Honda Jazz

Latest iteration of Honda’s practical small hatchback gets new hybrid tech that might be music to your ears On sale Now Price from £18,985

THERE ARE THREE certainties in life: death, taxes and the shape of the Honda Jazz. We jest, but ever since the first iteration was released back in 2001, each successive generation of the Jazz has retained that car’s unorthodox but distinctive Mpv-like ‘monobox’ outline. And this fourth-generation model is no different.

However, don’t go thinking that the Jazz can’t learn new tricks, because this all-new model has picked up the ability to juggle. No, not with balls or fire sticks; it juggles petrol and electric power to improve efficiency.

Honda’s all-new petrol-electric hybrid system (called E:HEV) consists of a frugal 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine and two electric motors powered by a compact battery. It being a regular hybrid, there’s no need to plug in and charge up, but the flipside is that you can’t go very far on electric power alone. However, in its default Hybrid mode, the Jazz does a good job of working out when it’s best to deploy the electric motor or petrol engine.

This generally means predominantly electric power in urban environments and a combination of both power sources on faster roads. Really, it’s only on motorways that you need to work the Jazz hard to keep up with traffic. That’s because, when you’re driving at the national limit, the engine spends most of its time running on petrol alone, without any electrical assistance.

Unfortunately, although the Jazz no longer uses a CVT automatic gearbox, its new