I dont own a Honda Jazz, and thats simply because folks at Honda have priced it higher than my expectations for a petrol car. If it were 50000 rupees cheaper, I would have bought it for sure. I have taken 2 test drives of the car. I think its the most practical family car in India today, if you eliminate the cost. Its 1.2 litre petrol engine is actually slow, not nippy at all, and strains to cross 100kmph (Was it the test drive car only?), but maybe its to improve fuel efficiency for Indian middle class. Its a typical Honda, feels light weight, not the tank like cars made by Europeans, but its safe enough. The shell is well shaped, with reinforcements at necessary places. The base version comes with ABS/BD and airbags, which I value more than fuel economy. The all round visibility is fantastic. Inside space is very good and well designed. The engine is very drivable, just that it lacks high end performance. Beautiful and slick, short throw gear shift.
Reasonable quality plastics, that will definitely last long. Good back seat and ample room for passengers. Splits 60:40 with tremendous flexibility, and most importantly, with ease. Even small kids can fold seats down. The boot anyway is quite spacious, and with the seat folded, is humongous in size. The car looks different, tends to stand out in a crowd, and some colours especially look very pleasing for the car. If only Honda priced it a little more aggressively, it would sell 3 or 4 times the numbers it does today. I can understand that its a quality product and hence the premium price, but still Indians need a bit more push to be persuaded. Mind you, I think its better value for money than a petrol swift, which retails at same price, is more drivable but less practical for a family.
I am referring to the top end zxi version, which offers same features as a base version Jazz. If only Honda downs the prices a bit.