At last, Honda has revealed the new third-generation Amaze in India, almost exactly a month after it first teased the car. The country’s latest sub-four-metre sedan has grown up in terms of features and style, if not in stature or performance.
Still measuring just 3,995 mm long and 1,500 mm tall, albeit 38 mm wider (1,733 mm), the Amaze continues to be powered by a 1.2 litre SOHC i-VTEC four-cylinder engine, producing 90 PS at 6,000 rpm and 110 Nm at 4,800 rpm. As before, it is mated to either a five-speed manual gearbox or a CVT. There’s no more diesel engine option, owing to tightening emissions regulations and globally cooling demand for oil burners.
To counteract the minuscule dimensions and unchanged engine, Honda has gone classy with the Amaze’s design, which looks all the world like a 85%-size City. Most of that car’s hallmarks are present and accounted for – the clamshell bonnet, long and arrow-straight shoulder line, upswept window line and even the BMW 3 Series-style trapezoidal taillights with “wing-shaped” light guides.
The only significant departure is at the front, where the Amaze sports a large HR-V-style hexagonal grille flanked by trapezoidal LED projector headlights (reflectors on the City). These are tied together by a full-width chrome strip, while down below sits an X-shaped air intake design that again takes after the facelifted City. Even the 15-inch two-tone multi-spoke alloy wheels have been lifted from the City.
While the exterior is a heavy reference to the Amaze’s larger B-segment sibling, the interior has been lifted straight from the Elevate SUV. This includes the horizontal dashboard design with a contrast-colour lower section, rectangular air vents, a storage shelf (with a Qi wireless charger) below the digital air-con controls, a part-digital instrument cluster and a freestanding infotainment touchscreen.
That touchscreen is smaller than the Elevate’s at eight inches across, but it still comes with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and Amazon Alexa built in. The crossover’s faux wood dash panel has also been jettisoned, replaced with a more modern geometric pattern. The rest of the spec sheet reads like the City’s, including a first-in-class remote engine start and even rear air-con vents. Despite its pert rump, the Amaze offers a decent 416 litre boot.
Safety-wise, the Amaze now offers six airbags (up from just two before) and stability control as standard, with the top-spec VX variant adding the Honda Sensing suite of driver assists. These include autonomous emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, lane centring assist, front departure alert and auto high beam. Pricing starts from 799,900 rupees (RM41,800) for the base V manual, rising up to 1,089,900 rupees (RM56,900) for the VX with the CVT.
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