Hello BHPians
This is my first ownership review of our car Honda Brio, so please pardon me for any mistakes.
And I would like to keep it short and sweet.
Not a popular car isn’t it ?
But why?
With booming number of new Compact SUVs, Pseudo SUVs, Our little car really gets faded away from everyone’s eyes.
Not just now, back in 2011-12 it wasn’t really a popular car either.
It is powered by 1.2 L engine producing 88 BHP. That was and still is a strong number.
We used to own a Honda City (3rd gen) and so We wanted a car for city commute ,
Here are the cars considered and why we rejected before choosing Brio
1. Hyundai Eon
Cramped interiors
Not keen on the looks (subjective)
2. Datsun Go
The only thing we liked was the driving experience and engine.
But you go back to 1980s when you sit inside.
Front bench seats and no infotainment system or a stereo. You get a mobile phone holder instead. Seriously?
Also what is that handbrake in 21st century?
And not sure about ASS
3. WagonR
Lazy engine
Not keen on looks either (subjective)
And we are not keen on Maruti cars. (No offence)
4. Alto K10
Same reason as WagonR
So how did we choose Brio ?
As we used to own the Honda city (3rd gen) we knew how good Honda Brio would be. We had not even test driven before buying. That’s how much we trust the Honda brand
Car was booked over telephone and was delivered within 10 days.
As this is not an official review I won’t be going through each and every detail of the car.
The following points and observations are solely personal.
Likes - Butter-smooth i-VTEC engine. I’m sure it needs no more explanation
- Light steering wheel and slick gear shifts.
- Spacious cabin
- Easy maneuverability
- Power to weight ratio
- Reliability
- Finally it looks cute and aerodynamic
Dislikes - Boot space - 175 litres
- No rear headrest
- Build quality - Not sure if it’s a good or bad thing because it isn’t as flimsy as modern day Marutis and neither as good as Germans.
- Approach angle - scrapes the bumper on ramps or underground car parking if you’re not careful.
- Ride quality on potholes
- Interior does feel cheap when compared to present gen cars.
At the time of picture and review - the car has only completed 38xxx km.
Usage pattern:
~ 10-15 km a day. Home to college and to run other errands
Long trip of 220 km (two-way) once or twice a month to our native place.
Looks?
I love it from every angle.
The wide front fender and wide rear quarter panel.
Makes the car look wide. It does not look like it costs 5 lakhs.
The window line which gradually rises from front to the rear gives an aerodynamic stance.
In short- it looks fast even at standing still.
The smaller 14’ wheels on lower trim looks out of proportion. Can live with it. But it is not as worse as some other present cars on sale today(whichever came to your mind, you’re right)
There are people who hate all the angles, the rear glass hatch, interiors and what not.
Maybe it takes time to get used to? So what? That is their problem.
Front View - Looks feminine doesn’t she ?
- No fog lamps (comes only in the V variant)
- Added an aftermarket plastic carbon fibre-ish splitter
- Bumper was repainted about 2 years back.
- The headlight bulb has been upgraded. More on that later.
Rear view - Looks? Some hate it. Some love it. I love it.
- Just a plastic bumper and a glass hatch. Should not slam the glass. Those who know, they know it.
- Tinted the windows dark.
- Has demist function
- No parking sensors or camera
- Visibility is exceptional.
- You can literally reverse the car leaving hardly 1 inch gap, looking directly through the window, so I wouldn’t bother about parking sensors.
Rear three quarters
added after market door protector from amazon
upgraded wheels and tyres.
Tyres - Good year Assurance 175/65 R15
Alloys - from 4th gen Honda City
Boot
Yes. The 175 litres boot space is occupied by a subwoofer. And it occupies almost half the boot. But I have no complaints because it is used as a city car.
Subwoofer- Pioneer TS - WX300A (12 inches)
Has built-in amplifier
Side windows and mirrors
ORVM visibility is very good.
I wish it had turn indicators and a button to fold it.
The face lifted version was equipped with both.
