Like most people I’m an admirer of their modified Defenders and it’s great to see the Jimny being taken on by a company like Twisted. I had to see for myself what they did to make the car the best in class and improve the car we know and love.
Reviews are not something I do and best left to the experts like Jonny Smith. However I can share my thoughts after spending half a day with this uniquely built Jimny.
Twisted are based in Yorkshire, UK which is an hours drive from where I live. They have a superb museum style showroom, it’s just full of incredible things to look at. Or should I say drool over. I highly recommend a visit and they have a lovely coffee shop to spike your caffeine levels, as if looking at those Defenders these aren’t enough of a dopamine hit.
We were met by Rob who showed us around and even offered a tour of the workshop once we were back with the Jimny later in the day.
Best laid plans
The plan was to create a nice relaxing ASMR day camp video with the Twisted Jimny. Unfortunately I couldn’t secure somewhere nice a secluded to shoot the video and my plans fell through a day before the visit. I had to wing it.
After we picked the car up I drove to Osmotherly, in the hills of North Yorkshire. In the hope of finding somewhere quiet to shoot. As luck wouldn’t have it, I ended up parked on the road side and had to make do with trucks and dozens of cars driving past. Many slowing down to stare at the weird guy with camera and a fancy Jimny.
I’ll not lie, even getting 3 minutes of footage was difficult and it strikes to me how difficult it must be making content in public locations you can’t control. I guess I’m spoilt in my usually camping locations as they tend to be remote or at least very quiet.
I wanted to spend some time looking at the finer details of the car. Unusually the turbo side of things doesn’t interest me as much as the handling and interior details. Not being much of a petrol head and more into a slower pace of life. I wanted to get a feel for what it would be like to live with the car.
If you’ve not seen the short video here is it on my YouTube Channel.
What did I think of it?
There’s a list of key points that Faye sent me who works with Twisted. I want to focus on the first 6 claims.
- 0-60 Is reduced by nearly half
- Cruising at 70mph is a breeze
- It’s quieter by over 50%
- It feels much more solid and composed
- It handles like a much bigger vehicle
0-60 Is reduced by nearly half
I drive like my Dad most of the time and he’s 80 so I am certainly not the person to do 0-60 tests. What I can tell you is it’s obviously way faster. The really weird thing is within no time it felt right. As if the car should have always had that 165hp power. If it wasn’t for the amusing turbo noise it’s like you’re in a normal modern car with power when you need it.
I noticed it most when I got back into my standard automatic SZ5 Jimny on my way home. My standard Jimny by comparison felt super slow on my way home.
Cruising at 70 mph is a breeze
Correct!
I have to say I don’t find 70mph too bad in my own Jimny. The stock Jimny at 70mpg was a hard NO! However this Turbo is a different game altogether.
Let’s say you’re in the inside lane at 60mph. There’s a lorry in front and you’re slowly gaining on it. In my standard Jimny there’s a great deal of forward planning and situational awareness required before you attempt to overtake. Almost as if you’re driving close to a black hole, time seems to slow down. You need to time it right and even better do it when you’re going down hill!
Compare this to the Turbo Jimny, it’s chalk and cheese. It removes the flaccid acceleration of the standard Jimny entirely. You just overtake. Obviously it’s no GT3 speed but it acts how you would expect from a normal car. Definitely adds confidence.
It’s quieter by over 50%
My Jimny has a roof tent on almost 24/7 so it’s going to have more wind noise but I did notice that at 60-70mph the cabin noise in the Twisted Jimny was quieter. You can hear how solid the car feels when closing the doors. You don’t get the roof inflation (it flexes upwards) from the vacuum of shutting the doors. There’s a satisfying thump.
The big take away here for me is while it’s never going to be a quiet car but you can make it better. I’ll spend some time next Spring stripping out my interior and sound proofing as best I can. Finding the lightest weight materials to help add that quality, solid feel to the car. I dabbled with this a few years ago but didn’t do it properly.
It feels much more solid and composed
This is my favourite part. Boy does it feel more solid and composed. Cornering is greatly improved. The rear anti roll bar is something I’d love to get installed on my Jimny camper.
I’ve no idea if it effects off-roading performance, you’d have to ask Twisted but for me it would make zero difference to where I drive. All it would do is make the car better.
It reminds me of how it felt to change to Old Man Emu shocks and springs after 12 months on stock suspension. Transformational for me, especially loaded up. This was an equal step up again if you ask me. I could be suffering from a little placebo effect but I really did enjoy how it handled on the motorways and especially on those narrow winding country roads of North Yorkshire. Superb.
It handles like a much bigger vehicle
There’s not much else to say, this ties in with the point above. I think the combination of all these factors does give the car more presence on the road. You don’t feel as emasculated with white vans and grandmothers in Twingos flying past you.
Like I say it acts like a normal car. Which is a terribly derogatory word to use for a 50k Turbo Jimmy finished as nicely as this. You get my point though.
Workshop tour
We got the chance to tour the workshop and talk with some of the team there. I’ve always enjoyed listening to people talk about their work. Whether it’s listening to business podcasts or at live events. It’s fascinating how some businesses operate.
The culture there is first class. You can immediately tell they bloody love it! Who wouldn’t, they’re working on stunning defender builds and now Jimny builds, for people who appreciate their craftsmanship.
Each car has a dedicated expert working on it to make the magic happen. I asked one of the guys working on a Defender, how he feels when handing cars over to customers after working on it so closely? The pause said a lot and his face looked like he was handing over this first born.
Final thoughts
I’ve already got a Jimny and can’t afford another one. If I was in the market for buying a new Jimny and wanted the best modified Jimny money can buy… specifically for daily and on-road use this is hard to beat. I’d love one, they nailed the handling and drivability of it.
Lastly, we had a cracking day out and would highly recommend a visit to Twisted when you’re in Yorkshire.
Big thanks to Rob for the hospitality!
