2024 Honda Amaze review - Amazing Alright?

Honda Cars India might not have the biggest portfolio in the country but every one of its vehicles delivers on all counts. The City although ageing, is still easily one of the best sedans money can buy and the Elevate also stands out of the crowd and makes for one of the most family-friendly SUVs on the market. That leaves us with the Amaze, which has just entered its third generation and promises above its price tag, much like its predecessors.

The new Amaze comes in at a very competitive time with the Maruti Suzuki Dzire entering its new era just a month back and picking a fight with Maruti Suzuki in terms of sales numbers might not be the smart move. But like I said, this new Amaze has its goals set. It looks bold from every corner, the interior has a lot to offer and does have one particular trick up its sleeve that could convince you to walk into a Honda dealership if you're in the market for a sub-4 metre car.

2024 Honda Amaze: Design

Upon first glance, the new Amaze appears to be the love between the City sedan and the Elevate SUV. The front grille stands erect and while I love how it looks on its SUV sibling, I like it a bit more on the Amaze. The chrome stripe on top of the grille and the well-integrated fog lamps at the bottom give you a sense of a much more expensive car.

The new Amaze carries over the outgoing model's side profile but the slightly tapering roofline, 15-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels and wider tyres at 185/60 R15 are new. From the rear, the Amaze evidently seems to mimic the City sedan with its broad taillights and raised bottom. Everything comes together and forms a very handsome-looking small sedan set to appeal to both fleet operators and first-time buyers.

2024 Honda Amaze: Interior & Features

While the exterior might not be worlds apart from the outgoing car, the same can't be said about the interior. The dashboard has been revamped to bring it up to speed with today's competition. One can really not go wrong with a beige and black colour scheme for the interior. The materials used though aren't soft touch or as plush as the ones you get in the Elevate or the City but at this price point, that is completely acceptable. The placement of the infotainment isn't the best as it sticks out from the top of the dashboard but accessing the climate controls is very easy as they use proper physical buttons and are easy to reach.

Speaking of this infotainment screen, it is an 8-inch unit and the upside to it is that this screen is standard across all the variants. What I expected more though is the graphics. It doesn't feel dated per se but the brightness isn't perfect for everyone and the layout can be a bit confusing to understand. The driver's instrumentation though is something I really admire about Honda. It's partially digital and partially analogue and isn't cluttered with bundles of information you don't really care about or even need for that matter of fact.

The seats up front feel comfortable to sit in I could totally see myself munching plenty of kilometres without complaining but the absence of an armrest will leave many other drivers irritated. Hop into the backseats and you will notice the headroom and knee room are decent and the addition of the rear AC vents is a blessing. The body of the Amaze slightly cuts inward so fitting 3 people in the second row could be a bit of a squeeze. With a boot space of 416 litres though, I don't think there would be anything to complain about when it comes to storing bags as the opening too is wide and fitting 4 small suitcases wouldn't be the most difficult thing.

Honda intends to go big with the new Amaze and has hence introduced a suite of ADAS tech in the top-end variant making the Amaze the most affordable vehicle on the market to offer ADAS features. The Honda Sensing features include lane-keeping assist, adaptive cruise control, autonomous emergency braking, blind-spot monitor and automatic high beam. All of these work very well but a feature that most Indian motorists will appreciate is the blind spot monitor on the left side that displays feed as soon as you turn on the indicator.

The features list isn't small either with LED projector headlamps and fog lamps, LED taillights, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, height-adjustable driver seat, air purifier, 15-inch alloy wheels, automatic climate control, rear AC vents, wireless charger, remote engine start function, Type-A ports in the front as well as 12V power sockets and 6 airbags.

2024 Honda Amaze: Driving Impressions

Under the hood, is the 1.2-litre, four-cylinder, iVTEC petrol engine with 90PS and 110Nm of torque. Power is sent to the front wheels via a 5-speed manual or a CVT transmission. What's exciting this time though is that Honda is now offering the CVT with the base variant car as well, making the automatic gearbox an affordable option. Right off the back, you will notice that this engine wants to reside in the higher rev ranges. It does come to life with that conventional naturally aspirated rumble and lifts off alright. But to actually feel the complete torque of this vehicle, you will have to blow well past 4,500rpm and that's exactly where this 4-cylinder unit gets into its zone. Another perk about this engine is that you can enjoy that power all the way up to 6,700rpm before you desperately need to upshift and all the power and torque is a heartfelt welcome as it pulls you through very generously without a sense of anything lacking.

The only real drawback though is when it comes to stop-and-go traffic, the lower revs lack enough punch and making those quick moves isn't possible. While the engine is loud, something that is louder is the road noise for rear seat occupants. That's mainly due to the fact that Honda has focused the noise insulation bit only for the front occupants by adding extra panels under the floor and in the front wheel arches. The rear wheel arches are skipped and sometimes you do tend to hear the small rocks and pebbles being chipped under the car.

Honda's CVT in its conventional sense is very nice to use. It's not jerky when you get off the line and goes about its business effortlessly. It holds on to its gear for a bit more than you would like but that is something you could easily get used to. Foot to the floor and the Amaze doesn't burst through its speeds picks up pace in a more composed fashion. The paddle shifters come in handy if you want to take charge of the shifts yourself and even the 'S' mode is very helpful when you have to climb a steep slope with a car filled with people.

I'd still say the 5-speed manual gearbox would be my pick though. The shifts are smooth and the throw is short and furthermore. Honda has shortened the 1st and 2nd gear ratios. You do tend to downshift more often because of the cumbersome midrange performance but for highway cruising, it feels perfectly alright.

The suspension is impressive too with the Amaze soaking up small undulations and imperfections well. The soft ride is focused more towards comfort but larger potholes tend to bother the springs. The ground clearance is good so you won't have to worry about bottoming out over speed breakers. Honda could have addressed the body roll though as it is extremely noticeable and making sharp turns can send the car into a bit of a frenzy on the road.

2024 Honda Amaze: Verdict

The second-generation Honda Amaze has always been a very likeable car. The safety features, desirable styling and generous features list made it hard to overlook. This new third-generation car takes all that up a notch. The pricing too is very, very competitive and the added ADAS features could just about make this new Honda Amaze an absolute no-brainer for most buyers, especially first-time buyers.