[Voodooblaster]

THE MAGIC CARPET – HONDA JAZZ CVT

This is going to be a long haul (Courtesy: COVID Lockdown) If you have time and resilience; ride shotgun with me for the next 7000 words. Each section will be given as an individual thread. Please feel free to move across to the ones you feel are more relevant. And please do correct me for any inadvertent errors that might have crept in.

PROLOGUE

Voices in my head (Text in italics are the voices in my head)

I should write a review about the New Car purchase.
New?
Really??
In which planet is a 11 month old car new???
How did 11 months pass? – Time it took me to complete TBHP membership formalities from date of purchase of car.
How do I begin? Where do I begin? When do I begin?

PROCRASTINATION (noun)
/prə(ʊ)ˌkrastɪˈneɪʃ(ə)n/
The action of delaying or postponing something.

Confession upfront: I have procrastinated this review long enough.

“For bet than never is late.” [Better than never is late.] - Geoffrey Chaucer, The Yeoman's Prologue and Tale, Canterbury Tales, circa 1386

I went through the forums of TBhp to get inspired, but;
I realised I have some very BIG shoes to fill, got scared and continued to do what I do best... PROCRASTINATE

And in my Universe the 11 month car turns 13 months old. Covid-19 Lockdown starts. So now I am seriously think of writing the review.
But hey I am the best Procrastinator ever. And time marches on relentlessly and the car gets 14 months old. And the Covid Lockdown is about to end. I get flustered and compile photos and almost turn on the word processor. But hey presto, lockdown extended. The Inner Procrastinator in me is gleeful and time rolls on. Now the end for the lockdown is looming large and I finally begin the review; compile photos, and do the groundwork.

First things first, I have to thank TBHP Member Mr GKMahajan. His review on the Honda Jazz CVT was very helpful in finalising our purchase.

Now that the opening credits have rolled over, let’s shift gears (I keep forgetting that it’s a CVT; so maybe a gentle tap on the accelerator).

[Voodooblaster]

THE OUTGOING VETERAN:

July 2009 – I got my Driving License as I breached 19 years of existence. I learn the tricks of the trade in an antiquated HM Ambassador and a Tata Indica. But there was a problem, we didn’t have a car and nobody else in the family could drive a car. Father was also seriously considering learning to drive and this gave us an opportunity to pester him into buying a car.
For the urban commute we mainly depended on our Scooter/Auto rickshaws and for longer trips to visit grandparents and Family deity; Trains, Busses and Taxis did the trick. Truth be told, it was more economical than owning a car (The math will be revealed soon)

Finally in January 2010, we brought our Second Hand (Pre Owned, Pre worshipped – you choose the word) Car for Rs 2.65 lacs. I wanted a Maruti Swift (It was one of the best looking budget car a decade ago, and had a beautiful engine); but my parents went and brought home a 2006 manufactured Wagon R (1061cc) with approx 38,000 kms on the ODO. I was not much thrilled. But I polished my driving skills in that in that. My dad too perfected his driving skills in that. And then my brother was tutored by Waggy. So it’s reasonable to assume that it took a fair bit of abuse (Especially the Transmission and clutch plate)

Years rolled on along with the odometer. Our usage was spare ( approx 10k kms a year). Trips to the visit our grandparents (200 kms one way), our family deity (220 kms one way) were the main usage. Finally around mid 2018 we were discussing replacing the car. It had crossed 1.10 lacs kms in the ODO.

Overtaking with AC and full load was a strain as our travel was mostly in the narrow windy 2 laned roads of Southern Kerala. A comfortable overtaking is possible only for those who have perfected this manoeuvre:

• Switch Off the AC blower
• Shift down and accelerate fully,
• Shift up to complete the overtake
• Switch on the AC blower

All this had to be completed within a span of 5 seconds. We finally got our SA to tune the engine slightly (Probably the idle RPM was adjusted). Now the engine had a slight growl, and better acceleration and better cooling from AC. We were not bothered about the drop in FE as our usage was not much. There were no major issues or breakdowns experienced except for the rare puncture

Towards end of 2018 our Service Advisor (Sarathy Autocars) observed signs of mild rusting in the underbody of the car during a routine service. Also the car was 14 years old and due for re-registration soon. We were now seriously considering a new car. Since traffic had greatly increased in the last decade, we were considering Automatics also. Here is our experience with Waggy in a nutshell:

Likes:

