Author Topic: Gaffer's Jazz  (Read 7160 times)

guest1272

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Gaffer's Jazz
« on: February 25, 2010, 08:17:26 PM »
Hi everyone, funnily enough, I've just bought a Jazz (beware, LOOOOOOONG rambling post ahead  ;)).

I would be going from this:



which is coming on 15yo now and starting to fall apart a bit. I recently serviced it last month with my bro (new sparks, air filter, battery, radiator bits, oil change and filter etc etc) but this week there are new strange noises coming from the drivers front wheel. It seems that it's getting to that age where it needs to be put out to pasture (worsened by all these bleedin' potholes that STILL haven't been filled in ages after it snowed  >:( :D).
Anyway, it's a 1.5 (1496cc) non-VTEC model that is quite peppy around town but is getting worse with recent mpg's being 27ish range  despite doing basics like correct tire pressures/driving sensibly etc.
It had (when new) 89bhp? and about the same torque? (from memory), insurance group 11 or something ridiculous.

Anyway, I had a few options up my sleeve that would be decent alternatives for a reliable runaround for when I can't drive my other car.....here were some on my shortlist:

Vauxhall Astra/Corsa: I want a reliable car :P. Every vauxhall my family has ever owned has been a steaming pile of poo. Poor reliability, poor build quality etc etc (bar one - the Omega was nice imho) and we've owned a few. There's a reason Vauxhall's tend to come near the bottom of the JD power surveys year on year. Terrible cars that I wouldn't touch with a bargepole now.

Peugot 207/308 or Citroen C3/C4. I said I wanted reliability :P.

VW Polo 1.2 TSI:
Too expensive for what it is, starting price for a decent spec is about £15500 .....for a Polo.....
OK, what about the Golf equivalent? What about a 1.4? Again, starting price similar for a slower car but I like VW and think they make reliable well built stuff so I hadn't entirely ruled it out. Still quite pricey for what I'd be getting though imho.
What about Audi 2nd hand? Good residuals mean that even though I think they're also great cars, they were a tad on the dear side for any px on mine.

Ford Focus 1.6 Zetec:
Lovely handling....too bleeding expensive again  :'(. According to the dealer, to get an equivalent spec to the other shortlistee's, I'd be neigh on the £17000 mark  :o.
But having said that, the dynamics are meant to be quite good on the other ranges too as well as being reliable and cheap to insure and repair and run etc etc.....
....so I looked at a decent spec Ford Fiesta and it comes out at a MUCH more reasonable £13000ish.....that's more like it, that stayed on my "compare" list.

BMW 1 series: v expensive and they weren't offering any deals. Plus, with all the extra costs for a decent spec meant that if I wanted R/L turn indicators (which appear to be an option on most beemers I see driving around nowadays ;)) that'd have bumped the price up way too high  :D.

Others:
I also looked at the mini (cramped inside c.f. the jazz, but fantastic handling although at a hefty premium in comparison) and the Yaris (smaller inside in comparison and I also want the option of stopping at things like traffic lights and junctions if possible ;))


....but all that went out the window when I moved on to the Honda. First car? A Honda Civic. Second car? That Civic from above.So I KNOW they're built well and damn reliable. I've lost count how many times colleagues in their clio's/corsas/c5's etc would be late for work 'cos their car wouldn't start, whereas mine would start up first time every time even in the depths of winter. Sweet as a nut.
Saying that, I sauntered over to the Honda expecting to find a deal on a used 1.6 Honda Civic.
Sat inside one of the newer ones instead.
Erm......
Where's the rear visibilty? Not only is there a ruddy great (un-needed) spoiler halfway across the rear window  >:(, but the pillars obstruct most rear 3/4 vision so you have to rely on the wing mirrors pretty much solely ???. Looking in front is nice with a cool ubersleek dash and it's a nice place to be, certainly, but I like decent all round awareness when driving and that's mighty difficult with the very poor rear visibility on the Civic.

So I then jumped into a Jazz sitting next to it. Niiiice ;D. I could now get a great all round view including the rear and I swear it seems like there's MORE space in here than the bigger civic has .......it's like a tardis .
Even though the UK ones are called 1.2 and 1.4l, the actual spec of the 1.4 is 1339cc so it's actually a 1.3l (which is what the rest of the world correctly call it) isn't it? Despite this, it has more torque (127) and more bhp (99) than my current civic.....so I'd be going down on engine size but hopefully keeping performance about the same (slightly heavier car I think c.f. mine).
Fuel consumption also almost doubles (60 mway, 52 combined).
Insurance group halves to 5E.

