Honda has released sketches of the new Amaze compact sedan before its official launch next month. This is the third-gen Amaze for India and as expected has adopted an exterior design quite similar to that of the larger City sedan. We had said this back in March of this year when we put out a story detailing what Honda needs to make this third-gen Amaze successful.
The face is dominated by a large blacked-out grille and thinner double barrel headlamps with integrated LED DRLs. The wheels look very similar to those offered on the City, while at the back, thanks to the shape and layout of the headlamps, you can see the City connection.
Honda has also revealed a sketch of the interior, and once again, we can see a larger connection to the City sedan. A surprise that is visible in the sketches is the inclusion of driver assistance systems, but it is unclear if they will be Level 1 or Level 2. The Amaze is only offered with one engine—a 1.2-litre four-cylinder unit producing 89bhp and 110Nm. This engine can be had with a five-speed MT or a CVT.
Honda has a big challenge with the Amaze in terms of bringing in volumes. The demand for compact sedans, or for that matter sedans as a whole, has been lukewarm over the last years with buyer interest fully pointed towards SUVs of all shapes and sizes. The package needs to be comprehensive and effective if it has to continue to make a name for Honda in the segment. It will go up against cars like the new Maruti Dzire, Tata Tigor, and the Hyundai Aura as well compact SUVs like the Nissan Magnite and the Renault Kiger.
