Any issues with electronics?

[Rod1955]

Having just had a really disappointing experience with a Skoda Kamiq, which is now being returned as unfit for purpose, I am hoping that a Honda Jazz EX or Crosstar will be an improvement.

All of my Skoda issues have been electronic: can't connect to Skoda Connect so many features unavailable; virtual dashboard keeps changing views for no obvious reason; reversing sensors not always working; media works off USB-C which is unfit for vehicle use - going over a bump with jiggle it lose; satnav takes some very odd routes and recently tried to take me the wrong way up a one-way street; road sign recognition is useless as the speed limit sign shown on screen obscures all other signs; satnav does not offer any options such as shortest/fastest/economical.

Please tell me that the MK4 Jazz is free of such issues.

[Steve P]

I've had my Jazz for around 6 months and so far there's not been too much to complain about.

 The information system works really well, the main screen hasn't locked once for me, it's pretty snappy while scrolling etc. The drivers display is clear with loads of info , but is a bit busy.

 I use android auto and Google maps so can't comment on how good or not the inbuilt nav is, I connect by cable and have never had it lose connection.

 All in all I think Honda have done a great job with the electronics, of course it isn't perfect though.

 Although it's generally good, the speed sign occasionally picks up the wrong one,  ,the phone app isn't great, though they do seem to be slowly improving ,it has DAB radio, but not DAB+

All in all its certainly worth adding a Jazz to your short list of cars to consider.

[Kremmen]

That's a shame about no DAB+,  it's been here 5 years.

Let's hope they don't turn off DAB for many years.

[Steve P]

 As far as im aware, DAB+ is pretty stardard across the continent so perhaps it's only the UK that doesn't have it.

 Still though , it's probably one of my biggest bugbears about the car.

[E27006]

Having just had a really disappointing experience with a Skoda Kamiq, which is now being returned as unfit for purpose, I am hoping that a Honda Jazz EX or Crosstar will be an improvement.

All of my Skoda issues have been electronic: can't connect to Skoda Connect so many features unavailable; virtual dashboard keeps changing views for no obvious reason; reversing sensors not always working; media works off USB-C which is unfit for vehicle use - going over a bump with jiggle it lose; satnav takes some very odd routes and recently tried to take me the wrong way up a one-way street; road sign recognition is useless as the speed limit sign shown on screen obscures all other signs; satnav does not offer any options such as shortest/fastest/economical.

Please tell me that the MK4 Jazz is free of such issues.

Reading the above,  I question the wisdom of car makers loading up their products with built in consumer electronics, far better to supply a holder and connector for the user to couple a mobile phone or a tablet, the tablet and phone are the universal computer devices which are cheap to buy and can be replaced ever 2 or 3 years with better devices as the user decides.
Dacia have figured this out,  their 2021 Sandero has  minimal consumer electronics, just a well thought out place to mount a mobile phone for the benefit of navigation etc.

[John Ratsey]

The annoyances I have with the electronics in my Crosstar are due to design and not malfunction. Probably top of the list is the Road Departure Mitigation System which struggles to behave itself on British roads and gets exited if the driver smooths out the bends on a wiggly road. It can be disabled, but only on a per-trip basis.

Honda have given thought to the use of the touchscreen including the provision of some physical buttons. Apart from the sat-nav, none of the driving functions require use of the touchscreen. The Mk 4 Jazz is therefore a much safer vehicle to drive than many competitors. Heating / ventilation has its own set of physical knobs and buttons.

Honda uses Garmin sat-navs. I can't find a specific manual for the Mk. 4 Jazz but it is most likely the same as this for the 2019 CR-V https://www.honda.co.uk/content/dam/local/uk/cars/owners/manuals/32TNC800_web.pdf. I took a dislike to the Garmin sat-nav some years ago due its preference for using road names rather than numbers so I haven't properly tested the sat-nav in my Crosstar as I use a standalone Tomtom as a matter of habit.

[Steve P]

John, you make a good point about the physical controls on the Jazz/Crossstar, it's far less distracting turning a dial or pressing a button than having to wade through sub menus looking for a way to adjust something.

 I find the voice control works great for getting directions from the satnav, hit the button on the steering wheel,say where you want to go and Google maps at least is very good at understanding what you asked for.

 There's also more and more android auto compatible navigation apps appearing. Apart from Google maps there's Waze  and Sygic already out, and Tomtoms app will be compatible very soon.

[Foksadure]

Speaking of Android Auto apps:

https://www.euronews.com/2021/05/13/italy-fines-google-102-million-for-abuse-of-dominant-position

As a sidenote, the latest Garmin update is still broken as of yesterday.

[peteo48]

I think built in sat navs will soon become a thing of the past. Apple Car Play and Android Auto are vastly superior means of satellite navigation and they update automatically. On John's point above, my stand alone TomTom was massively better than the inbuilt Garmin set up. Not really an issue as I rarely use sat nav and I only have it on this car because I bought it as the Mk3s were being sold off and there was little or no difference in price given the heavy discounting being applied.

[Jocko]

I have the TomTom Go on my Android phone, and it is brilliant. I use it all the time as TomTom has a huge owner base and the traffic is updated continuously. Particularly running in and out of Edinburgh, as I have been doing a lot lately, it will switch the route as traffic changes, sometimes offering longer but quicker options, on the hoof.

[nowster]

As far as im aware, DAB+ is pretty stardard across the continent so perhaps it's only the UK that doesn't have it.

Actually, there's a fair bit of DAB+ out there in the UK at the moment. We started using it in 2017. Things like JazzFM are on DAB+.

As the headend already has hardware that handles AAC (MP4 audio), it's not that huge a change. (Even the Mk2 Jazz could play AAC audio off USB/CD.) The jump to AAC+ (as used by DAB+) isn't huge, and it's backward compatible with AAC decoders in that the bits that make the "plus" are extra, optional, information: Parametric Stereo and Spectral Band Replication.

It's definitely a bit of an oversight.

Remember that the initial spec for a MY20 car will have been put together about five years before. I've done some work on automotive software for various manufacturers. (Some of it scares me.)

Theoretically, it could be done with a firmware update, but manufacturers tend to be risk-averse about doing that sort of thing.

[Mellorshark]

Honda uses Garmin sat-navs. I can't find a specific manual for the Mk. 4 Jazz

https://www.honda.co.uk/cars/owners/manuals-and-guides/honda-owners-manuals.html

It is under Jazz Hybrid,  not navigation manuals as might have been expected.

[Rod1955]

As I understand it, lane departure (Skoda call it lane assist), has to be present on start-up to obtain a 5* NCAP.

I have got used to switching it off manually every time - well, nearly - as I sometimes forget if I'm making a number of short journeys.

However, the one on my very problematic Skoda sometimes switched back on and it's really quite violent at pulling on the wheel. Having been driving for nearly 50 years including IAM membership, Cardington A test, instructing at DSA Cardington, I have never needed a car to take control for me. Perfectly capable of making mistakes without outside assistance.

[Kremmen]

Same here, I hate the thought of the car trying to affect my steering decisions.

[Expatman]

What I don't understand is that we have cars capable of driving themselves on busy motorways but trains which ride on fixed tracks and  controlled spacing still have drivers. Why? Surely trains of all types would be better managed by automated systems rather than fallible human drivers?