• Easy ingress and egress
• Rear Seats had headrest, individual recline and fold functionality for extra cargo space
• Good Road view
• Good ground clearance
• Reasonably spacious and tall boot (compared to other cars in the price range)
• Trouble free Ownership (We do service waggy at least 3 times a year)

Dislikes:

• Weak AC and Engine (Not really if you consider the price point)
• Overtaking with AC and full load was a strain (Partially solved with tweak)
• Safety
• Not exactly a comfortable 5 seater

We were ready to bid adieu to the Wagon R at the Feb 2019 after 1.29 lacs kms (91,000 kms usage by us) on the ODO

The Math over Nine years (91,000kms):

• We must have spent Rs 3.5 lacs on Fuel.
• Approximately Rs 2.45 lacs on Service and Consumables (AC gas, Engine Oil, Brake Fluid) and minor repairs, seat covers, Audio player, Speakers and other accesories.
• Factor in Rs 60,000 for insurance.
• Acquisition Cost (2.65 lacs) minus Resale and Exchange Bonus (1.20 lacs) = 1.45 lacs

Total cost of ownership is approximately Rs 8 lac over 9 years. This translates roughly to Rs 9 per kilometre.
Here are a few pics of the Waggy.

[Voodooblaster]

SHORTLISTING THE CARS AND DEALERS

By Dec 2018, we were ready to get a New Car. Unlike in 2010, we were more aware about NCAP ratings and safety features. We were on the lookout for a Petrol Hatchback / CSUV / MUV. Dad did suggest the new 1.2 L Wagon R that was unveiled at that time, but we vetoed it.

Though we were drawn towards an Automatic, manuals were not completely out of the picture. Also the maximum OTR we were ready to shell out was Rs 10 lacs. The estimated usage of the car is 10 years. Hence resale value was not a big deal for us. First a list of features we needed was drawn up.

Must Have Features

• ABS
• EBD
• Airbag
• Rear Parking Sensor

Nice To Have Features

• Electronic ORVM
• Rear Parking Camera
• Bluetooth/Smartphone connectivity

Now the next big question; which Manufacturer?

Dad is a huge fan of Japanese technology and engineering and hence we had only 3 serious contenders:

• Maruti Suzuki
• Toyota
• Honda

While Nissan is a Japanese manufacturer, the after sales experience didn’t inspire much confidence and hence was not considered. Also rumours of many Nissan dealers were shutting shop in the end of 2018/beginning of 2019 didn’t help matters.

List of models in our budget range that were not vetoed by anyone

• Toyota Etios Liva
• Maruti Suzuki NEXA Baleno
• Maruti Suzuki Ertiga
• Maruti Suzuki Swift
• Honda WRV
• Honda Jazz

I work in a city approx 10hrs away (by Train) from my hometown. So we could do the test drive and evaluation only over weekends. I tried to make appointments in a weekend when both I and my dad would be free, so that the exact variant we needed would be available for test ride.

Order of Calling up dealerships:

• Perfect Honda
• Srivatsa Nexa
• Nippon Toyota

The contact numbers were taken from the websites of the OEMs. The direct numbers of Perfect Honda and Srivatsa Nexa were listed. For Nippon Toyota only a toll free number was available. All 3 promised that I will be receiving a call from their sales executive immediately

Order of Call from Sales Executive:

• Perfect Honda (Within 5 mins)
• Srivatsa Nexa (Within 5 mins)
• Nippon Toyota didnt call me back. I called them again after 2 days, but to no end

In the meantime, my mother began observing Balenos on the road and didn’t like the design, especially the rear much. Now Nexa was out of the race. I cancelled the appointment with Srivatsa Nexa, though they did try to convince us by saying that they will bring a Demo car to our place for a closer visual inspection. They also tried to convince us to consider:

• Ignis (Looks like a mutated WagonR and seemed overpriced)
• Ciaz (Out of budget, and too big)
• S Cross(Out of budget, and too big)

I politely declined as there was no point in wasting their time as well as ours.

Since dad was eager on a Toyota, I tried again. Nippon Toyota is the only dealer for Toyota in Mid and South Kerala – covering 8 districts. All their customer queries are routed to their main office at Cochin. Dealer monopoly and ignoring prospective customers could kill Toyota.

