[0xTKB]

Oops.. Silly me, what I meant was Autocar :P. Mods, can you please correct the mistake to Autocar.

Back to the topic now, if priced right, which I think Honda will, it will give a major competition to Ertiga & Chevy Enjoy. Enjoy's days seems limited to me now as it is a highly outdated product. And kudos to Honda for also installing that i-VTEC engine in the MPV.

[scopriobharath]

First Impressions:

• Looked like an attempt to make a "Brio Cross" inspired by Etios cross
• The height is as high as the amaze or a Santro. Not very tall.
• Not a looker. IMHO Innova looks better
• Looks like a "stretch" photoshop job on a Brio.
• 7 seater Van looks are hidden very well.
• Interiors are not claustrophobic
• Interiors appear airy and bright. Thanks to the beige colour

Answers to Questions asked in previous posts

1. Interiors - Good from a standalone view, but a little plain. Will pass for the average joe. I hope Honda launches some wood / carbon fibre inserts to spruce up interiors
2. ICE HU - Basic Basic Amaze ICE. It seems Honda is "thinking" on providing touchscreen unit as an OE Acccessory. Reality is honda managers would have taken a decision but not sharing it - Typical amanger attitude
3. Spare alloy / spare steel wheel ? - 5th spare wheel is a Steel wheel in top end
4. Length VS Innova VS Ertiga. Longer than Ertiga but shorter than Innova.
5. Road Presence - Not much. it is a very low-slung MUV. Will scrape the underbody and for sure is not a "looker"
6. Seating comfort in all 7 seats - the third row seats are not suited for adults for long drives. one can survive 45 mins with a chilling AC.
7. Space for 3 on second Row - Shoulder room especially for side passengers. The last row offers decent shoulder room. i wear an XL / 40 shirt and i did not rub shoulders. Good if you are travelling with a guy. Bad if you have your girl-friend.
8. How low (if at all) Is the 3rd row seating really. Knees up position. totally comfortable. Arya honda sales men were telling its for kids only.
9. Enough said about quality/thickness of seats, How do they feel - Felt very comfy. Thickness was not an issue. I personally felt it a bit hard
10. Head room in the 3rd row of seat for a 5 footer. Plenty even if you have a fat person sitting next to you
11. Tumble mechanism for second row of seats - One touch - very convenient as shown in videos/
12. Luggage space with third row up, third row half folded and then completely folded. Third row up can accommodate 2 cabin bags. Eith the seats folded or completely tucked away, there is enough space for a Himalyan Odyssey or a GQ Run.
13. Comfort level in front seats. There will be a fight for this seat for sure.

Neutral Alloy Design for Mass Appeal - The enthusiast can always sell these and go for custom taste ones


Boot / Trunk fits 2 Cabin airline size bags. Sufficient for 4 adults and 2 kids for a weekend Mumbai - Mahabaleshwar or Chennai - Pondy trips.


Another view of boot


Tailgate opens to decent height. Average height person will find it comfortable


Tools tucked away in a compartment. Brilliant and convenient.


High Quality Roof lining on 5th/boot Door


Quality and Finish on the boot door not upto Japanese standards


another sub-standard fit and finish (Gaps)


Me, sitting in 2nd row with front seat pushed till middle. I am 5.10 in height


Cup holder and coine holder on front armrests - thoughtful by Honda


Second/third row AC is indeed an AC with condensor coil and not just a blower.


Me sitting in third row. I can sit for 30-45 minutes, IF AC is on full bolwer. I cannot sit on a sunny afternoon with AC in blower 1 (Stingy drivers).


High Quality Seat Fabric. No leather/rexine. Boon in sweat indian summers.


Same Brio/Amaze dash storage. Little too small - My Santro has a bigger one


ICE system WILL be same as Amaze even in top end model. the touchscreen unit might be an OE Accessory. Reality - Honda Managers would have already taken the decision, but not wanting to share the decision. Typical Manager attitude


5 speed confirmed on the iDTEC. no 6 speed for now. (5 forward + 1 reverse)


Panel gaps inconsistent on the front bin.


Cheap quality USB connector and power socket. Looks aftermarket.


another view of Panel gap. Acceptable on a Tata but not in a Honda/Toyota/Nissan/Mitsubishi


Sun Visor gets vanity mirror but no light.


Chrome Ring on the base looks good


Antenna fowls with boot door. Design flaw by honda - Clearly not acceptable again


Forget LED ORVM Turn indicators. Honda goes the primitive way of the side turn indicator on the Fender. Expect an OEM accessory LED turn mirror.


Armrest provided but no cup holders


Inconsistent Finish on the Steering wheel/Hornpad - Honda Quality falling down?


