When we earlier posted prices of the Jazz to range from 6.5-6.8 lakhs here, we got quite alot of negative reactions. However Honda has priced it much more than what everyone expected them to. The Honda Jazz is priced at Rs. 7.43 lakh for the base version, increasing to Rs. 7.73 lakh for the midlevel Jazz Mode variant and going all the way to Rs. 7.78 lakh for the top end Jazz Active. Add to that all the above prices are ex-showroom, Mumbai and suddenly the Jazz misses the point completely.
At this price point Honda has just confirmed that they will continue to fool Indian customers royally. While we agree the Jazz has space and a few features but a 1.2L petrol engine hatchback (which benefits from 4% excise duty exemption) at this price point is simply insane.. Considering Honda has achieved significant localisation of 77% on the Jazz and imports the remaining parts from its operations in Thailand, the price seems more unjustified. Honda you are no Mercedes and the premium is no way justified. Neither is Honda service anything to talk about. Imagine how much will the 1.5 litre Jazz cost? Perhaps 10 lakhs!!!!!!!
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June 15th, 2009 at 10:01 am
I completely agree. Honda is making a fool of the indian customers. The higher version 1.5 is priced cheaper in Aus and elsewhere. Seems like they have learned a cheap trick from the autoriksha wallas…strip the customer as much as you can. There is nothing new to brag about in Jazz…just a little more space and a honda badge. The NCAP, ABS etc are available even in i20 & Punto.
I am now looking forward to the Punto.
June 15th, 2009 at 10:54 am
I don’t want to talk about the Jazz’ pricing. I think talking about it is just wasting my time. Move on..next post..
June 15th, 2009 at 11:55 am
Being a fan of Hondas now I also feel that the price is a bit too high …..
May be honda hear to us someday
June 15th, 2009 at 12:51 pm
While doing my comparison chart for the large Hatchbacks I realized the Fabia, Fusion and I20 all provide a lot more value for a lot less money than the Jazz. The Jazz has the Honda brand name and I think Honda is wanting to make as much of a profit with it as long as it can. Only customers have to be a bit more discerning – if people go buy it at whatever price they put – they can keep doing so. Only acute customer rejection for the price such as for the Honda Civic Hybrid at 22L can cause the manufacturer to re-think their pricing and give an 8L discount !!! I think there will be people who still will run out and buy the Jazz regardless of the price.
June 15th, 2009 at 12:58 pm
Comparing the price rise to that of hybrid cars is not the right thing. Reason being the hybrid is a latest technology and company has been pumping a lot of money for its development and you just can’t expect them to sell the car alone without recovering the cost of technology they have used.
Its not a jeep on which any one can display a hybrid label and sell to make Indians a fool.
The reason for them to sell those car at a concession of 8L was that they wanted to clear the stock lying in their yard.
Quality does not come cheap and we have to pay if we want to have the latest technology.
June 15th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
this is the second time i am seeing Deepak Kashyap talking about quality trying to justify the price of Jazz…I guess you are a die-hard Honda loyalist.
Quality aspect really comes into picture when your competetors/peers are reaaly offering ultra low-quality products. Barring service, Skoda on any day is a better quality offering company than Honda.
Hyundai is no less. And Maruti is near perfect mix of everything (Argumentative but facts/numbers speak for themselves).
May be lets see the sales numbers after 3 months from now. The sales numbers of Jazz will reveal the mindset of Indians.
Brand “Apple” also stands for quality and innovation, but why did Iphone fail in India miserably. Can anybody answer this question?
Bare minimum features with a very high price tag will be unanimous answer….
June 15th, 2009 at 1:59 pm
Dear AKRA,
I would like to remind you that this is the second comment I have given after the first one in which I am also surprised to know such a price tag.
I have been working with another manufacturer but knows the quality standards which Honda maintains.
Today I think I have lost the batle and I also admit that the Jazz is priced more dearer than other hatchbacks of that segment.
June 15th, 2009 at 2:05 pm
@Deepak – a question Honda should have been clear about before launching the Hybrid – will people buy the car at 25L on road when the accord can be had for that much. It is a novelty as of now – some people still went and bought it. The value of the car is definitely obvious when people saw it as worthy of buying at 15L on road.
