Over 1450 comprehensive car reviews in Honestjohn's Car-by-Car Breakdown. What's good, what's bad and what to watch out for. The full story on all popular models on sale in the UK since 1990.

Honda Jazz/Fit (2001 - 2008)

What's Good

The first giant step forward in small car design since the original 1959 Mini. Entirely new one box model on sale in Japan from June 2001. 3,830mm (12 ft 7in) long x 1,675mm (5 ft 6in) wide (1,878mm mirror tip to mirror tip) x 1,525mm (5ft 0in) high.

By December 2001 already Japan's best selling car. Replaced the lacklustre Logo and arrived in the UK early in 2002, providing stiff competition for the Ford Fiesta, VW Polo, SEAT Ibiza, Skoda Fabia, Citroen C3, Nissan Micra, Renault Clio, Vauxhall Corsa, Toyota Yaris and Daihatsu YRV.

Features chain-cam 1,339cc 8 valve 1-DSI engine technology. (Dual and Sequential Ignition System comprises two spark plugs per cylinder in a compact combustion chamber where sequential ignition results in low CO2 emissions and excellent fuel economy.)

Despite compact dimensions, the one-box cab-forward design makes it look quite big. Luggage volume is 353 litres to the parcel shelf with the rear seats up (more than the Fiesta) and a huge 1,323 litres with the seats down. Chain cam engine puts out 61kW (82bhp) at 5,700rpm and 119Nm (88 lb ft) torque at a low 2,800 rpm. Combined economy is 49.6mpg and CO2 output 134g/km. Engine is optimised for ordinary 95Ron Premium unleaded petrol. Insurance is low Group 3E.

Mounting the fuel tank in the centre of the car under the front seats and using a new H-shaped torsion beam rear axle allows for an unusually low cabin floor. The short nose also allows more interior space which is equivalent to many C sector sized cars. The 66/33 split rear seats can each be fully folded into the floor with headrests in place, providing a completely flat loadspace 1,740mm (5ft 9in) long. And by sliding the front passenger seat fully forward, then completely reclining it, objects as long as 2,400mm (7ft 10in) will fit. The versatile rear seat squabs can also be tipped up and locked against the seat backs creating a central luggage area ideal for a dog to be carried. Height of this area from floor to ceiling is 1,280mm (4ft 2"), enough for small children to stand up and change clothes after an afternoon on the beach.

Prices: £8,995. £10,295 and £11,295.

CVT-7 from August 2002 at £900 extra has seven steering wheel paddle shift selectable ratios. Much liked by readers who have bought one.

Later available with a well-integrated body colour side-protection strip.

Voted Auto Express 2002 Car of the Year.

Available from July 2002 in wider choice of colours including Iris Red (pink); Orchid Yellow, Clover Green, Ice Blue metallic and Nighthawk Black pearl.

Revised 2003 models with better suspension and CD players arrived March 2003 but only with CVT-7 transmission. Revised suspension manuals delayed until May 2003.

110PS 1.5 VTEC version in Japan and Australia, and also Thailand and Malaysia from Spring 2004. Comes with CVT-7 as standard. (6th picture shows a customised Jazz 1.5 in Thailand, where the Jazz is regarded as a young people's car.)

Upgrade from Spring 2004. All now fitted with four wheel disc brakes, ABS, handy seat folding lever and two sets of alarm remotes.

4 Star NCAP occupant safety rating and 3 Stars for pedestrian safety.

Facelifted inside and out for 2005 (on sale 6-10-2004) with option of new 1,247cc entry engine and more colours. Revised range comprises 1.2 S, 1.4 SE and 1.4 Sport grades (replacing the current 1.4 S / SE / SE Sport line up), with the entry price point starting at £8,600.

