[GuChDa]

Originally Posted by bijims

Wait till August 1st,, you have waited this long, so just a week more, prices, however, will take time though, but you will get to know the variants and features as a full review will be out on August 1.

Not revealing the prices until 3 months of unveil indicates lack of confidence from Honda based on the numbers they generated in nearly 2 months time. They expect to garner some more post media drive reviews and opinions.

I wish the numbers don't increase until price reveal so that Honda would price it more reasonably and deservingly than with their ambitious figures.

Fingers crossed.

[bijims]

Originally Posted by GuChDa

Not revealing the prices until 3 months of unveil indicates lack of confidence from Honda based on the numbers they generated in nearly 2 months time. They expect to garner some more post media drive reviews and opinions.

I wish the numbers don't increase until price reveal so that Honda would price it more reasonably and deservingly than with their ambitious figures.

Fingers crossed.

This has been a trend lately, for that matter Maruti unveiled the Fronx and the Jimny way back in January with prices being announced in the last week of April and the first week of June respectively. So 3 months in today's time between launch and price reveal is not an anomaly, especially for a brand-new product.

Honda will definitely have its reasons for launching the vehicle in August-September, they have been having a string of unsuccessful/ barely successful products. with Amaze and City being the only ones bringing in numbers and City's numbers falling, they may want to estimate demand before the price reveal to tweak prices accordingly, moreover with the Seltos already having launched, they have a benchmark as well, now with the Citroen C3 Aircross launching too, they have another competitor as well, so Honda may be playing the wait and watch game.

Honda knows very well, that those who are going to go for a Seltos or other in-demand cars like Grand Vitara/Hyryder and Creta will definitely go for it unless the waiting periods are too high, in such a scenario, Honda will definitely get a few customers from them too.

Moreover, the Honda loyalists (a dying breed) but still, will definitely be willing to wait for a safe, practical, no-nonsense car at the right price, and perhaps Honda is trying to cater to them by first studying the demand with bookings, then reviews coming out in August and finally price reveal by mid-August to early September so that deliveries could begin by the festive season.

People may find fault with it and may lose patience, but I feel this strategy will finally work out in their favor if they price it right (Going by the information received from dealerships and experts, it should be priced right and be a good alternative to the other cars in the segment.) Hope this is the case!

[GuChDa]

Originally Posted by bijims

This has been a trend lately, for that matter Maruti unveiled the Fronx and the Jimny way back in January with prices being announced in the last week of April and the first week of June respectively. So 3 months in today's time between launch and price reveal is not an anomaly, especially for a brand-new product.

I never intended to say it as an anomaly. Just that big numbers in bookings don't translate to high prices as expected from Honda.

MS operates at full production and could need requires tooling changes or whatever. while Honda since April is operating at 50 percent or even less production capacity shouldn't take so much time especially with facelifts from competition also getting 5 digit bookings within days of unveil .

[tirumalavoleti]

Though I own a Honda city, I am not a honda fan.

I see many of the comparisons with Creta/Seltos turbo and Suzuki/Toyota hybrids.
They don't match even on paper.

If we could check the split of these well sold cars, majority of the sales are from their Korean 1.5 NA and Japanese 1.5 NA

So it is the game Honda is playing. Its too too late in to the game, but Honda wanted the NA share but not the segment share, and sure it could pull this through.

Lastly we should not expect less price than koreans and japanese. City scored 4 stars all along, which should not be compromised for the elevate.

Definitely Koreans would retain the bling and turbo customers, japanese would retain the FE customers with hybrid, but majority NA customers could switch.

Lets see how this fares in the market

[W.A.G.7]

Let's wait till the pricing is out. While I absolutely detest Honda for not bringing anything exciting to India, I am sure that this car would sell in decent numbers. Honda already lost the game when they launched the underpowered "Dolphin" variant of Honda City many moons ago. As everyone pointed out here, there would be a lot of people who would buy it eyes closed. I was a big Honda fan once upon a time, but quite frankly, I am disappointed today with their lacklustre attitude towards the Indian market. I am still okay to give this car a chance and see for myself once they launch it. If it does 95% of the things right, I would buy it!

[motographer]

Originally Posted by ramki.grandhi

Because they didn't sell substandard unsafe products in India, like Koreans and Suzuki are doing.

Honda might be slightly more reliable than Kia/Hyundai but just like all other OEMs, they're also bringing substandard products to Indian consumers compared to their offerings in other markets. One should look at the products that they offer(in terms of both quality, features and engine options) in South East Asian markets, let alone in western markets.

As other BHPians said, Honda is just trying to milk their legacy and Indian consumer's loyalty. It disappoints me to make these observations as a Honda fan and someone who was eagerly looking forward to Elevate's launch.

