HONDA AMAZE

Honda infuses new life into its compact sedan, but is it Amaze-ing enough?

- ABHISHEK PANDEY

The past decade has seen buyers move towards SUVs quickly, resulting in sedans getting sidelined for no apparent reason. There still exist loyalists though (like Abhay, who loves his sedans!), and even car makers feel there exists a healthy demand for sedans even today. And that's one reason why Honda has just launched an all-new Amaze.

The previous generation Amaze had managed to dethrone the Honda City as the highest selling Honda in India. It was still way behind its arch rival, the Maruti Suzuki DZire in terms of numbers, but the second generation Amaze appealed to family car buyers looking for a compact sedan with its spaciousness and overall comfort, besides the trademark Honda quality.

The design of the third generation Amaze you see on these pages looks inspired by its siblings, the City and Elevate both. While the front end, especially the grille and headlamps remind of the Elevate, the rear and the tail lamp design look inspired by the City. I also like the front fog lamps in terms of their design and positioning both.

Effectively, the new Amaze also looks sharper than its predecessor. The side profile is similar to that of the outgoing version, but with new elements like door-mounted rear view mirrors, new diamond-cut 15-inch alloys and wider, 185-section tyres. The new Amaze thus looks more premium too and also exudes the sense of being more expensive. While the length, wheelbase and height remain unchanged at 3,995mm, 2,470mm and 1,500mm respectively, the new Amaze is now 38mm wider now, and the difference is noticeable.