Honda Jazz

After bagging the “Car of the Year” award in Japan in 2001 and 2002 and taking into consideration the outstanding acknowledgement received by Honda City, Honda Civic And Honda Accord in the Indian subcontinent, Honda launched its first ever hatchback in India in mid 2009 and tagged it as Honda Jazz. Honda Jazz used the same platform as that of Honda City thereby reducing its overall manufacturing cost. With its overall aerodynamic outline, central bonnet ridge, dashing and sporty front grille and silvery matt colored headlamps, this luxurious car is equipped with lavish features of a C-Class luxury sedan, and yet falls in the hatchback category. Due to this reason, even the base model tends to be pricey as compared to the other Indian hatchbacks and starts with Rs 6 lakhs.

The first look of Honda Jazz car leaves an aerodynamic impression on the observer. With its super-forwarding design and sharply raked windscreen, Jazz spends least effort cutting through the air making it more efficient. The large Matt and Silver headlights extend all the way up to the back of the short and sporty hood. The front fog lamps have been integrated in the headlamps. The dynamic hexagonal grille at the front gets a chrome finish look like that of the Honda CR-V and seats the trademark Honda logo. In general, this long car gets a stylish exterior with an aerodynamic appeal which undoubtedly resembles like a scaled-down version of an MUV.

 The dynamic and bold exterior features of Honda Jazz has lured many youths in India. The spacious window graphics, large vent window and shorter bonnet make this car look long. From the side, this car is endorsed with ellipsoidal glass area, body colored side molding, corner protector and 15 inch all alloy wheels.  The tail gate spoiler, rear chrome garnish, and the all-new sharp tail lamp design give this car a bold and a strong sporty look. Honda Jazz gets a ground clearance of 160 mm and measures 3900 mm in length, 1695 mm in width and 1535 mm in height making it one of the longest hatchbacks in India.

Since Honda Jazz has approximately the same length as that of other Indian hatchbacks, its shorter bonnet signifies that the car is more spacious and comfortable with additional leg space and head space when it comes to interiors. With its two options of dual interior tones; Beige Black and Blue Black, it gives an elegant and luxurious look as well as feel from the inside. The car is ergonomically designed with multiple storage places in the form of nifty little compartments. The reclining rear passenger seats provide added comfort during long drives and are placed slightly higher than the front seats so that the rear passenger can also see outside from the front.

Additional features like the amber colored instrument cluster with stereoscopic dials, audio controls on the three spoke tilt-able steering wheel, rear AC vents, dual glove box and coat hanger, power windows, rear view mirror and numerous pockets and holders makes Honda Jazz one of the most attractive and well-designed hatchback.

Although the new Honda Jazz is available in three variants namely Jazz, Jazz Select and the Jazz X, all of them are powered by the same 1.2L i-VTEC engine (Intelligent Variable Valve Timing and Electronic Lift Control) designed to give the vehicle just the right amount of power and fuel efficiency. The engine is mated to a five speed manual transmission which produces a maximum power of 90 bhp at 6200 rpm and a maximum torque of 110 Nm at 4800 rpm. Unfortunately we still have to wait for the diesel variant of Honda Jazz.

Being one of the safest auto manufacturers in the market, Honda boasts its hi-tech multi-directional crash test facility in Japan, where Jazz goes through the most stringent crash tests. The car is built on the Advanced Compatibility Engineering (ACE) body which provides improved self protection and enhanced compatibility in collisions with other vehicles. The all new G-Force Control Technology (G-CON) not only reduces impact energy during a collision but also enhances handling. ABS (Anti lock Brake System) stabilizes the vehicle while braking in order to have better control and avoid obstacles ahead, whereas the EBD distributes the work force among all four wheels based on the load for each wheel. Other safety features include the pretensioner seat belt with load limiter, driver and front passenger dual SRS airbags, rear wiper and rear windshield defogger, high mount stop lamp and driver side auto pinch guard.