Right. Honda. You know, the Japanese. Always been rather good engineers, haven’t they? They churn out perfectly decent engines, motorcycles that steadfastly refuse to disintegrate, and generally speaking, cars that simply… well, they just work. There was a time, and it wasn’t all that long ago, when saying you drove a Honda here in India carried a bit of weight, didn’t it? They had a certain class about them, a feeling of being built to a higher standard, distinct from the general crowd. They weren’t just cars; they were Hondas.
But, well, things change. The market’s moved on, and frankly, Honda’s position in it seems to have, shall we say, become a little less dominant. From being a major force, they seem to be just… getting by now. From being a dominant player, they seem to be just about surviving now. And perhaps, if we’re being honest, that’s reflected in the products. While the older ones had that undeniable, almost intangible sense of occasion, a ‘class of their own’, the current range… well, they’re perfectly competent, mind you, absolutely. But they feel a bit more like they’re just… there. Keeping up, but not necessarily leading.
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Yet, despite all that, they haven’t entirely lost their way. That core, fundamental Honda thinking – the bit where things function correctly, the bit where you don’t spend your weekends scratching your head under the bonnet – that resolute ‘sensible’ factor? Oh, that’s still very much present. Unmistakably so. And the Amaze, this new one, bless its sensible little soul, is perhaps the purest distillation of that enduring philosophy, neatly packaged and scaled down for our rather particular set of circumstances here. It’s always been the accessible Honda, the way for many to get that taste of Honda reliability and practicality without requiring a second mortgage. It still is. It feels entirely comfortable in the company of your most sensible pair of slippers and a perfectly ironed kurta.
And it all starts, as these things invariably do, with the way it looks.
2024 Honda Amaze: Design
Right then. The way it looks. Always a subjective business, this, isn’t it? What one person finds agreeable, another finds utterly bewildering. Especially when you’re dealing with the rather peculiar constraints of our market, trying to make a sedan shape fit into a box that’s strictly under four metres long. It’s a regulation, you see, designed, presumably, to make cars cheaper through tax breaks, but it plays absolute havoc with the fundamental rules of proportion. A proper saloon, a handsome one anyway, needs a certain visual balance between the front bit, the middle bit where you sit, and the boot at the back. Chop nearly a metre off the boot, and you often end up with something that looks… well, rather awkward.
Now, credit where credit’s due, the previous Amazes were surprisingly successful in this regard. Despite the limitations, they managed a certain flow, a proportionality that defied the tape measure. They looked like proper, albeit small, saloons.
This new one? Hmm. They’ve certainly had a go at it. The front, you see, clearly takes inspiration from the Elevate – that rather upright, boxy SUV they brought out recently. On an SUV, that sort of tall, blunt face works. It gives it presence, a sense of purpose, helps it look a bit… commanding. But on a sedan? Traditionally, sedans, particularly the ones that aim for any sense of elegance, prefer a sleeker, lower, more aerodynamic nose, flowing back into a similarly sleek tail. This Amaze has that rather upright Elevate face, which feels a bit… different on a car that’s fundamentally trying to be a low-slung three-box. It’s not inherently bad, just… unexpected.
And the back… well, it’s certainly compact. Designed, clearly, to maximise interior and boot space within that strict length limit. It doesn’t quite have the sweeping, elongated lines you might associate with a larger sedan. It’s a rather more… vertical arrangement back there, perhaps prioritising practicality over ultimate elegance. It doesn’t flow quite as seamlessly from the roofline as its predecessors did, perhaps. It looks… like a rear end that had to end rather suddenly to meet the requirements. Necessary, I suppose, but not art.
Then there’s the width. Honda says they’ve increased the overall width of the car, which is fine, sounds like a good thing for interior space. However, and this is where the devil resides, usually in the details, the bit where the wheels actually sit on the road – the wheel track – that seems to be much the same as before. What does this mean visually? Well, it means the body sort of… hangs over the wheels a bit more. The wheels look slightly tucked in, almost apologetic, beneath the sheet metal that now protrudes further out. It gives the car a slightly… squeezed look, as if the body’s just a fraction too wide for its stance.
It’s not a stance that suggests, shall we say, dynamic prowess or planted stability. It looks a bit top-heavy, frankly. Like someone wearing a jacket that’s a size too big, with the shoulders hanging out over their actual arms. It detracts a little from that sense of proportionality they otherwise managed reasonably well.
So, my initial impression of the overall design? A bit of a raised eyebrow, I’ll confess. It didn’t immediately strike me as a conventional beauty, or even a significant step forward aesthetically. It looked… challenging. A collection of slightly mismatched ideas – an SUV face on a sedan body, a rather abbreviated tail, and a body that feels a touch wide for its wheels.
However. However. And this is where it gets a bit complicated. Just like the Elevate did when it first appeared – I wasn’t entirely convinced by that either, initially – this Amaze design… it’s starting to grow on me. Slowly, mind you. Like a persistent moss on a damp wall. The more you see it knocking about, navigating the complexities of our roads, the less jarring the various elements seem.
