[sidindica]

One Life. Why So Serious?

So finally the silence has been broken.

After much dilly dallying, and delaying, my dad permitted to write a full ownership review of the jazz....phew, a long term one.

Well, for maybe a first on team-bhp, this would be a review from HIS perspective,a senior citizen's perspective, not mine.
Because part of 15,000 odd km that the car has covered in the past 10 months (September 15, 2009 being the purchase date), I have seriously not driven more than 100-200 kms at most..

Time to tell him...I mean, dad, its a torcher...

Secondly, sorry, no fresh pics have been taken so I am using the same old thaka hua pics of the showroom...jeez...dad's that strict with me about his possession, he wouldn't even permit me to take pics ...I don't know whats the big deal, its just a bloody small car after all...a jazz after all..

Now, time to get back to work...I mean, the review.

The requirement:

Well, we were a one car family and constant fights between me and the parents with regards to the santro usage prompted them to look for a supermini, and after much hyped drama, iffs and butts, fingers crossed, perhaps after the decision was finalized to get nothing but a Honda jazz, I was literally happy and stunned.

Now, why I was hapy was because we get to own a Honda for he very first time, to experience a japanese product for a very firt time, to admire Sochiro Honda's brilliant team in creating this marvel called the Jazz.

But the big question was-why was I stunned?
I mean, what would happen if I write about this car purchase on team bhp at the time the whole community was coaxing Honda for overpricing and underequipping for what is termed a "small car"...and were praying for the product to fail big time...which unfortunately happened and man, I was jealous!

But I had to rite and again, perhaps being the most controversial purchase in team-bhp, I decided to write in a different style, maybe inspired from my addiction on India Forums...like TV serials soaps, etc.., so just took a pen and wrote like a real life family episode that goes on to buy a car which, trust me, is for my parents (aged 66 and 56 respectively) and they tend to be far more practical and emotionally attached to the product than we are.

Now, when I saw that amount of 7,54,000 OTR, I was too aghast. But maybe my small request and buttering to the SM made my day..we got the "active" accessories kit absolutely FOC and that made my day, delighted and we took home our new prized possession.

The active kit consisted of :

• front bar like grill
• fog lamps
• rear spoiler
• 4 door scuff plates
• drilled aluminum pedals
• dashboard vents silver garnish etc.

The purchase was done from Ace Honda and was an extremely satisfactory one. All the paperwork was handled by my dad. Insurance is done from Bajaj Allianz, till now he is extremely satisfied with the services and will plan to continue in the car's second year.
Lke I said, his decision=satisfaction. Not like me shouting and screaming at iffco tokiyo...lol!

Now, 10 months, 15,600 kms and 4 services later, how does the car perform?

Design:

Perhaps there is something about Honda. I mean look at the way this car screams presence. Some may find the design too busy and MPV like but I think it looks quite masculine and with an openness that is absent in the teda H. It looks..almost like a girly hatch.
And thats what impressed my dad. I really feel jealous when I see him driving a car meant for youngsters and how people look at him, like say a drool maal perhaps?
Call it paisa vasool.

From whatever angle you look at it, its unconventionally designed with the concept of "Man maximum, Machine minimum" philosophy. Everything is designed around the human being, by the human being and for he human being. This same is felt in an almost mono volume like extreme cab forward design which looks distinctly premium in person, unlike maybe a hatch which pretends to be a premium "folks' car" yet ends up being meek looking.

The huge headlights dominate the front, the slim bonnetline and large glass area dominate the front and sides and a hexagonal inspired tailgate kink dominates the rear, which is the best angle for our car.

The best part of this car is its fit and finish-from the interior to the exterior, this is one Asian hatch which reeks of quality. No uneven panel gaps, no cost sitting on build and no sub par parts quality fitted, huge plus points to Honda.

Again, the big 15" wheels are a huge plus and aid handling and stability, not to mention the superb side profile. one of the very few hatches to provide 15" in its class, brownie points to Honda to carry forward the same philosophy. Not surprising that it shares 60-70 percent components from its bada bhai, the city.

