Honda Amaze has been a first for Honda in India in many aspects. The Amaze marked the entry for Honda in the compact-sedan segment, the Amaze was also the first ever car in India by Honda to come out with a diesel engine. The Earth Dreams diesel engine developed by Honda for Indian market also made Amaze, the most efficient car when it was launched.
The Amaze has garnered a huge number of sales in the market. In the most competitive segment of compact-sedans, Amaze has done really well against competitors like Maruti Swift DZire, Hyundai Xcent. The first Amaze came in 2013 and recently Honda updated the Amaze to keep it fresh. Let’s find out what so new in the new Honda Amaze.
Looks :
The Amaze now looks more like it belongs to the family. The updated single bar front grille similar to new Honda cars like City, Jazz and upcoming BR-V adds a character to the vehicle. Honda has also updated the front bumper of the vehicle with black honeycomb finish around the fog lamps. These are only two changes yet the Amaze looks bolder than the outgoing one.
From the side, Honda has not changed anything with the Amaze except little detailing where the indicator on the outside rear view mirror is now much sleeker. The car retains its shape and strong creases on the sides. Amaze is definitely one of the better looking compact sedans in India.
The rear also stays mostly the same except the tail lamps, which retain the shape from the old Amaze but have been updated so that the chrome strip along the boot now matches the tail lamp giving it a good looking affect.
Interior:
Honda has spent a lot of time to work on the interiors. The new Amaze has an all-new dashboard. The dual-tone interiors with silver highlight make the dashboard very classy. The infotainment system has been updated and an all-new multimedia system now takes the centre-stage of the dashboard.
There is an all-new digital AC-control too and this is standard fitment across all the variants. The design of the steering wheel and the control switches on it remain the same. The instrument cluster now looks exactly the same as Jazz and City. There are three pods out of which one is completely digital. The left most is the tachometer, the middle one shows the speed and the extreme right one shows various information like fuel gauge, instant fuel efficiency, average fuel efficiency, time and odometer. There is also an ‘ECO’ lamp for high efficiency driving.
There is lot of space to keep your small items in the vehicle, Honda has also updated the USB input slot and 12V power outlet.
Honda has also updated the fabric of the seats to all-beige ones which look premium. The space remains the same but the new Amaze looks much more premium now.
Engine and Drive
Honda has not changed the engines, it is the still the 1.2-litre 4-cylinder petro and 1.5-litre 4-cylinder diesel. Both the engines are mated to 5-speed manual transmission but the petrol variant now gets optional CVT replacing the old torque converter in the last model. The petrol engine develops 88 PS of maximum power with the manual gearbox and 90 PS with the CVT. The diesel engine produces a maximum of 100 PS.
The ride and handling remains the same. The suspensions are well planted to take on the bumpy roads. The Amaze also has a light steering wheel which weighs up beautifully with the speed and induces a lot of confidence in the highways. The car is limited to 150 km/h but Honda has done very well to reduce the diesel noise that used to be a prominent interfere in the last Amaze. The diesel engine has certified fuel efficiency of 25.8 km/l. The petrol manual returns 17.8 km/l and CVT returns 18.1 km/l.
Should I buy one?
The Amaze has gone through a minor mid-life update which makes the product a lot fresher in the market. Yes, there are few things missing like the touch-sensitive screen and standard dual airbags in the lower variants but this is as good as it gets. The Amaze has remained a wonderful car and surely will continue to do so in coming time. The price starts from Rs. 5.30 lakh for petrol and Rs. 6.42 lakh for diesel, both price ex-showroom, Delhi.
