It’s not what you know but who you know. I am the first to admit that I am not an expert when it comes to the slippery stuff but I know someone who is. The son of an old schoolmate of mine just happens to head up the sales and technical side of Motul in SA, Taki Bogiages. I spent a morning sometime back picking his brain on why synthetic oil is special. He has a knack for explaining technical issues in a way that makes sense to the layman, so he was my go-to guy in my Jimny lube quest and Oh boy, was I glad I picked his brain! I came away wiser as well as with more money in my pocket. Let me explain.
The obvious place to start is to understand what Suzuki themselves set as a standard for the Jimny. This should also be considered in light of where in the world your Jimny lives and how it is likely to be used. It is tricky for Suzuki to put an oil spec in the handbook that is suitable for Iceland as well as for Southern Africa. There is perhaps a tiny bit of compromise required in both directions. I was trusting Taki, with his background in motorsport and chemical engineering, to make sense of it all. What he shared with me made total sense. Step one was to take the Jimny to a service centre where we knew the job would be done right. Enter Rommies Auto Tuning in Lone Hill. From the moment I arrived, I knew I was in good hands. Llewellyn Duvenhage started Rommies in 2020. Born out of a passion for motorsport and with an IT background, (ideal for understanding ECU remapping) they are a bunch of knowledgeable and able petrol heads whose passion is getting the best from your motor vehicle. Whether it is a service or tune-up that you are after, they are your guys. A far cry from booking your vehicle in for a service and hoping that it is in good hands. At Rommies everything is transparent and done properly. If you want the guys who work on your car to do so with the same care that you lavish on it, then Rommies are your chaps.
Before they commenced draining the engine oil a can of Motul Engine Flush was added and the motor ran for 15 minutes. The engine flush leans deposits and clogging so that the offensive micro-particles then get evacuated with the oil drain. Hmmm, never thought of that…Then the filter was swapped for a fresh one before filling with the appropriate amount of fresh oil. And here is where I needed Taki’s help. I would have looked at the 100% synthetic Motul 8100 and just ponied up. Having said that, I’m not that guy that is looking for cheap oil. That is penny-wise and pound-foolish. I want the best oil for my application. Decent oil is much less expensive than an engine rebuild! Whilst I was looking to replace like with like it was not quite as simple as that. Pouring Motul 8100 into the Jimny would effectively have been taking a gun to a knife fight. Total overkill. The oil recommended by Taki was Motul’s 6100 SAVE-lite 5W-30 endowed with Motul’s “Technosynthese” technology.
Without boring you with too much technical blumph, let me just say that 6100 is a thoroughly modern lubricant designed to be used in modern gasoline and hybrid engines, naturally aspirated or turbocharged, where low friction fuel economy enhancing properties are specified. When you check your manual for oil spec you will notice a bunch of technical suffixes which speak to the required properties which the manufacturer seeks in the oil of choice. To be frank, Motul 6100 not only meets the required specs, it blows them away! The enhanced fuel economy of a Technosynthese lubed vehicle also stands me in good stead given where I intend to use my Jimny. Given that 6100 exceeds the manufacturer’s specification in all regards, also gave me total peace of mind in the unlikely event of a warranty claim. All of this benefit and extra protection for a very small, dare I say insignificant cost premium over the standard Suzuki spec oil.
Motul’s 6100 SAVE-lite 5W-30 is designed with outstanding oxidation resistance, anti-deposit protection, engine cleanliness, anti-wear protection and enhanced wear protection at low temperatures (when most wear takes place) thereby maximizing fuel economy between oil changes. Speaking of oil changes, I sometimes feel that 15,000-kilometer oil change intervals as specified by Suzuki and most modern manufacturers of normally aspirated motors can be stretching it a bit. If I use my Jimny a lot in dry, hot and dusty conditions, I am going to change my oil every 10,000 k’s. Why, you may ask? Because I can, and it gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling to know that my Jimny’s motor is happy and protected. My air filter was just such a case. Recommended for change at 15,000 km and not part of the lube job that we were busy with, Llewellyn whipped it out to check it, albeit that it is still 5,000 km till the next scheduled service. Despite Simon not having done much off-road during his time with the Jimny, the air cleaner was filthy. Llewellyn refused to put the offensive filter back and shot off to the local agents for a new one. Moral of the story? Check your filter every 5,000 k’s. Lastly, regarding the 6100, if needed you can top up with either mineral or synthetic oil. I carry a litre of oil along on trips for top-ups with the same oil, but that is just me. In reality, I have never needed to top up the oil in my Suzukis between services.
Last up was to drain and replace the engine coolant. We used Motul Auto Cool Optimal -37 degree C. Checking the specs, I was amused to see that Motul, thinking of everything, added a “bitterness agent” to the coolant. Apparently, coolant typically has a sweet taste but is rather toxic if ingested. Just in case you run out of the mix in the back of beyond and feel tempted to use your coolant…don’t, it will taste bad and ruin your dop! What must your coolant do? Obviously, it keeps your engine cool and happy but vitally it prevents corrosion of the cooling system. It is designed to keep the water pump, seals, hoses and plastic bits happy. We allowed the engine to cool before draining the coolant and refilling it with the Motul coolant. Llewelyn and I then went for a spin where after the oil and coolant levels were checked, I was on my way.
Now I know you will say it is all in the mind, but let me tell you the Jimny is running significantly sweeter. It is smoother than a smooth thing, but score that to happy Suzuki Engineering all operating optimally. The clean air filter will definitely allow the engine to breathe a lot better, with power and economy gains and that probably contributed the most to the perky performance. But here is the thing. When my Jimny is happy and running optimally on some of the best oils and coolants out there, then I am happy too. I have peace of mind that I am doing my bit to complement Suzuki’s fine engineering and keep it tip-top for many reliable k’s to come.
To learn more about Motul’s product range, visit Motul SA.