The inside story:

Now that's a story to tell, seriously, having a smaller wheelbase than that teda H wali gaddi doesn't mean less interior space. In fact, the jazz is a master class in interior packaging and feels way too big and roomy than its exterior dimensions suggest. And again, the quality feel and fit plus finish is a plus grade.
The superb aspect of the jazz are perhaps its tactile and chunky rotary AC knobs which feel upscale and great to operate and superb OEM music system with great sound quality, it comes with integrated in dash MP3/CD player, aux-in port and steering mounted audio controls plus 4 superb speakers, 6" on each of the 4 doors.

Yaad hai, ek jaadi ki jhappi please...I mean the magic seats. They split fold, tumble and go up and down in many permutations and combinations you want. Virtual home on wheels this can become. Carry on anything you want without any fuss...without any hassle, and thats what really impressed my mom, the PRACTICALITY factor.
Call it paisa vasool....

Storage spaces here, there and everywhere, good large glove box, 10 cupholders, huge well proportioned USABLE boot space, a hidden box under the rear seat for security, you name it and it has everything. We Indians love utility, don't we? And this car fulfills all the requirements to the T.
Call it paisa vasool....

Spacious and comfortable seats are another huge plus points of this car. Firm, yes, but perfect for my parents.
My mom always sits at the left rear and my dad drives it...mom hates sitting at the front but thankfully she belts up at the rear, and she enjoys every bit of the drive with the co driver seat pushed a bit forward... talk about badi malkin memsahibs...perhaps an eternal love relationship.
Firm cushioning, yes, but its adequate for them. Low seating position and ease of entry/exit is a huge plus.
Call it paisa vasool...

Now whats the secret behind all this? The simple, compact suspension layout and centrally located fuel tank under the front seats middle area. Not only it liberates huge space at a compact footprint, but also aids stability and roadholding. Perhaps the folks at Honda are engineering geniuses at their best...Gotta love them for this.
And my dad just love the driving position despite the absence of driver's seat height adjustment and telescopic steering wheel, both of which are present in teda H.
No, not really paisa vasool this time.

But really in these 10 months of ownership, parents keep on grinning after every drive that they take on this car. And part of which can be attributed to the superb 1.2 I-vtec engine.

Engine, gearbox and drive:

Powered by a 1.2 litre version of a new family of i-vtec engines first seen in the civic and then on the city and now the jazz, its an extremely compact lightweight power train which just loves to be revved and produces 90ps@6400 rpm and 11.4 kg-m torque, again at a highish 4800 rpm, a range where typical diesel engines produce their peak power.
But don't let these figures fool you.
My dad is thoroughly impressed with the motor and it just suits him and his driving skills perfectly.
Like my dad is a very, very sedate driver. He values his purchase and treats it like his own kid. He never exceeds 100 at open highways and 50-60 at cities. He just enjoys smooth driving, not crazy about speed like I am from my Santro. Designed for ease of use, it compliments the jazz perfectly.
When properly run in, this engine is capable of a 13.5 second 0-100 time but as speeds progresses, it cries for more power as limitations of small displacement begin to show. But for him, its just perfect. Torque at your disposal at second gear, that's i-vtec magic at work.
An evolution of the original vtec, the i-vtec further improves upon its performance and works at three stages albeit constantly and simultaneously at varying rpm bands.

The engine is never stressful at low to mid rpm range and correct usage of gearbox extracts out the best of this engine, both in terms of performance and fuel efficiency.

• The mileage figures are a constant 16-18 kmpl, even achieved 21.2 kmpl (as shown by trip computer).
• Worst figure acieved by him was 12.3 kmpl.
• Constant city driving with fullAC on gave him 14-15 odd kmpl.

This combination of peppy engine and user friendly light controls is what impressed him and my mom too, though she rarely drives.
call it paisa vasool...