With a 1,247 cc petrol engine serving up 78 PS, the 1.2 offers performance similar to the larger i-DSi unit: 0-60 mph in 13.4 sec and top speed 106 mph. Also fuel economy of 51.4 mpg in the EU combined test, with CO2 emissions very low for a petrol engine at 129 g/km. 1.2 model also benefits from redesigned front and rear bumpers plus metallic garnish for the fascia controls.

Bigger changes for the SE and Sport grades which feature new headlamp and rear light cluster designs, door mirror-mounted LED indicators and new style 15 in alloy wheels (previously the SE had 14 in steel rims). Inside, SE and Sport models have new textured seat fabric, self-illuminating instrument dials similar to the Accord, and a new sporty steering wheel. Also a new stereo system with steering wheel mounted remote controls, outside temperature gauge, chrome handbrake button and, on CVT models, steering wheel mounted paddles in place of buttons (left paddle used to change down, right to change up).

1.4 Sport now has its own look with sport front grille, unique alloy wheels, stylish body kit plus front foglights, automatic climate control air conditioning and digital display as well as black interior trim. Four new colours are introduced to the Jazz range for the 2005 YM, including Sirius Blue, Macha Crame (green) and Venus Orange metallics, plus Helios Yellow pearlescent. Over the years, steering and handling has been much improved. 2006 models fun to drive. SE as well as Sports now have electric folding door mirrors.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. MANY VERY HAPPY OWNERS.

100% breakdown free in 2003 Which survey. Exemplary fewest breakdowns, problems and faults making it a 'Best Buy' in 2003 Which survey. Top individual model in 2004 J.D. Power Customer Satisfaction Survey. 99% of Jazz up to 2 years old breakdown free over previous 12 months in 2004 Which? survey. Which? Best Buy 2004. Which? used best buy £5,000 - £10,000 2004. Came top in 2005 JD Power/What Car Survey of 23,000 cars reg Sep 2002 to Aug 2003 with satisfaction score of 88.1%.

Euro NCAP 4* Occupant safety, 3* Pedestrian safety, 4* Child safety.

3rd in 2007 UK J.D. Power Customer Satisfaction Survey with 86.4% score.

Honda Fit was first introduced in Japan in June 2001. By late 2007 it was being produced in six factories in five countries and sold in approximately 115 countries around the world. Cumulatively, sales of Fit and Jazz exceed two million units. Fit/Jazz is built in Japan, China and Taiwan, Thailand, Indonesia, India and Brazil.
Honda (UK) started taking Jazz from Guangzhou, China around April 2007 and by late 2007 was taking approximately 95% of its Jazz supply from China and the remaining 5% from Suzuka, Japan.

TUV 2008 Report for cars 2 - 3 year old. After analysing seven million main inspections from 194 different models for over 160 criteria – including lights, brakes, chassis, exhaust and oil-loss – Coming in fifth, the Honda Jazz (2.3 percent).

Most reliable small car in 2009 Warranty Direct statistics with 10% incidence of faults, average repair cost of faults £209.76. More at www.warrantydirect.co.uk

Maintenance info site www.hondafitjazz.com/manual.htm

Haynes manual now available.

Original road test at www.honestjohn.co.uk/road_tests/index.htm?id=34

Updated road tests manual and CVT-7 at www.honestjohn.co.uk/road_tests/index.htm?id=60

Road test 2005 CVT-7 at www.honestjohn.co.uk/road_tests/index.htm?id=161

More at www.honda.co.uk

Last updated 13-11-2009

What's Bad

Steering originally a bit sticky and dead in the straight-ahead position.

Much perkier 110PS 1.5 engine standard in Thailand but never available in the UK.

Though first generation Jazz handling and grip is good, the Fiesta, Polo and Yaris were all a bit better in these respects, which may be the reason for the revised suspension from March 2003 and further revisions for 2005MY Jazz.

Servicing is expensive because of the need to re-shim solid lifters and because the engine has 8 special spark plugs.

