‘Sporty’ version of new Honda Jazz ‘a possibility’, says project lead

By: CAR magazine

The project manager for the latest Honda Jazz admits there is a “possibility” the firm will develop a sportier version of the hatchback.

Jazz project manager Takeki Tanaka told Autocar the nameplate was particularly popular with buyers aged between 20 and 30 years in most Asian markets.

“There are no plans to launch a sporty version of the Jazz,” Tanaka said. “However, when you consider the customer profile in Asia, they tend to love driving dynamically, so there are always possibilities,” he added.

While it seems unlikely a sportier version of the Jazz would wear the Type R badge (as it does in X-Tomi Design’s rendering above), it’s worth noting the local third-generation range includes the slightly warmed-up Jazz 1,5 Sport, which features a little more grunt and sportier styling than standard.

The fourth-generation Jazz was revealed in November 2019. Honda Motor Southern Africa says it plans to introduce this new model in 2021 (the third-generation model remains on the market here in South Africa for the time being).

Interestingly, a February 2020 report out of India claimed the Japanese automaker was working on a hatchback version of the new Ballade sedan, which could end up replacing the Jazz in some markets.

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