Honda Jazz - They're not all bad. Honest....

[james_tigerwoods]

I've been done - I've been shafted - I've been given the (52 plate, 86k, 1.4) Honda Jazz for the day. I shan't give you the rather tenuous reason, but it's what I've been left with today.

I've got about half the power of the Golf and no Turbo which, on paper, would make progress boring - however, it doesn't and my drive in to work today was rather enjoyable (apart from the motorway that is), it's fun throwing it through the twisty bits, it's pretty free revving (not quite so much as a Fiat engine though), it handles better than you'd think and, when I got in to work, it's left me with a smile which has meant my looking forward to getting in to it on the way home.

The air con's broken, but it's got windows that wind down and a sun roof that works - the seat's don't have particularly well defined sides, but they adjust in enough directions to compensate - it doesn't have cruise control, but it's happy at 85/90* on the motorway - it's not a refined cruiser, but it's a fun little car - The stereo is basic, but I've got a iPod FM adapter that's brilliant (when I'm not listening to Radio 4) - I've not missed the Golf today as I've been hooning and enjoying the Jazz.

*Kph, y'honour

I would say I'm not sure why I've not used it more often, but I know why - I'm old and I like the comfort of the Golf. Yes, it's an old person's car - but it uses no oil, it's economical, it's roomy and very space-versatile, it's clever and it's surprising what it'll do.

Why have I written this? Well, you never see people praising these kind of little cars, so I thought I would.

I'm sure when I get back in to the Golf, I'll realise that I'm actually bonkers, but in the meantime, I'll heap some praise for the little Honda.

As you were

[RobM77]

james_tigerwoods said:

Why have I written this? Well, you never see people praising these kind of little cars, so I thought I would.

I tried it once and got flamed

[briers]

Give it another few days

I had a yaris once for a few days, it was mistreated, initially it was fun, then it got tedious, very quickly.

Edited by briers on Tuesday 29th June 16:58

[james_tigerwoods]

briers said:

Give it another few days

I had a yaris once for a few days, it was mistreated, initially it was fun, then it got tedious very quickly.

Ahhh - see, that's the point, I won't be in it for too long (I hope)....

I'll add that I'm not thrashing it to death as if I break it, I'll have to fix it...

[KaraK]

I sometimes find that driving a "st" car can actually be fun... in small doses. This isn't true for all of them however (Citeroen C3 shudder) but for something thats just a bit low-end rather and out and out awful you can get an inexplicable sense of fun, I'm not sure if it's the novelty or something.

[Prince Rupert]

I had a Jazz for a month or so a few years ago as a filler company car. I ended up feeling it was somehow more then the some of its parts. The only thing I disliked was the utterly torqueless engine. Even some clients (the non white BM / Audi driving kind - car colour that is) was mildly impressed saying how it felt like a bigger car and was very smooth and quite refined on the motorway. Versatile interior too - happily took me and three mates to cornwall for a week with surfboards on the roof). Only thing I disliked was the way it looked but the birds grandparents have just got a new model top spec one in grey with tinted windows and I even quite like the way the new one looks!

[poo at Paul's]

There are all manner of specialist websites for fans of the Jazz, as well as specialist 'Jazz Magazines", too.

[v8will]

briers said:

Give it another few days

I had a yaris once for a few days, it was mistreated, initially it was fun, then it got tedious, very quickly.

Edited by briers on Tuesday 29th June 16:58

I'm into my 3rd month of Yaris ownership. It is painfully boring......

[J500ANT]

I had one once as a loan car, I couldn't believe how thin the carpets were - i've used thicker condoms, but the interior packaging is rather impressive.

[Wadeski]

I think the Jazz is great. Much more like an old-school (like an EG) Civic than the modern bargetastic hatches.

[Deva Link]

james_tigerwoods said:

I've been done - I've been shafted - I've been given the (52 plate, 86k, 1.4) Honda Jazz for the day.

They made quite a few subtle changes on the 53 plate one, especially to the ride & handling and it's noticeably better. Mrs DL had one of those for 6 years - I think the greatest testament to the car is that we didn't realise it was 6 years old when we decided to change it - I was convinced it was younger.

Wifey wasn't interested in anything else, which was fine by me as ours didn't have a single fault in 6 years - not even a bulb blew - and it also meant I didn't have to traipse around dealers looking at all the other cars in the class. So we recently bought the latest model Jazz

To be honest, I preferred the old one. It felt very over-engineered and I'm sure it will run for ever. I'm surprised at the comments re engine torque - I thought the 8 valve but also 8 spark plug engine felt (perception is everything) pretty torquey. In contrast the new model's VTEC engine feels flat.

