Honda Jazz Review: 2009 Model | Jazz | Car Buyers Guide

2009 Honda Jazz Review

I swear I’m sitting in the wrong car. Someone said this is a supermini. Only a few minutes ago I was laughing with a colleague about the numerous Tardis references we’ve been bombarded with, but hell, there’s no better way to describe the interior of Honda’s Jazz. It’s vast, in the way the Grand Canyon or the surface of Mars is vast. Absolutely gargantuan. And it’s been a huge success for Honda, as ‘the Jazz’ in Europe, and ‘the Fit’ elsewhere. It’s so big that it’s acceptable in America, where even the most supersized of backsides should be able to get comfortable.

 

Space was always the primary appeal of the old Jazz, and this car improves so much on that you wouldn’t be surprised if you found NASA mounting a mission in the boot. There’s 399 litres of capacity back there, which is 104 litres bigger than the boot in the all-new Fiesta. Forget the Fiesta, though, as the Jazz actually offers more luggage space than the Ford Focus. Put the rear seats down and there's little you won't get in. Unbelievably, Honda demonstrated this fact by rolling a quad off-roader through the back door. It's a simple process, too, as the folding seats on the Jazz are among the easiest you’ll ever encounter. Honda calls them ‘Magic Seats’ and it’s difficult to argue with that title.

 

Thank old people for that (and all the other cool stuff they did for us before we were born), as Honda’s customer base for the Jazz is typically on the more, ahem, mature side. The average age for a Jazz customer is 63, meaning that for every young driver you see behind the wheel bringing that average down there’s a happy octogenarian cruising around in Honda’s big-little car. And what’s good for them is good for us. Big, easy-to-read dials; simple controls; an airy, light filled cabin; and details like those painless-to-drop rear seats make the Jazz a real cinch to use. I’d never experienced a folding rear seat that will fold flat towards the floor with the front seat in its rearmost position until I’d driven the Jazz. It even manages it with the headrests in place.

 

Little wonder, then, that the Jazz has consistently been a best seller in all the markets in which it’s sold. Customers love it, and it’s really not difficult to see why. So, in the new car Honda has simply concentrated on continuing to provide all the basics that make the original car so appealing, while tweaking those few areas that needed a bit of work.

 

Key on that list is the ride: the outgoing Jazz’s customers are perhaps used to a bit of hardship, but the ride on the old car was always borderline ridiculous due to its harshness. Honda’s engineers have been busy working their magic, and the Jazz’s suspension now offers a buttery smooth ride quality without ruining the agility that made the old one so enjoyable to drive. The styling has seen a big improvement too – the new Jazz is far more edgy and interesting than its rather forgettable forebear, though you need to see the car for yourself to appreciate this fact. Refinement has also been significantly improved, which only adds to the feeling that you’re driving something much larger than the Jazz actually is.

 

For all its interior scale, it remains a relatively small car on the road. That means parking is a doddle, as the massive glasshouse allows you to spot its extremities with ease. The new quarter lights – reminiscent of those on an MPV – give away how Honda has created all the interior space, as the Jazz is now more mini-MPV than supermini with its near mono-box profile.

 

Not that being a bit sensible means that the Jazz isn’t enjoyable. Sure, you’re going to pick a Fiesta if you’re off down a favourite road, but if you’re taking people with you and all their stuff too, you’ll reach for the Jazz's keys. Not that it doesn’t do a pretty decent job when you don't need its full carrying capacity; as with all Hondas, shifting through the gearbox rewards with the sort of precision and mechanical action you wish all car manufacturers could replicate. The steering is light and accurate, though feel is a bit lacking, and body roll is well contained. Grip gives up pretty quickly at the front if you really push it, but then few drivers will, and the Jazz has the capacity to entertain at sensible speeds. Which, given the engine choices, is just as well. 

 

Two units are offered, with Honda eschewing the current growth in supermini turbodiesels and only offering the Jazz with a pair of petrol powerplants. The decision comes down to either a 1.2 or 1.4 litre, and the reality is that they’re so close on paper you’ll struggle to separate them on the road. The 1.2-litre unit delivers 90hp at 6,000rpm and 114Nm of torque at 4,900rpm. The larger 1.4-litre powerplant only offers marginally more power with 100hp at 6,000rpm and 127Nm at 4,800rpm. The figures show that the 1.2 takes 12.5 seconds to reach 100km/h, and the 1.4-litre only shaves a second off that. Neither are fireballs, but they don’t really need to be. 

 

If you can detect the difference on the road then you should be a development engineer for a car company. The 1.2 offers smooth performance, revving cleanly all the way to its redline if you want it to, though you’ll rarely ever feel the need. That’s great news if you’re after a Jazz, as the entry-level engine is just as good as its bigger alternative. It’s a touch more economical too, as the 1.2 stretches a bit more from its fuel tank. Figure on a pretty decent improvement on the outgoing Jazz 1.2’s 5.5 litres/100km. The smaller engine is cheaper to buy too, which is significant, as the Jazz has never been among the more affordable cars in the supermini class.

 

Forget about how it compares to its supermini rivals on price, though, and look at it as a competitor to the cars in the class above and it begins to look like conspicuously good value. Consider, too, that it’s a Honda and therefore likely to offer the sort of reliability that many of its customers demand from their pacemakers and the Jazz makes even more sense.

 

Honda hasn’t been the only one to consider downsizing lately. The Credit Crunch has hit new car buyers, meaning sacrifices have to be made when it comes to buying time. The Jazz offers a solution, not least because it’s genuinely family sized. In fact, we could all manage in smaller cars if necessary, and the Jazz merely underlines that point. Emphatically.

 

VERDICT: Honda's big-small car impresses with its huge space and practicality. A tad pricey, but you get a lot for your money.

 

Interior image caption: Inside, easy-to-read dials, simple controls, an airy cabin and details like those painless-to-drop rear seats make the Jazz a cinch to use

 

 

 

Info

Honda Jazz 1.2 i-DSI

 

Engine

1,246cc, four-cylinder petrol 

 

Output

77hp, 110Nm

 

Transmission

5-sp manual

 

Acceleration

0-100km/h 13.7 seconds

 

Top speed

169km/h

 

Economy

5.5 litres/100km

 

CO2 emissions

129g/km

 

CO2 Tax Band

B (€150 p.a.)

 

Weight

1,015kg

 

Boot capacity

399 litres

 

Price

€16,000 (Est)

 

For:

Space, flexibility, ride

 

Against:

Not cheap

 

Rating:

8/10

 

 

 

Info

Honda Jazz 1.4 i-DSI

 

Engine

1,339cc four-cylinder petrol 

 

Output

83hp, 119Nm

 

Transmission

5-sp manual or 7-sp CVT

 

Acceleration

0-100km/h 13.3 seconds

 

Top speed

171km/h

 

Economy

5.8 litres/100km

 

CO2 emissions

137g/km

 

CO2 Tax Band

B (€150 p.a.)

 

Weight

1,041kg

 

Boot capacity

399 litres

 

Price

€17,500 (Est)

 

For:

Space, flexibility, ride

 

Against:

Price, no faster than 1.2.

 

Rating:

7/10

 


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