Notice the Light green tint (Not OEM). Enhances Air conditioning effect slightly.
Front door - Have power window controls for all 4 windows (Not backlit)
- Rear and front passenger windows lock button
- Has one touch down function for drivers window
- Mirror adjustment.
- The mirrors cannot be folded in as this is the mid facelift model.
- Door pockets with has bottle holder.
- Exposed door metal looks really ugly.
Rear doors
No bottle holder or a door pocket here.
The armrest is really small
Rear doors have child-lock
The team bhp sticker is stuck on both front doors.
Panel gaps
Being a Japanese car, front panel gap
...is wider than rear panel gap
Front seats - It is beige fabric seats.
- Very comfortable for long drives
- Has integrated head rests and prominent side bolsters. It gives the car a hot-hatch feeling.
- Good underthigh support
- Only the drivers seat is height adjustable and warning beeps for seat belts.
- Have seat belt pretensioners for all 4 seatbelts.
Rear seats
Adequate leg room and shoulder room
Integrated headrests : Not great.
There are no ISOFIX anchors
Seat can be folded
Can carry a bicycle with a wheel off.
The rear passangers get only one storage compartment. Located between the from seats. Can hold a 1 litre bottle.
Interiors
Cockpit and dash
No soft touch materials anywhere.
Seats are the only soft touch material in the whole car.
The infotainment/stereo is placed nearer to passenger seat. It is so that driver doesn’t get distracted.
Interior design - love it or hate it
I am not a big fan of this asymmetrical design.
Absolutely zero rattles even after 6 years of usage.
Stereo and AC controls
I know what is the first thing that came to your mind - OUTDATED
Stereo supports USB, Auxiliary input, FM, AM
The auxiliary port had a rubberised cover, which got worn off.
Honestly speaking - I have no complaints whatsoever
Simply plug in your phone to USB, use the ‘Hey Siri’ function whichever song you want to listen.
And the volume and tracks can be changed through steering wheel buttons.
Weirdly calls cannot be heard through car speakers when connected to USB. But it works with AUX.
-The only silly thing is; the stereo doesn’t have pause option.
Bass, treble , fader can be adjusted.
No Equilizer though.
AC
Used most of the time in speed 1
Speed 2 or 3 only when the car has been parked under the sun for a long time.
Cools up the cabin quite well. But could have been better.
Steering wheel
Just look at that tiny steering wheel.
I just can’t emphasise enough how joyful it is to hold.
It has Volume and track change buttons. And Mode button.
Cannot be adjusted for rake or reach.
It is light at slow traffic speed
Builds up weight above 60-70kmph.
The driving position is spot on.
I prefer laid back driving position. I am 5’8” and my back is behind B pillar.
Clutch is light.
Brakes are not confidence inspiring above 110kmph.
The silver plastic insert needs to be replaced. The part is available in boodmo.
Sun visors
do not entirely block the sun when folded towards side.
Only passenger visor has vanity mirror
Instrument cluster and mileage
The mid facelift model is lit up in white.
The older variants are lit in orange.
Shows trip meter , odometer, avg kmpl.
The average mileage we attain when we travel to native.
Engine, driving experience and ride quality
Specs :
-1.2 litre 4 cylinder
-88 BHP
-109 NM
-ARAI mileage : 16.5
-Wheels : 175/65 R15 Goodyear Assurance and Alloy wheels from Honda City 4th gen.
-Upgraded in Feb 2020.
Positives :
•As we all know about i-vtec engines, it is super quiet. Be it out or in the cabin engine is silent. Shh. Can you hear anything ?
•At petrol pumps I have forgotten to turn off the car, thinking I already did.
•Clears the 2nd gear hump challenge
•For quick overtakes switch the gear to 3rd gear and it pulls and pulls and pulls all the way up to 90-100kmph!
•It is so fun to drive , thanks to it’s power-weight ratio
•Feels planted till 100-110 kmph.
•Mileage figures - I travel about 240 kms (two-way) at least once a month. I never managed to get under ARAI figures (16.5 kmpl). Highest I ever achieved was 22.6 kmpl. Otherwise 18-20kmpl. Which is indeed a good number.
