[tj123]

Thanks Anshuman ! for this detailed write up .
In my opinion Brio is potentially a good city car. Low turning radius, light steering makes it easy to park & maneuver around the city. A peppy engine will make it a zippy car within city limits. Overall a fresh Asian based design.

On the flip side this car cannot be called as genuine 5 seater, the boot space is pathetic coupled with high loading position makes it even worse to use it , I am sure my wify will outright reject it for a weekend trip so a big no no for a long trip. At the rear a 60:40 split folding rear seat is definitely required to compensate for the lack boot space.

I particularly did not like the all glass boot opener don’t know how durable it will be especially when security personal opening & closing it every day to office /malls etc.
Lack of defogger and wiper doest help either.

The lower stance of the car leaves very little headroom for tall people , so people used to Santro’s & Wagon R will definitely feel a bit crammed.

Let’s hope the Brio will be priced competitively to trump the others in a crowded market.

[Mindgrinder]

Great review. To me it seems like Santro on steroids. Personally i do no like the design, may be it looks better on road. Looks like upscale alto to me, in terms of design. Iteriors look great for this segment though.

[informmaha]

Great Review Anshuman.. You have covered all the points as usual.. 5 stars for your write up as well.. I have a comparison chart from here and from the beat review which is at the bottom of this post (didnt know how to pull it here)

I could see that Swift had a boot space of 232L and now its shown as 205L. Is this the case with the new swift? I did'nt intentionally check this, but was thinking swift had bigger boot than the one you had mentioned..

Originally Posted by GTO

When I see the Brio, I see the effect of competition on Honda. Absolutely brilliant hatchback + solid mechanicals; I rate it right up there with the i10 & Swift on my list of petrol favourites.

Well I second your thought here.. How can this car be up in there with i10 and Swift? Just compare the boot space and brio is atleast 20% lesser than these too. Would be interesting to see the sales, since we already had Beat with this small boot and that was one of the point for it not selling well, and if we see a good sale of Brio, we can conclude that brand is more important than space ..

If your point is more specific only about the drive, yeah I can accept that, since no one here has driven this car.

Originally Posted by GTO

Considering the recent price-cut on the City & Jazz, and Honda's immediate need for volumes, the Brio is expected to be priced well (we were already told that it's going to be a sub-5 lakh car).

Overall, it's very (read = VERY) close between the Brio, i10 & Swift in terms of an overall package.

Ohh I can never say this Brio is even close to Swift.. Brio looks puny when compared atleast to swift. I agree the dimensions are different between these too, but may be one will go and buy this because of the fact that its "Honda". I would definitely prefer a bigger swift any day for the nearly same price point (expecting honda would price it near to swift), just my thought..

Originally Posted by GTO

And the weird rear end design isn't to my taste either; I prefer the cleaner look of the Liva. Shocked to see the lack of a very vital rear defogger! This is a necessity in our driving conditions. That apart, the Brio has the necessities...even steering mounted audio controls that my Civic lacks!

Do you feel that Liva's design is a cleaner one and this one is wierd? Well, I thought I was the one who thought liva's rear design was wierd when the review was done (The time period wherein style too overrides many other things), but many people whom I have discussed with have the same opinion as mine, so am commenting on this, no offenses meant..

[Mr.Beat]

What a superb mouthwatering review this, rated 5 stars.

It looks a very promising alternative especially to i10, only if it had a auto box and driver seat height adjust it would have been a amazing package for the masses.

The only thing that could go against the Breeoh is the rear styling and boot space.

The styling from the front is nice and love the design theme except the back.

The lower variant without the steering mounted controls could hamper the use of music system.

Why have manufacturers left out dead pedals? No temperature gauge too?

[gautamkhadse]

THis , as described by everyone else , deserves a 5 Star rating . Very detailed and well written review . Would have loved a small video , showing a walk about . Would love to hear the engine Rev . etc etc ..

LIke the car a lot . Loos like it has been specifically designed for city usage . Do you think it would live up well for highway usage , in terms of high speed stability and all . I think this would get pushed over as soon as a volvo passes next to it .

The red colour visible from teh door pockets absolutely takes away few brownie points .

The Dash , if you look at it for some time it looks really messy , unorganized . Theres no symmetry at all .

Look at the rear hatch door of the concept and the actual production model . The rear is where Honda would need to work . A lot of people would turn away and go to the Liva just for the looks of this car .

Overall the package looks pretty promising .

As far as the competition is concerned I think when hyundai comes up with its 800cc model it would have studied the Liva and the Brio pretty well and they're gonna steal the game from these guys when they price their 800 cc car .

I even feel that they would reduce the pricing of i10 to stay in the competition with the japs .

[myavu]

Originally Posted by GTO

Guys, request to understand that we cannot include 15 hatchbacks in the comparison chart. We've included those petrol hatchbacks that most buyers looking at a quality 5 lakh rupee car would consider, and one from each brand (reason Ritz isn't there). The Beat is from 1/2 a segment lower.

