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-   -   Review: 1st-gen Honda Amaze (2013) (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-drives-initial-ownership-reports/134501-review-1st-gen-honda-amaze-2013-a-19.html)

I read in GTO's Amaze review that the Brio diesel has been shelved for the time being due to NVH issues.

From the pics and other reviews, it looks like there is no dead-pedal even in the AT variant! wonder why such basic equipment is skimped.

Can it be fitted in the aftermarket?

The only grouse pre launch i suspect would be the nvh levels and hondas typical light weight and lightest metal sheets used

Trust me my citys handling is good but the tinny feel of the body panels makes me scary at times or it may be just that i m spoilt by my fiat

Going by the kerb weight of amaze, it's just as thin as any other Japanese vehicle in that class. One of the main design elements of a Japanese car is to make it light weight. Toyota does that even with the Lexus. And Honda, Toyota and Suzuki make very good vehicles even while they are light weight giving them an advantage over the competition in terms of performance, durability, ease of drive etc.

People whose need is heavy weight cars will always go for American/European brands. People who prefer light weight cars prefer the Japanese/Korean brands. Both has its own advantages/disadvantages and there is a market for both.

And a car being light in no way means it's less safe. It's the other design elements that matter like how effective the brakes are in preventing a collision, how efficient the body shell is in absorbing impact and transferring only a part to the cabin. How good the impact beams are and how efficient and fast the air bags are.

For instance, a supposed to be tinny sedan - the Etios gets a 4 star rating in Latin ncap safety rating which is quite decent.

Hello,

Thank you GTO for the wonderful & detailed review (as always). I feel every prospective buyer should read Team-BHP's review before making final buying decision. The finer details mentioned & explained here can probably be found at no other place (atleast online).

Finally I feel there is a car in Indian market to challenge Maruti Swift Dzire. When it comes to reliability & trust in minds of Indian consumer I feel it is only Honda after Maruti. I think Honda is little late in introducing Diesel engine / car in India as the recent & expected Diesel price hikes have forced prospective car buyers to look for CNG / Petrol options.

Though it is in direct competition to likes of Indigo CS, Mahindra Verito, Chervolet Sail, etc, but I feel a prospective buyer of Honda Amaze will not look beyond Swift, Etios & Fiesta.

Thanks,

I agree. It is not the thickness of the metal used, but the design which make the vehicle stronger. A sheet with 2 mm may perform better than 3 mm if the earlier one was designed better. A good design will save material cost and reduce the weight of the vehicle, which in-turn will improve the mileage.

Thank you very much, GTO and the moderator team, for this 5 star review.

What a way for Honda to arrive on the diesel scene! However from the feedback that no one even seemed to notice the car on the road in Goa seems to indicate a target group who like cars that are not flashy and do their basic job well.
Are there really no downsides to the engine (other than the NVH)? Hope fuel from even smaller towns (with probably some adulteration / lower quality) will not cause issues. Also am wondering about the link between viscosity of the oil used and fuel efficiency, and what happens if/when that is changed or differently topped up when needed, say at petrol pumps. I am in the market for a small car, will await some ownership reports.

Excellent Review!!

Would love to see a Diesel Amaze , Diesel Brio Combo against the Swift Brothers.


-Vinay

To me, what Amaze brings out is how good and practical, its rival, the Etios is. The Etios can do all that the Amaze does and then some. It can seat 5, has a huge boot,is as reliable as a Honda. Between the too, I really dont see much character in design as well. But somehow, Etios seems to have lost on its perception as a cheap car.

It has not entirely lost out. In March 2013 sales ( post the facelift release ) , Etios is the number 2 best seller behind Dzire among sedans of any class. Manza + Indigo, Verito, Verna, Fiesta Classic, vento, sunny all has sales numbers below the Etios.

With Amaze coming out, it's going to be a difficult game though because Amaze offers decent practicality ( unlike dzire ), decent aesthetics ( unlike Etios ), class leading performance and mileage, and should definitely have the cost advantage due to the 4m design.

It can be other way around also.
With Amaze having adequate boot space, good rearseat legroom and a better driveable diesel engine people might feel extra money for Etios isnot required. And Honda brand having equal brand power help the cause further.

But then every car having there own set of advantages and disadvantages. Its difficult to predict how Indian customers will react

Initially I had no liking for the Etios diesel. Though after amalji's thread and revealation I have developed good respect for Toyota's low cost of ownership and overall practicality. With recent facelift it is more desirable as well.

The cars the Amaze will compete against are the Etois and maybe the Verna and a little less often the Manza. The Quanto, Innova and Duster cater to different needs.

Etios still hasn't lost the game, specially after the facelift, which has come before the Amaze launch. Interiors are decent now and the car along with Liva really worked on the NVH aspect. With Amaze reporting high level of NVH and Brio diesel being dropped because of this NVH issue, this is where Etios might score after the initial euphoria about Amaze diesel dies down.

Let's see how the game goes. I am still not comfortable with a brand new diesel engine from Honda. Would still prefer time-tested Toyota and Fiat engines, at least for some time to come.

+1 to that. The face lifted Etios has gone by the market feedback. Excepting for the centrally mounted Instrument Cluster, all other things have been corrected. Many people still might have a problem with the Instrument Panel, but that cannot be the only reason to predict that Etios will be a dead product after Amaze's launch.

Yes, we are indeed aware of it. We just compared the engine's capabilities for curiosity sake and was pleasantly surprised with the fact that it compares well with these stalwarts. :-)

Etios seems to be a late mover and hopefully will be a steady one for Toyota. I guess people really need to be convinced about its practicality.
Amaze should definitely up the battle for Etios and in response, I hope Toyota would up the number of goodies packed, in addition to the present facelift. The good thing is, it is win-win for the customer.clap:

And if the Etios does become a steady success, I hope they dont keep milking it for years together like the Innova.