2013 Honda Jazz, nice…
Discussion
My latest daily purchase is I direct result of Alfa Romeo ownership. A Mito to be precise, the Mito from hell! At first it seemed like a good car but in time it showed its true character! Constantly chasing faults and replacing parts, it wore me down after a year of constant f
king around.
I’m done with it and needed something reliable, durable and cheap (ish)
My parents have a Honda Jazz and constantly go on about how good it is. So I decided to have a look on all the usual market places to see what’s out there and found this Jazz 1.4 Si for sale locally to me.
First impressions were ok, it had 100k on the clock and looked a little tired around the edges but overall an honest car. I took it for a test drive, it felt tight as a drum and the L13z1 engine ran silky smooth, silent and willing to rev all the way to just shy of 7k rpm with Vtec coming on at 4k. It was a joy to drive by comparison to the Mito. A deal was struck and a week later I collected it.
It didn’t take long for me to fit Eibach springs, new tyres, refurbish the alloys, fit a knock off Spoon back box and tailgate spoiler. On further inspection it has minimal rust with is a bonus as Jazz’s like to rust for fun. A Lanoguard kit has been ordered and I’ll do the under body protection in due course.
It’s been an absolute joy to own so far, it’s one of those no nonsense cars that just gets on with it with no fuss and it’s great at handling the small country roads.
It’s in need of a good machine polish as the previous owners didn’t care too much about its appearance and looked like they may have used a brick for a sponge on the rare occasion it was cleaned.
king around. I’m done with it and needed something reliable, durable and cheap (ish)
My parents have a Honda Jazz and constantly go on about how good it is. So I decided to have a look on all the usual market places to see what’s out there and found this Jazz 1.4 Si for sale locally to me.
First impressions were ok, it had 100k on the clock and looked a little tired around the edges but overall an honest car. I took it for a test drive, it felt tight as a drum and the L13z1 engine ran silky smooth, silent and willing to rev all the way to just shy of 7k rpm with Vtec coming on at 4k. It was a joy to drive by comparison to the Mito. A deal was struck and a week later I collected it.
It didn’t take long for me to fit Eibach springs, new tyres, refurbish the alloys, fit a knock off Spoon back box and tailgate spoiler. On further inspection it has minimal rust with is a bonus as Jazz’s like to rust for fun. A Lanoguard kit has been ordered and I’ll do the under body protection in due course.
It’s been an absolute joy to own so far, it’s one of those no nonsense cars that just gets on with it with no fuss and it’s great at handling the small country roads.
It’s in need of a good machine polish as the previous owners didn’t care too much about its appearance and looked like they may have used a brick for a sponge on the rare occasion it was cleaned.
Edited by Spudgunassassin on Sunday 18th August 19:45
We have one - bought for a bag of sand maybe 6 or so years ago. Not remotely sporty - i certainly wouldn't bother with a backbox or spoiler - but is is totally reliable and cheap to run.
Ours (2008 1.4) doesn't rev like Hondas used to and from memory is redlined at 6000. Maybe different engine to the later ones?
Ours (2008 1.4) doesn't rev like Hondas used to and from memory is redlined at 6000. Maybe different engine to the later ones?
mooseracer said:
We have one - bought for a bag of sand maybe 6 or so years ago. Not remotely sporty - i certainly wouldn't bother with a backbox or spoiler - but is is totally reliable and cheap to run.
Ours (2008 1.4) doesn't rev like Hondas used to and from memory is redlined at 6000. Maybe different engine to the later ones?
Yours will be the i-DSI engine IIRC; not the Vtec engineOurs (2008 1.4) doesn't rev like Hondas used to and from memory is redlined at 6000. Maybe different engine to the later ones?
Nice, I've got one that's now on 140k with nothing except basic servicing and tyres/brakes.
Changing the spark plugs made a big difference, think the interval is 80k so worth checking if they have been done. Looks fiddly but not a bad job once you have the scuttle out of the way, which is about 5 screws. Not cheap (around £25 each) but could feel the difference in engine response. Changing the gearbox oil also made the lovely gearchange even better. Easy job.
Changing the spark plugs made a big difference, think the interval is 80k so worth checking if they have been done. Looks fiddly but not a bad job once you have the scuttle out of the way, which is about 5 screws. Not cheap (around £25 each) but could feel the difference in engine response. Changing the gearbox oil also made the lovely gearchange even better. Easy job.
danb79 said:
mooseracer said:
We have one - bought for a bag of sand maybe 6 or so years ago. Not remotely sporty - i certainly wouldn't bother with a backbox or spoiler - but is is totally reliable and cheap to run.
Ours (2008 1.4) doesn't rev like Hondas used to and from memory is redlined at 6000. Maybe different engine to the later ones?
