The Honda Amaze might soon get a minor update to prepare from the onslaught in the form of the Figo Aspire from Ford. Changes will mainly be mechanical.
The compact sedan segment is very popular in India. So much so that the Maruti Suzuki Swift DZire beat the Maruti Suzuki Alto too in terms of sales in June 2015. Priced very close to the hatchbacks they are based on, these cars provide a very important thing for Indian customers. A boot which juts out of the rear no matter how small in length makes the car look more expensive and uplifts the social status of the buyer. Honda also has a popular car in the segment, the Amaze which stands next to the DZire in terms of sales. It might get a minor update soon to prepare for the upcoming competition.
The Honda Amaze was the first car from Honda to get a diesel engine. The 1.5-litre i-DTEC unit is a downsized version of the 1.6-litre diesel engine developed specifically for India. The compact sedan boasted of the best-in-class power figures with the engine producing 100 PS of power and 200 Nm of torque. The petrol engine is carried over from the Brio and it is the familiar 1.2-litre i-VTEC unit which also powers the Jazz (both old and new). What gave the vehicle the most traction was the fact that the diesel model boasts of a high fuel efficiency figure of 25.8 km/l which sounded very attractive and the ad campaign was designed around this fact.
However, with time, the competition has caught up. Maruti Suzuki launched the DZire facelift whose diesel variant delivers 26.59 km/l now. The upcoming Ford Aspire is very promising and the claimed fuel efficiency figure is 25.8 km/l with power figures similar to the Amaze, torque being higher by 15 Nm. Honda has been quick to act and is updating the Amaze currently to prepare it for the new battle. While the updated Amaze won’t get any changes to the exteriors, it will be more fuel efficient and is rumoured to deliver 27 km/l just like the recently launched Jazz. The Japanese carmaker might add a few features in some variants to lure customers. Let the battle begin!
Source – GaadiWaadi.com