50 softer damper dealer kits were briefly available for pre-2003 suspension fix manuals, but made the car too wallowy so were withdrawn. 2003 suspension mods cannot be retro fitted as they involve revised body pick-up points. Shame no white in UK colour range. It looks fantastic on Jazz models sold in Thailand. Handling and steering feel greatly improved over the years.

Fairly poor parking brake works on rear discs and as the cars get older often will not hold without a hard tug. Best left in 1st or reverse gear when parked.

New Jazz due UK late 2008. Final year of UK market cars built in China.

What to Watch Out For

Honda recommends change of CVT fluid every 25,000 in "severe driving conditions" which includes regular driving less than 5 miles from cold otherwise CVT trouble can result. There is a new, improved CVT fluid for the box, which requires the old fluid to be flushed out first. Cost should be no more than £150, though there have been stories of quotes of £400.

High cost of servicing. Valve/cam clearances cannot be checked without removing the inlet manifold, adding £80 to the cost of a service. 2nd annual service can cost £430 including a new set of front pads.

Batch of faulty EGR valves eventually caused jerky running on early Jazz models. Replaced FOC. EGR valves can also block if cars are used a lot in traffic or for short runs from cold and this leads to jerky running.

Make sure the a/c works as compressors have been known to fail.

Can have a manual transmission selector problem. Some cars have needed new manual gearboxes. Manual transmission bearing failures on 3 to 5 year old Jazz well known in 2007 and extremely common by late 2009. Dealers quote £1,400 for a full rebuild. Honda will usually provide goodwill for a 4 year old, bring the cost down to around £700.

On early Jazz a clicking noise heard when turning left in 2nd gear may be due to the reverse shift holder ball bearing being contaminated and partially seized, causing the reverse idler gear to not return to neutral. Shifting into 2nd gear causes the reverse idler gear to touch the countershaft reverse gear. This problem has been known by Honda since 2002, and resulted a stronger reverse shift holder being fitted to later models. Repairs to early Jazz may be quoted at around £730.

Two complaints within a few days of each other of rear doors letting in water, possibly through waterproof membranes cracked by frost.

In 2006 one reader suffered front damper and steering rack failure on an early 02 Jazz costing £1,600 to fix. Honda paid half.

From www.dogandlemon.com Owners of grey import Jazz/Fit CVT-7s built between 5 June and 23 October 2003: the CVT belt may break, resulting in transmission failure. This problem was the subject of three separate recallsin the Far East, New Zealand and Australia. If the problem has been fixed in Japan there will be yellow paint on the left bonnet hinge bolt.
RJ-1015-0 and RJ-1482-0 and RF-1243-0

If buying check that the front passenger carpet fits properly.

Several complaints of prematurely failed rear wheel bearings on Jazz over 4 years old.

Where fitted with rear disc brakes, complaints of parking brakes not holding the car on temporary stops in traffic.

'Piston slap' reported on Jazz 1.4 I-DSIs from 2005 at around 3 years old.

Seem to deteriorate quite badly after 6 or 7 years. DO NOT PAY A PREMIUM PRICE FOR AN OLD. LOW MILEAGE JAZZ.

New electric window switch panel £196 + £63 to fit.

Dodgy rear door seals common resulting in wet carpets in rear footwell and consequent misting of windows.

Recalls

In response to complaints of steamed up windows on pre-2005 model Jazz, Honda sent this note to owners: "With the weather now changing and becoming damp and cold, you may experience fogged up windows. All you need to do is make sure your Air Directional Control is set to the windscreen and the side vents are open. Ensure that the heating control button is adjusted into the red zone (warm) and the Air Recirculation button is off. Switch on the Air Conditioning with the ventilation fan on and your vehicle will then demist in a short space of time. Be aware that air conditioning only affects fuel consumption marginally while this constant use will keep the air conditioning in good working condition too." TSB unknown date if customer complains of jerky running on 2 - 3 year old Jazz, replace EGR valve. Late 2008/early2009 parking brake ratchet recall.