Yours will be the i-DSI engine IIRC; not the Vtec engineOurs (2008 1.4) doesn't rev like Hondas used to and from memory is redlined at 6000. Maybe different engine to the later ones?
mooseracer said:
danb79 said:
mooseracer said:
We have one - bought for a bag of sand maybe 6 or so years ago. Not remotely sporty - i certainly wouldn't bother with a backbox or spoiler - but is is totally reliable and cheap to run.
Ours (2008 1.4) doesn't rev like Hondas used to and from memory is redlined at 6000. Maybe different engine to the later ones?
Yours will be the i-DSI engine IIRC; not the Vtec engineOurs (2008 1.4) doesn't rev like Hondas used to and from memory is redlined at 6000. Maybe different engine to the later ones?
lufbramatt said:
Nice, I've got one that's now on 140k with nothing except basic servicing and tyres/brakes.
Changing the spark plugs made a big difference, think the interval is 80k so worth checking if they have been done. Looks fiddly but not a bad job once you have the scuttle out of the way, which is about 5 screws. Not cheap (around £25 each) but could feel the difference in engine response. Changing the gearbox oil also made the lovely gearchange even better. Easy job.
That’s good to hear. I forgot to mention I changed the plugs, genuine NGK iridium.Changing the spark plugs made a big difference, think the interval is 80k so worth checking if they have been done. Looks fiddly but not a bad job once you have the scuttle out of the way, which is about 5 screws. Not cheap (around £25 each) but could feel the difference in engine response. Changing the gearbox oil also made the lovely gearchange even better. Easy job.
sbk1972 said:
Great cars. Cant go wrong with Honda. I have a 1999 Honda Civic Coupe 1.6 auto. Did over 70K miles on it and nothing went wrong. Sold it for more than I brought it for.
I now have my eye on a Honda FIT Rs. I love the 1.5 Rs model. 6k of sweetness.
Simon
The Honda Fit RS is cool little thing. Shame it never came to Europe, the Si was as sporty as it got over here. I now have my eye on a Honda FIT Rs. I love the 1.5 Rs model. 6k of sweetness.
Simon
I forgot about this post of mine, thought I d do an update. Well the Jazz is now on 126k and hasn t missed a beat apart from the offside driveshaft snapping as I pulled out of a junction (a common problem with the original driveshaft where water seeps under the rubber harmonic balancer and rots the shaft.)
As the mileage is now well over 100k I noticed the engine started to feel a little flat through midrange. Looking into it, it s advised to check and adjust valve clearances especially on a small V-tec engines. It s an easy but involved job that took around 2 hours to do and the difference it s made is well worth it! Engine is quieter and midrange performance is restored. Ever since I purchased it there has always been a faint buzz like rattle like an exhaust heat shield rattling at 2k rpm then passes, anyway since doing to valve clearances that buzz has vanished! Result!
I ve also done a few modifications. I ve replaced the original front seats for FN2 type R items. The original seats were terrible on my back after sitting in them for more than half an hour plus they offered no lumber support and I always found myself hanging onto the steering wheel so I didn t fall out when pressing on.
The seats was an easy swap which involved grinding off the runner feet on both sets and nut and bolt the Jazz feet to the FN2 runners and the pretensioners plug straight in.
I ve never really been a fan of the Jazz s big door mirrors, whilst they re obviously very useful I decided to buy some Spoon Sport aero reps from AliExpress and compromise my rear visibility
they only cost £47 shipped from china! They re not electric but for 47 quid the quality is surprisingly good! I had to dismantle the originals down to the base and with a bit of fettling I managed to attach the Spoon mirrors to the original base. Original Spoon mirrors are finished in satin silver but I decided to paint mine body colour. As the original mirrors had side repeaters in them that meant I had to fit new side repeaters to the front wings.
And my latest purchase is a set of JDM DC2 wheels and a set of 4x114.3 pcd adapters. The wheels needed a refurb and new rubber.
I vapour blasted the rims as they had been painted in aerosol, best to start from bare metal.
I applied an epoxy wet on wet primer prior to painting. This has great adhesion and anti corrosion properties.
Painted in Honda Championship White.
The pcd adapters are 20mm thick on the rear and 15mm on the front.
I m really pleased with the results, almost looks factory. Next job on the list will be paint, the front end is heavily chipped with lacquer peeling on the front bumper and chips on the roof some of which have spider legs (rust) growing under the paint.
As the mileage is now well over 100k I noticed the engine started to feel a little flat through midrange. Looking into it, it s advised to check and adjust valve clearances especially on a small V-tec engines. It s an easy but involved job that took around 2 hours to do and the difference it s made is well worth it! Engine is quieter and midrange performance is restored. Ever since I purchased it there has always been a faint buzz like rattle like an exhaust heat shield rattling at 2k rpm then passes, anyway since doing to valve clearances that buzz has vanished! Result!
