2025 Honda Amaze Test Drive Review

Honda has just rolled out the 3rd generation Amaze, and the competition has just heated up with Maruti having introduced the 4th generation Dzire only recently. While the SUV segment is where people put their money, the compact sedan segment still has a lot of buyers going for it. Honda has tried a top-down approach and has got a lot of stuff from the more upmarket Elevate and City. We came down to Goa (again) to check it out in flesh.

The design is an evolution of the previous model; the silhouette of the Amaze is still the same as there is barely any room to play with as it sits under 4-meters. The front is inspired by the Elevate, and it gets a straighter SUV-like mesh grille with lots of chrome elements. The new LED headlamps look quite jazzy (pun intended) and also work well at night. From the side, there aren’t many changes. You get new 2-tone diamond-cut alloy wheels, while proportions from the side profile are still the same. While the front has taken cues from the Elevate, the rear has taken a lot of inspiration from the City. The LED taillights are very similar to the ones on the City, and they look upmarket. Although the wheelbase, length, and height are exactly the same as before, Honda has increased the width by 38 mm to cater to more shoulder room in the cabin. A shark fin antenna has been added for the upmarket feel. The Amaze does look more premium and upmarket as compared to the outgoing model.

The cabin also feels more premium than before. Honda has gone with an Elevate-inspired dashboard design. You have a floating 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system that supports wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The 7-inch instrument cluster now has a part digital, part analog screen, as seen with the City and Elevate, and this is a very good thing. Honda has added a few more features to the kitty. You get a wireless charger at the front, rear AC vents for better cooling at the back, and ambient lighting on the dashboard. This is, however, right onto the front passenger’s face and should have been a bit subtler.

The biggest feature added is Level 2 ADAS, which gets a host of features. Honda Sensing, as they like to call it, is a first for this segment. In fact, the Amaze is the cheapest car in India to get ADAS. It is camera-based and not radar-based, and is more practical of the lot. Why do I say that? Only for the reason that it’s not very intrusive, which means it will not pull the steering too aggressively or brake too aggressively, something we have commonly encountered with ADAS-equipped cars. The Amaze also gets the City-inspired Lane Watch Camera for the left side to eliminate blind spots while changing lanes.

The seats offer improved cushioning; lateral support is particularly improved now. The rear seat has been reclined by a few degrees for a more comfortable seating position. You get integrated headrests, even for the middle passenger. Cabin width has increased by 25 mm, giving a tad bit more shoulder room. The rest remains the same as before, which means the headroom and legroom are in accordance with what is expected from the sub 4-meter car. The rear AC vents jut out, making the space slightly constricted for the middle passenger.

Boot space is quite good for the segment. The volume measured 416-litres, which is just 4-litres less than before, and this reduction is due to the reclining of the rear seat. Honda claims you can fit 5 medium-sized suitcases in the car, which is more than enough. A PM 2.5 air purifier has been added, but there are a few things that have been missed. The biggest miss is the absence of a sunroof. The competition gets it now, so I don’t know why Honda hasn’t included it in the kitty, despite it being a major selling point. There are no C-Type ports in the car, and the rear seat doesn’t get any charging ports.

Under the hood is the same 1.2-litre, 4-cylinder, I-VTEC engine, which produces 90 PS and 110 NM. Mated to this is an option of a 5-speed Manual and a CVT. Honda is the only one to offer CVT in the segment; the rest get the AMT. Even though the CVT is still way better than the AMT, there is still a fair bit of rubber band effect. Honda has improved the CVT software for better response. It is, however, good enough for those looking at the convenience of an automatic. The Manual feels much better to drive compared to the outgoing model. Honda has optimised the gear ratios and has improved the lower-end acceleration.

In fact, the Amaze is now faster from 40-100 by 1.4 seconds, and this is evident when you drive it. However, this engine is tuned for fuel efficiency and does feel underpowered, the CVT more so. ARAI-rated fuel efficiency for the CVT is 19.5 km/l and for the Manual is 18.7 km/l. We reckon that the Amaze should deliver around 12-13 km/l in the routine Indian driving cycle. NVH levels have improved; Honda has added extra noise-damping material on the floor, dashboard, and engine bay.

One of the biggest flaws of the Amaze was that it would bottom out when fully loaded. Honda has addressed this issue to a large extent. Ground clearance has been increased by 2 mm, and the suspension has been slightly tuned. Even the steering feels better calibrated than before. It weighs up reasonably well at high speeds and is easy to manoeuvre at low speeds. Driving dynamics are neutral, and there’s nothing really to complain about on this front. However, the small changes have definitely added to improving the same.

The suspension feels comfortable over bad roads at low speeds, but the slight stiffening means that at high speeds you can feel all the potholes. On a full load, the car will still hit its underbelly on high-speed breakers, but this is less frequent now. The tire size has been upgraded (185 section, previously 175 section), which means the grip levels and braking performance are much better now. Brakes are predictable and stop the car without much drama. On the safety front, along with most of the regular features, Honda has improved the strength of the structure by using more high-tensile steel. ADAS and 6 airbags across all variants are also part of the safety package.

The third generation Amaze now feels more premium than before and is a worthy rival to the Maruti Dzire. Although the numbers are in favour of the Dzire (it’s a Maruti after all), the Amaze is Honda’s bread-and-butter model and has the potential to boost sales for Honda. The newly added features will definitely appeal to the buyer, and the price feels quite attractive too. However, Honda does not offer a factory-fitted CNG kit, and this could be a bummer for some. Honda dealers do retrofit a CNG kit and give a warranty for the same, but in a segment driven by CNG, this could be a little bit of a hiccup. For everything else, the third generation Amaze is a vast improvement over the outgoing model.