[varunswnt]

Sad day indeed as I currently own 2016 Jazz with humongous cabin room and magic seats - its biggest USP.

Honda service centres have now started looking deserted (sad reflection of reality) as the years pass on. City and Amaze are the only cars spotted in service bays, rest are occasionally spotted. Even Service advisors and Technicians recall the days when CR-V, Civic and Accord where common sightings and lent a premium feel to Honda brand. Pre diesel days, I am sure the class of people (mostly executives and enthusiasts) would also have been starkly different, as who would buy the almost 20-30 rupees costly petrol over diesel that too per litre.

Honda did their best to drive away people from their brand rather bring them in.

Honda still has part quality way better than Maruti-Suzuki and comparable to Kirloskar-Toyota. I so wish to see them back to their golden days and bring those global cars to India rather see sad attempt of India specific engineered cars. Honda loyalists don't want it.

[sushan]

It’s a shame to see Honda letting its stable dwindle to just 3 products — city, city eHEV and amaze. While city and amaze are capable products and near market leaders in their respective segments, Honda hasn’t seen good growth in the country for quite some time now.

Inertia in jumping in on the SUV craze has seen Honda lose market position. Not bringing in an automatic version of WRV, not updating BRV and Jazz and not bringing in a compact SUV were huge gaffes in their business plan. Now, with RDE norms kicking in, they had to do away with city 4G, Jazz and WRV. Aspirational products like Accord and Civic were given the boot and not brought back.

It seems Honda was only interested in its golden geese city and amaze. But, if they are to succeed, and Honda to remain relevant in the Indian Car Scene, they have to innovate and bring competitive products to the market

[huntrz]

Don't understand honda and suzuki's aversion to technology in indian market. When VW, skoda etc are giving turbocharged powerful engines honda is happy plonking puny 1.2 NA engines on compact SUV like WRV and expecting it to compete with brezza and ecosport sporting 1.5L or a smaller turbo charged engines.

When even hatches like i20 and Polo etc are easily available with powerful turbo engines now how would one build a case for jazz? It feels like they are totally uninterested in the Indian market and are always a generation behind and trying to catch up.
Lets hope that the discontinuation leads to launch of better cars.

[MotorDev]

Originally Posted by huntrz

Don't understand honda and suzuki's aversion to technology in indian market. When VW, skoda etc are giving turbocharged powerful engines honda is happy plonking puny 1.2 NA engines on compact SUV like WRV and expecting it to compete with brezza and ecosport sporting 1.5L or a smaller turbo charged engines.

When even hatches like i20 and Polo etc are easily available with powerful turbo engines now how would one build a case for jazz? It feels like they are totally uninterested in the Indian market and are always a generation behind and trying to catch up.
Lets hope that the discontinuation leads to launch of better cars.

If you see in the past too, Only the city, civic and amaze sold in good numbers. With time civic 's sales went down. Honda is alive in India only because of City and Amaze. They have always got the India market wrong.

[creative420]

Picked up a used 2015 VX CVT City 4G, 40K run about 2 months back. Think parts will become a problem? I plan on keeping this car for 5 years at least. Any parts I should invest in?

[Yieldway17]

Incompetence of Honda India management and indifference from the parent company is why Honda is such a ridiculed brand in India. They are putting 100% of their hope and prayers on the new SUV and for the sake of a competitive Indian car market, I hope it succeeds. I don't understand how the dealers have let Honda India drag them down too so long.

[shancz]

Originally Posted by GTO

Today, Hyundai is more representative of the "Honda" of the 2000s than Honda itself.

Bullseye.
Lamenting on my college days with City 1.5 VTEC, smashing Accord 2.4 and the newly launched Civic blowing us over to the muscular CRV launched later, left me wondering that who would have ever thought that we would be talking of top-line performance and Hyundai in the same sentence.

Learnings for Honda, if they so desire.

[car_guy1998]

I, as a 4th gen City iDTEC user, sad to see Honda discontinuing the 4th gen City and Jazz.

Most of the people I know own 4th gen City even now and a couple of months ago, my cousin bought one in iDTEC guise but 2017 facelifted version in preowned market.

I was planning to replace our close to 160k Kms run 2014 4th gen City iDTEC with 5th gen City CVT in few months down the line, but after seeing the present lineup, decided to look elsewhere now.

Looking at the present lineup, Honda should take this as a challenge and launch vehicles based on new platform. If not, they will be meeting the same fate as Ford did.