I ve also done a few modifications. I ve replaced the original front seats for FN2 type R items. The original seats were terrible on my back after sitting in them for more than half an hour plus they offered no lumber support and I always found myself hanging onto the steering wheel so I didn t fall out when pressing on.
The seats was an easy swap which involved grinding off the runner feet on both sets and nut and bolt the Jazz feet to the FN2 runners and the pretensioners plug straight in.
I ve never really been a fan of the Jazz s big door mirrors, whilst they re obviously very useful I decided to buy some Spoon Sport aero reps from AliExpress and compromise my rear visibility
they only cost £47 shipped from china! They re not electric but for 47 quid the quality is surprisingly good! I had to dismantle the originals down to the base and with a bit of fettling I managed to attach the Spoon mirrors to the original base. Original Spoon mirrors are finished in satin silver but I decided to paint mine body colour. As the original mirrors had side repeaters in them that meant I had to fit new side repeaters to the front wings. And my latest purchase is a set of JDM DC2 wheels and a set of 4x114.3 pcd adapters. The wheels needed a refurb and new rubber.
I vapour blasted the rims as they had been painted in aerosol, best to start from bare metal.
I applied an epoxy wet on wet primer prior to painting. This has great adhesion and anti corrosion properties.
Painted in Honda Championship White.
The pcd adapters are 20mm thick on the rear and 15mm on the front.
I m really pleased with the results, almost looks factory. Next job on the list will be paint, the front end is heavily chipped with lacquer peeling on the front bumper and chips on the roof some of which have spider legs (rust) growing under the paint.
Edited by Spudgunassassin on Sunday 25th January 21:58
Edited by Spudgunassassin on Monday 26th January 06:30
Edited by Spudgunassassin on Monday 26th January 06:32
The from Alfa to Japanese is something I did more than 10 years ago (but went to Subaru, not Honda). I still have an Alfa and it reminds me every time I want to drive it or work on it why it's not my daily.
About your Jazz, what a cracking car. Love the red and the factory body kit.
Mate has a white 1.2 'base spec' and it has been absolutely spotless. It does have some rust (but nothing major and I think you guys in the UK would call it rustfree). We just serviced it last week (car has approx 230 000 kms) and in that time it has needed nothing but oil, filters, a full set of brakes and tires. We'll have to replace the rear shocks tough as they are weeping.
I've tried to convince him in doing some 'type R' mods (like you've done on yours), but to this date, it's still stock.
About your Jazz, what a cracking car. Love the red and the factory body kit.
Mate has a white 1.2 'base spec' and it has been absolutely spotless. It does have some rust (but nothing major and I think you guys in the UK would call it rustfree). We just serviced it last week (car has approx 230 000 kms) and in that time it has needed nothing but oil, filters, a full set of brakes and tires. We'll have to replace the rear shocks tough as they are weeping.
I've tried to convince him in doing some 'type R' mods (like you've done on yours), but to this date, it's still stock.
Very nice! I bought the same version, a 1.4 Si as a cheap winter runaround and immediately thought how good it would be to warm it up slightly to make it even more fun.
It was only when I parked it next to a standard Jazz that I realised how cool the bodykit was. Liking your spoiler and the white wheels. Regrettably mine is quite rusty and may not survive its next MOT. If it isn't too much to get it through, I'll copy some of your mods!
It was only when I parked it next to a standard Jazz that I realised how cool the bodykit was. Liking your spoiler and the white wheels. Regrettably mine is quite rusty and may not survive its next MOT. If it isn't too much to get it through, I'll copy some of your mods!
Edited by TVRBRZ on Sunday 25th January 22:35
Great car OP
Bought a Jazz for my wife and she ran it for ten years, didn’t look after it and apart from a couple of exhausts everything else was consumables.
The BMW’s I ran next to it were garbage in comparison, nice cars but preventive maintenance sir.
Mine was a Mk1 sport which had the roof spoiler.
They seemed to have made the Mk2 better screwed together, not so cheap looking.
I also love the mods, these are sought after in the Asian countries by the younger drivers.
Only here they have a pensioner reputation.
Bought a Jazz for my wife and she ran it for ten years, didn’t look after it and apart from a couple of exhausts everything else was consumables.
The BMW’s I ran next to it were garbage in comparison, nice cars but preventive maintenance sir.
Mine was a Mk1 sport which had the roof spoiler.
They seemed to have made the Mk2 better screwed together, not so cheap looking.
I also love the mods, these are sought after in the Asian countries by the younger drivers.
Only here they have a pensioner reputation.
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