I sent a mail (including the location of the showroom i desired to visit) directly to Toyota to be allotted a sales executive. Finally a buffoon from the head office of Nippon Toyota called me and asked me to register my interest in their Toll Free number. I kept my cool and mailed Toyota again. Finally someone with better sense in Nippon Toyota HO called me, listened patiently to my issue and promised a call back within 15 minutes. I got the promised call within 5 minutes (Mr Karthik of Nippon Toyota Eenchakkal, Trivandrum).
I fixed the date and time with the Toyota and Honda dealerships

[Voodooblaster]

TEST DRIVE AND SHOWROOM EXPERIENCE

Before leaving for the test-drive I called up the sales executives to confirm the availability of vehicles. The guy at Nippon was ready, but the sales executive of Honda was away on some personal emergency and he gave me the contact number of the sales manager. I rang him up and he assured that the vehicle would be available.

Sarathy Autocars - Maruti - TRIVANDRUM

As we had some time before the appointment with Nippon Toyota at Eenchakkal, Trivandrum, we decided to visit the Sai Service Maruti outlet which was located nearby. Unfortunately a fire in a paint booth at their workshop the previous day had resulted in power service being cut and the place was a mess. Even then they went out of their way to show us the models we were interested in and gave us a lowdown on the variants available. We took a look at the Ertiga Manual and Automatic models and the Swift. Personally I found the rear seat of the Swift a bit claustrophobic, but from the outside it was a real looker. The Ertiga Automatic was way beyond our budget, and we felt that the bigger dimensions could be difficult to park during urban commutes. So finally Maruti was totally off the list and off we went to Nippon Toyota.

Nippon Toyota, Eenchakkal - TRIVANDRUM

We reached there at exactly 10.30 AM, the appointed time. I approached Nippon Toyota a bit sceptically (The undue delay previously described did play a part). Mr Karthik (Sales Executive) of Nippon Toyota of Nippon Toyota greeted us warmly. He showed us the Etios Liva and its Dual Colour edition. He beautifully explained all the features, gave us the brochures and went to sign out the demo car. I was having a change of mind regarding the dealer thanks to this guy. We test drove the vehicle. I had requested for some narrow roads and bad patches and he did just that. Full marks to Mr Karthik. Coming to the vehicle, it handled potholes very well, in spite of me being a bit rough with it, just to check underbelly scrapping and the suspension. The Gear Throws were perfect. The odometer does take some getting used to. Acceleration was decent, and the steering was precise. If we did not have an automatic in mind, Etios with the reliability of Toyota would have been our purchase. We informed Mr Karthik regarding our hunt for an Automatic, and he suggested the Yaris. Unfortunately it was over our budget and off we went to Perfect Honda.

Perfect Honda, Oruvathilkotta TRIVANDRUM

We reached perfect Honda by 11.45 am (We had fixed 12.00 noon), and a different sales executive was assigned to us as the original guy had some emergency to take care of. Now comes the sad part. The CVT test drive model was not available immediately. They informed us that it would be back shortly as it was sent for a home demo. (All of us knew that “will be back shortly” means a longish wait of at least a couple of hours). I was irritated as I had taken every possible care to prevent this kind of goof ups. The one good thing about the long wait is that we got to check out all cars Honda offers for seating comfort, steering reach, blind spots, rear leg space, ergonomics, rear view and boot space.

Dealers have to remember that first impression is the best impression. Even after a year, these incidents linger in my memory more than anything else when I think of my car buying experience. To kill time, we took a look at the other models on display. The WRV was impressive looking compared to the Jazz. Both dad and I preferred looks of WR-V over Jazz. We also took a look at the BR-V, but again it exceeded our budget, and also was significantly bigger. We waited and waited and it was almost 2.30 pm when the test drive car arrived. We took a TD.

It was dads first time driving a CVT and he was impressed (Already warned him about the rubber band effect). Since the dealership is located in the By Pass, the roads were good, straight and empty; we decided to test the brakes. Touched some high speeds and applied sudden brakes. It stopped without any drama.

Personally i felt that the Toyota Sales Executive was better than the Honda Sales Executive. The Honda guy was not thoroughly knowledgeable regarding warranty, RSA and even the features.

As it was January 2019, I enquired about any leftover stocks from 2018 that might get us a discount. Unfortunately there were none available at this particular showroom. However Honda was offering a 20,000 exchange bonus and First Year Insurance for free (The comprehensive part; and yes now Pvt Car insurance is to be taken for 3 years on purchase of vehicle). In addition they were ready to throw a Rs 5000 cash discount and a corporate discount.

After a lengthy discussion, we decided on going ahead with an automatic mainly due to the increasing traffic. So Etios Liva and Honda WR-V gracefully left the stage. By this process of elimination only Honda Jazz CVT was left in the Fray. Next we had to decide on selling the Wagon R. I was expecting a resale value of 85,000 to 1 lac for the 14 year old WagonR.

