[devarshi84]

It is not nice to be looking for a new car for 4 years.
(http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/hatchb...ce-wagonr.html)

Defitnitely not nice when its a Honda for the Boyracer. But as they say 'All is well that ends well.'
Our WagonR was six years old then and had just begun to show signs of aging. We needed a new car but with me running up and Down between Canada and India things didnt work out.

Warping through time machine to 8 months ago, we sold the WagonR Finally after my sister's wedding. I was flying back and hence didnt need another car.

Warping through time machinge again to 6 weeks ago. I returned from Canada and the rains made it necessary for us to get a second car. Also the traffic made it a compulsion to stay away from driving 2-wheelers.

I noted down a list of cars I liked (It was big, yes). I will try to keep it short and crisp.

1. Chevrolet Spark: Too Small and quality of interiors was a big letdown. Space was also at a premium.

2. Chevrolet U-VA: Beige does help to an extent in hiding the aging interiors. Spacious and comfortable but dull driving experience. My father wasnt really keen on buying any Chevrolet after driving this car.

3. Chevrolet Beat: Looks fabulous but GM has been hasty in bringing this car to the market and it shows. Ergonomics and logic is beaten at many places. I definitely liked the drivers seat which let me find a good and commanding driving position but that's it. Also Size was not its biggest asset.

4. Fiat Punto: This was the top contender on the list after Fiesta 1.6S. With 93ps diesel in the wings I was sure to buy this car for the luxuries and amenities it provides. Additionally my cousin is getting a Manza from the same dealership too. Interior plastic is still horrendous at places and diesel it seems is not our thing at all. I could still have wound up owning one.

5. Fiat Linea: Punto's strengths coupled with a boot and a rear a/c duct made a nice case but not for us looking for a boot.

6. Ford Figo: Won the first stage with space and price on offer. But the test car we used had loads of road noise and that was a strict no-no. Additionally there were lot of rough edges like in Beat such as the rear window which only goes down half-way and the lack of rear power windows.

7. Ford Fiesta 1.6S: The car I wanted to own. The 1.6S in Aquarius Blue. Logic did love and guess who won. Out went the car with 1.6 litre engine, higher maintainence costs, boot and oodles of persona.

8. Honda Jazz: It is weird now that I think of it. I never wanted to own this car and somehow just kept it on the list for comparison. It was expensive but I still went ahead for negotiations just to make sure of something. More on Jazz later.

9. Hyundai i20 Diesel: I went into the showroom. Looking at the new Verna made me decide I did not want anything even closely related to that. I20's handling certainly didnt help.

10. Mahindra Logan: Never wanted to but this car. But I need to tell the t-bhpian's that Logan has one of the most sorted and balanced chassis in the country. It's commendable how it undertook potholes with elan. Top marks for ride comfort and handling. Lost out just because it has a boot. Interior quality could've been better too.

11. Maruti Ritz: No words on how bad this car was. No fun to drive. Interiors lacked quality and it was a pain to drive in the city. No it was now this particular car.

12. Nissan Micra: We almost finalized this one. But the 3-cyl was noisy and I somehow didnt like the girlish design cues. It stood equal chances as the Punto. Also found it too nimble to drive.

13. Volkswagen Polo: noisy sums this car up. Good ride and handling and feature list with omission of some makes this a mixed contender. Stories of Skoda and VW's terror and costs kept us away. Looks awesome though.

Finally the week after we were down to.

Punto VGT
Fiesta 1.6S
Mahindra Logan
Nissan Micra and
Volkswagen Polo

Something struck me and I just thought of asking for discounts at Honda for the Jazz too.


contd.

next
finalizing on the car, purchase processa and the deal(breaker).

[prince_pervez]

Thats a long list of cars you tested. You rejected the Fiesta ? Thats going to be on story of its own. Nice color. Congrats on your new purchase. Waiting for the rest of the story.

[sids911]

Jazz certainly is a very nice car, only let down by the premium it commands. When I come back, it definitely will be on my list too. But I am guessing I wont go for it just because of the price tag. Its daylight loot by Honda.

Looking forward for your rest of the story!

[ghodlur]

OMG, 13 cars test driven and the final 5 didn't even figure the car you booked @devarshi84. Thats some decision you have taken. Anyways congrats on booking the Jazz. The colour blue looks good on the car.

You rejected the Fiesta S, thats strange. Was the fact that S in Acquarius Blue being discontinued put you off from going for the Fiesta.
Do keep posting of your booking experience.

[RemingtonSteele]

Congratulations!!!
Now that you have purchased Jazz just go ahead an enjoy driving it.
No matter what the wolrd says Jazz is a wonderful vehicle and the kind of space & quality it provides is unmatched.

[nkrishnap]

Congrats on the Jazz in a Jazzy color. Looks good in blue.

Enjoy many more miles jazzily As always post more pictures of the car.

[adimicra]

Congrats and enjoy your baby! Jazz is a wonderful car and I have been absolutely happy with the space/practicality/performance/handling and overall the amazing quality offered by this car!
Only issue with buying the Jazz is - people from all over who does not know anything about cars will make comments (direct or indirect) about how foolish you are since you purchased such an expensive 'small car'!

[Subaro123]

Congrats devarishi,

@ adimicra, Surely Honda Jazz is an expensive hatch. But quality, space, engine is no match with any of the hatches currently in Indian Market. I happen to know inside information about Honda that Honda Jazz have turned their Balance Sheet upside down as most of the parts are from Honda City which are imported.

[adimicra]

Originally Posted by Subaro123

Congrats devarishi,

@ adimicra, Surely Honda Jazz is an expensive hatch. But quality, space, engine is no match with any of the hatches currently in Indian Market. I happen to know inside information about Honda that Honda Jazz have turned their Balance Sheet upside down as most of the parts are from Honda City which are imported.

