2014 Honda Mobilio review, test drive

Honda's upcoming Mobilio MPV will take on the Maruti Ertiga. Is it a worthy challenger that can take the segment by storm?

Published on Jun 20, 2014 05:30:00 PM

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Honda Mobilio MPV.

The short gearing, however, means there’s always plenty of punch on hand, especially when you wind the brilliant VTEC engine past 4,000rpm. A sporty snarl is accompanied by a progressive shove in the back and then, typically, the engine just wants to spin and spin and spin. What makes it even nicer is that the last 1,500rpm of the powerband feels particularly explosive.

As with other cars on this platform though, the Mobilio doesn’t feel very well insulated. Spinning the VTEC hard creates a din, and when you drive over coarse surfaces, there’s a fair bit of road noise as well.

With large 15-inch rims, 185mm of ground clearance and a long wheelbase, ride quality is pretty comfortable. There is a hint of stiffness at low speeds, especially over sharp bumps, but otherwise, the Mobilio absorbs the bumps pretty well. There’s almost no pitching, absolutely no Xylo-like flip-flop and the Mobilio responds smartly to the steering too.

I all but forget about the extra length of the Mobilio when driving on the highways and regular country roads. The car gives almost no indication of the extra weight being carried behind the driver, even when you take corners, and agility in general feels almost as good as that of the Amaze. This, of course, will change once you load the car up with passengers and the Mobilio does feel its size when we drive it hard on some tighter corners at a track later in the day. But that does little to change the feeling that the Mobilio, just like the Ertiga, feels surprisingly car-like to drive.

When Honda gets the Mobilio to India, sometime around July, it’s likely to be an instant success. Now well practiced in the art of pricing a car right for the Indian market, Honda is likely to place this MPV at a slight premium – around Rs 50,000 – to the Ertiga. This 1.5 petrol will be joined by Honda’s 100bhp 1.5 diesel and the petrol is likely to get the same efficient CVT automatic gearbox you get on the City. No, the Mobilio isn’t perfect. The dash feels a bit basic, refinement could be better and Honda should have focused even more on the third row. But even as things stand, the Mobilio looks like it will deliver exactly what Indian customers are looking for in a seven-seater – plenty of space, efficient engines and car-like driving manners. Get ready to see plenty of these on our roads.