Five Things You Need to Know About The India-bound 2020 Honda Jazz Unveiled At Tokyo

• The 2020 Jazz retains its tall-boy familiarity with softer styling elements.
• It comes with a premium interior featuring elements such as digital dials and a floating infotainment.
• Notable features include digital dials, connected-car tech and Honda’s SENSING.
• Debuts the carmaker’s new e:HEV dual-motor hybrid powertrain.
• The 2020 Jazz is expected to debut in India after the Auto Expo 2020.

Honda Cars has unveiled the 2020 Jazz at the ongoing 2019 Tokyo Motor Show. For the uninitiated, the Jazz, also known as the Fit in international markets, is the fourth generation of Honda’s premium hatchback. It packs in softer styling, an upmarket interior and a premium set of features. The 2020 Jazz also debuts Honda’s e:HEV powertrain, the specifications of which are yet to be revealed. Further good news is that the Jazz is coming to India with BS6-compliant engines after the 2020 Auto Expo. So without wasting any time, here are five things you need to know about the 2020 Jazz: 

Exterior Styling: 

The 2020 Jazz still looks familiar thanks to its tall-boy profile. However, the design is now a tad softer with smooth flowing lines. Like the Amaze, the 2020 Jazz gets a flat nose with a body-coloured grille that connects the big projector headlamps with DRLs. In profile, the fourth-gen model looks familiar to its predecessor. However, the roof now slopes smoothly down at the rear while the character line has moved higher up. Complementing the profile is the new dual-tone alloy wheels. Split LED tail lamps top the look of the Jazz. 

Interior:

Inside, the Jazz comes with a premium dashboard that doesn’t have any identity with its predecessor. It looks premium yet simplistic. The central console is dominated by a new floating central console and below it are the climate control knobs that are a departure from the previous version’s touch console. This is a good move as you can’t keep shifting your eyes from the road to operate the climate control. Other changes include a new two-spoke steering wheel and digital dials that up the ante. This brings us to the… 

… Feature List:

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Notable equipment in the 2020 Jazz include Magic rear seats, digital dials, a bigger infotainment unit, connected-car tech, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, climate control, cruise control, steering-mounted control, multi-info display as well as keyless entry with push-button start. You also get convenience features such as Auto headlamps, wipers and electrically adjustable, foldable ORVMs.

Safety features include electric parking brake with auto hold, airbags, ABS with EBD, rear parking sensors, rear parking camera and electronic stability control. It also comes with Honda’s SENSING, which is basically collision mitigation braking, that utilises a front wideview camera and eight sonar sensors. 

Powertrain Options:

The 2020 Jazz debuts the carmaker’s new e:HEV hybrid powertrain. While specifications are yet to be revealed, we expect an electric motor to be mated with a 1.5-litre petrol engine. This engine will eventually makes its way to other Honda cars including the 2020 City that has been spotted testing. Besides, the Jazz is expected to come with a 125PS 1.0-litre turbo petrol engine. 

Closer home, the Jazz is expected to retain its 1.2-litre i-VTEC and 1.5-litre i-DTEC engines, albeit upgraded to meet BS6 emission norms. The petrol unit develops 90PS and 110Nm while the diesel engine develops 100PS and 200Nm. Currently, the petrol engine is offered with a 5-speed manual and CVT while the diesel engine is offered with a 6-speed MT only. Just like the Amaze, we expect the diesel CVT combo in the Jazz as well. 

Rivals, India Launch and Expected Prices:

The 2020 Jazz is expected to launch in India after the Auto Expo 2020. Its primary rivals include the Maruti Suzuki Baleno, Toyota Glanza, Hyundai Elite i20 and the upcoming Tata Altroz. Naturally, it is likely to carry a premium over the current model, which is priced from Rs 7.46 lakh (ex-showroom). Expect the India-spec model to lose the digital dials, electric parking brake and Honda’s SENSING to keep costs in check.