I am not sure I understand your statement! Can you clarify please? Jazz has a localization of 77% which is more than the City! But the quality of the Jazz - both the build quality and interior quality is much better than the City - no doubt!

[GTO]

Congrats Devarshi.

Originally Posted by devarshi84

next
finalizing on the car, purchase processa and the deal(breaker).

Please PM once you are ready to update. Else, there will be 5 pages of congratulations before the real content on the car comes up. We don't permit delivery threads anymore.

Thanks. Thread temporarily closed.

[devarshi84]

When deciding for the new car we didnt really have any requirements in mind. Just wished for the car to be a hatchback with Lowest NVH possible and good cooling suitable for Ahmedabad heat (45+)

Arranged for a test drive for Jazz the next day for parents. Mom was impressed by the Car cabin's NVH quality levels and dad liked how it drove amongst the 1.2 segment hatches. I liked the girl sitting behind the desk. But Honda? How can I own and drive a Honda? No!!!!!!!!!! beauty be damned.

I later decided to try out Emerald Honda? Might get a better deal since its a new dealership and they need to meet sales targets. Went there the next day after work with dad. The initial experience with the salesperson was no better than asking a Xth grade student for details on the back-end language for the program. Fiesta 1.6S, Polo or Punto it is then. But damn!!! He called the next day and offered a better deal? Nice, Ok I will consider it.

Delivery for the Polo was promised not before 6 months which made the best case scenario to be 2-3 months. Plus the engine was noisy too. Also the SKoda-VW horror stories meant I was taking a big risk. So POLO was out.

Fiat totally lived up to their repute. I had met the salesperson before even looking at the most cars and they called back two weeks after I had my Jazz to ask whether i had decided anything further. I just did not have any words for their speedy work.
Fiesta 1.6S, Aquarius blue. I want this car. Whatever happens. But then Looking at the lancer standing in front of me I felt the lack of need to get another fun to drive sedan. Yes I will miss the power of the Fiesta but that's ok.

The Logan was an excellent car to be ridden in. the top-end offered superb value but interiors lacked ergonomics. I totally hated the power window placement. The boot is huge and it shows too. Logan notched up in the final list thanks to how it took potshots at potholes. It just gulped them down. The best drive of all cars bettering even Punto at times.
PS: All the cars were test driven on the same stretch of road.

So Jazz it was. But the dealer definitely aint the best to interact with. They need constant reminders for the various things such as car registration etc. Also they are spamming my phone with sms's daily. Really a sad case. I definitely find Honda Jazz to be the right upgrade from Maruti WagonR.

[devarshi84]

The deal.

Got it for 7.25 on road Ahmedabad
Extra accessories include

rear parcel tray (yet to be received)
floor mats
mud flaps
Door step garnish
3m teflon coating with a free re-coat coupon
perfume
god idol
bumper protectors
door protectors
Garware sunfilm
aux-in cable
Michelin xm1 tyres as requested
Honda Alloys promised for 10K extra

PS: I am thinking of going for a particular set of golden lenso alloys to get that Impreza WRX effect. I am quoted 24K for those. Dont know if it is worth going for Lenso's compared to Honda's 10K offer.

[devarshi84]

First service has been carried out. The rear left power window liners are bad and the dealer is waiting for the stock to come in. Also I am yet to get the parcel tray or alloy wheels from Honda. The dealer has said he will try to get my the usb cord FOC if possible.
Some key points about the car.

1. The cabin area near the front quarter glass is badly designed. It is waste of space and tough to clean.

2. Ditto for the rear quarter glass treatment. Though looks good from the outside, safety belts cross the glass from inside. Not the most intelligent thing I have seen.

3. Got a fuel economy of 21+ kmpl on the highway. I am loving it definitely.

4. The engine is so silent it makes one feel like sitting in an electric car.

5. Not a fan of the stereo. Sound is strictly mediocre. Also the rear speaker placement is not the best in my opinion.

6. Front cabin driver and passenger lights are sorely missed. Honda's cost cutting measure in full effect here.

7. Since the car is used for commuting to and from work, I keep the rear seats flipped up. The bottom has hooks kind of something to keep things in place.

8. Easy ingress and egress for parents compared to Lancer.

9. My knuckles seldom hit the a/c knob when shifting the gearbox. Not good.

10. Gearbox is slick but do feel the need for some more torque at times.

11. The car is not the most planted on bad roads. It was the Logan that took the cake amongst all the cars I tested.

12. Height adjustment for the driver seat is missing but I dont miss it.

13. Dead pedal placement (no actual dead pedal here) is very flat and inconvinient.

14. In my opinion the small storage areas are a waste. I am not going to open the boot everytime I need to put in a small item.

conclusion: I definitely miss the climate control, better equipped stereo, pilot cabin lights and auto fold ORVM's. Also the price is high. But the Fe figures and the quiet ride are the redeeming factors which cater to our requirements well.

PS: I have had a tough time explaining all around me why 'I' bought a Honda including my own heart.

[devarshi84]

See the cute smirk?


The Boot shows how low this car's roofline is compared to some cars like the WagonR and santro. No Tall boy this one.


MPV stance reminds me of the Mitsubishi i.


On the highway with A/c on. People have complained about inaccurate figures but mine hasnt varied at all. I will check again though after complaints from other owners.

[hiren.mistry]

Congrats devarshi84. Is it just me, you don't seem entirely pleased with your buy?

21.2 KMPL is phenomenal man. A favor, can you please attach the image of the AUX-IN cable and how it is attached to the HU?

TC of it and have a pleasant ownership experience with the Jazz.