Gen 4 Jimny Shocks

Dear All, I know this subject has been discussed many many times, I have read through the articles but I'm not quite clear on what makes the suspension so harsh, I will not use the car off road and would like a more comfortable ride. it seems much of the wheel movement is transmitted into the cabin, is it a combination of the springs and shocks? Or mainly the shocks. I did chat to Twisted and they said keep the standard springs, any help pls?
Also I have been making enquiries regarding an overdrive unit for the Jimny, anyone got a heads up?

You MAY have purchased the wrong vehicle for your use case.

The Jimny, all four generations, is a body-on-frame, live axled, light truck and with the exception of the newly released five door model, short wheel based.

This is almost literally a recipe for what some people would describe as a "harsh" ride - because of the short wheel base, it will "pitch" fore & aft more than a vehicle with a longer wheel base would, because of the live axles, any uneveness in the road surface will be more noticeable than it would on a vehicle with independent suspension.

Personally (and I'm driving a Jimny with stock suspension), I don't find the ride at all harsh, but there is a marked difference if you're going to compare it to a typical sedan or hatch.

Essentially those of us who plan on taking the Jimny off road are aware that we're trading "on road comfort" for "off road capability", and are willing to accept the shortcomings of the vehicle for the advantages that we get - if you don't need or want that off road capability, maybe the Jimny is not what you need.

I wouldn’t describe my Jimny Gen 4 suspension as harsh, it’s better than my old Gen 3, both were stock suspension.

Compared to my previous car (BMW series 3) and my other car (Porsche Boxster) it’s positively soft, especially going over speed bumps and pot holes.

Robin

GAZ make adjustable shocks for the Gen.4 Jimny and I bought a 50mm lift kit from Jimny Bits that included same. The difference is surprising as the shocks, on their softest setting, are far more comfortable than the standard whilst still retaining acceptable levels of body roll and control.

Roger

It depends on your point of reference. I'm a shepherd and other than my jimny I drive a tractor and very occasionally a shorty land cruiser. My jimny is like riding on a cloud. If however you are used to say a French hatch back then a jimny will be like a pile of rocks. Before you go change things give yourself a chance to get used to it.

Basic suspension theory: there's sprung weight and unsprung weight.  Unsprung weight is all the stuff below the springs, which is *a lot* on a Jimny, since it includes the entire axles.  If the unsprung weight is low, these parts will ride over irregularities easily, without much movement being transmitted to the sprung parts such as the body with you sitting in it.   If the unsprung weight is high relative to the sprung parts, the wheels are far more resistant to riding over bumps, a lot more movement is transmitted to the body, and you experience a jiggly ride.