Honda has unveiled a prototype of the Brio small car which will be launched in India next year. Sources tell us that Honda is likely to put this car in showrooms next year during Diwali time.
The vehicle arriving in India will be very close to the prototype showcased in Thailand today. We expect the Brio to be priced at around 5 lakh rupees with a 1.2-liter petrol engine lifted from the Honda Jazz.
The Brio could have additional engines and transmission in the future. Perhaps two years down the line, the Brio could come equipped with a small diesel engine. Honda has said it is studying the possibility to bridge this need gap.
The prototype displayed has an automatic transmission, which too could make an appearance at a much later date.
click through to read the press release
The company feels that cutting down the engine size will be a way to cut the cost of the car without hampering its quality. The (Honda) small car will be rolled out in four variants in all.
A source privy to Honda’s small car development, tells Financial Express. Honda will debut the Brio on the 30th of this month in Thailand.
After Shoeb R Kalania brought you a pair of renderings of Honda’s all-new small car for India, we have a really interesting interpretation from our friends in Brazil.
The Brio is Honda’s Etios. It will arrive in India next year with the Jazz’ 1.2-liter engine. There’s also a smaller petrol engine displacing under 1,000cc in the works we’re told, on which VTEC technology will be absent to lower costs. The Brio will make its international debut at the Thailand Motor Show on the 30th of this month.
As we reported earlier, Honda is busy fishing for an agency to broadcast the Brio in India. It will be interesting to see if door handles are placed on the C-Pillar as suggested in these images. Here in India, many parents travel with children in the back seat. If the door handle is higher up, kids will find it difficult to reach.
Honda could bring a sedan on the Brio’s platform to fill the gap under the City in 2012. Since the mini SUV market is about to kick-off in India (Ford, Mahindra and General Motors are going to be part of it), Honda should also think along the lines of a mini CR-V. Since Honda’s diesel engine line-up is scheduled only for 2012, the Brio and its siblings rely on petrol to fight its hard-knuckled rivals.
While we’re on the subject of Honda’s small car (Code – 2CV) for emerging markets, remember we’re only speculating. The Honda Brio (as we’re referring it) will have a sub-1.2-liter petrol engine under its bonnet when its begins its stint in India next year. On some foreign blogs, people call it as Honda’s mini Jazz implying its dimensions and capabilities.
We’re also told Honda will consider sedan and perhaps other body styles on the Brio’s platform. This is how the game is being played today in India – bring in a base on top of which anything can be built.
Honda’s sure that the pricing will be around the region of 5 lakh rupees. For that price, expect no major equipment. Forget ABS and Airbags, even stereo is an unlikely feature on the entry-level Brio. We don’t think there will be a diesel engine in starting stages and in a country where fuel economy is of paramount importance in small cars, they must be planning one soon.
The question we’d like Honda to answer is what will be different on the Brio? What will be special about it? Can it better a Maruti on mileage, a Tata on space, a Volkswagen on quality and say a price on Ford? Will it just be another small car in the Indian market?
Gasgoo is reporting that Honda will introduce a new small car codenamed TIF in the Chinese market, Honda China president Seiji Kuraishi has revealed to the local media recently.
The TIF will get a 1.0 and 1.3-liter petrol engine and will be positioned in line with many of the small cars available today at attractive prices in the Chinese market (read – Chevy Sail, Nissan Micra,
The Honda TIF will cost about 4.12-5.48 lakh rupees, according to Gasgoo, which is a great alternative to the likes of the Micra.
According to sources, the TIF will have “most stylish looks, eye-catchy features and extremely user-friendly controls.”
Now the question is – Is the TIF got anything to do with the Honda New Small Concept that was showcased at the Auto Expo? The car’s codename is 2CV and it, according to sources, will be launched in India next year. The NSC could have a sedan variant and there has been no talk about a diesel engine under the 2CV’s bonnet.
Could these two cars be the same? The 1.3-liter petrol engine will not make it eligible for small car benefits in India, so Honda might only launch the 1.0-liter, if at all the TIF is the 2CV.
It seems like the Honda small car will come sooner than expected
In the month of March while most of the auto companies showed a positive growth in the sales, Honda’s cumulative sales dropped by about 20%. There are cash discounts being offered on the Jazz thanks to its low sales, the Altis is clearly ahead of the Civic, the once popular Accord has been overtaken by the more value for money option-the Skoda Superb, the CR-V too is selling in minuscule numbers thanks to its steep price tag. It is only the city that is garnering sales for Honda.
This could have prompted Honda to rethink the launch of its small car (codenamed 2CV). If rumors are to be believed, Honda is planning to bring forward the launch of the small car. The company is aware of the fact that this car can fire up its’ sales charts.
The Beat has helped GM cross the 10k mark in cumulative sales, the Figo has helped Ford overtake Honda & Toyota in terms of sales, the Polo has been a huge hit for VW with 5,000 confirmed bookings. Nissan will roll out the Micra in July & Honda’s arch rival, Toyota plans to launch the hatch variant of the Etios in the month of December. Honda sure wants to speed up & does not want to be overshadowed by the bevy of hatches hitting the Indian market.
Even at the Auto Expo in January Honda brought in the small car concept at the last moment because it did not want Toyota to steal all the limelight with the Etios concept. This time around too Honda does not want to leave any stone unturned & is pulling up its’ socks for the launch of the car.
Sources say that Honda might just launch the car at the end of this year or early next year. The car will roll out from Honda’s Greater Noida Facility & will be powered by a 1.2-litre engine which would be a tuned-down version of the Jazz’s 1.2. Honda is targeting a price tag of 5 lakh or maybe even below as the starting price. Knowing fully well Honda’s frugal engineering skills, the car should be best in class in terms of fuel efficiency, refinement, ease of driving & reliability.
The Japanese magazine’s representation is light years away from the concept shown in January
Thanks to Autoten, we’re able to show you a possible look of the Honda New Small Concept scheduled that could come out next year.
Codenamed 2CV, the compact car will sit under the Honda Jazz and take over the mantle of the entry-level model in many countries. While initial reports suggested the car would not be sold in Europe, the Japanese magazine reports the company’s Indian plant will manufacture cars for exports.
The magazine has also published details on the dimensions of the product – approximately 3700*1680*1550 (L*W*H) in dimension. The base petrol engine would be a 3-cylinder 1.0-liter engine for the European market. The 1.2-liter engine is for the Thai market. We assume the 1.2-liter engine will be offered on the Indian version.
The magazine reports the small car will hit the Indian market first by Q1 of 2011.
Honda’s small car might not even be close to this, but a brief inspection of the competition led us to this image
Our photoshop master SRK was handed the task of compiling a drawing of Honda’s upcoming small car meant for the Indian market. Codenamed 2CV, our sources tell us the the upcoming small car might use a 1.1-liter petrol engine, with no diesel in the equation. We were also informed that the engine could share commonalities with the 1.2-liter unit on Jazz. The use of Honda’s cutting-edge VTEC technology was not confirmed.
Honda has not spoken about the car’s specification, so the above is purely speculation.
The Honda 2CV will be is engineered to outrun the Swift and Ritz from the Suzuki stable, which command a high market share in its segment.
SRK designed the Honda 2CV after going through some of its competitors which includes Suzuki Swift, Hyundai i10, Fiat Punto, Tata Indica and Suzuki Ritz/Splash.