So I started looking quite hard at the ES model but with a couple of additions:

Jazz 1.4 iVtec ES + metallic paint + front spots + 5yr servicing - scrappage scheme = £12178, of which I pay 35% up front and the rest off interest free over two years.......brilliant deal imho for a brand new ('10' plate) car with honda reliability, cheap to run, cheap to insure and comparable performance (but double the fuel economy).

I was tempted by the EX but it had many things I didn't want:
don't need moonroof, climate control not needed in such a small car imho - I'm fine with manual A/c, I have an iPod but don't care about adding USB to a factory unit (if I needed I'd go whole hog and replace the audio myself), I'm happy with 15" alloys - neither of my prior civics had alloys so going up to 16" wasn't going to be "missed" and i'd risk it worsening ride quality a tad too (less rubber), it's heavier than the ES? because performance and fuel consumption is worse than the ES), and on and on...

but 1 thing I did want:
Front spots

so I simply added them as options into the ES spec  :).



So yes, in the end I plumped for the Jazz as I think they're great vfm with the current honda servicing deals, keep their value well (looking on autotrader) and i'll get 2 grand for mine with the scrappage scheme (which would probably only get a couple of hundred tops otherwise).

The only thing I found it difficult deciding on was the colour. They're all OK but I had a few reservations with black (marks show up easily and it wasn't pearlescent like Honda's old (great looking) Pirate's Black) and I like dark grey / slate grey, so I plumped for the Storm Grey. I would have liked a darker version but after having a look in the showroom I think I've made the right choice.

Need to pay the rest of my deposit this weekend and then should take delivery next week......can't wait....I'm hopping up and down like an excited school kid in a sweetshop  :-[.


Anyway, that's enough rambling from me. Be prepared to answer some pretty dumb Q's from me over the coming months as I get to grips with it  ;D.

Geoffers

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Re: Gaffer's Jazz
« Reply #1 on: February 25, 2010, 08:26:50 PM »
Yo Gaffer! ;D

RichardA

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Re: Gaffer's Jazz
« Reply #2 on: February 25, 2010, 09:03:09 PM »
Welcome Gaffer :)

Garyman

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Re: Gaffer's Jazz
« Reply #3 on: February 26, 2010, 11:11:15 AM »
Welcome welcome Gaffer  8)

Nice first post  ;D

guest1272

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Re: Gaffer's Jazz
« Reply #4 on: February 26, 2010, 07:22:54 PM »
Thanx guys  ;D.

Went to pay the rest of the deposit today and decided to pay a bit more so that my monthly payments would be lower.

Sat inside one again and realised I'd made the right choice imo - nice cabin  :).

The front spots have added 4 days to the arrival time as they'll fit them in the dealership, but I think I'm off work that day so it might end up working out OK  8).

I'm off to ebay now to look for a spare tyre.

Geoffers

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Re: Gaffer's Jazz
« Reply #5 on: February 26, 2010, 11:49:14 PM »
Hmmmm! I got a Spacer Saver spare tyre as part of the deal!
Got the feeling I would have got one anyhow!

guest1272

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Re: Gaffer's Jazz
« Reply #6 on: February 27, 2010, 01:24:41 PM »
Unfortunately they wouldn't do any deals on accessories  :-\.
Their excuse was that a) everyone who would've gone to toyota are recently coming to them b) new number plate time is the busiest time of the year c) I'm already getting scrappage deal which they pay half for (govt the other half) and d) the 5yr service is unmatched currently.

I did manage to get them to chuck in the elegance floor mats (£70) for free though, so if I can get the tyre for <£40 I'm quids in  ;D.

RichardA

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Re: Gaffer's Jazz
« Reply #7 on: February 27, 2010, 02:53:38 PM »
I've heard of the dealers not throwing in the spare wheel into the deal and instead suggesting to increase the price of your p/x by £spare wheel price, which all points to the same thing really. This is what happened when I bought a Civic four years ago so technically I got the spacesaver thrown in although I still 'invoiced' for it.

culzean

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Re: Gaffer's Jazz
« Reply #8 on: February 28, 2010, 03:15:12 PM »
Was interested in gaffers comments in his post about looking for a new car, after my really good experiences with previous Hondas I was also looking for a Civic when I sat in (and bought) a (GD) Jazz - wonder how many times that has happened at Honda dealers?
Some people will only consider you an expert if they agree with your point of view or advice,  when you give them advice they don't like they consider you an idiot

JOCK55

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Re: Gaffer's Jazz
« Reply #9 on: March 01, 2010, 06:37:48 AM »
With regard to Gaffer's response from his dealer "c) I'm already getting scrappage deal which they pay half for (govt the other half)", I believe this is incorrect. From the information I was given from my dealer, the financial split is UK Govt. pay half, Dealer pays a quarter and Honda UK pays a quarter. Plus dealer gets the scrap value of the car being traded!