[ellip5i5]

My question to more informed community members is that could Honda have spent a bit of money and updated the Brio, Jazz, WR-V and BR-V ?

Where did they go wrong - Pricing, Features, Timing, Quality? I don’t think they were very off on any parameter. Yet they seemed to have been pretty much the only manufacturer to have regressed.

[Nithesh_M]

Originally Posted by ToThePoint

They killed jazz and WR-V by not giving them the 1.5 iVtec- all in the name of protecting their cash cow CITY.

Isn't the real reason something like they will lose sub4m tax benefits with introducing 1.5l engine into sub4m cars like the Jazz and WRV?

[MotorDev]

Originally Posted by creative420

Picked up a used 2015 VX CVT City 4G, 40K run about 2 months back. Think parts will become a problem? I plan on keeping this car for 5 years at least. Any parts I should invest in?

Even though the car has been discontinued at the end of the day it is a city and you shouldn't be worried of its parts availability. Many still drive their 3rd gen and 2nd gen without any problem .

[SuperGirl_Dad]

Originally Posted by ToThePoint

They killed jazz and WR-V by not giving them the 1.5 iVtec- all in the name of protecting their cash cow CITY, often forgetting that as long as customer shops within the same showroom, it's a win-win for them. Meek facelifts like LED tail lamps while deleting the major usp - magic seats, clearly showed their lack of interest in continuing with the product.

Nitesh_M Isn't the real reason something like they will lose sub4m tax benefits with introducing 1.5l engine into sub4m cars like the Jazz and WRV?

What can we say when they had 1.5 Diesel CVT combo in cheaper Amaze when they couldn't plonk it in Jazz or WRV? This post by ani_meher from 2019 in the official review thread sums up the whole point around Honda failure.

"ani_meher (Honda Amaze : Official Review)
I was very keen on Amaze diesel CVT, despite its lack of quality (as compared to stablemate Jazz). But then realized that XUV300 W6 AMT too was costing around the same. It too comes with two airbags, additionally disc brakes all around. Sure one loses out on boot space, alloy wheels and CVT, but gains much better build quality, 300nm torque, rear headrests (most important, and absolutely shameless on Honda's part to ignore) and tallboy seating. There is a touchscreen in W6 (I think without carplay), so comparable in a way.

Too bad this CVT engine is not available in WR-V. Amaze is too much built to cost to ignore the lack of quality."

[ToThePoint]

Originally Posted by Nithesh_M

Isn't the real reason something like they will lose sub4m tax benefits with introducing 1.5l engine into sub4m cars like the Jazz and WRV?

When we mean giving it 1.5l, we all mean as an extra option for the enthusiasts. People are willing to pay the premium for a good combo.

[Bhupesh_2628]

So, Honda has just 3 cars in their portfolio. Not 3, it’s 2 actually.
Under 10 to 12 lakhs OTR, the hatchback segment is too crowded and wholly dominated by Maruti Suzuki, Tata, and Hyundai. So, it doesn’t make sense for them to invest in this segment.

Sub-compact/Compact/B.O.F SUVs are more profitable for the manufacturers. It’s evident since the launch of segment creators EcoSport and Creta.

To fill the gap of missing cars, they got to bring and launch SUVs. Otherwise, their future is bleak in India.

In these times, SUVs rule!! You cannot ride on “City” model forever.
The new Hyundai Verna, Slavia/Virtus is bridging the gap w.r.t. City in terms of cabin space, engines, features, and gearbox on offer.

A website with just 2 cars, no new model launches especially the SUVs, no new turbo engines, gearboxes - the signs that force customers to not have much confidence in the brand no matter how strong Honda name is still in their mind.

Honda better pull up their socks. Otherwise, they will be leaving India just like Ford. IMHO, Ford was in a better position than Honda if we saw their lineup and models on offer.

[sandeepmdas]

In my opinion, the poll would benefit from including an additional option, namely NOTA (none of the above). This is not a joke, as I have no preference for any of the current options. I am particularly saddened by the departure of Ford, not because I own an Ecosport, but because I feel a sense of loss for the Endy. No such feelings for Honda.

I believe that not only Honda (and not only in India), but also other Japanese car companies may face a similar fate to their consumer electronics and white goods brands, which dominated the market in the 90s but are now sidelined. This shift could occur by the 2030s. While Toyota may be an exception, just as Sony is today, Nissan may become like Panasonic, and Honda, Suzuki, and Mitsubishi could meet the same fate as that of Akai, Sansui, Kenwood, Sanyo and other similar brands.