Honda Malaysia is set to refresh the Honda Jazz with a raft of updates, but the bigger news is the upcoming introduction of the Honda Jazz Hybrid. Order books for both the regular petrol and hybrid variants are now open, with the former hitting showroom floors sometime this quarter while the latter by Q3 2017.
At the same time, Honda Japan has previewed the Jazz facelift on its website, giving us a glimpse of how the facelifted Jazz will look like. Known as the Honda Fit in Japan, this third-generation model receives a redesigned front bumper and an extended grille, similar to the refreshed City that was launched recently. The headlights and taillights receive LED treatment just like its sedan sibling. It’s unclear if the Jazz Hybrid will get Honda Sensing (a big range of safety tech) like the JDM Fit, though.
Just like the facelifted City, the 1.5-litre four-cylinder SOHC i-VTEC mill is carried forward, generating 118 hp and 145 Nm of torque. It is mated to the same seven-speed Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT). The Sport hybrid i-DCD on the other hand, is a totally different ballgame.
It gets the newer 1.5-litre DOHC i-VTEC engine that will be paired to a seven-speed dual clutch transmission. The predecessor’s Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) is now gone, replaced by an Intelligent Power Unit (IPU). This means the car is a full hybrid, capable of running on electric propulsion alone. The motor is juiced by a lithium-ion battery located under the boot. The hybrid setup makes 135 hp, and the new electric power steering is said to improve handling.
The 2017 Honda Jazz hybrid is open for public viewing this weekend at the upcoming Drive, Test & Buy event organised by our good friends of Carlist.my. Stay tuned as we bring you live updates of the car soon!
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