Honda Jazz or Honda Fit: It doesn’t really matter
Some called it Honda Jazz, some called it Honda Fit; it does not matter because it refers to the five-door subcompact car that has been one of the best selling small Honda cars on earth. The Jazz was a big hit when it was first introduced in 2001. This is because it looks small but it is not small. The outlook is small, the wheelbase is short, the engine is small, but the passenger cargo is spacious and the power is big.
What we are going to review today is a used Honda Jazz manufactured in 2007. It was own by a young girl,Phoenix, who purchased the car when she was 18 years old. Phoenix’s car model is the 1.5 i-DSI where she bought it for RM94,800 in 2007. With RM20k down payment, she pays roughly RM1400 per month for a five-year loan at 2.88% APR. It is not surprising that lots of Asian is paying over 1k a month for car installment because of the car price. In the U.S., the same model could have just cost less than half of what Phoenix paid in Malaysia.
Honda Jazz/Fit Reviews
We were given a chance to bring the car up hill to Genting Highland. The owner allowed us to test the car in anyway we prefer. We drove the car up hill and try a few corners in high speed. The car did not oversteer up till 50 km/h. We had also tested the seven speed gear shift at the steering column and the response was wonderful! It was just like driving a smaller version of the Ferrari F430 Spider F1. It is very impressive for a small subcompact car like the Fit. Other than corners, we had also tested the car up to 150 km/h. It runs steady up till 130 km/h but it starts wobbling when the speed reaches 140+ km/h.
Service and maintenance
The owner of this car is a Honda fan. She sends the car to Honda service center according to the maintenance schedule in the owner’s manual. Here is what she has paid over the years.
| Mileage (km) | Cost (RM) | Description |
| 1,000 | 27.55 | Paid for checking, no parts were replaced |
| 5,000 | 147.25 | Engine oil, oil filter, drain plug gasket |
| 10,000 | 226.15 | |
| 15,000 | 147.25 | |
| 20,000 | 380 | Paid extra for air cleaner element |
| 25,000 | 147.25 | |
| 30,000 | 226.15 | |
| 35,000 | 147.25 | |
| 40,000 | 795 | Paid extra for air cleaner element and transmission fluid |
| 45,000 | 147.25 | |
| 50,000 | 226.15 | |
| 55,000 | 147.25 | |
| 60,000 | 323.55 | |
| 65,000 | 147.25 | |
| 70,000 | 226.15 | |
| 75,000 | 147.25 | |
| 80,000 | 850 | |
| 85,000 | 147.25 | |
| 90,000 | 226.15 | |
| 95,000 | 147.25 | |
| 100,000 | 423.70 |
Honda Jazz/Honda Fit maintenance table
According to the table above, RM147.25 and RM226.15 are basic maintenance cost including engine oil, oil filter, and drain plug gasket replacement. There are a few higher costs during 20,000 km, 40,000 km, 60,000 km, 80,000 km, and 100,000 km respectively because the service includes air cleaner element, transmission fluid, coolant, brake fluid, spark plug, and some other fluids. At 115,000 km,Phoenixpaid nearly RM13K to replace the gearbox. According to what she told us, the technician from Honda told her that the original gearbox is no longer usable and it is one of the common Honda Fit problems. She is quite disappointed with the car when she knew she had to spend such amount of money to keep the car going. During the time, she has an option to go for a used gearbox at about RM2,200 but she turned down the option. She feels the money saved from fuel over the years had gone to the gearbox replacement.
The true cost to own the car is roughly RM20K (US$7,000) over five years. The car clocked at 120K km when we reviewed it. In fact, the cost to own the car for a year is about RM4K (US$1,300). It is high because of the major repair on the gearbox.
Fuel Economy
28 city/34 highway mpg or 11.9 city/14.45 highway km/liter; It costs about RM0.16 for a km when the price for RON95 is RM1.90.
What is good about the car?
The car is a fun to drive and easy to navigate for people who are short. The design of the windscreen is creative and it is big enough to absorb the whole front view. The driver will immediately know whether there are any vehicles close by. Besides, fuel consumption is the most attractive thing with the car.
What is not so good about the car?
As we mentioned just now, the car buzzed at high speeds and we dare not go faster when the car started buzzing. The car maintenance is cheap if the gearbox is not giving any problems like whatPhoenixfaced. We tried to burden the car a little bit more while we were testing it. The car accelerated slower than usual when we loaded it with five passengers with a total weight of approximately 330 kg.
Price
- Malaysia: RM109,813.50
- United States: $15,175
- Thailand: 590,000 to 715,000 baht
Honda Jazz’s competitor or similar cars: Toyota Yaris, Mazda Mazda2, Nissan March, Perodua Myvi, Ford Fiesta, Suzuki Swift, Volkswagen Polo, Hyundai i20, and Škoda Fabia.