In the following weekend we took our Wagon R to be evaluated by Auto Terrace (The pre-owned cars division of Honda ) at Perfect Honda and also collected the quotation for Jazz CVT. The WagonR was valued at Rs 90,000-/-

Peninsular Honda TRIVANDRUM

Then I went to Peninsular Honda, another Honda dealer in our city to collect their quotation. WagonR was valued at Rs 90,000-/- there also. They offered a similar deal, but they were not frank enough to admit that there was a 20,000 exchange bonus from Honda. They offered 10,000 Exchange bonus at first. I mentioned the discount amount offered in the OEM website was higher. The sales executive made a quick call to the Boss and claimed that the additional amount was the dealers contribution and added that it will be factored in when the purchase is confirmed. There was no mention of the corporate discount either. I was not very happy with the cloak and dagger stuff. But they did have a 2018 model, which they claimed will be shipped from Chennai. They assured that it would be brought in a truck. The Ex Showroom price would be Rs 8 lacs for the 2018 model and Rs 8.60 lacs for the current model. They didn’t confirm whether any other discounts will be available on the older model.

A quick web search revealed that Peninsular Honda didn’t have an outlet in Chennai and that raised my suspicions. I was afraid of being saddled with an old leftover car from some other dealer which could even be a demo car. Also Chennai is nearly 800 kms from my city and there was a possibility of these guys driving the car, instead of using a truck. Almost everyone knows how cars are handled in such trips, so I will not elaborate. My father and I came to the conclusion that the risk was not worth the savings, since we were aiming to keep the vehicle for a longer tenure and needed absolutely no reliability issues.

So we decided to go ahead with Perfect Honda.

Now we had to decide the variant. The Jazz CVT was available in 2 variants (My views on the features are given alongside in italics):

V CVT Features as per brochure (8.69 lacs Ex Showroom):

• Advanced Multi-Information Combination Meter (with Eco AssistAmbient Meter Rings) – Fancy term for Odometer and MIS
• Auto AC with Touchscreen Control Panel – It actually turned out to be a drawback for me
• 12.7cm Advanced Integrated Audio - Good to have feature
• Handsfree Telephone Control on Steering Wheel - Should be part of standard package for a premium Hatch
• Rear Parking Camera (Wide, Normal & Top Down View) - Should be part of standard package for a premium Hatch
• One Push Start/ Stop Button with White & Red Illumination - Gimmicks
• Honda Smart Key System with Keyless Remote - Gimmicks
• Cruise Control - Good to have feature
• Paddle Shift - Good to have feature
• Front Fog Lamps – Should be part of standard package for a premium Hatch
• Rear Micro Antenna – Shark Fin looks better
• R15 Alloy Wheels - Slightly bigger tyres needed
• Chrome Outside Door Handles - Gimmicks
• Rear Wiper & Washer - Should be part of standard package for a premium Hatch
• Map Light - Should be part of standard package for a premium Hatch

VX-CVT had these additional features (9.80 lacs Ex Showroom Price if I remember rightly):

• Signature Rear LED Wing Lights - Gimmicks
• 17.7cm Advanced Infotainment System with Capacitive Touchscreen - Good to have feature
• In-built Satellite Linked Turn-by-Turn Navigation - Good to have feature but Google Maps can substitute it
• Seamless Smartphone Connectivity (Android Auto, Apple Carplay) - Good to have feature
• Voice Command - Gimmicks
• IR Remote Control - Gimmicks
• Electrically Folding ORVM with Turn Indicators- Should be part of standard package for a premium Hatch (The cheaper Grand i10 and Xcent get it)
• Leather Wrapped Steering Wheel & Gear Knob- Should be part of standard package for a premium Hatch

Paying a premium of almost 1.50 lacs (Factoring in the higher road tax and insurance amt due to increase in price of vehicle) seemed wasteful and extravagant. Smartphone connectivity which may look a big deal now may become obsolete with the relentless rapid march of mobile technology. So we decided to stick with V-CVT.

Finally, the colour; both my mother and wife voted for Red and that settled the issue.

