15 April 2013
The popular Jazz has taken the green route
Honda introduced its hybrid technology to the world in 1999 with Insight and has been fine-tuning this technology ever since. The Jazz entered the new car market in 2001, selling over 3.5million vehicles worldwide, and now more than a decade on it has been added to the list of hybrids being sold in New Zealand.
The Jazz IMA (Integrated Motor Assist) is built in Thailand with parts sourced from all over the world including New Zealand, which supplies the alloy used for manufacturing the engine block and wheel rims.
The Jazz has practical loading space and frugal fuel economy which has made it a popular choice in the small hatchback segment for more than a decade. It has an elevated front seating position which doesn’t lessen space either as the high roof line ensures ample head room for occupants. Honda has retained the rear magic seats which offer the flexibility of loading taller objects, due to the clever placement of the fuel tank under the front row seats, and folding the 60:40 split rear seats free up a useful 1,195L of cargo space.
The Jazz IMA is distinguished apart from the rest of the range by the blue tinted front headlight surrounds, clear LED taillights, chrome detailing on the bodywork as well as a hybrid badge on the tailgate.
Inside, it looks almost identical to its siblings except for the blue backlighting that’s used for the instruments. A Bluetooth controller is located on the driver’s side A-pillar trim while the radio and cruise control switches are conveniently located on the steering wheel.
All that Jazz just got high-tech
The Jazz IMA uses the same 1.3L powerplant found in the Insight, but have set it up for a sportier drive. It’s claimed to deliver better low down power as well as being 30% more fuel efficient than the 1.5L petrol Jazz. Fuel consumption is claimed at 4.5L/100km in a combined cycle while emitting only 107g/km of CO2 emissions at the tailpipe. During our test drive we found the claimed fuel consumption was achievable when driving with a gentle right foot. The petrol engine delivers 65kW of power and 121Nm of torque while the electric motor provides an additional 10kW/78Nm.
The electric motor is located between the engine and CVT transmission and assists the four-pot motor during acceleration to boost performance and improve fuel economy. The Jazz IMA doesn’t offer the ability to select electric vehicle (EV) mode but under set conditions the Variable Cylinder Management (VCM) system shuts off combustion in the petrol engine to allow the electrically powered motor to move the vehicle along at low speeds.
The car travels on battery power alone for close to a kilometre on a flat road before it’s necessary for the petrol engine to restart. During deceleration, and when the brake pedal is applied, the regeneration system recharges the small battery pack. A stop/start system switches the engine off when the vehicle is stationary to further improve on fuel consumption and it quickly restarts the motor when the driver is ready to get going; this is especially useful when driving in the inner-city traffic.
Selecting Econ (Economy) mode desensitises the throttle response to assist with reducing unnecessary fuel usage while a driver coaching system turns the speedo backlighting colour from blue to green as well as rewarding the driver by growing leaves when a concerted effort is made to drive efficiently.
The positioning of the hybrid’s Intelligent Power Unit (IPU) in the boot and the centrally located fuel tank ensure the weight is spread throughout the vehicle. The suspension is tweaked to compensate for the extra 70kg gained from the hybrid system and the ride is comfortable with handling on par with its siblings.
Passive safety features are in the form of six airbags and Jazz is awarded a five-star ANCAP crash test rating.
Active safety is in the form of Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD), Emergency Brake Assist (EBA) and Electronic Stability Control (ESC).
The Honda Jazz IMA is priced at $29,990 which makes it the most affordable new hybrid currently on sale in New Zealand. It’s already showing signs of strong interest with 100 pre sales at the time of the launch but with a waiting list until July you will need to get in line if you want to opt for the greener Jazz.