Right from its Inception, Honda Jazz has been able to carve a place for itself. The premium hatchback is pitted against the likes of Maruti Suzuki Baleno, Hyundai Elite i20, Tata Altroz, and Toyota Glanza among others. We list down five reasons that make this Honda one of the best choices if you are contemplating to buy a premium hatchback in India. Be it the BS4 that we drove or BS6 that is coming, it is pretty much similar. We give you reasons to buy the Honda Jazz.
1) Powerful Motors: Honda Jazz is available in both petrol and diesel engine options. The 1.5-litre, 4-cylinder diesel engine puts out 100 bhp of raw power and delivers a surprisingly good mileage of 27.3kmpl. Petrol motor, on the other hand, is good for 90bhp and offers the convenience of both manual and automatic transmission to the prospective buyers. The peak power developed by the gasoline engine is best in the segment and fuel efficiency figures which are 18.2 kmpl and 19.0 kmpl for manual and the automatic version is also commendable.
2) Voluminous Cabin: Thanks to the tipped-forward stance of Jazz, Honda has been able to maximize the interior space inside the car. The wheelbase of the Jazz is rated at 2530 mm and despite its sub-4meter length; the hatch offers 354-liter of boot space. Further, sitting three abreast at the back is not an issue in Jazz thanks to its wider (1694mm) and taller (1544mm) cabin. The fuel tank capacity is 40-liter which is larger than many of its rivals, thereby equipping the car with decent travel range.
3) High safety equipment: Even the base S variant of Jazz (available in only diesel) comes equipped with decent safety features such as dual front airbags, Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS) with electronic brake-force distribution (EBD), rear parking sensors, keyless entry, and day/night IRVM. The higher V and VX variants of Jazz are more comprehensively equipped with safety features, making the car one of the safest option available in the market.
4) Tech-loaded approach: Just like the safety features, Honda has lavishly equipped Jazz with creature comfort. The middle V variant of Honda Jazz gets automatic climate control, steering mounted audio control, push-button start-stop system, smart key, and paddle shifter in the automatic variant. The top of the line VX trim also gets a large 17.7 cm touch screen infotainment system with added features of voice command and navigation.
Honda was kind enough to send petrol and diesel equipped engines for us to drive for this story. The petrol as always is smooth, utterly refined and high revving engine is very entertaining. The chassis begs so hard for 1.5 petrol motor it is surprising that Honda hasn’t given it to it. Damn the tax rates Honda, give it to us! Petrol does lack low-end but mid-range is good and top-end downright brilliant.
The diesel though is completely opposite. The low and mid-end is great but the top-end feels as if the gates are closed and you don’t have a key to get pass through a small park gate despite you know you can jump it easily (which means tuning it). Top-end can be made better to feel despite not providing power over there, is what our suggestion is for the 1.5 motor.
A good improvement in the Amaze which has the revised 1.5 diesel Earth dreams motor but still, it need more work. Both cars have light clutches, steering and smooth shifting gearbox to make things easier. To take that even more ahead, the short turning radius and almost well calibrated steering does the job of maneuvering in the city and taking u-turns easier. Brakes could do with more power as enthusiasts who drive hard would seriously need. Normally driven Jazz would hardly require a brake upgrade as the tyres and pedal feel is fine.
5) Pricing:
Honda has restricted the number of variants on Jazz (2 petrol and 3 diesel) which makes the pricing simple and straight forward. Top-spec diesel VX manual variant costs Rs 9.35 lakh while petrol VX CVT can be had at Rs 9.05 lakh (both prices, ex-showroom, Delhi).
In sum, Honda Jazz comes across as a holistic package – offering an optimum combination of style, design, versatility, power, fuel-efficiency, and simple pricing