Ride, handling and breaking:

Perhaps this is the best part of the package that impressed them.
Low speed ride is complaint and despite minor imperfections over extremely rough patches, they do not necessarily get tossed around.
Medium to high speeds ride can be better, no, its not euro friendly, but way better than he expected. the suspension does get a bit noisy, but till now, it has been a no cause of complain.

Now, handling is not really a factor that you would expect a senior citizen like my dad to comment upon, but its clean, neutral and perfect for his use. Light steering only adds to confidence. City driving, parking and u-turns have never been easier before.

Same goes for Braking, again superb and perfectly modulated with a 4 wheel 4 channel ABS, again a big from him.

Ownership till now:

The car was purchased from Ace, but due to our location convenience, all the four services are done from prime honda, opposite mother dairy plant, Delhi.
Contrary to many negative perceptions, the service quality so far has been top grade.

We got 4 services done:

• first free at 1,000 kms: general checkup and engine fne tning.
• second free at 5,010 kms-oil and oil filter change, plus some general checkup, got alignment and balancing on my recommendation.
• Third free at 10,700 kms-again some general work plus fine tuning the car. Cannot recall what as that very same time my santro met with a minor accident and I was frustrated.
• Fourth paid at 15,300 kms, recently. Full service done-oil plus oil filter change, air filter cleaned, fuel filter cleaned, brake pad plus shoe clean, alignment and balancing etc.

Cost of each service is still not told to me but expect average service costs come out to be 2,000 to 2,700 per service.
Thankfully, the car is close to same exact shape as it was in the showroom except at one instance where my OSRVM was hit by a cyclist and the casing had to be replaced.

Till now there has been no add ons that has been installed, except mudflaps from prime honda.

Final opinion:

Perhaps there is nothing really wrong in the jazz as a product per se.
Its single biggest drawback is the price to features to specifications ratio and maybe nothing else.
It has been a true multi talented workhorse which has to be experienced to be appreciated. And my parents have been extremely proud owners of this little wonder since day one, despite the high sticker price, and the fact that India is perhaps the only country where the jazz is priced lower than the city, some excise help playing that effect.

But, Honda had been overconfident and are paying a heavy price with this.
Its an extremely user friendly and a flexible, plus a solid and a sound engineered hatch which is designed to provide years of trouble free use, the most important criteria that my parents wanted. And at that price, if they are happy, I too am a happy person.

Total paisa vasool.

And finally,that's what counts.
Because this is one life.
So, why so serious?

(I have tried my best to cover all aspects of the car. Some points and figures may be missed due to certain restrictions given by my parents, but that's all I can write.)

[ampere]

Nice review Sid.

I was always thinking how does the Jazz perform on highways. Your dad has answered that for me.
If you dont go over 100, I think you can extract the best. And that is exactly, what I typically do.


Some more questions:

How does car feel in terms of strength. Is it too lightweight?
How does the steering feel? Too lightweight?
How the clearance feel? Good? Bad? Worst etc?

[GTO]

A Senior Citizen's perspective, eh? Interesting review & thread concept . I thoroughly enjoyed the read.

Originally Posted by sidindica

The best part of this car is its fit and finish-from the interior to the exterior, this is one Asian hatch which reeks of quality. No uneven panel gaps, no cost sitting on build and no sub par parts quality fitted, huge plus points to Honda.

True. It's a premium hatch in the truest sense of the term.

In fact, the jazz is a master class in interior packaging and feels way too big and roomy than its exterior dimensions suggest.

Honda's mastery at packaging! It has more space than most C-segment sedans.

And my dad just love the driving position despite the absence of driver's seat height adjustment and telescopic steering wheel, both of which are present in teda H.

Seriously now! What was Honda thinking? They initially even skimped on a parcel tray. Heck, that would cost like 100 bucks each.

We got 4 services done:

Any issues or things gone loose in the first 15K kms?

Its single biggest drawback is the price to features to specifications ratio and maybe nothing else.

Cut 1.5 lakhs and see the Jazz fly. As Ajmat commented on the other thread, Honda should accept its folly, correct the price and give out coupons (for the difference amount) to existing customers who bought the Jazz at the inflated price.