[pannags]

Originally Posted by Nav-i-gator

A lot of people look for inoffensive looks, good interior space and smooth drive with fuss free ownership, lower cost of ownership, less likelihood of major issues and high resale value.

Indeed, aesthetics can be subjective, and the liking for a car's design often boils down to personal preferences. It's evident that Honda has aimed for a design that will offend very few.

For those who think Honda should have offered the HR-V instead (I think the 2024 model sports an absolutely stunning design), many would opine that it looks more like a crossover than a CSUV and lack the road presence competition offers. That would have been another reason to brickbat Honda!

As for the lower than City mileage figures, I believe and hope this has to do with tuning the car for better performance. Really don't mind losing a few kilometers for a bit more acceleration. Fingers crossed



Pic source: Honda global site

[rg_sv]

Some insights before the drive review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRWtJxp_1kk

[outdoorlover]

Originally Posted by tirumalavoleti

Definitely Koreans would retain the bling and turbo customers, japanese would retain the FE customers with hybrid, but majority NA customers could switch.

Lets see how this fares in the market

I see customers getting segmented on brands even on age now. Honda India's customer base has steadily climbed age group given its reliable but not so exciting vehicles and is mostly in the 40+ age group, I feel, looking at the crowd even coming to the service centre. The younger customers are getting more attracted at the Korean and Czech/German brands. Maruti with its wide variety of vehicles has a wide spectrum of age group distribution.

[SaiSW]

Judging by Honda's recent safety track record, I'd assume this will also be a 4 or 5 star rated car, which automatically puts it above the seltos as far as I am concerned.

What I actually am wondering about is, will this car be more spacious than the Jazz. I've been in few mass market cars ≤ 10 lacs as spacious as the Jazz.

[Mach_1590]

I really like this car. Although, Honda is(very)late to party, still HONDA is a desirable brand for many Indians. Also, Elevate may not be setting sales chart on fire with engine options onboard, but it is highly practical car, especially for those who like to keep their cars for 10+ years. There is just one thing that Honda has to take care about, to not be greedy when it come to pricing. Honda should stick to Seltos's and Creta's 1.5L NA variant pricing. Penetrative pricing would work wonders with Honda's SUV. If overpriced, Elevate may still do alright(~2k units) in the initial months and then fade away. My request to Honda is to launch a Hybrid variant and a 150ps turbo variant if they want to shake things up.

[Sebring]

Interiors look dated. White or beige would have looked modern. Infotainment system should have been like Seltos, (and panoramic sunroof is a miss)

Originally Posted by rg_sv

Some insights before the drive review

[07CR]

I don't see a good future for elevate. Reasons -

1) They could have atleast retained the features available in City. No illuminated power window buttons, no one touch up down for all windows, barebones looking AC vents ( even my 2013 Amaze had better Vent design).

2) Considering the segment the feature set is also barebones and nothing outstanding. Even the top end elevate stands below the HTX IVT variant of Seltos when it comes to equipment.

3) Very unexciting engine. Sure it's good in City. But with the brick like design of Elevate and a greater weight (100+ kg atleast) I am not sure how this would perform.

4) Mileage too doesn't seem to be as good as we expect from Honda. So there's no performance and no mileage, no USP even from engine POV? Also why no Hybrid at launch ? Especially when you have it ready in the City?

All the above factors could change, if they manage to undercut the NA variants of Seltos. Hope they have surprise in mind !

[GuChDa]

Originally Posted by Sebring

Interiors look dated. White or beige would have looked modern. Infotainment system should have been like Seltos, (and panoramic sunroof is a miss)

Interiors seems plain and simple, yet functional. Color until seen can't be commented, but yes they would dirty less and will be easy to maintain.

Pano not a miss for me atleast. A feel good factor that rarely has a use (yes when used it uplifts the spirit in scenic and rainy scenarios out of the city ). I haven't opened my Pano beyond couple of times in my Endy in last 3 years.

[GuChDa]

Originally Posted by 07CR

I don't see a good future for elevate. Reasons -

1) They could have atleast retained the features available in City. No illuminated power window buttons, no one touch up down for all windows, barebones looking AC vents ( even my 2013 Amaze had better Vent design).

2) Considering the segment the feature set is also barebones and nothing outstanding. Even the top end elevate stands below the HTX IVT variant of Seltos when it comes to equipment.

3) Very unexciting engine. Sure it's good in City. But with the brick like design of Elevate and a greater weight (100+ kg atleast) I am not sure how this would perform.

4) Mileage too doesn't seem to be as good as we expect from Honda. So there's no performance and no mileage, no USP even from engine POV? Also why no Hybrid at launch ? Especially when you have it ready in the City?

All the above factors could change, if they manage to undercut the NA variants of Seltos. Hope they have surprise in mind !

No remote windows and sunroof operation in Elevate. It's there in the city. Another feature missed.