The slightly upright front and the rather neat, if not particularly flowing, rear, and the ever-so-slightly squeezed stance, they start to coalesce into something that is, if not beautiful, then at least… distinctive. It has presence, in its own slightly unassuming way. It looks solid, perhaps. Unmistakably itself. A design that prioritises purpose and interior space within its regulated box.
So, while it might not adhere strictly to the classic rulebook of sedan design, and it might have a rear end that prioritises space over swooping lines, and it might look a touch squeezed… it’s not entirely without its visual merits. It’s just… different. And sometimes, different takes a while to appreciate. Like certain types of experimental jazz, or perhaps a particularly challenging chutney.
But enough about the outside and its rather peculiar proportions. What’s it actually like when you open the door and step inside?
2024 Honda Amaze: Cabin and features
Right then. Open the door, slide in.
First impression? Ah, yes. It’s a cabin. And in many ways, it feels quintessentially Honda – sensible, everything more or less falls to hand, placed roughly where it ought to be. It looks… perfectly sensible. Dual-tone, naturally. Beige and black. It’s the law, I think, for this segment. Gives a feeling of airiness, apparently. Or perhaps it just hides the dust slightly better after a drive on our rather dusty roads.
Now, the previous Amaze cabins were… functional. Perfectly alright, did the job. But this third generation? They seem to have made a bit of an effort here. It feels… well, it feels more solid. The general build feels a notch up from before. Shut the door, and there’s a reasonably satisfying ‘thud’. Not quite a bank vault, but certainly not a tin can rattle. The buttons and the plastics you actually interact with – the dashboard top, the door handles, the bits you prod regularly – they feel quite nice. A decent quality to them.
However, as expected with anything in this segment, go looking down low, around the seat bases or the very bottom of the door pockets, and yes, you’ll find some harder, perhaps slightly less appealing plastics. But, frankly, one rarely spends their journey admiring the plastic quality by their ankles, so that’s a forgivable bit of cost-cutting.
The dashboard layout? Utterly conventional. Everything is pretty much where you expect it to be. The steering wheel is, as per industry standard, round, and feels decent enough in your hands. It has buttons on it, quite a few actually, for operating the media and the… well, the ADAS bits we discussed earlier. Sensible. They’ve also kept separate, physical switches for the air conditioning and ventilation, down below the screen. Thank goodness for that. Fiddling with a touchscreen just to adjust the fan speed is an unnecessary complication in my book. Dials and buttons you can operate by feel are always preferable.
The instrument cluster is a mix of analogue and digital. Tells you how fast you’re going, how much petrol you’re not using efficiently, the usual things. Perfectly clear. No complaints there.
Now, the features. This is where they try to impress you, isn’t it? They’ve put in an 8-inch touchscreen in the middle this time. An inch bigger than before, apparently. Progress! The resolution seems better than the old 7-inch unit, certainly looks a bit sharper. The display for the reverse camera is improved too; you can actually see what you’re about to back into with reasonable clarity. It connects to your phone, apparently, wirelessly even. So you can have your maps and your music and your phone calls all plastered across the screen. If you’re the sort who enjoys that.
However, the LaneWatch camera… hmm. This is the one mounted under the left mirror that shows you the side view on the screen when you indicate. In broad daylight, it’s alright, a bit grainy perhaps, but you can see if there’s a motorbike attempting a rather daring manoeuvre. But at night? With headlights behind you? The quality drops off considerably. It gets washed out. Rendered largely ineffective, sadly. A good idea, perhaps, but the execution leaves a bit to be desired.
Automatic climate control, yes, thank goodness. Essential in our climate. Set the temperature, and it just gets on with the rather important job of making the inside less like a sauna. Rear AC vents too, because passengers, particularly in the back, tend to appreciate not melting. A wireless phone charger. Plonk your phone down, and it magically absorbs electricity. Another modern convenience I suppose. Push-button start. Because turning a key is far too much effort these days.
Space? Ah, yes. This has always been something of a trump card for the Amaze, hasn’t it? Across the generations, it’s consistently punched above its weight in terms of interior room. Up front, it’s perfectly adequate. You won’t be banging elbows with your co-driver unless one of you has particularly expansive personal space requirements. The seats are upholstered in fabric. Seems comfortable enough for navigating the usual urban obstacle course or a reasonable highway run. Not exactly armchairs, but they’ll suffice.
In the back… yes, you can fit three people across, provided they are on friendly terms and perhaps haven’t recently overindulged in our rather excellent local cuisine. Two will be perfectly comfortable. Legroom is actually quite decent, thanks to that wheelbase. Headroom? Well, unless you’re particularly vertically ambitious, or perhaps wear a rather tall turban, you should be fine. And the boot! Yes, the boot is quite capacious. Plenty of space for the weekly market haul, or perhaps a rather ambitious collection of spare parts you might need on a longer journey.