[Voodooblaster]

Purchase Experience

Our allotted salesman at Perfect Honda was finally back and I visited them to iron out the details. I let him know that I was getting a similar deal from Peninsular Honda and also mentioned the availability of a cheaper 2018 model with them. He tried to scare us out of getting an older model by claiming that the odometer could be tampered and all the usual exaggerated horror stories. I finally mentioned that if he could provide a better offer, he could have the deal. He called after a day and asked us to bring the Wagon R, and promised a better deal. After a bit of bargaining, he agreed to increase the trade in price of Wagon R by Rs 10,000-/- taking the total Trade in Price to 1 lac. Also agreed to provide basic accessories kit (Floor mats and 2 Honda branded pillows) for free. After discussing with my father we agreed to the price and paid the booking amount of Rs 5,000 -/- on receiving the Final Quotation.

We wanted the maximum warranty because the car is a CVT. The fact that Honda offers 5 years unlimited kms warranty shows the trust Honda has in its own product. Way to go Honda. The best warranty is one that doesn’t need to be used. Also we decided to get RSA for 5 years as there is a possibility of forgetting to renew it.

The car reached dealers yard in 14 days against the expected 21 days. I had insisted that we would take delivery of car only after PDI by us. Accordingly I decoded the VIN and found that it was a January 2019 model. The car was fitted with 4 R15 Michelin tyres, which is a good thing. The exteriors were flawless, but dusty. The spare was a R14 steel wheel. I wanted to start the vehicle and see the mechanicals. The sales executive claimed that it couldn’t be done as the dealer PDI and cleaning was not complete. I was ok with that, but wanted to conduct my own PDI based on TBHP list before taking delivery of vehicle and mentioned that to the Sales Executive and they agreed. On 13 Feb 2019, I conducted PDI based on the comprehensive TBHP List. In the meantime, the financier had also completed the rest of the payment process and we handed over WagonR. The add-ons in the insurance are:

• Enhancement (Nil Depreciation) Cover
• Engine Protect
• Consumables Cover
• Additional Towing Charges
• Return to Invoice



Please find TBHP Link to decode VIN here: https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/buyin...cture-vin.html (ARTICLE: Find your car's date of manufacture (VIN))

Please find TBHP Link regarding PDI here: https://www.team-bhp.com/advice/pre-...pdi-check-list

We gifted ourselves a Red Honda Jazz on 14 February 2019 -A perfect Valentine’s Day Gift. The dealer had a custom of bringing all their staff on delivery of a vehicle and giving a small applause during the key handing over ceremony. We distributed chocolates to the dealer staff, verified and collected the paperwork. We received a box of chocolates and a folder to keep the documents. We did a small pooja ourselves and set off from the Dealership.

[Voodooblaster]

The Magic Carpet

The ride home was exciting. We finally had a brand new car, and that too a CVT. I had the constant itch to shift the lever, especially when starting after Traffic signals. Thankfully the showroom guys advice helped. He simply asked us to hold steering with 2 hands and drive for the first couple of weeks to desist from shifting unwittingly. It worked. The next day, I took it for a spin to get Fuel filled, and to check the tyre pressure. Unsurprisingly it was over-inflated (as experienced by many of our TBHP members)
Now let’s get to the business part of the thread:

The Magic Carpet aka Red Honda Jazz CVT’s New Crib





We fixed a small idol of Lord Vigneshwara – the remover of obstacles. Driving under his watchful eyes ensures that we drive extra cautiously.

[Voodooblaster]

Car Features:



The display unit of the audio system doubles up as the reverse camera. Also it has proximity sensors that beep when an obstruction is sensed while reversing. As we drive closer to the obstruction, frequencies of the beeps keep increasing. The camera has 3 modes (Wide, Normal & Top down View).









Air Conditioner

The Auto AC comes with touch screen controls. They smudge easily and are difficult to control when driving. This mainly happens when multiple passengers require multiple levels of cooling. The auto setting helps a great deal by automatically varying blower speed with change in temperature though. I wish for the old school manual dials though. It’s rumoured that the 2020 BS6 version may have manual controls. In my opinion anything that distracts driver is a strict no-no; the touch screen controls being a case in point.
The Central AC vents air flow direction can be adjusted but not closed. The AC vents on the driver side and Front Passenger side can be closed if needed. The AC vent on the driver’s side gets a cup holder positioned in such a way that the cold air hits it. Canned drinks can be placed in it.
There is no rear AC vent. Fixing a rear AC vent is neither costly nor rocket science. Hyundai's Entry level Santro gets it. Wake up Honda, its after all a premium hatchback.

[Voodooblaster]

The glove box is fairly spacious. It can hold the Honda Service manual, and a small sized Tablet or big phone comfortably. The glove box is neither chilled nor illuminated. For the record Hyundai Xcent (and probably the Grand i10) which are a full segment lower gets a chilled glove box.