Negatives :
•Road noise : 60-80kmph is the best speed to cruise at. The road noise is audible after 80kmph. But bearable. At 100 kmph it is not pleasant in the cabin.
•Ride comfort : Suspension is slightly towards the firm side. As a result, on bad roads, potholes, and man holes it thuds down. I have driven a Swift from same generation, it feels way smoother on potholes and manhole covers
•1st gear feels notchy when it comes to stop and go traffic.
•If not the ground clearance: the approach angle is really low. In my apartment underground parking, if I am fast and not careful the front bumper scrapes easily.
•AC needs to be turned off on steep inclines.
Ride and handling
It is light car weighing around 920-960kg. The suspension feels stiffer on bad roads. But it is not uncomfortable by any means.
The steering wheel feels lively and accurate. There is an expected body roll on sharp bends but it won’t make you throw up, because of the body hugging bucket seats.
80-100 kmph is the best speed to cruise at on highways with hardly any wind noise and bearable road noise.
The i-vtec engine really shines everywhere except when the car is fully loaded with 5 passangers.
It begs to be revved. Especially on 2nd and 3rd gear. Find an open stretch and zoom! And it goes, the objects in my rear view mirror appears smaller and smaller.
Aftermarket accessories
Installed footwell lighting from amazon.
Has 7 different colours : Red, blue, white, Green, purple, orange, and cyan
Plugged into the 12V socket.
Brightness can be adjusted.
Cost: about 300 rupees.
Changed the headlight bulb to led Philips xenon light recently.
Low beam
High beam
One thing to remember for all the drivers out there :
Never misuse xenon lights. Always use low beam whenever required.
Servicing and reliability
IMO, there is nothing good or bad about Service and experience
Once in 6 months or 10,000 kms. Whichever comes early.
Haven’t faced any issues with the dealer and ASS
The service was late last year due to pandemic.
Costs varies between 4k-6k
And haven’t faced any major or minor issues. Have not broken down. Touch wood.
Kudos to Honda reliability
Small Yet significant things :
1. Instrument cluster lights up when you open the door and lights up even brighter when you insert the key. It brightens up gradually and calmly. Neat touch!
2. Wash wipe nozzle neatly situated on the plastic part and not on the bonnet. Hence no ugly black dot on the bonnet.
3. Car auto locks if you do not open the door within 45 seconds. But it doesn’t auto lock once you start driving!
4. Only the drivers window has one touch down function. But no one-touch up. Isn’t that even more useful?
I need some suggestions from fellow BHPians on the following.
1. Aftermarket Infotainment system/Bluetooth receiver
This is primarily a city car, and an occasional long distance car (100kms one way)
Other than answering phone calls I am not facing any problems. So is it worth fitting a new touchscreen infotainment system?
Or should I go for a plug-in Bluetooth receiver?
I had purchased a Bluetooth receiver 2 years back. It was very cheap, worthless and gibberish.
So please recommend a good Bluetooth receiver if available.
2. Scratches on the door sill
Is there any way to remove these scratches ? I have tried polishes but did not really work.
3. Door damping
How good is door damping ?
How much does it cost?
Does the road noise really reduce significantly?
Conclusion :
It’s just hard to conclude
How long am I planning to keep it ? No idea
We have absolutely no reason to sell this car.
It has served lot of memories
I learnt driving on this car. It makes me smile every time I sit behind the wheel
Makes me smile when I see other owners of Honda brio driving past. And I bet he/she loves their car.
I just can’t wait to sit behind the wheel next day. I take longer route home only because I get to drive this beautiful machine for few more metres or so.
I turn back and look at my car a zillion times after I park it.
I simply sit in car just because I get to, and listen to music while waiting for my parents if they go shopping.
I always prefer to wash car on my own. I have my own ways of washing. And I won’t be satisfied when others do it.
It gives me that happiness, peace of mind, self satisfaction.
Let me end this by some pictures of my addiction.