The Honda Jazz is a perennial favourite for those seeking a small car with brilliant interior space and practicality, flawless reliability and a general ease-of-use simplicity.
Launched in 2020, this one is more stylish than any previous Honda Jazz, benefitting from the minimalist design language first seen on the radical Honda e electric car. And speaking of electrification, this Honda Jazz uses hybrid power, helping bring fuel-saving benefits to the masses.
Rivals to the Honda Jazz include the Toyota Yaris - also available with hybrid power - the popular Ford Fiesta, and if you want something a little different but also practical, there's the Suzuki Ignis.
Many happy Honda Jazz customers keep on buying one after another. They know the car will deliver fuss-free, ultra-dependable motoring and cause them no headaches along the way.
The latest, fourth-generation Honda Jazz was launched in 2020. It became a hybrid-only car, with just a single engine and transmission option. It was all-new and a much more capable all-rounder than its predecessor. Even a few years on from its launch, it remains modern-looking and contemporary.
With its standard automatic gearbox and super-smooth drivetrain, it’s probably the easiest Honda Jazz ever to drive. Honda even engineered a clever new type of windscreen frame, which opens up an almost panoramic view forwards. With clean, clear controls and a simple touchscreen interface, it is all very straightforward indeed.
Don’t be worried by the hybrid tech, either. It’s completely hands-off. The Honda Jazz works out when the engine needs to cut in and out. In town, you’ll find you are driving in pure electric mode, with the engine turned off, more often than you’d expect. That’s good news for refinement, and great news for fuel economy. As it’s a ‘self-charging’ hybrid, you don't even need to plug the Honda Jazz in – the batteries recharge themselves when you brake.
We’re really taken with the lift in quality for this generation of Honda Jazz. It feels genuinely upmarket inside, while rich paint and narrow panel gaps give it a more expensive appearance. Equipment levels are generous, with the Honda Sensing suite of active safety tech to help you avoid accidents. Luxurious features such as climate control and heated seats are included across the board.
There’s even a raised-up, crossover-style version called the Honda Jazz Crosstar. This sits higher off the ground, so it’s easier to step in and out of (and gives a higher seating position), while the more rugged bodywork looks smart and shakes off inner-city scrapes with ease. This comes at barely any cost to fuel economy, too.
Factor in Honda’s famous reliability and retained values in a practicality-focused small car and the Jazz really is at the top of its game.
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There’s only one engine available with the Honda Jazz introduced in 2020, so that’s a simple choice. It’s just a matter of deciding which trim level you want, and that’ll depend on how much you’re prepared to spend and which features you think are essential.
We wouldn’t bother with the spartan Honda Jazz SE. The mid-range Jazz SR is probably the sweet spot in the range, with the smaller (and therefore more comfortable) alloy wheels, the nine-inch media system and some nice interior touches to make it feel a bit more special.
The top-spec Honda Jazz EX is more difficult to justify, but it does come with nice-to-have things like a reversing camera, navigation and heated seats. If you fancy something a bit more rugged, the Jazz Crosstar has some SUV styling and slightly raised ride height, plus a generous specification.
Honda has offered just a single engine for this Honda Jazz, which comes as standard with an eCVT-style automatic transmission and hybrid assistance.
Here is the engine option available with the Honda Jazz.
Honda Jazz 1.5 i-MMD Hybrid petrol: The combination of 1.5-litre petrol engine and electric motor produces a total of 109PS. This gives 0-62mph in 9.4 seconds, or 9.9 seconds for the less aerodynamic Honda Jazz Crosstar. Fuel economy of up to 62.8mpg is possible (the Crosstar averages up to 58.9mpg), with CO2 emissions from just 82g/km.
The previous-generation Honda Jazz was sold in non-hybrid guise, but it’s not as efficient as this car. However, it is the go-to choice if you want a Honda Jazz with a manual gearbox, instead of the default automatic in the newer model.
There are five trim levels on the Honda Jazz: three core grades and two stylish variations of top-spec EX trim. All get Honda Sensing safety tech as standard, which includes city collision mitigation. This detects pedestrians and cyclists, as well as other cars, even at night, and automatically applies the brakes if you don't respond.
It’s an invaluable safety aid that, along with a novel centre airbag between the front seats, contributes to the Honda Jazz’s excellent five-star Euro NCAP crash-test score.
The Honda Jazz SE may be the entry-grade trim level, but the specs still measure up. Although it lacks alloy wheels, it still gets climate control air-con, front and rear electric windows, and even heated front seats.
The Honda Jazz SR is a sportier take on the SE, with alloy wheels, part-leather upholstery and the welcome inclusion of a 9.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system. This offers Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity to sync with your smartphone.
The Honda Jazz EX is the luxurious Honda Jazz trim, with standard sat-nav, a heated leather steering wheel, a rear-view camera and more distinctive design details, both outside and in.
The Honda Jazz EX Style is a more stylish makeover for EX trim, gaining features such as bi-colour alloys and fancy side mouldings (which also protect it from car park dings).
The Honda Jazz Crosstar EX is a crossover-look Honda Jazz, based on the high-spec EX grade. It has a raised ride height, rugged-looking roof rails and a premium sound system. Oh, and water-repellent upholstery.
The Honda Jazz’s exterior dimensions are:
Length: 4044mm (Honda Jazz Crosstar: 4090mm)
Width: 1694mm (Honda Jazz Crosstar: 1725mm)
Height: 1526mm (Honda Jazz Crosstar: 1556mm)
Ground clearance: 136mm (Honda Jazz Crosstar: 152mm)
The Honda Jazz’s boot space is:
304 litres (Honda Jazz Crosstar: 298 litres)
1205 litres with rear seats folded (Honda Jazz Crosstar: 1199 litres)
Introduced in 2020, this Honda Jazz benefitted from the hybrid petrol-electric power's low emissions to keep road tax down in the first year. As a used car, you will pay the following year's road tax at the flat rate of £180 for 12 months' of duty.
For a small car, the Honda Jazz may prove surprisingly expensive to insure. The entry-level SE model opens with a group 19 (out of 50) insurance rating, which is matched by the next-up SR trim line. EX spec falls into group 20 for car insurance. Oddly, EX Style drops back to group 19 – as does the Honda Jazz Crosstar EX.
Read our full Honda Jazz review