Q.Honda Brio Facelift Launched At Rs 4.69 Lakh

[QUOTE=Arjun;n18991][URL="https://www.zigwheels.com/forum/profile/20"]NikilSJ[/URL] The CVT would have helped improve the fuel efficiency and would attract some interest as a city car. The Brio came with an automatic when there were very few hatchback options for the same. The i10 and the A Star also had torque converter automatics but with the convenience of an Auto, the lower fuel efficiency was an expected norm. Also the i10 and A star came with smaller engines and hence were more fuel efficient. With the low fuel efficiency in today's time, I don't think the car's fortunes would change. [/QUOTE] Yes, fuel efficiency was a major concern for many with the older automatic. Honda could have rectified it by offering the CVT now like you just mentioned. It is quite sad to see that they have lost the plot these days. From a premium player, Honda has now become a mass market budget brand (except for the City of course). Recently, I was reading an editorial in a prominent car magazine that said Honda has gone the Hyundai way while Hyundai has been emulating what Honda used to be. That statement seems justified in my opinion. Look at all the latest launches from Hyundai. They have been offering premium products like the Elite i20, the Creta (don't like it one bit, but still) and the Santa Fe (not a big seller). Customers have been thronging Hyundai showrooms to buy the i20 and the Creta because they look like premium products. Honda on the other hand has been churning out cheaply built cars from the Brio platform just to mint money. The BR-V doesn't feel premium at all when you put it side by side with the Creta. The Jazz, even though spacious, isn't as great as the last generation one. It doesn't even have the features of the Elite i20. The Amaze...don't even talk about it. I hated the car earlier, but the facelift seems to be a hit...with taxi drivers :p Hyundai even had the guts to re-enter the dying D-Segment with the new Elantra while Honda is still pondering whether the new Civic may make sense for the country. Why? Because profit margins (if it sells at all) will be lower than other cheaply built Honda products? I love Honda, no doubt. But this is just unacceptable from a company that so many of us used to admire when we were kids. Haven't we all had that desire to own that Type II City VTEC? Which current Honda product do you think kids these days will want to own when they grow up? None would be my answer. Ok stop ranting Nikil!

[URL="https://www.zigwheels.com/forum/profile/20"]NikilSJ[/URL] I was not expecting any updates regarding power in the car, but a CVT was expected. They had changed the 5 speed auto of the Amaze to a CVT, so I was expecting something similar for the Brio. As an enthusiast, I am not disappointed about this, but as a fan of the model, I am disappointed that the lack of CVT option would harm the sales of the car. The Brio had a problem with low fuel economy especially compared to the Maruti options. With the 5 speed torque converter automatic, it only went lower. The CVT would have helped improve the fuel efficiency and would attract some interest as a city car. The Brio came with an automatic when there were very few hatchback options for the same. The i10 and the A Star also had torque converter automatics but with the convenience of an Auto, the lower fuel efficiency was an expected norm. Also the i10 and A star came with smaller engines and hence were more fuel efficient. With the low fuel efficiency in today's time, I don't think the car's fortunes would change.

