Which makes more sense? The City or the Jazz? It’s no secret that the two cars share the same platform. However Honda has made every effort to give the cars very distinct identities. That is why every body panel and every interior component are different on the two cars. So while one is a three-box sedan, the other is a hatchback and that is where the confusion sets in. The big question is: should one be paying a full-size sedan price for a hatchback? OverDrive (Aug. ’09) put the two cars through a road test to see which one appeals better...

Design & Engineering
When compared, the City’s sleek silhouette makes the Jazz feel a bit well fed and a front three-quarter stance is the most flattering angle to view the Jazz from though its hard not to miss the A, B, C, D and E pillars. Yes – unlike the City and other conventional cars the Jazz has not one but five pillars to reinforce the safety of the cabin. The Jazz has a smart front end and one that looks best in the base variant thanks to the honeycomb like black mesh grille. However the small engine bay with the sharply raked hood and short overhangs at both ends give it a bulbous form.

The City on the other hand has the looks of an Olympic sprinter with its edgy lines and muscled flanks. The famous ‘Arrowshot’ design was an immediate hit and gave the City a sportier edge. The City is longer than the Jazz and also has a longer wheelbase chiefly so that the area round the rear wheel arches could be cleaned up compared to the outgoing City.

Both cars have the same width but the City sits lower and is not as high giving it a racy stance. In contrast the Jazz looks far more utilitarian, the taller roofline promising better-in-cabin space while the compact exteriors lend a quiet assurance of being easier to manoeuvre and manage in traffic.

Where the interiors are concerned, the Jazz is clearly roomier, brighter and presents much better value for money. It is amazingly spacious for a hatchback and the seats can be adjusted for a multitude of seating and loading options including flipping the rear seat base up to load tall objects vertically. It also has a massive boot. The interiors are smartly appointed with thoughtfully placed cubby holes everywhere; it has a proper CD player unlike the USB port that the City gets and both cars offer the steering wheel from the Civic with steering mounted audio controls. The biggest gain though comes from the fact that all of the features on the Jazz and several more are available on the base model unlike the City where you have to fork out for everything.

The main grouse with both cars is the build and quality of material used for the interiors. It just does not have the solidity that the Germans have in abundance.

So overall the City scores points for being the more attractive car to be seen in but for sheer value and comfort it just does not match the tempo of the Jazz.

Drivetrain & Performance
Both cars share the same platform but the similarities end there and then. What you get in the Jazz is a 1.2-litre i-VTEC engine that was engineered keeping in mind Indian small car excise duty cuts. Small in size it may be, but the Jazz’s 4-cylinder mill has a 90PS max output which on paper is adequate for a car that weighs just around 1.1 tons. Practically however this engine is a bit peaky as it makes its power at a very high 6200rpm with the redline cutting off at 6500rpm. Even max torque, all 110Nm of it is generated at a rather high 4800rpm. So to get optimal performance out of this engine one has to keep the revs up and high ensuring the engine is in the power band at all times.

In comparison the City has no issues with performance. Honda has powered the City with its most powerful i-VTEC engine and this 4-cylinder 14-valve SOHC engine puts out 118PS and 146Nm which gives the City class leading performance.

Both cars also sport very different gearboxes. The City has a short set of ratios initially which progressively get taller, so acceleration is sharp in lower gears while the higher gears ensure fuel efficiency is optimised. The Jazz ratios feel much taller than the City though it too has shorter initial ratios which grow taller s one climbs gears.

Coming to the numbers it is but obvious that the Jazz cannot compare to the City, which is roughly around three seconds quicker to 100kmph. And given that the City does the ton in 11.53 seconds, the Jazz with its 1.2-litre engine is a quick car indeed. In fact despite the wet conditions in which it was tested, the Jazz managed to do a top spedd of 181kmph which puts her stability and confidence inspiring abilities to good light.

On the fuel efficiency front, the Jazz is the one that provides better mileage 14.72kmpl to the City’s 12.66kmpl proving that the engine and gearbox are tuned just that little bit more for good fuel efficiency.

Dynamics
The set-up on both cars is stiff but there is good compliance and it evens out most of the surface roughness without feeling harsh. Both share similar underpinnings and even have the same tyre sizes. So effectively both cars have nearly similar ride quality which in both cases is pretty good.

Yet where the ride quality is similar, handling is poles apart. The Jazz has a wider track and a shorter wheelbase compared to the City allowing it to place a firmer footing on tarmac. This gives the Jazz a bit of an edge while going around corners, since it can hold higher speeds and also feel more stale and confident with better poise. The unwavering lines are further enhanced by a steering system balanced just a little bit finer than the City. Whether on the twisties or on highways and within the city, the steering ensures the Jazz is easier to manoeuvre than the City.

On the braking front both cars employ a combination of discs at the front and drums at the rear for retardation. But it is the Jazz that posts slightly lower braking times from 100kmph possibly due to its lesser mass generating less momentum than the City.

Verdict
Overdrive testers (Aug. ’09) feel that the Jazz is certainly the car to listen to closely. You get a 1.2-litre engine that thinks it’s a 1.5 when you step on the gas but also thinks it’s an 800cc when you feather it for efficiency. She presents far more utility, makes more efficient usage of space and indulges the enthusiastic driver too. And then there’s the final clincher: the base variant is the best and the range starts at Rs. 7.43 lakh ex-showroom, Mumbai with everything that a top-end City has. And that sets you back by Rs. 9.45 lakh.

Hatchbacks today are only getting bigger, more powerful and more fuel efficient. They also have incredible performance and panache. In fact the City simply can’t match the cache, the snob value that the Jazz emanates in such abundance. So buy it, get over the perception of it being a small car or a hatchback and happily pay that price. Or else we will never ever graduate to better machines that cost just a bit more than run-of-the-mill cars ends OverDrive (Aug. ’09).