3rd Generation of Honda Jazz may not include Cross Variant

Lovers of Honda cars are impatiently waiting for the re launch of Honda Jazz in July. This hatchback was launched in 2013 but suddenly disappeared from the Indian car market. This hatchback has become the talk of the town at the moment and car experts and enthusiasts are waiting to see what HCIL has to offer to its customers this time around. There were many who thought that after a gap of two years, CIL might surprise them with a Cross variant of Honda Jazz. However, this breed of car lovers will certainly be disappointed to hear the fact that HCIL is not planning to introduce a Cross variant of its new Honda Jazz. However, there is some good news shared by Senior Vice President (Sales & Marketing), Janeswar Sen. He recently gave an interview in which he talked about the possibility of a sporty RS variant of the new Honda Jazz.

Replying to a question surrounding level of localization of new Honda Jazz, Sen said that HCIL has always the policy of very high level of localization and new Honda Jazz would not be an exception. He told that whether it is Amaze, City, or even Mobilio, all Honda cars in India have more than 90% of their parts made inside the country. The fact that the platform used for Jazz is very similar to that of Honda City, one can expect a high level of localization with this new Honda car. The VP also confirmed the fact that the new Honda Jazz would be manufactured in Rajasthan at Tapukara.

The rumors doing rounds about a RS variant got weight because of the fact that HCIL introduced a sporty variant along with regular model of Mobilio, the last major launch of the company. When Mr. Sen was asked about the variants of the new Honda Jazz, he shrugged his shoulders and said that it is too early and premature to talk about the variants of the new Honda Jazz. His answer clearly indicated that the first and foremost priority of the company is to re launch Honda Jazz and try to create a niche for this car before attempting to introduce any variants. It is worthwhile to mention here the fact that Jazz carries many customization options in the international market and there are available not just performance kits called Mugen but also kits called Modulo.

Competitors of Honda Jazz, the Elite i20 from Hyundai, Fiat Punto from Fiat, and Polo from VW all have their Cross variants. These are called i20 Active, Fiat Adventura, and VW Cross Polo. These crossovers help in increasing the sales of these companies. There are unconfirmed news that Honda is planning to introduce a Cross variant of Jazz in Brazil that would take the place of the aging Honda Twist. However, all such hopes of car enthusiasts have been dashed with the senior VP of the company saying that there are no immediate plans to launch a Cross version of Honda Jazz.