There is an USB port, AUX Port and a Power outlet. The ports come with plastic caps.




The audio controls are also steering mounted. It can change the Source (Radio/USB/AUX/CD), track/Radio Station and increase decrease the volume. The speakers are mounted on the doors. The sound quality is good enough for me. I am not an audiophile nor do I listen to music at very loud levels. So basically it’s excellent for a layperson.




The telephone controls are in the left side of steering and easily accessible. Contacts can be accessed through the display unit and it also shows the name of the caller. Mic picks up voices pretty well.

[Voodooblaster]

The Headlight and indicator stalk is placed on the right side



The wiper (including rear) stalk is on the left



The stalks are chunky and built to last.

ARMREST





The armrest is a great boon in automatic cars. But Honda managed to bungle it up by making it fixed. The result: Only drivers with a laid back seating position may be able to use it even partially. In our vehicle, the front passenger uses it. There is a small storage compartment inside the armrest.
In the previous iterations of the Jazz, the armrest was an optional (Overpriced) accessory. Hope the designers at Honda make the armrest adjustable in the upcoming models.

CABIN LIGHTS





There are 2 cabin lights. One set in the front. Separate lights for the Driver and Front Passenger. The switch mechanism is built into the lamp. Push it for light. Neat! The rear passengers get lamp with a sliding switch. Since the cabin of Honda Jazz is spacious, its good of Honda to have provided cabin lights at middle and front also.

[Voodooblaster]

The Rear Seat with minimum and maximum leg space. The rear seat has amazing leg space. It probably beats every contender in the sub 4 metre Car segment in terms of leg space in the rear (Verification needed from TBHP members).



However I despise the fact that rear passengers do not get proper individual headrests. To put it in perspective our 1.5 decade old WagonR had one. Older versions of jazz had this.
And no split seats in the rear. (Again the decade older wagon R gets it). The older version of Jazz had magic seats. Sadly they are not available any more. Seriously Honda, you had a great USP for Jazz and you blew it.

Maximum Leg space is approximately 50 centimetres. WOW!



Minimum Leg space is approximately 20 centimetres. Not bad, not bad at all.



The Middle passenger gets a lap belt, and not even a faux headrest. While a hump is present, middle passengers legs can be comfortably placed across them.


There is no individual recline for the rear seat passengers. In the 1.5 decade old Wagon R, the front and rear seats could be reclined to form a 5 feet bed. You could easily use it to take a quick nap in the car if need be. Again older versions of jazz had this, but recline angle was very less probably due to the parcel tray.

We want this back:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtyEyV58DBM

Magic Seats won't add much to the overall cost and Honda Jazz needs all the help it can get to make it stand out in the crowded Hatchback Segment

[Voodooblaster]

The doors open in three steps. The widest is almost 90 degrees.



The beige fabric insets in the door can get dirty easily and will be difficult to clean. Wish Honda had gone with a full black design there. All 4 doors get a bottle holder that can hold a 28 cm long bottle. Also speakers are integrated in all 4 doors. All the doors have buttons that control their respective windows and locking mechanism. I found the unlocking mechanism in the Rear Right door very tight compared to other doors. Have to get the service centre to look into it.

Captains Control



The driver seat door has buttons to control all 4 windows. The driver side window gets the one touch up/down functionality. Also the driver can lock/unlock all doors. Additionally the doors automatically lock on reaching a speed of approx 20kmph



The lever for opening the Engine bay and fuel tank are placed near the hinges of the front door. This positioning is better than the placing fuel tank lid release levers at the base of driver seat as seen in many cars.

[Voodooblaster]

PAYLOAD BAY



The boot is spacious. 3 bags are placed to get an idea of available space. A light has been placed in the boot to ease placing or removing luggage in low light conditions.



Lift the boot floor and you can see the Spare wheel; R14 MRF Steel wheel. Honda recommends speeds not exceeding 80kmph on spare wheels Due to difference in size. First Aid and tool kit are enclosed in a Styrofoam casing that neatly fits into the spare wheel. Filling air into the spare wheel is a chore. The Styrofoam casing has to be removed and the wheel lifted as the nozzle faces the boot floor. This problem will be compounded if there is heavy luggage in the boot. We get around this by filling up the air in the spare wheel a few days before any long trip. Alternatively some people fill up a few points above the recommended level once a month.



The rear seat can be folded to give a bigger cargo space. However the cargo bay is not flat.



