Japanese Jimny from 2003 with G13BB engine !?

Hello!

I went to a nearby town yesterday to see a Jimny which is for sale there.
The owner claims that it was made in year 2003.

However, what is strange is that this car has a G13BB engine (as far as I can tell!), despite the fact that it was made in Japan!
If I am properly informed, Suzuki replaced the G13BB engine in Japanese-made Jimnys with M13A engine in year 2000. However, G13BB engine did appear in some Spanish-made Jimnys as late as 2004.
What I did not expect was to find this engine in a Suzuki-made specimen from year 2003.


Here is the car data:

VIN code: JSAFJB33V00143900
Engine code: MRK52CA22
Color code: Z2J C10
Some other code: e6*93/81*0056*00


As you can see from the VIN, "JSA" tells it was made in Japan, but "FJB33" tells is has G13BB engine.

Could it be that the owner is lying about the age of the car, i.e. that the car is from 1998 or 1999 (or the car had been staying put in the showroom from 1999 until 2003 when it was bought!)?
Or, could it be that Suzuki was fitting G13BB engine even in Japanese Jimnys well after year 2000?

Can anybody deduct any other information from these vehicle codes?
For example, the engine code is a bit strange, i.e. it does not completely conform to the engine code decypherings in the BigJimny FAQ.



P.S.:
The other unusual thing about the car is that it has a large motorized sunroof (size is about 2/3 or 3/4 of the entire roof area). The car is not a soft-top, it is a standard tin-top.
The sunroof is made of vinyl, and has a motor which retracts it backwards to open the roof. The opening is large enough for a front side passanger or one rear passanger to stand out. The motor is operated by a switch above the interior rear mirror.
The sunroof is not made by Suzuki but by "Webasto S.p.A", model "E-FD-04" (product no. 013384).
The owner says that he had bought the car second-hand, and does not know if the sunroof was factory-fitted, or custom-fitted by a third party after the car was made.

I would guess it was made in early 2000 but not registered until 2003

Sounds like a custom fit sunroof

Martin

P.S - I have also seen an M13 engine car which is "too early" compared to others, so was probably a dealer demonstrator pre-launch plus a Spanish soft-top registered after they were discontinued. I guess there is a blurry line around the transition period

My thinking goes the same line as yours. I also assume that this car was made perhaps in in 2000 and probably got sold in 2003. I contacted my local Suzuki dealer with this inquiry and provided a VIN code for them to check out. They should provide the most reliable information. If they are not too lazy.

It truly appears that Suzuki had blurry transition periods regarding Jimny upgrades. I have encountered Jimnys with electronic transfer box and new bumper made in 2005, but with non-VVT M13A engine. And also met vice versa. Also with electronic box but old bumper. All sorts of combinations.


My only dilemma now is whether it is better to buy a Jimny with G13BB engine or with M13A engine. But I started a separate thread on that issue in Jimny Technical section.

Heres what my system says

Thank you for the reply with the provided attachment. I has some useful information.
Unfortunately, that report from Suzuki EPC database does not contain the information about the year of manufacture.

I also got a response from my local Suzuki dealer, which essentially contains the same information as your report, and also omits the year of manufacture.
I asked them about the year of manufacture, and they said that they could not obtain it. It simply does not exist in their database. Imagine that.