Review of the new Honda Jazz Si

Some people can get away with sportswear and others should avoid it at all costs. The trick is recognising which category you fall into before you glimpse yourself in a shop window running for a bus in your vintage Reebok Pump trainers and purple velour tracksuit. It's the same with cars. Some models respond well to a little 'sportification': you know the kind of thing, alloy wheels, lowered suspension, spoilers. Others don't. My first reaction to the news that Honda had unveiled a sporty Si version of its sensible Jazz supermini was that this might not be the best idea but let's give the car the benefit of the doubt.

It isn't hard to see what Honda's game is with the Jazz Si. The standard Jazz is a first rate supermini but its long list of attributes doesn't include sportiness of any kind. With most of its rivals playing the sporty card vigorously any chance they get, the Jazz is missing out on an important chunk of the available market. Having had considerable success with Type-S and Type-R derivatives of its Civic family hatchback and with a lower priced Si version of that car also going down well, Honda's thinking was that a Jazz Si might attract the attention of customers who wouldn't have considered a Jazz before.

There are two petrol engines available with the Si trim level and neither is in any danger of melting your shell suit with its fiery performance. There's an 89bhp 1.2-litre engine and a 99bhp 1.4 which is actually 1,339cc in size, making it a 1.3 in anyone's money except Honda's. You get admirable refinement with either engine at low speeds, the cabin remaining more hushed than you'd think possible in a car this size. On the motorway, things get more raucous and that tells you a lot about the kind of driving in which the Jazz excels.

There's great visibility, a stubby nose and a tight turning circle controlled via the lightweight steering. It makes the Jazz wonderfully at home when road space is restricted and the parking bays appear to have been designed for motorcycles.

"If you'd decided on a Jazz anyway and want to enliven its looks, this is a good way to do it"

Performance from the two powerplants is smooth and progressive with Honda's i-VTEC variable valve timing technology hard at work behind the scenes optimising the parameters of the combustion cycle. The 1.2-litre engine will take 12.5s to reach 60mph and the 1.4 is only a little better with its 10.9s time. That's not very quick at the time when a supermini really has to dip under nine seconds for the sprint to be considered sporty.

The basic design of the Jazz is geared towards maximising interior space within a supermini-sized body. It achieves this very well but at the expense of an exterior that's tall, flat-sided and has more in-common with small MPVs than leading superminis like the Ford Fiesta and Volkswagen Polo. The look is modern but lacking much in the way of dynamism and that's what the Si version attempts to address. Adding an attractive set of Chronos 16" alloy wheels, a sports front grille and a rear spoiler, the Si definitely adds some extra sparkle to the Jazz exterior but there's a question mark over whether it's enough to prise more youthful supermini buyers away from the alternatives.

The cabin of the Jazz feels extremely roomy compared to most other superminis, making this a great choice for buyers who regularly carry rear seat passengers. Honda cleverly repositioned the fuel tank from beneath the rear seats to a position under those at the front to free-up space. It gives the cabin a flat floor and allows the seats to be folded into all sorts of permutations.

The car features the Honda Magic Seating system through which the back seats can fold down in one fluid motion into the footwell with the headrests in place. What's more impressive still is that this action doesn't involve scurrying around the car to manually slide the front seats forward, it can all be accomplished from the rear door thanks to a convenient set of levers.

You can also fit a surprising amount into the Double Trunk boot which can divide its 399-litre capacity into four different configurations for carrying different loads. Fold the rear seats and there's 883 litres of space available.

Sitting in the middle of the Jazz trim level line-up, the Si grade is the plushest you can get with the 1.2-litre engine and sits a step below the EX in the 1.4-litre range. Honda values the alloy wheels, sportier front bumper, rear spoiler, special Si floor mats and Si badging that come with the car at £2,000 but an Si Jazz is less than £900 more than the model directly below it in the range. That sounds like a decent deal and even if it can't attract buyers seeking a sporty supermini, it could well persuade those who were considering a Jazz anyway to upgrade.

Standard safety equipment looks very generous on the Jazz, with dual front and side airbags, plus full length curtain airbags on all models. There are also five three-point seatbelts with reminders for the belts in the front and the back. Honda's VSA stability control system is available as an option on all models.

The Honda Jazz has a great focus on economy and its advanced petrol engines do a grand job. The 1.2-litre model can return 55.4mpg on the combined cycle with CO2 emissions of 120g/km, making it a very cost-effective vehicle to run.

Go for the 1.4-litre and there's still a 54.3mpg showing on the combined cycle with 123g/km emissions making it one of the cleanest units of its kind. There's also an SLI Shift Light Indicator that shows the optimum time to change up for improved fuel economy. Insurance is also affordable with the cars falling into groups 4 and 5.

Trying to manufacture a sporty supermini out of a supermini as manifestly unsporty as the Honda Jazz might look like a fool's errand but that didn't stop Honda. The Jazz Si actually carries off its larger alloys and rear spoiler well enough but it's unlikely to persuade the younger clientele that Honda is targeting.

The Jazz engines are fine for paper bag punching and rice pudding skin removal but they lack the zip needed in a truly lively supermini. The driving experience is set-up for ease of use in town rather than sharp handling on the open road and the exterior styling owes more to practical MPVs than thrusting superminis. Buy this Honda if you want safety, fuel economy, reliability and a versatile interior: it's up with the best in these regards. There are better products out there for those looking to turn heads and have fun behind the wheel but if you'd decided on a Jazz anyway and want to enliven its looks, this is a good way to do it.

TOP 5 JAZZ DEALS

The results below show the top JAZZ deals on buyacar

Honda Jazz 1.4 i-VTEC ES 5dr Hatchback
Price £12,817 Read Jazz Reviews	Save £678
Honda Jazz 1.2 i-VTEC S 5dr [VSA] Hatchback
Price £10,837 Read Jazz Reviews	Save £458
Honda Jazz 1.4 i-VTEC EX 5dr CVT Hatchback
Price £15,067 Read Jazz Reviews	Save £928
Honda Jazz 1.4 i-VTEC ES 5dr CVT Hatchback
Price £13,717 Read Jazz Reviews	Save £778
Honda Jazz 1.4 i-VTEC EX 5dr Hatchback
Price £14,167 Read Jazz Reviews	Save £828
VIEW MORE DISCOUNT JAZZ DEALS