The interior space is the trump-card in case of this Jazz as it was in the case of its predecessor. Based on Honda’s ‘man maximum, machine minimum’ concept, the car has grown by 55 millimetres overall and the wheelbase has increased by 30 mm. This has liberated a further three inches of front to rear seating room. Besides, the quality and size of the interior gives this car a premium look and feel.
The new Jazz is equipped with the same 1.2 petrol engine as the Brio and the Amaze. It also shares its diesel engine with the Amaze, the Mobilio and the City. The i-DTEC is from the Earth Dreams Technology. The 1,498-cc oil-burner produces 100 PS at 3,600 RPM and 200 Nm of torque at 1,750 RPM. The engine is mated to a new six-speed close-ratio gearbox. There is no turbo lag and one can shift to the sixth gear at about 65 to 70 km/h; the car still pulls cleanly without a shudder or protest. With excellent low-end and mid-range power and torque delivery, the car is very easy to drive within the city as well as on the highway. One is not required to shift gears all the time to keep the motor on the boil. Overtaking on the highway goes like a breeze as the strong flat torque-curve does not require constant down-shifting to overtake slow-moving traffic.
The front suspension has a MacPherson set-up while the rear suspension is trailing arm. The car’s ride quality and handling are well-sorted; it soaked up the rough surface and all the undulations the Goan roads could throw up without a problem. The car is also stable at speed in excess of the ton mark and the steering does not become light as it does in its stable-mates. Even poor road surface does not upset the car while going round corners.
We also drove the 1.2 petrol with a five-speed manual transmission. The petrol car is extremely refined as compared to the oil-burner. Although the petrol car does not possess the grunt of the diesel, it is no slouch either. The gear-shift of this five-speed box is much better than in the six-speed version.
The new Jazz sets a new benchmark in the segment. Now it is up to Honda to price the car competitively.