[U][B]Cosmetic update only. No power bump as some of us expected![/B][/U] Honda Cars India launched the updated Brio today (October 4, 2016) in the country at Rs 4.69 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). This is the first ever cosmetic update for the Brio since its launch way back in September 2011. The changes are purely cosmetic and there aren’t any changes to the engine or the transmission. Those of you who were expecting a bump in power will be disappointed with the new Brio but we’ll come back to that later. For now let’s take a look at all the changes on the new Brio. [ATTACH=CONFIG]n18967[/ATTACH] [B]Honda Brio E MT: Rs 4.69 lakh Honda Brio S MT: Rs 5.20 lakh Honda Brio VX MT: Rs 5.95 lakh Honda Brio VX AT: Rs 6.81 lakh[/B] [B](Honda BRIO V discontinued, all prices ex-showroom, Delhi)[/B] The Brio facelift now gets a fascia that is in sync with that of the Amaze facelift that was launched in March 2016. The Brio now gets a bigger, more aggressive front bumper complete with a new fog lamp housing, bigger air dams that now feature a honeycomb mesh grille. The single slat grille too is the same as the Amaze’s except here, Honda has decided to give it a new gloss black finish. It certainly adds to the sporty character of this little hatchback. The teardrop headlamps are the same as before. There aren’t any changes to the side profile of the Brio. The rear now gets an integrated spoiler which also accommodates the high mount stop lamp. The tail lamps, although the same shape as before, have now got redesigned graphics which to my eyes look more mature than the earlier design that looked like aftermarket units for boy racers. The revised tail lamp graphics. [ATTACH=CONFIG]n18968[/ATTACH] The high mount stop lamp now integrated to an all-new spoiler. [ATTACH=CONFIG]n18969[/ATTACH] The interior of the Brio has undergone a massive redesign. The dashboard is now the same as the ones seen on the Amaze facelift, BR-V and the Jazz. The dashboard features chrome highlights which certainly adds a bit of life to the otherwise staid design. [ATTACH=CONFIG]n18972[/ATTACH] The ’S’ and ‘E’ variants get beige interior while the top-end VX trim gets an all-black interior (Note that the ‘V’ trim as been discontinued). The centre console now features the same music system as the one on the BR-V, Amaze and Jazz. This system on the ’S’ and ‘VX’ trim get bluetooth phone integration and audio streaming functionality. New additions include the three-dial analogue instrument cluster with a digital trip meter and fuel efficiency indicator and automatic climate control. The ‘VX’ trim now features power foldable door mirrors with turn indicators too. All except the ‘E’ variant gets a parcel shelf. [ATTACH=CONFIG]n18970[/ATTACH] Black trim available only in top-end 'VX' trim. [ATTACH=CONFIG]n18971[/ATTACH] In terms of safety, the Brio facelift comes with dual SRS Airbags and Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS) and Electronic Brake Distribution (EBD) in the top-end ‘VX’ trim. All variants, however, come with seat belt pretensioner, Advanced Compatibility Engineering (ACE) body along with Pedestrian Injury Mitigation Technology that is designed to absorb impact energy thereby causing less harm to the pedestrian. Now to the disappointing bit - the powertrain. While some of us here expected the new Brio to get a power bump, Honda has chosen to ignore our pleas and has carried over the same powertrain as before - the 1.2-litre i-VTEC engine that produces 88PS and 109Nm of torque. The Brio can now be bought with either a five-speed manual or a five-speed automatic gearbox. The automatic is a torque convertor and not a CVT as we expected and can be bought only in the top-spec ‘VX’ trim. Honda has decided not to introduce the 1.5-litre i-DTEC diesel engine in the Brio as well. The current uncertainty regarding diesel-powered cars and a shift in buyer pattern towards petrol cars may be the reason behind this move. [ATTACH=CONFIG]n18973[/ATTACH] Same torque convertor as before. No CVT option. [ATTACH=CONFIG]n18974[/ATTACH] While Honda expects the new Brio to sell in better numbers than before, customers may not be as excited as the company wants them to be. The reason being there aren’t many changes to the Brio that we were expecting it to be launched with. The one issue that customers had with the earlier Brio was the glass hatch and Honda hasn’t addressed their concern one bit by retaining the same design. Moreover, the Thai-spec Brio now gets rear wipers which Honda Cars India has conveniently omitted. Glass hatch still a worry for many. [ATTACH=CONFIG]n18975[/ATTACH] I’ve known many enthusiasts who were planning to get a Brio if it gets a power bump straight from the factory. So the unchanged powertrain will definitely disappoint them. The extra features that Honda is now offering isn’t something new to the segment. If you are only looking for features or cabin space, then the Hyundai Grandi10 or the Tata Tiago would make for a better choice. All in all, I feel this is a missed opportunity by Honda and believe that they could have done a much better job with the Brio facelift. Sigh!