How many times have you heard people
complaining about the cost of fuel?
“Geez,” goes the refrain. “I just can’t hack
the amount I’m spending on petrol each week.”
“I’d love to buy something more economical but
those hybrids are real expensive and I don’t want a diesel. Diesel is for
trucks. And with two teenagers and the way we go on holidays, nothing smaller
than a Falcon/Commodore will do....”
Well, welcome to the Honda Jazz. This is a
‘small’ car with sufficient passenger room for two 1.8-metre tall front seat
occupants – and two 1.8 metre rear seat occupants – and two full
sized suitcases – and a few soft bags. We’ve been in big sedans that had
less room than that.
Fuel economy? On an 800 kilometre open road
trip, loaded with two adults, a child and a lot of camping gear, we gained an
indicated 5.5 litres/100km. And half of that distance was with the air con
running...
No, the Jazz won’t tow a boat (well, maybe it
would an inflatable Zodiac!) and it won’t win too many traffic light
grands prix. But as a practical, realistic new-age family car suitable for two
adults and one or two children, it makes for a startlingly good case.
The new model Jazz follows a predecessor that
since 2001 sold no less than 2.5 million examples worldwide – and over 51,000
units in Australia. The current Jazz is larger than the previous car in all
dimensions except height, however is still remains a compact and light vehicle
(mass is 1065kg in tested GLi form).
Three different models are available: GLi at
$15,990; VTi at $19,170 and VTi-S at $21,590. In each case a 5-speed auto is
available at about $2000 extra. The GLi is also available with a $1000 upgrade
pack that includes side and curtain airbags and a trip computer. We requested a
GLi and thankfully it came with the upgrade pack – we’d suggest every GLi buyer
should tick this option box.
The GLI has a brand new design 1340cc iVTEC
(variable valve timing and lift) SOHC four cylinder engine that develops 73kW at
6000 rpm and peak torque (127Nm) at a high 4800 rpm. (The other models use an
88kW 1.5 litre engine.)
The valve timing trickery gives the 1.3 litre
extremely good low-down characteristics – the idle is so smooth it befits a
luxury car at four times the price, while the tractability of the engine is amazing. You can drive along quite happily in the Jazz, engine barely
above idle – and yet be in first, second or third gears. This
low-rpm-and-high-gear approach pays dividends in urban fuel consumption.
(Incidentally, the excellent performance was achieved in part by very careful
design of the coolant flows within the engine, so reducing the propensity for
detonation.)
But to get the best from the Jazz, you can’t be a
lazy driver. On the open road, or for decent around-town performance, you must
frequently use the gearbox. That’s no hardship: the clutch and gearbox are
light. Explore all the rev range and you’ll find another level of responsiveness
above 5000 rpm – so if the driver wishes, the engine can be driven in a sporty
manner as well as happily lugging around at low rpm.
Outright performance is never scintillating, but
if driven competently, the Jazz is fine. For example, we passed on the open road
a combination of a truck and a car pulling a caravan, having no problem even
with the Jazz fairly heavily laden.
Ride and handling are competent but not class
leading.
Fuel economy is outstanding. The Australian
government test figure is 5.8 litres/100km for the combined cycle and our
overall consumption figure for a week of driving was 5.7 litres/100km. As
mentioned above, on a trip expect around 5.5 litres/100km.
In addition to the fuel economy/performance
compromise, the other highlight of the car is its packaging. Many people have a
perception that the external size of a vehicle is directly related to how much
interior space it has. But such a perspective ignores how clever engineers can
be in internal packaging of the suspension and driveline, and how smart the
seating arrangements can be made.
And the Jazz body shape is quite amazing. Consider
just these two points: the base of the windscreen is positioned directly above
the centre of the front wheels, and the roof’s peak height is above the heads of
the rear passengers. The maximising of useable cabin space is also enhanced by
the positioning of the fuel tank – it’s directly below the front passenger
seats.
The result is simply a huge amount of interior
space. Aided by the height-adjustable seat and reach- and height-adjustable
steering wheel, the driver is able to find a comfortable and roomy driving
position, almost irrespective of their size. Sitting in the back is a
revelation: even with the driver’s seat at its lowest height, an adult rear
passenger can easily fit their feet under the seat in front; rear headroom is
excellent and knee-room (enhanced by scalloped front seat backs) is very good.
The rear seat back can also be set at one of two angles, allowing a more
reclined position than normal.
The rear seats fold flat on a 40/60 basis, giving
a flat floor and massive load space. Furthermore, for taller loads, the rear
seats can be folded so that they stand vertically, resulting in a 1.28 metre
clearance for objects carried in the rear footwell. Even with the rear seats
configured normally, there’s a load volume of 337 litres – easily enough to
carry two full sized suitcases and a squashy bag or two. With the seats folded,
there’s no less than 848 litres of carrying volume! And these aren’t achieved by
the use of a spacesaver – a full-size spare wheel is provided.
The adjustment of the rear seats for these
different configurations is quick and easy – this is not one of those cars where
you wrestle with seatbelts, catches, head restraints and heavy seats to avail
yourself of the different load options. The rear hatch opens high and the
loading lip is very low. Finally, the three child restraint anchorages are
positioned in the roof, so straps don’t intrude into the normal loading
area.
So for carrying large loads, the Jazz is stunning.
But it also performs well in normal day-to-day driving. The front door pockets
are practical and large, and two bottle holders are provided for each front seat
passenger. (Rear bottle holders are incorporated in the doors). All these work
well – rather than just being included so that the PR company could get a large
number to brag about. The front outer bottle holders, for example, are
positioned so that the drinks can be cooled by the air conditioning vents. The
dual gloveboxes, while not huge, are well positioned and the contents
accessible.
So what are this car’s negatives? Firstly, its
steering is afflicted with the Honda disease that is becoming common in this
company’s cars – a very slow response around centre. A car of this size and
character needs quick and tactile steering, but instead the on-centre response
is dull. A match with the steering – but again out of character for a car of
this ilk – is the long-throw gear lever. Put the two together and the driving
experience is diminished.
There are also a few obvious cost-cutting measures
– there’s no passenger side vanity mirror, there’s no engine coolant temperature
gauge (and one of the instruments has a big blank where we assume in some
markets it goes), and the instrument faces are finished in an awful texture.
In-cabin bolts that in other cars would normally be covered by trim pieces are
exposed.
Despite their adjustments, we also found the front
seats rather hard, resulting in numb bums after a few hours on the road.
However, the biggest downfall of the car is its
lack of stability control – even as an option. The $1000 upgrade for another
four airbags (and the trip computer) is to be applauded, but airbags come into
action only when you’re crashing. Electronic stability control can help you
avoid having the crash in the first place... Rumour suggests that the car will
get stability control within 12 months.
Like most of the Hondas sold in Australia, the
Jazz is made in Thailand. Build quality looks excellent, with the doors shutting
beautifully and the paint flawless.
We loved the Jazz. We’d like to see stability
control on the options list – that would be the icing on the cake. But overall,
it is a brilliant design that combines extraordinarily practicality with
competent performance and excellent fuel economy.
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