Diesel iDTEC engine bay


Bonnet/Hood gets lining. Good that honda did not omit it.


Single Windshield washer. Cost cutting


second row window does NOT go down fully. Will fowl with elbows



If you have any questions, please post them here. I will make every attempt to answer the same.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

Antenna fowls with boot door. Design flaw by honda - Clearly not acceptable again
Attachment 1255702

The antenna is supposed to be straight. Someone has forcefully bent it causing it to fowl with boot door. I think the car was under some cover which did not have a groove for the antenna causing the antenna to bend.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

First Impressions:

• Looked like an attempt to make a "Brio Cross" inspired by Etios cross
• The height is as high as the amaze or a Santro. Not very tall.
• Not a looker. IMHO Innova looks better
• Looks like a "stretch" photoshop job on a Brio.
• 7 seater Van looks are hidden very well.
• Interiors are not claustrophobic
• Interiors appear airy and bright. Thanks to the beige colour

If you have any questions, please post them here. I will make every attempt to answer the same.

How is the overall paint quality and finish of parts? Fit is currently not up to the mark though. Hope Honda irons out the flaws in the car and gets the panel gaps sorted. May be they have done things in a hurry to get the vehicles dispatched for the display at malls throughout India.

Waiting to have a glimpse of the Mobilio in Hyderabad.

Thanks buddy for the effort in posting pictures with captions and answering the unanswered.

Originally Posted by Vid6639

The antenna is supposed to be straight. Someone has forcefully bent it causing it to fowl with boot door. I think the car was under some cover which did not have a groove for the antenna causing the antenna to bend.

Could be.

The other possibility that I see is that the antenna got bent a bit only when the boot lid was opened fully causing the top part to touch the antenna. Hope you get what I mean.

Can someone confirm this though?

Anurag.

[scopriobharath]

Originally Posted by a4anurag

How is the overall paint quality and finish of parts? Fit is currently not up to the mark though. Hope Honda irons out the flaws in the car and gets the panel gaps sorted. May be they have done things in a hurry to get the vehicles dispatched for the display at malls throughout India.

Overall Paint Quality is good, Panel thickness is on par with Innova. my little finger could press the outer metal. No where near the thickness of the Aria.


Other things that I forgot to mention:

• Was organized by a Honda dealer (Arya Honda) and a team of hired event organizers
• No loud music
• the gentlemen (Arya Honda staff) was knowledgeable
• No one knew the price but all predict the top end diesel to be almost 13 lacs OTR Mumbai without any accessories.
• There was an enthusiasm among the dealer staff
• As usual, I was cornered to book one, but I politely turned down stating color options and final OTR price
• Everyone compared it with Ertiga. No one compared with Aria, Evalia or Enjoy, Grande, Xylo.
• Crowd was decent (not time-pass crowd) and well informed (Typical SoBo crowd or worli crowd in local slang)
• third row is better in Ertiga than mobilio.
• Salesmen told that 3rd in mobilio is designed for kids only. True.
• Accessories are expected to be same as Amaze/Brio. No extraordinary or Mobilio specific accessory is being planned.
• Will surely scrape potholes and speed-breakers even with 5 on board. Roger-Ab suspension height restorer certainly needed.
• Basic interiors, but will be a hit among the masses. It is us BHPians who would be left behind on choice.
• fit and finish not on par with a Honda, but I expect factory will compensate that in the main production line

.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by a4anurag

Could be.

The other possibility that I see is that the antenna got bent a bit only when the boot lid was opened fully causing the top part to touch the antenna. Hope you get what I mean.

Can someone confirm this though?

Anurag.

How is that possible? I don't think I understood. The antenna is not supposed to be bent. It should be straight. The antenna in the pic has the top half forcefully bent.

[skyfire2892]

Originally Posted by a4anurag

The other possibility that I see is that the antenna got bent a bit only when the boot lid was opened fully causing the top part to touch the antenna. Hope you get what I mean.

Can someone confirm this though?

Anurag.

I just looked the antenna in amaze and city. They are not bent, so the antenna in the picture is bent due to other reasons not due to the boot lid.

[shipnil]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

[*]third row is better in Ertiga than mobilio.[*]Salesmen told that 3rd in mobilio is designed for kids only. True.

That's interesting. All along, I got the impression that Honda has designed the interior space such that it will be better while carrying 7. Now if the last seats are inferior to Ertiga, then only plus point remains over Ertiga is boot space.

[mooza]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

If you have any questions, please post them here. I will make every attempt to answer the same.

When are they starting TDs for customers ?

Thanks Bharath for the post, lots of info there.