They are crap on the motorway (although you do seem to see a lot of them - perhaps I just notice them). It a bit tall and light so is affected by buffeting and crosswinds. We really only use ours around town.

[BlueJazz]

Having owned a Jazz 1.4 for a couple of years, their main attribute has got to be their interior packaging. The amount of space inside puts much larger cars to shame as does the versatility of the seating. As previously stated, the performance isn't going to trouble a TVR but it always gives 45mpg so I can't complain too much. My Jazz can be quite entertaining on the twisty roads but the usual Honda over-light steering which makes it so easy to manoeuvre around town, kills any real feedback at speed. Reliability is as per every Honda I’ve owned, it has never failed me yet. Overall it’s not a car you could ever really love in a PH way but as a supermini size car design, it’s admirable.

[james_tigerwoods]

BlueJazz said:

Having owned a Jazz 1.4 for a couple of years, their main attribute has got to be their interior packaging. The amount of space inside puts much larger cars to shame as does the versatility of the seating. As previously stated, the performance isn't going to trouble a TVR but it always gives 45mpg so I can't complain too much. My Jazz can be quite entertaining on the twisty roads but the usual Honda over-light steering which makes it so easy to manoeuvre around town, kills any real feedback at speed. Reliability is as per every Honda I’ve owned, it has never failed me yet. Overall it’s not a car you could ever really love in a PH way but as a supermini size car design, it’s admirable.

Agreed - the interior space was far more than the departed A4

Reliability has been good - apart from the A/C breaking that is.....

[BlueJazz]

This site may be able to help you with the air-con.

http://www.hondafitjazz.com/AC_Heater_Ventilation....

[B0LLIKS]

i bought a new jazz, had it 2 weeks, sold it. well i wanted a cheap run about, but i though it would have enough power to overtake things. i had the flowers i got with the car longer.

[Willy Nilly]

I had a Jazz courtesy car, didn't like it for about half an hour, it was a bit gutless on dual carrageways, but that is not it ral habitat, in urban settings is where it shines. Brilliant little car. It will win no or at least few friends on here because it won't leave long black marks at traffic lights or drive like an MX5, but that is not what it is about.

In some markets it has a 110hp 1.5 litre engine, that I think appears in the new CRZ, that would be a stonking little car

[Deva Link]

B0LLIKS said:

i bought a new jazz, had it 2 weeks, sold it. well i wanted a cheap run about, but i though it would have enough power to overtake things. i had the flowers i got with the car longer.

It's not worth overtaking in a Jazz even if you get the chance to take someone by surprise, as it just pisses them off and they have to pass you again. And it's actually illegal to stop in the right-hand lane at traffic lights in one.

[james_tigerwoods]

BlueJazz said:

This site may be able to help you with the air-con.

http://www.hondafitjazz.com/AC_Heater_Ventilation....

Thanks, but I think it's the compressor - I'll look anyway

Deva Link said:

B0LLIKS said:

i bought a new jazz, had it 2 weeks, sold it. well i wanted a cheap run about, but i though it would have enough power to overtake things. i had the flowers i got with the car longer.

It's not worth overtaking in a Jazz even if you get the chance to take someone by surprise, as it just pisses them off and they have to pass you again. And it's actually illegal to stop in the right-hand lane at traffic lights in one.

Nahhhh - I overtook 2 lorries and a car in one go on the way home today On a main road too

Edited by james_tigerwoods on Tuesday 29th June 22:36

[Deva Link]

james_tigerwoods said:

Nahhhh - I overtook 2 lorries and a car in one go on the way home today On a main road too

In the new one, you can "VTEC past" people!

From: http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=2&a...

Hitch78 said:

Ry_B said:

Bump.

Going through my old posts and thought this post was relevant as it happened again tonight. Safe overtake, drop to second, VTEC past and MAIN BEAMMM, surprisingly again they didn't want to talk when I slowed and indicated left to pull over.

VTEC past? What the fk does that mean?!

That is a very very bad, laughably gay, ricer lovers term if ever there was one.

It makes me want to cringe.

[Sam.F]

Deva Link said:

In the new one, you can "VTEC past" people!

Mmm. I sense from your that you have experienced the true "power" of the new Jazz? My Mum has had hers for just over a year now and she loves it, because she only ever pootles around town and loads it up with shopping - the interior packaging really is fantastic and I think it's a perfectly nice little car... but me it's slow. The engine lacks any kind of torque whatsoever and is mated to a 5-speed gearbox whose top ratio is so short that even at sub-NSL speeds on the motorway the engine is droning away at a silly number of revs. It's a crying shame because if it had a pokier engine and a 6-speed gearbox it'd be pretty hard to beat (in its class).