2016 Honda Brio facelift review, test drive

What is it like to drive?

As mentioned, Honda hasn’t revised the Brio’s mechanicals. It continues to be powered by the same 1.2-litre i-VTEC petrol engine that produces 88hp at 6,000rpm and 109Nm at 4,500rpm. As before, gearbox options include a five-speed manual and a five-speed torque converter automatic. The latter gearbox is an interesting choice given the Amaze that runs the same engine got a new CVT gearbox with its update a few months ago.

As always, the 1.2 engine feels peppy at low revs and is a good partner in town, flat mid-range notwithstanding. Where you can feel some of Honda’s engine prowess is when you push on with a generous dose of power just before the redline. The five-speed manual box offers fairly crisp shifts and sporty short throws and comes allied to a light and easy to modulate clutch. Likewise, the five-speed automatic continues to impress for its smoothness and responsiveness.

You’ll also like how the Brio goes about corners. The small hatch handles well, feels composed around corners and comes with a steering that is fairly direct too. Where the Brio could be better is in ride comfort. The suspension crashes and thuds fairly often and allows road imperfections to filter through in sharp jars. It’s not all that absorbent at high speeds either.

Should I buy one?

Small on the outside, big on the inside and powered by an efficient and peppy engine, the Honda Brio always made for a great city runabout. Thankfully, the revised dashboard has added a good cabin ambience to the Brio’s list of positives and we quite like the way the facelift has turned out too. In many ways, then, the Brio does offer all that you’d need from a city car.

The Brio range starts at Rs 4.69 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) and extends up all the way to Rs 5.95 lakh while the sole automatic version costs a steep Rs 6.81 lakh. The thing is, when you see the Brio in light of similar priced competition from the likes of the Maruti Ritz, the Swift, Ford Figo, Hyundai Grand i10 and even the Mahindra KUV100, the case for the little Honda doesn’t seem quite as compelling. Yes, it is better than before and improves on an already good package. But is it enough to bring the attention back to the Honda?  Perhaps not. We fear it’s not a case of too little, but more a case of too late.