[scopriobharath]

Originally Posted by shipnil

That's interesting. All along, I got the impression that Honda has designed the interior space such that it will be better while carrying 7. Now if the last seats are inferior to Ertiga, then only plus point remains over Ertiga is boot space.

Well, there aren't much ways to physically place seats inside Ertiga or Mobilio's cabin. The smart way or tactical way is by making seats Thinner and scooping out the back of the front two seats. Since the dealer staff are telling that the 3rd row is meant for kids only, I guess Honda would have designed the 3rd row with kids in mind and also the same would have been conveyed by the training team to the dealer staff. Yes Boot space is the plus point.

They are selling the brand value and boot space only. They are not selling the 3rd row of the Mobilio.

Originally Posted by mooza

When are they starting TDs for customers ?

Post Launch - Dealers said August first week would see TDs offered but trust me, they are expecting people to book without TDs and even seeing the vehicle. It should be another EcoSport mad rush in the making. It should be practically September by the time we get a proper TD.

[swiftdiesel]

I was right with my assumption after all! Given the un-ergonomic positioning of the last row, it cannot be termed a 7 seater. It's not only narrow but short with a large rear overhang - a perfect recipe for bottom scraping. The 2 things going for it are the good boot space and diesel engine. After all, there's only so much you could do with a Brio platform and Honda should've known better. The City platform would've been the optimum starting block to base the Mobilio but unfortunately, it's a missed opportunity.

BTW, how's the spare wheel accessed? Is there a convenient dislodging mechanism like the Ertiga or the old school chain release mechanism of the Innova?

[mooza]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

Salesmen told that 3rd in mobilio is designed for kids only. True.

But the salesman (played by Kapil Sharma) in the Ad has informed us "7 people, that too adults"

However, I agree that considering the low seat height, only kids can sit in the 3rd row. I am sure Honda's idea was to reduce payload in the rear anyway.

[scopriobharath]

Originally Posted by mooza

But the salesman (played by Kapil Sharma) in the Ad has informed us "7 people, that too adults"

However, I agree that considering the low seat height, only kids can sit in the 3rd row. I am sure Honda's idea was to reduce payload in the rear anyway.

The Third row can seat adults too but it is too uncomfortable for long drives. Kids can be seated comfortably or deprived adults like servant / maid / Driver etc can be seated. They would keep mum and come all the way in an uncomfortable pose.

Definetly, cannot seat someone like relatives / friends / colleagues etc for more than 45 mins in the third row.

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

The Third row can seat adults too but it is too uncomfortable for long drives. Kids can be seated comfortably or deprived adults like servant / maid / Driver etc can be seated. They would keep mum and come all the way in an uncomfortable pose.

Definetly, cannot seat someone like relatives / friends / colleagues etc for more than 45 mins in the third row.

There were only 2 instances over the last 20,000 kms that the 3rd row in my Ertiga was ever used for Passengers.

1st time It was when 6 adults with average build joined me for a drive spanning Bangalore-Nelligere-Mysore-Hassan-Belur-Chikmagalur-Bangalore (Approximately 600 kms easily) on a Saturday.

The last row was always occupied by my mother and her sister during this drive.

We managed this show pretty well by placing the 1st and 2nd row with appropriate but not generous leg room so that the 3rd row gets a fair deal. Apart from the fact that the 3rd row was bouncy over bad sections of road at typical highway speeds, both the ladies never complained anything else as I kept probing on their comfort levels.

The 2nd occasion was when we were 5 Adults, again average sized on a trip to Pondi and Kumbakonam and back - Instead of forcing all the 3 in 2nd row, we pulled one of the split seat of second row a bit further (behind the co passenger's seat as I am 6'3") and the 5th occupant sat on the 3rd row.

Whatever luggage/bags we couldn't manage in the boot was dumped next to this 5th occupant on the 3rd row.

So I believe, the overall sitting position in the Ertiga is indeed not as low was I see from the Mobilio pics.

EDIT: Having explained all this, I myself am a believer that no one should consider the Ertiga as a full time 7 seater.

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by a4anurag

....The other possibility that I see is that the antenna got bent a bit only when the boot lid was opened fully causing the top part to touch the antenna. Hope you get what I mean...

Originally Posted by Vid6639

How is that possible? I don't think I understood. The antenna is not supposed to be bent. It should be straight. The antenna in the pic has the top half forcefully bent.

I think I understand @anurag's question. I don't think it would have fouled with the boot door. This (RED one) may NOT be the exact shape, but it should be close. And I believe the boot is completely open in the pic.

The clearance should actually be a bit more as I have used the bottom to project the shape.



Image copy right - respective owner.