Both the stalks have to be pulled together to fold the seat. Unless you are gifted with very long arms, it may be a challenge to fold the seats by one person.

[Voodooblaster]

Off to the more exciting parts of the Jazz CVT

There are 3 driving modes.



• D-Drive
• S-Sports
• R-Reverse

The CVT has a total of 7 gear settings. The odometer has a blue illumination by default which turns into green when we drive economically. For the Leadfoots out there this is a boon. Driving sedately in D mode will give you decent FE even in chaotic urban traffic. With our mixed usage of city and weekend outstation trips in predominantly 2 laned roads we are getting FE of approximate 13kmpl over nearly 14,000 km. The good thing when we drive sedately in D mode is that, the rubberband effect is almost absent besides being kind to our wallets. The driver can of course sense the shifts, but it butter smooth from a passengers perspective. D mode upshifts at the first possible opportunity to improve FE. Almost 99% of our trips are easily manageable in D Mode.

Every Indian Movie has this habit of suddenly transplanting the viewers into an exotic hill-station (Also called as songs). Some movies also move the plotline through these exotic songs.

So, let’s take a break and dive into a travelogue (the first long trip of Jazz CVT). 4 of us went to Kodaikkanal from Trivandrum. The route was Trivandrum – Thenkasi – Rajapalayam – Peraiyur – Usilampatti – Batlagundu – Kodaikkanal. It’s a fully 2 laned route. I personally feel that driving in 2 laned roads tests the Man and the Beast more than the monotonous 4 laned expressways.


From Trivandrum to Batlagundu (The foothills of Kodaikkanal) I used the D Mode with cruise control occasionally. The cruise control engages after 40kmph. I set it at approx 60kmph to check it out in stretches between Thenkasi and Batlagundu where there was very thin traffic. With good roads, cruise control and AirCon, just play your favourite song and close your eyes. (The passengers obviously). It’s almost as if you are not in a metal can hurtling at 70kmph and just relaxing in your favourite chair at home. As for the driver it tends to get a bit boring after some time. You just have to steer and apply brakes in case of situation warrants it. Pressing the brakes/accelerator will dis-engage the cruise control. Also during the auto pilot (cruise control), instantaneous FE was almost 20kmpl. This is with Air Con at 24 degrees Celsisus, outside temperature at approx 37 degrees Celsisus (It was April, summer time) with 4 adults and bags for 3 days. Very impressive.

In the Trivandrum Thenkasi stretch, there was roughly 20kms where road widening and re-laying work was going on. The road was muddy and slushy due to recent summer showers, there were some major ruts in the road. The Jazz behaved beautifully. The underbelly didn’t scrap anywhere, as I feared. (The exposed oil sump was scaring me a bit). Sadly the oil sump doesn’t get any protection, even as an Official Accessory. Honda can think in these lines and maybe earn some extra revenue. The suspensions held up nicely and there was no undue body roll.



I had found the S mode to be significantly advantageous in ghat sections. I drove using S mode after Batlagundu(The foothills of Kodai). The S mode helped to overtake slower moving vehicles when there is only a limited time window to finish overtakes. S mode seems to upshift slowly and downshift quickly. I tested the steering in the Ghats and it came out well. Mist rolled over as it was almost 7pm when we approached the outskirts of Kodaikkanal. This was a good time to check the effectives of the head lights. The lights were satisfactory and gave decent visibility. The second day we travelled all of 30 km in sightseeing, but due to the massive traffic on account of weekend, FE took a massive hit.After using the S mode for nearly 150 kms, the average FE dropped to 11.2 kmpl. We were getting approx 14 kmpl in the D mode. So with S mode ghat roads and 30km of stop and go traffic of Kodai the FE must have been approx 8kmpl.



When driving downhill, I had to use the paddle shifter. The paddle shifters are very useful when engine braking is needed. When we pull the minus lever, engine shifts down. Paddle shifters work differently in D and S modes. In D mode the manual mode is overridden after some time However in S mode, the gear which we selected is held. Regardless of the modes, downshifts happen if vehicle speed keeps decreasing beyond the power band of the selected gear.

In the return journey, we missed a turn and had to take a slightly longer route: Kodaikkanal – Batlagundu – Sholavandan – Tirumangalam By Pass – Rajapalayam – Thenkasi – Trivandrum. There was an approx 12 km stretch in the 4 laned NH 44. The Jazz with its 1.2 litre engine was easily overtook by Cars with bigger engines effortlessly. Since the roads were free, I went reasonably fast but was easily overtaken by a Honda City Petrol (I noticed the I-Vtec Badging) , a Creta’s (1.6 litre Petrol from the badging), and an Ecosport. Within seconds all three were out of the horizon. As the famous adage goes, “There is no replacement for displacement”.