[shantyrocks]

Great review Sid!

Honda jazz would be a great second hand buy couple of years down the line...what do u think?

[lsp]

Great review Sid!! a different perspective from the usual enthusiast's.
Have u got the sunflim?? Recently saw a silver jazz with dark tints and it looked awesome!! Totally stood out in the traffic.

Originally Posted by shantyrocks

Great review Sid!

Honda jazz would be a great second hand buy couple of years down the line...what do u think?

@shantyrocks

Few things:-
1) It is being sold in such small numbers. Don't expect the numbers to change drastically in present or near future hence exclusivity remains couple of years down the line as well.
2) The ownership, I would imagine, is a set of people who are looking for a refined experience and not a VFM product. Hence assuming that they belong to a financially secure class.
3) Brand Honda. (Elder sister City enjoys a terrific resale)

I don't think that Jazz would be a terrific (read cheap/VFM) used car buy like the Cedia.

Just my opinion. However, couple of years is a long time. Who knows what might be the market then!!

[neoonwheels]

Hey Sid, not fair. Upload your beauty's pics yaar. Showroom pics are always boring anyways. I hope clicking a car is not that much of a deal when you click hundreds of cars in and out of showroom

[pats]

Excellent Review Sid.

As a fellow Jazz Owner i agree with your dad's comments to the T except for the fuel efficiency which in my case gets me 12 to 13 in City. But it is more to do with Mumbai's traffic since my driving style is similiar to your dad's.

[Abhi_Automobile]

Hey Siddy,

Good review. I like your neutral comments. Now, this may not be the most relevant thread to post my query as we have a dedicated 'used car price' check (I know that). But I will ask you, since you are a first hand owner.

How much money should be knocked off the Jazz in a year and half (from June'09; from 7 odd lakhs on road)??

I may be in for a used sample and doing research for the same. You can find my thread at http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/what-c...ul-garage.html

Why didn't HONDA launch this at 5.5 lasc. Best hatch in the country at that price!

MODS:I have posted this query here since I believe it is relevant for my research. If you find it irrelevant, please feel free to delete it.

[coolmel]

Hey Sid,

any updates on the Jazz?? Hows it going mate? please throw some light and give us some info about the experience so far, kms done etc.

[ajay_satpute]

Excellent report dude!

I just wonder one thing. You have poured so much information here already, I don't know what else is left secret about your parents' Jazz. Except the photos, may be.

Belive me, I completely agree each and every word written here. Though, I don't have my Jazz in my possession yet(coming soo), it was the only car under 10 L, which got me completely floored for the sheer quality, finesse, brilliant usage of space, "stock music system of the year" deserving music system,...I can go on and on.

The exclusivity factor is at its best with this car.

When I recently visited Honda showroom, the ANHC looked so boring from inside compared to the Jazz (No offense meant for ANHC owners). The sales person saw the spark in my eyes and said, "Sir if I had 10 lakhs in my pocket, I would rather buy the Jazz than the ANHC." Why? What does the ANHC offer at 9.2 lakhs for the E-MT variant, besides the rocking engine...nothing much. Jazz is loaded to the brim (may be not as much as the i20 Asta or Punto 90HP), but those extra missing features are not something you can't live without.

I have to tell it to million people that the only, only, only problem with Jazz is its price tag. If you don't care that, its a dream-come-true, heaven-on-earth, etc.etc...

I have some other priority stuff going on in my personal life at this moment, hence the arrival of Jazz will take some time, but its going to happen for sure. I was very close to get the i20 CRDi Asta, but I have read more problem threads of i20 than happy threads. Especially, after the 2 recent price hikes, I had a second thought, its gotto be diesel. But, heck no...its gotto be Jazz.

Its just Jazz all the way...

[COUNSEL]

Hi Sid. Whats the update on the Jazz? Waiting for a detailed ownership report.

Why only pics of Showroom Jazz? Where is your Jazz?