New Honda Amaze first drive, review: Desirable enough?

Honda has infused fresh life into the Amaze, its compact sedan, with a significant update. As Honda’s current bestseller in India, the Amaze carries high expectations, especially following the lackluster performance of the Elevate and the decline in sales of the City.

This third-generation Amaze arrives just in time to face off against the all-new Maruti Dzire, which not only boasts an updated powertrain and features but also wears a coveted five-star Global NCAP safety rating. While the Amaze now looks sharper inside and out, it retains its predecessor's powertrain. To bolster its safety credentials, Honda has equipped the Amaze with a camera-based ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) suite, instead of relying on external crash test certifications.

Front styling resembles the Elevate with its upright grille and chrome treatment.

With prices ranging from Rs 8 lakh to Rs 10.90 lakh (ex-showroom), the new Amaze is priced above the Dzire (Rs 6.79-10.14 lakh). Interestingly, Honda will continue selling the second-generation Amaze in lower-spec petrol-manual variants to cater to budget-conscious buyers. Also, while there’s no factory-fitted CNG version, customers can opt for a dealer-installed CNG kit for an additional Rs 1 lakh, covered under Honda’s warranty.

It looks like a barely shrunken City from the rear.

Styling updates align the new Amaze with Honda’s latest design language. The upright grille and chrome detailing give the front a resemblance to the Elevate, while the rear looks like a barely shrunken City. The side profile remains unmistakably Amaze, but new elements like door-mounted mirrors and wider 185/60 R15 tyres with diamond-cut alloys add freshness. The overall dimensions are similar to the second-gen model, but the width has grown by 38mm, improving road presence.

New Honda Amaze interiors

The Amaze adopts a minimalist dashboard layout, echoing the Elevate's design, but without premium touches like soft materials or faux wood accents. The 8-inch touchscreen, though functional, feels small by modern standards. However, the beige-black cabin colour scheme does elevate its appeal to some extent. 

The dashboard is identical to the Elevate, but it lacks the faux wood panel and soft touch bits.

The beige-black interior theme adds brightness, and Honda’s hallmark ergonomics shine through with well-placed storage spaces and excellent visibility. Also carried forward from the Elevate are its superbly executed part-analogue, part-digital instrument cluster, as well as the neat, buttoned climate control console.

Thigh support is inadequate at the front; the centre armrest is sorely missed.

The front seats lack sufficient thigh support, and the absence of an armrest is likely to hamper driver comfort on long drives. The rear seat offers good support and a comfy backrest angle, but the narrow cabin width makes accommodating three adults a challenge. Taller passengers will also find headroom limited. On the upside, the Amaze now features rear air-conditioning vents, three rear headrests, three-point seatbelts, and class-leading 416 litres of boot space.

New Honda Amaze ADAS, features

The talking point of this new-gen Amaze is its camera-based ADAS suite, which includes lane-keeping assist, adaptive cruise control, autonomous emergency braking, and blind-spot monitor, among others. The lane-keep assist function activates only once the vehicle speed crosses 72kph, and it works seamlessly when both lanes are clearly marked.

The rear seat is supportive and comfy; headroom is in short supply for taller passengers.

Adaptive cruise control works well in stop-go conditions, too; however, in the manual version, gear shifts will deactivate cruise control. The blind-spot monitor displays a video feed of the left side of the vehicle on the screen upon using the indicator or activating this feature manually. While it is very useful, it takes up the whole touchscreen display, and while using maps, particularly, this can be a bit inconvenient.

Lane-keeping assist works seamlessly on a clearly marked road.

Additional equipment includes six airbags, wireless charging, wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, rain-sensing wipers, and auto LED headlamps. However, missing features like a sunroof and a 360-degree camera are likely to give the Maruti Dzire an edge. Also, while there are a couple of USB Type-A ports in the front as well as 12V power sockets in the front and rear, there isn't a single USB Type-C port to speak of.

New Honda Amaze performance

A familiar 1.2-litre petrol engine continues to power the Amaze. This is a very rev-happy engine, with its power flowing only higher up the rev range. It builds pace only beyond 2000rpm, and from thereon, you can feel prominent tugs in power along the rev band, with a particularly strong pull beyond 4500rpm, almost all the way until 6700rpm. But there’s simply no getting away from its weak responses below 2000rpm. 

The CVT (auto) masks this engine's weak bottom end very well; gets Sport mode, and paddle shifters too.

To counter this and improve drivability, Honda has shortened the first and second gear ratios of the 5-speed manual gearbox. Despite this, it warrants constant downshifts in slow-moving traffic, on steep slopes, and also while trying to drive off from speed breakers. The third gear is quite tall too, which, coupled with the naturally aspirated petrol's weak midrange, does warrant a downshift to second for quick highway overtakes. Thankfully, this gearbox is smooth and has short throws, and even its clutch pedal feels light and effortless. 

Soft suspension results in a fair bit of body roll around corners.

Its CVT (continuously variable transmission) automatic complements this engine well and masks its weakness by keeping it in its optimum power band at all times. But with a heavy foot, this belt-and-pulley transmission will portray the typical ‘rubber band effect’, wherein the engine revs rise without a corresponding effect on the vehicle’s speed. It also gets a Sport mode, which keeps the transmission in a lower ratio, thereby extracting the most performance out of this engine. Its paddle shifters are nice and reactive and particularly useful when there’s a need for engine braking. 

Cabin sound insulation could have been a bit better though, and engine, road, and ambient noises filters through a fair bit.

New Honda Amaze ride and handling

The soft suspension compresses a fair bit under full load, so you'll need to cross speed breakers with caution, despite its 172mm ground clearance.

The Amaze’s suspension setup leans towards comfort, soaking up smaller bumps with ease but struggling over sharper potholes. Ground clearance has improved slightly to 172mm, but a fully loaded car can cause the rear suspension to compress significantly, requiring caution over large speed breakers. Wider tyres enhance grip, but body roll remains pronounced due to the soft setup. Steering is well-weighted and consistent, and a tight turning radius (4.9m on top variants; 4.7m for the base variant with 175/65 R14 tyres) makes city driving effortless.

New Honda Amaze verdict

The third-generation Amaze builds on its predecessor’s strengths with updated styling, better safety tech (ADAS), and improved practicality. Its CVT variant stands out as the smoothest automatic in its class, effectively masking the engine’s weaknesses.

However, the absence of certain features like a sunroof and the higher pricing could deter some buyers. While it doesn’t feel as compelling as the mighty Dzire, the Amaze remains a solid choice for those seeking a well-rounded compact sedan and is likely to remain Honda’s bestseller in India.