Honda Jazz - Practical, spacious and pretty

Is it coincidence that Honda's compact hatchback which has found favour amongst the more mature buying public, bears the same name as a music genre favoured by a similarly mature audience? Of course it is. But, it's interesting nonetheless.

If you hadn't guessed I'm talking about the Honda Jazz and I'm also leaning towards a dangerous generalisation about the average Jazz buyer. No doubt the Jazz does in fact find favour amongst a wide range of buyers, young and old, but to be honest, Honda in general and particularly with the Jazz, seems to attract an older buyer.

All that Jazz

Back to the Jazz which for Honda in South Africa is their best-selling model, and in 2015 there is a brand new model which made its debut earlier this year, and promises to build on the Jazz's formula of bulletproof mechanicals, reliability, flexibility and comfort.

Those who drive them, love them, or so I'm told

Indeed, ask anyone who owns a Honda Jazz what they think and you'll battle to find a word uttered in anger. Ask the same buyer what car model or brand they might consider next time around, and the answer will most likely be another Jazz, or at least another Honda.

I'm not convinced though and having never driven a Jazz, a week spent with one would surely allow for more than enough time to win me over, or not. The model in question is the 1.5 Dynamic Manual priced at R257 300.00.

One of the Jazz's biggest selling points is interior space and flexibility and this is reflected in way it looks, from the outside at least. Shrunken MPV is my initial thought with more than hint of previous generation Renault Scenic in profile. With its short overhangs front and rear, steeply raked bonnet which seamlessly rises into the windscreen, the Jazz is definitely more MPV than hatchback and there is never any confusion of mistaking a Jazz with anything else. Not something you can easily say about the competition in the compact hatchback segment.

More angular is probably the best way to describe Jazz's updated look with the restyled front and rear sections which are, well...more angular. The rear which I'll be honest is not the Jazz's best angle, 'benefits' from LED light clusters, with the remaining area a mish-mash of chrome, glass and odd looking triangular black plastic inserts.

Out and about?

My companion for a week features Honda's well known 1497cc iVTEC engine mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox. The four cylinder develops 88kW and 145Nm and is more than up for the job in Jazz, with only long, steep hills a cause for a downshift to fourth. Cruising at 120km/h there is definite feeling that an extra gear would be a welcome addition to lower cruising revs and the buzzy feeling/noisy feeling you get from the 5-speed 'box.

Speaking of gearboxes, Honda's well known and precise gearbox feel seemed to elude me somewhat, constantly baulking from 3rd to 2nd changes. For the rest though the gearbox is slick eliciting a positive 'thwacking' sound when slotting a new gear home.

The high roofline and resulting large glass areas makes for pleasant uninhibited view of the road when driving and on our range of pock-marked road surfaces, the Jazz is a very comfortable car to drive, soaking up bumps and road imperfections with ease.

What about the spacious, flexible interior you speak of?

Firstly, initial perceived quality in the Jazz is very underwhelming with not a soft touch plastic or squidgy material (apart from the cloth seats) in sight. Instead every surface, from the upper/lower dashboard, doors and steering wheel are clothed in a hard brittle feeling black plastic. Not upmarket at all and in stark contrast to the soft touch and tactile materials found in rivals such as the VW polo, Kia Rio or Renault Clio.

Interior space and practicality is the Jazz's trump card and in this respect beats the competition hands down. With the largest boot in its class of 360 litres expanded to 881 litres with the seats folded flat (they fold completely flat thanks to the Magic Seat's multiple configurations) the Jazz is without doubt the most spacious and practical small car money can buy.

In top of the range Dynamic trim Honda seems to have fully embraced touchscreen technology (whether this is hit amongst the older crowd remains to be seen). Up front in the central dashboard the Jazz is almost completely devoid of any tactile buttons, instead you get a 7-inch touchscreen for all media requirements and a similarly touch based system for all the ventilation controls.

The main 7-inch screen is meant to replicate the functionality of tablet, even allowing for HDMI-in connectivity which means if you have the right cable you can plug in and mirror your smartphones apps and abilities, I didn't have the right cable meaning I couldn't test it at all. Like all in car touchscreen technology the system in the Jazz works, just, the main problem lies in using these systems on the go. Where a definitive push of a button or twirl of a dial can be done by touch, doing the same on a touchscreen demands far more engagement meaning your eyes are taken off the road more of the time. In that regard they fail miserably. Also, if you're upgrading from a previous generation model to this one, and you happen to be a tech newbie like many Jazz buyers might be, you will battle with it.

Let's wrap this up

Mechanically the Jazz is sure to live up to its almost legendary status of unmatched reliability and if you're happy to look past the dubious interior ambience and plasticky interior, in favour of MPV-like space and flexibility, then the Jazz deserves your money. At R257 300.00 the Jazz 1.5 Dynamic sits at the top end of the compact hatch segment and the real value proposition lies in one of the entry level models.

However if you're simply after a classy small hatchback then the Kia Rio 1.4 Tec (R216 995.00), VW Polo 1.2TSi Highline (R244 300.00), Opel Corsa 1.0T Cosmo (R236 300.00) or Renault Clio GT-Line (R229 900.00) are all more than worthy of a look-in and in most cases represent better value for money.

Pricing

Honda Jazz 1.2 Trend - R185 300.00
Honda Jazz 1.2 Comfort - R211 000.00 (Our pick)
Honda Jazz 1.2 Comfort Auto - R228 500.00
Honda Jazz 1.5 Elegance - R241 900.00
Honda Jazz 1.5 Elegance Auto - R256 900.00
Honda Jazz 1.5 Dynamic - R257 300.00 (Driven)
Honda Jazz 1.5 Dynamic Auto - R272 300.00