By the end of the 750kms trip, FE was a respectable 13.3 kmpl over 99.9% 2 laned roads, including 150 kms of Ghat roads. Not bad Honda, Not bad at all.

[Voodooblaster]

My Dear Petrolheads, the Heart of the Honda Jazz, The Magnificent i-VTEC.



Fun Facts regarding the Heart:

• Max Power is 90ps @ 6000 rpm
• Max Torque is 110Nm @ 4800 rpm

Personally i felt that the Petrol Jazz is best driven within 4500 rpm. After that FE goes for a toss for not much appreciable performance difference.

It’s an accepted Cliché that Honda makes the best petrol engines in the mass market cars. The engine bay has some more space and can probably fit in the 1.5 litre doing duty in the Honda City. The tax benefits are probably the reason why Honda is not doing that in India. It seems that Honda is sourcing some components from Mitsubishi.



The engine bay gets insulation for enhanced NVH experience. However the benchmark in NVH is Hyundai. In both Verna and Xcent petrol models, I was unable to distinguish whether engine was running when vehicle had stopped and in Neutral Mode. Unfortunately Jazz doesn’t reach that level.

[Voodooblaster]

TAKEWAYS

I have named our Honda Jazz as The Magic Carpet for the amazing ride quality that it provides.

Likes

• Tons of space (Boot, seats and Leg space )
• Convenience of CVT
• Honda Petrol Engine
• Very good ride quality
• Good Audio system
• Functional Display system which doubles up as the perfect reverse camera and neatly calibrated proximity sensors
• Good and powerful AC considering the huge area to be cooled

Dislikes

• Absence of 1.5litre engine variant.
• Absence of creature comforts that Hyundai provides in cars that are a full segment below like Rear AC vents
• Absence of safety features that international variants get
• No under body protection, even as an accessory
• Interiors are available only in Beige.
• Absence of head restraints in rear seats

The Honda Jazz is a very practical car. It is spacious, comfortable and eminently easy to drive. My wife love driving the Honda Jazz. She claims that if she keeps driving the Jazz, she may just forget about the stick shifts. My dad had to make a hectic trip of almost 350km in a single day over completely 2 laned roads with nearly 80 kms of winding roads to participate in the Annual Festival held at our Family Deity Temple. He was not at all tired despite single handedly driving the whole distance and actively participating in the festivities mainly due to the convenience of CVT. Such trips have been previously done in the Wagon R, but used to wear us out at the end of the day.

Having driven Celerio AMT, Micra CVT and Jazz CVT, I vote for the CVT unit of the Jazz.

The fact that the manufacturer offers 5 year unlimited kms warranty inspires great confidence in the prospective buyers. Currently Honda is offering 10 years warranty which even existing Honda owners can purchase. Congratulations Honda.



On the Flipside Honda has skipped safety features that international models get. The features numbered 8 through 10 are not available in the Indian versions of Honda Jazz, not even as a differently priced variant. Honda has to understand that there is a market for safer cars. The top spec W8(O) variant of Mahindra XUV300, Titanium+ variant of Ford Ecosport are good examples.

I wish that Honda releases an updated WR-V powered by 1.5 Litre CVT. Honda is shooing away prospective customers of CSUV’s who are in the market for an automatic variant. All its competitors have it in their arsenal. (Tata Nexon, Hyundai Venue, Mahindra XUV300, Ford Ecosport, Maruti Suzuki Brezza ). Honda needn’t worry about the sales of its other models taking a hit, as it’s always better that a customer buys a Honda car than go to a different manufacturer.

With the Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza Diesel out of the picture, Honda can easily mate the Amaze Diesel engine (albeit in a higher tune) in both CVT and Manual modes to fill in the void.

I have added the Jazz 2018 model brochure and Owner’s manual that may be used for comparison and reference now that the next model of jazz is expected.
If Maruti had Vitara Brezza Petrol AT in 2019, Jazz would never been in the picture. We would have considered Honda only if WR-V in CVT variant was available, even if it had been a tad expensive.
Its almost 7,000 words, 14,000kms on the ODO, 13 kmpl FE and 14 months from purchase of vehicle; it’s time to bid adieu.



Our Magic carpet is ready to soar


PS: Attaching Honda Jazz 2018 Brochure and User Manual for reference and comparison with upcoming models