This is not yet a standard but hybridization is gaining ground within the city car segment. After the Renault Clio and the Toyota Yaris, it is the turn of the fourth generation of the Honda Jazz, so far without electricity, to enrich a list that has not finished growing. Embarrassment awaits motorists who will have the choice between technologies and quite different architectures. If you are a fan of minivan architectures that induce great interior light as well as remarkable space and modularity, the Jazz has an advantage.
Honda
However, his style is evolving towards less finesse. The projectors are thus disproportionate while the pneumatic mounting (15 or 16 inches) seems riquiqui. But, one Jazz can hide another. It is not one but two models that Honda is launching on the market. Alongside a classic version, the Japanese manufacturer is surfing the crossover trend with a Crosstar variant recognizable by its roof bars, its black plastic ring encircling the body and its slightly raised seats. This version should represent 30% of sales of the Jazz.
@Patrick Corminboeuf
Another mark of differentiation: the hybrid powertrain. When Renault resorts to a new solution combining a 1.6-liter, 91 hp 4-cylinder engine with two electric motors installed in a clutchless multi-mode automatic gearbox, Honda applies a new version of its e: HEV system, which also has all the attributes of a gas plant. Without a gearbox, the Jazz combines a 4-cylinder 1.5-liter 97 hp Atkinson cycle with two electric machines, the one providing traction displays a power of 109 hp and a torque of 253 Nm. The power to remember is therefore that of the latter. The driver then has three operating modes: 100% electric up to around 50 km / h, provided the battery is sufficiently charged; hybrid and 100% thermal. In the second case, the 4-cylinder behaves like a generator, driving the generator which supplies electricity to the electric motor responsible for driving the wheels. In the latter case, the two electric machines are disconnected; the 1.5-liter provides direct propulsion via a fixed-ratio transmission.
Honda
For the driver, the energy exchanges are transparent. The system constantly determines the most suitable power source knowing that in town, it favors electricity. Sometimes, the heat engine kicks in and turns a little faster to recharge the battery faster. Our smooth and forward-looking drive was rewarded with a consumption of 4.4 l / 100 km, 0.1 l less than the manufacturer's data, which corresponds to CO2 emissions of just 79 g / km. What to give a host of tax advantages to companies. This is how it comes close to 900 km before having to stop at the pump. A record. Consumption can climb to 5.5 l / 100 km on a mixed route, mostly motorway, which remains very correct. If the Jazz is a model of smoothness and zen in the city, on the road, a sound complaint degrades the approval under strong acceleration. Several tens of kilometers also highlight a rather firm suspension comfort despite the softness of the seats. As for the regenerative braking, always delicate in a hybrid, it is rather well managed.
Honda
However, we are not sulking our pleasure aboard this minispace. All-round visibility thanks to the double-pillar windshield, deep dashboard, sloped and sleek strip, 9-inch multimedia touch screen, 7-inch digital instrumentation, two-spoke steering wheel: the Jazz takes care of its modernity. It impresses more by the care taken in the manufacture of its dashboard than by the quality of the plastics but in Exclusive high-end finish (25 190 €), it maintains its high-tech side with the trim of certain white leather elements. . Its modernism is also verified through its state-of-the-art connectivity, its driving aids borrowed from sedans and its high level of safety. The Japanese city car inaugurates a central airbag to reduce the severity of injuries to front passengers in the event of a side impact.
Honda
Now exceeding 4 meters long, the Jazz remains a phenomenon in terms of size-habitability ratio. With the exception of the barely welcoming central square, the generous rear space outclasses some compact sedans. Like its predecessors, the new model shines with a particularly ingenious modularity. The Jazz still has the famous “magic” rear seats, the seat of which can be folded or raised and clipped to the backrests to transport high-rise objects such as a plant. The loading volume thus varies from 304 liters to 1,205 l, depending on the configuration chosen. Not all city cars can say the same.
Our opinion
The last Jazz really seems like a car to live. In this, it gives an idea of what the Twingo should have been. Packed with technology, the Japanese city car is rooted in its time. Its physique does not deserve the first beauty prize and its suspension comfort needs to be reviewed, but its general approval and its frugality will be able to change things. Finally, the legendary reliability of the manufacturer's models as well as the engine warranty extended to ten years may be able to compensate for services billed at a high price.
Technical sheet
Engine
Displacement: 1498 cc
Type: 4 cyl. 16 valves
Power: 97 hp at 6,400 rpm
Torque: 131 Nm from 4,500 to 5,000 rpm
Electric motor: 109 hp
Maximum electric torque: 253 Nm
Transmission
Type: Traction
Gearbox: auto 1 report
Dimensions (L / W / H): 4,044 / 1,694 / 1,526 mm
Safe: 304/1 205 dm3
Weight: 1,300 kg
Performances
0-100 km / h: 9.4 seconds
Speed: 175 km / h
Consumption (Mixed EU): 4.5 l / 100 km
CO2: 79 g / km
Price: from 21,990 €