Same goes for the Jazz. It has nice packaging – but does it make sense to buy a hatchback for 8L + ? Absolutely not. Neither does a 8L Skoda Fabia. Anything over 6.5L for a hatchback is questionable.
BTW I used to be a Honda owner a couple of years ago. But in India looking at the spec sheet given by Honda – I have a much wider choice which is more VFM than the Jazz. People can go buy the Jazz if they have the money and want to – no one is stopping them. The person who has to balance VFM will go to other options for sure. I love the looks of the Civic and the City but will I ever buy them new ? 100% no !
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People who know that the same cars are specced better in every other country – will be frustrated by Honda Indias approach. If they are committed to the Indian market they shoudl localize production like crazy and also bring out models that really justify the price. People will then have no reason to post cribby comments like mine
June 15th, 2009 at 2:27 pm
Honda might be trying to fool Indians but I think in the long run they will end up fooling themselves. A negative image comes to haunt you down for many many decades to come. Good will and image is hard to build and Honda is screwing it up royally even before they begin. I would have hard time shelling out that type of money even for a Merc let alone a HOOOONDA.
June 15th, 2009 at 2:54 pm
True that it’s over-priced. Must be a Honda India problem. We have Toyota problem in Mauritius (they’re not bringing the right models for the market). Jazz’s selling good elsewhere, and is No.1 in sales in Japan.
But hey, don’t compare i20 and Punto to the Jazz/Fit. Those two are not worth comparing to the Jazz. Don’t just look at what features they offer. The Jazz is larger, more practical with the huge boot you get when the rear seats are folded up, better engine (it’s a Honda) and it’s rock solid. It’s have good resale value (as opposed to the comparingly unreliable Punto).
But you’re all right about the price. A hatchback with that kind of price… simply not for India. They shoud consider briging smaller hatches to go head on head with Maruti and others. Honda does sell them in Japan.
June 15th, 2009 at 3:36 pm
**** the jazz, I’ve started hating Honda and the jazz!
Seems deepak really hates mahindra for their hybrid initiative!
June 15th, 2009 at 6:23 pm
Dear Fellow Countrymen,
Show the doors to Honda out of India. In C&B Show review Siddharth praised a lot about the design. To be frank i really dont like the looks of Jazz. The look doesnt really go with the name of the car. Car design is not proportionate. Ugly headlamp, awkward grills and still you call this a design marvel? I think it is time to teach Honda a lesson, dump the Jazz.
Fiat Punto will be a great hit in India. There is nothing much to praise about the looks but nothing to complain either.
Ritz will be real value for money. Its looks, features, K12M engine.. Just awesome.
I guess when it comes to design the Maruti and Hyundai engineers are scoring high. Examples are Swift/i20/i30/Kizashi.
June 15th, 2009 at 7:18 pm
Honda has placed the engine to 1.2 L to take advantage of excise norms.
But they dont seem to pass on the benifits to the customers.
So then, the 1.2 L engine is not at all justified. Its underpowered. If they are seling the Jazz over 7.5 lacs, they should have atleast put a 1.6 liter engine….!
June 15th, 2009 at 11:42 pm
A first big mistake from Honda. Once they set a price, they cannot reduce it if they find that the customer response is bad.
June 15th, 2009 at 11:51 pm
I’m starting to think that Honda is positioning this hatch in the luxury segment, where there is a lack of small cars… targetted to rich ladies who want to drive themselves instead of having a driver? If that’s their niche market target, then a premium price is needed to deliberately discourage the middle-class from buying that… Bring on an Acura hatchback in that case instead of Honda… Are the Mercedes Benz Class A and Class B sold in India?
In other countries, the Jazz is priced similar to the City, Toyota Vitz/Belta/Vios or the Nissan March.
June 16th, 2009 at 12:07 am
Bhoot, the A-Class and B-Class are not available in India yet. Mercedes India has no plans to launch it either due to high pricing and lack of demand for such kind of vehicles. However the VW Beetle is coming soon.