Overall, the cabin of this new Amaze is a perfectly functional, entirely sensible place to be. It feels better built than before, has the essential modern features without going completely overboard, and crucially, prioritises straightforward usability. It feels built to withstand the rigours of daily life here. It’s a cabin that prioritises practicality and straightforward usability over unnecessary flair. And for a car like this, that’s probably precisely the point.
Right. That’s the inside. Now, how does it actually go?
2024 Honda Amaze: Drive
Right then. So, we’ve had a good look at the outside – its slightly squeezed proportions and its growing charm – and we’ve poked around the inside, confirming it’s a perfectly sensible place to spend some time. But what’s it actually like when you fire it up and venture out onto, well, our rather varied tarmac?
In short, it drives… exactly as you’d expect a sensible family Honda to drive. It’s not going to set your pulse racing, it won’t make you feel like Lewis Hamilton, or indeed, any form of racing driver, but it is commendably calm and composed. Point it in a direction, press the accelerator, and it generally goes there without any fuss or drama. Which, for most people, is precisely the point of a car like this.
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Under the bonnet, it’s still that familiar 1.2-litre petrol engine. Which just like its precedessors gets paired with either a five speed manual transmission or a CVT. Now, with this third generation, Honda claims they’ve tweaked things a bit, particularly at the low end. And I must say, for once, the manufacturer’s claim seems to hold some water. The initial pickup, that crucial surge you need to dart into a gap in city traffic or get away from a particularly aggressive auto-rickshaw at the lights, has indeed improved quite a lot. It feels… well, it feels genuinely peppy. Not ‘fast-peppy’, mind you, but ‘sufficiently-eager-to-get-on-with-it’ peppy.
It certainly doesn’t feel sluggish off the line, which is a common complaint with small engines in sedans. So, no, it’s not quick, but it’s more than adequate. It pulls smoothly enough through the gears, whether you opt for the rather sensible manual or the utterly seamless CVT. It genuinely fulfils what one wants from a family sedan of this type: it gets up to speed in a perfectly reasonable timeframe without making a tremendous fuss about it.
Now, the ride quality. Honda has always tended to err on the side of comfort, and the Amaze is no exception. It’s very much on the softer side. It glides rather well over the usual lumps, bumps, and unexpected craters that litter our roads. It soaks up the smaller undulations admirably, providing a generally comfortable experience for the occupants. This is good, particularly if your usual commute involves what can charitably be described as ‘broken surfaces’.
However, and this is a familiar caveat, particularly with softer suspension setups: while it’s good for comfort, it does have a slight downside. If you load it up – say, with five full-sized adults and a boot full of luggage, perhaps for a weekend trip to the native place – you will notice the suspension compressing rather significantly. And yes, just like its predecessors, there is a distinct possibility that you might, rather unceremoniously, scrape its belly on one of our more enthusiastically designed speed breakers or a particularly deep pothole. It’s a common complaint with cars in this segment that prioritise ride comfort and space within a relatively compact footprint. So, a word to the wise: be mindful of those undulations when fully laden.
In terms of handling, it’s predictable. It goes where you point it. There’s enough feel through the steering to know what the front wheels are doing, but it’s light and easy to manoeuvre in the city, which is far more important for its intended purpose than razor-sharp cornering. It’s a calm, composed, and utterly unremarkable driving experience in the best possible way. It simply gets on with the job.
So, yes. It drives exactly as a family Honda should. Sensible, comfortable, and now, a bit more eager off the line. It’s adequate. And for most, that’s exactly what they need.
Verdict
So, the 2024 Honda Amaze. It’s not a revolution. Not in the sense of reinvention, anyway. No, it’s an evolution. A sensible, practical, dependable evolution. In a market where Honda itself has perhaps, shall we say, seen better days – having transitioned from a commanding presence to a brand that’s now just… surviving, with products that are often merely ‘there’ rather than having that distinct class of their own – the Amaze continues to be a very strong embodiment of what Honda does best: sensible engineering.
That ‘sensible’ ethos is evident from the moment you eye it. Its design, with that upright, Elevate-inspired face and a somewhat abbreviated, squeezed rear, is certainly quirky. It takes a while to grow on you, but it’s unmistakably itself. Step inside, and it’s quintessentially Honda: pragmatic and well-laid-out, with noticeably improved build quality over its predecessors, though some budget plastics linger lower down.
Space, crucially, remains its absolute trump card. You get modern tech like a good touchscreen and ADAS, even if the LaneWatch camera is frankly dismal at night. Driving it feels calm and composed, typical family Honda fare, now with surprisingly peppy low-end torque. The soft ride is comfortable, but beware of speed breakers when fully loaded, as its belly can scrape. It’s not exciting, no, but it’s utterly, completely, sensible – precisely what many Indian families truly need.
First Published Date: 21 May 2025, 20:32 PM IST