Sorry for

I definitely agree with the first part. But same time disagree with the Beat's comment. Is Beat actually 1/2 segment lower? It's true that Beat petrol is not flying out of showrooms like i10 (no break-up available for Swift/Figo petrol diesel sale ratio)

Please find the following comparison (extract from Team-Bhp reviews)



Both are priced similar.

Yes Brio is Honda and has class engine/transmission. But Chevrolet is not bad either and if we take all features on account on a car per car basis Beat scores more and a better ride too. One cannot find anything in Beat odd due to cost cutting measures.

No fanboysm here. I really like Brio and will consider as my (wify's) next city car. From my POV, as per facts Beat cannot be a 1/2 segment lower.

Cheers!

Vinu

[GTO]

Originally Posted by informmaha

I could see that Swift had a boot space of 232L and now its shown as 205L.

New Swift has a smaller boot than the outgoing generation.

WRT the Swift comparisons, there is no perfect car for 5 lakhs. Get some, lose some. If the Swift has more space, the Brio has far better quality. If everything sold on size alone, no car costing over 15 lakhs would be in showrooms, and the Indica / Vista would be the only hatch selling in India.

Do you feel that Liva's design is a cleaner one and this one is wierd?

I'm a fan of simple lines. Thus, designs like that of the Liva, Vento, ol' Honda City etc. greatly appeal to me.

[fuel_addict]

Excellent review of a yet-to-be-launched car.

The Brio looks like a winner on paper with the engine specs. The power-weight ratio makes it quicker of all the hatches (on paper atleast). The omission of rear defogger/wiper, fog lamps, alloys (?) even on the top variant is hard to understand. I guess Honda wants to launch an updated version of this car one year down the line! Expecting ACC in this car would be criminal knowing that even Jazz & City do not have it.

Interiors look awesome for a 5L rupee car. Surely, Toyota should take a cue from Honda on this. There seems to be no "cheap" elements sticking out like in the Liva.

The boot space is going to be an issue for many. Lack of 60:40 split is another disappointment. The all glass rear looks weird and will not conceal any stuff unless a parcel tray is provided.

The Brio should give the Honda an added reason to plonk a 1.5L in the Jazz and offer it with both 1.2 and 1.5 options.

[thangu]

Brio certainly looks like a very competent hatch and it has no signs of a "Made for india" tag attached to it.

Hopefully Honda will price this car reasonably. Now that the base version of Jazz starts at 5.59, we can expect the top end of the Brio to cost a little less than this. Now if only Honda can price its base version at close to 4 lacs.

[Utopian]

What a review. 5 stars.
Honda has finally started to speak sense now. Although rear is a bit of a let down, all the other features are up to date & the car looks so cute.
The middle variant would be the one to look out for. Hope it's priced competitively.

[karty_83]

Originally Posted by GTO

Guys, request to understand that we cannot include 15 hatchbacks in the comparison chart. We've included those petrol hatchbacks that most buyers looking at a quality 5 lakh rupee car would consider.

How about an official comparo between i10 and the Brio ? It would aid prospective buyers big time.

[SinghBHP]

Really nice review and well in Advance thanks T-BHP for this. The design of the car seems to be like BEAT to me from the side view and less Boot space is the only negative point which can prevent me from going for it.

OT : Would love similar review for New Swift from T-BHP team. For me no review is complete until I have read it from T-BHPs point of view.

[A350XWB]

Originally Posted by akhilesh

I am not sure if anyone has noticed or not, the supposedly high quality interiors on Hyundai's do not age well.

, but this is totally wrong. My 5 year old Santro's plastic and rubber quality is leagues ahead of my 2011 Figo, my cousin's 2010 Swift and also my friend's 2011 Etios, just for a comparison. And my friends own i10s, i20s and Vernas and never did I saw bad quality plastics in any of these. Maybe it's the cars you have seen.
Yes, the high quality plastics in the Hyundais age really well.

[noopster]

This is nice- T-BHP reviews before the actual launch of the car. Great work .anshuman! I follow most of your threads keenly and ths is another feather in the cap.

Somehow was left cold by this car, despite its obvious plus points. Perhaps it appeals to someone who is considering a Liva, but as a previous-gen Swift owner, I confess I would much rather get the Swift Zdi or the Jazz than this. Perhaps it works better as a starter car- Honda need to be VERY careful about how they price this, or they risk going the Micra way.

But considering the brand equity Honda enjoy in India, it's a fair bet this will be heat up the sales charts in no time. So good luck to Honda.

[W.A.G.7]

Superb review! Definitely 5*! It looks like Honda finally has another winner in another segment. But it remains to be seen, how they price it. The fit and finish quality look excellent. Did you get a chance to photograph the lower variants inside out anytime? Most of the photos are of only the top end.