Maruti Jimny Gets An 'Armata' Makeover
The made-in-India Suzuki Jimny has had immense success in overseas markets like Japan. It continues to be in huge demand and has also become a popular canvas for many tuners and aftermarket brands. We have already seen several builds based on the five-door Jimny. The latest interpretation comes from DAMD, a company that designs and manufactures customised parts for cars and SUVs. It has added a dose of Italian flair to the Jimny with the ‘Armata’. It looks like a classic Lancia SUV from the past!
Frankly, we would hardly associate Italian cars with off-roading. The country has made several stylish, fast cars, but very few off-roaders. With this in mind, DAMD restyled the Jimny, a small SUV known for its rugged design and off-road performance, into something we wish Lancia made back in the day!
The overall design and dimensions have been kept the same as the standard five-door SUV. The Jimny is 3820mm long and has a wheelbase of 2,590mm. These remain the same on the Armata as well. A lot of accessorisation has been done on the SUV to give it more attitude and improve the off-road performance.
The front fascia has changed completely. It now looks a lot like those of some iconic Lancia models. The grille and circular quad headlamps come from DAMD’s existing Little D kit, and would instantly invoke memories of the Lancia Delta Integrale. It, however, gets rugged off-road metal bumpers, a metal skid plate, Yellow fog lamps, and other off-road accessories.
This build runs on OZ Racing alloy wheels finished in Military-like colours, shod with off-riad tyres. The stock Jimny has a ground clearance of 210 mm. This example, however, seems to have had a suspension lift. It seems to have better obstacle clearance ability and should be a lot more capable off-roader than the stock SUV.
Even the stock Jimny is quite capable, with approach and departure angles of 46 degrees and 36 degrees, respectively. The design studio hasn’t revealed the complete technical specifications yet.
The roof also has four Amber LED lights (manufactured by IPF) that function as positioning lamps. Another interesting detail is the truck-style side-view mirrors with built-in heaters and an angle memory function. These add much character to the build. Inside, this build has a retro-styled fabric seat upholstery.
The only area where this build resembles ‘DAMD Little D’ is the front fascia. In most other places, it looks fresh and appealing. The dual-tone military-like colour scheme adds more character to this build.
We expect this build to remain mechanically unchanged. It is likely powered by the same 1.5L naturally aspirated four-cylinder petrol engine (K15B) that makes 103hp and 134Nm. Five-speed manual and four-speed automatic transmissions are available in Japan. The SUV comes with a part-time 4WD system. The company is expected to roll out a full Armata tuning kit next year.
DAMD products are quite popular in many countries. This Japanese company has a strong reputation in this space and now has its presence in markets like the United States, UK, Russia, Taiwan, Indonesia, China, the Philippines, Austria, Thailand and Europe.
DAMD will showcase the Armata at the Tokyo Auto Salon 2026, scheduled to start on January 9th. It will be one of the four custom vehicles on display at their pavilion. The company will then take pre-orders for these parts.