So that was a bit of a weak excuse.  :P

Jock
My other car is a 2015 Range Rover Sport....
No, seriously, it is!!!

guest1272

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Re: Gaffer's Jazz
« Reply #10 on: March 08, 2010, 07:39:18 PM »
@culzean: I wouldn't be surprised. I also sat in the insight and that was even worse (no wonder they're changing it completely on the new civic and dropping the central bar altogether......they must've realised it was a poor move).

Anyway, I just went to collect it today.... love the "new car smell" and the "0000005" miles on the clock :D:

Front spots/fogs were the optional extra. They installed it brilliantly too, changing the indicator stalk to new ones rather than giving me a separate switch for them somewhere.



I'm glad I went for Storm Grey as it looks nice on this imo



The ES spec has indicators on the wing mirrors



...and they fold when parking



I also like the clear rears. It's nice and roomy in the back too



Tail lights/brakes are LED ones which was a nice surprise :)



A few extra things as standard include VSA (stability control) and audio controls on the steering wheel. I also like the orange-red glow of the dash :D



I'm not sure if I'll change the HU as I currently like the standard fit look and sound. I also like the fact that we have recirc/fresh air change as a button rather than a slider (I hate sliders 'cos I always manage to break 'em ;))

Overall I'm v happy and now just have to remember to drive extra carefully for the first 600-1000miles or so :).

RichardA

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Re: Gaffer's Jazz
« Reply #11 on: March 11, 2010, 08:24:15 PM »
@culzean: I wouldn't be surprised. I also sat in the insight and that was even worse (no wonder they're changing it completely on the new civic and dropping the central bar altogether......they must've realised it was a poor move).

Anyway, I just went to collect it today.... love the "new car smell" and the "0000005" miles on the clock :D:

Front spots/fogs were the optional extra. They installed it brilliantly too, changing the indicator stalk to new ones rather than giving me a separate switch for them somewhere.



I'm glad I went for Storm Grey as it looks nice on this imo



The ES spec has indicators on the wing mirrors



...and they fold when parking



I also like the clear rears. It's nice and roomy in the back too



Tail lights/brakes are LED ones which was a nice surprise :)



A few extra things as standard include VSA (stability control) and audio controls on the steering wheel. I also like the orange-red glow of the dash :D



I don't think I'll change the HU as I like the standard fit look and sound. I also like the fact that we have recirc/fresh air change as a button rather than a slider (I hate sliders 'cos I always manage to break 'em ;))



Overall I'm v happy and now just have to remember to drive extra carefully for the first 600-1000miles or so :).

Nice. Storm Silver is a nice colour - easy to keep clean but with a bit more 'kick' to it then normal silver.

Is that Crawley Honda?
« Last Edit: December 24, 2012, 03:27:26 PM by RichardA »

guest1272

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Re: Gaffer's Jazz
« Reply #12 on: March 12, 2010, 12:28:42 PM »
Front spots/fogs were the optional extra. They installed it brilliantly too, changing the indicator stalk to new ones rather than giving me a separate switch for them somewhere.

Hi to the forum.
How much did you pay for fog lamps? I'm getting them from Japan right now for 100€ (should be OEM with E-mark). By my honda dealer costs 560€ (including installation).

Hi.
The OEM ones I've seen on ebay for about £100. However, they come with a little switch which you place somewhere in the dash to turn them on/off (I have a blank next to my VSA switch which would've worked).
However, the reason that Honda charge so much is that they instead replace the whole indicator stalk with one that includes "front fog" options.....which is why it's a £460 optional extra ....but inside the cabin it looks like it's factory fit (which it is).
A tad expensive but worth it for me  :).


@ RichardA, yep, that's the one  :) (they call themselves Gatwick Honda now and have moved from the roundabout near the hospital to near B&Q and the M23 exit).
I'm quite lazy so "easy to keep clean" sounds good to me  ;D

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