Honda Jazz gets crossover package for Japan

MANILA: For long, we have always felt that the Honda Jazz is no less than a crossover, thanks to the rugged styling and bigger-than-hatchback design. Hence, to fit the bill better, Honda has turned this hatchback into an AWD crossover, albeit, in the Japanese market.

Back in the home country, Honda calls this small crossover the Fit Cross Style (Fit is the Japanese name for Jazz). It has a lot of the styling additions to make it look more like a crossover. The company has added the BR-V’s styling kit to it too. Hence, if we look at the car now, we will find a lot of black cladded additions, especially on the wheels arches and the side sections. In fact, the wheel arch-claddings are so prominent that the fenders look very butch too.

Even the wheels get a special treatment along with faux skid plates for the front as well as the rear. And certainly, Honda did manage to make this little crossover to go beyond what other manufacturers work on by giving it a raised ride height and the most relevant muscularity.

Moving ahead, the Japanese Fit Cross Style (Jazz crossover) also gets the AWD (all-wheel drive) mechanism to make it a pure crossover. It is, however, an optional package and can be had with other variants on the block. Under the hood, it is powered by the base 1.3-litre engine and also the bigger 1.5-litre unit. So now, there is a front-wheel, all-wheel and also a hybrid with AWD.

Inside the cabin of this Fit Cross Style, there is the same theme carried over. The dashboard looks the same, and so do the seat trims. However, the speakers are slightly enhanced with illuminations. Also, the company has included a dashcam as a standard fitment and a navigation system too.