Jazz misses a beat

Praised by the motoring media for its compact exterior and spacious interior, the Honda Jazz has failed to achieve a 5-star safety rating from ANCAP (the Australasian New Car Assessment Program).

The writing was already on the wall for the Honda Jazz the moment it went on sale in Australia in the latter part of 2008 because ESC (stability control) was not available in any shape or form.

In Australia, 5-star ANCAP ratings are only awarded to cars with stability control.

Honda Australia has previously stated that in Europe the vehicle would have scored 5-stars in Euro NCAP crash tests with or without stability control, thanks to a range of airbags and a strong safety cell.

So why doesn't Honda offer stability control and reap the rewards of positive publicity? "Honda Australia acknowledges that due to the unique configuration of the Australian Jazz, Vehicle Stability Assist (Honda's term for Electronic Stability Control) is currently unavailable," is the official reason.

The problem for Honda is that Jazz models sold to Australian drivers are built in Thailand and are fitted with traditional automatic transmissions, as opposed to the European models which get CVTs (continuously variable transmission).

The Jazz' stability control systems have only been calibrated for the CVT gearboxes which are not on sale in Australia. Honda Australia says the 2011 model, which is expected to be on sale here in late 2010, will have stability control.

Overall the Honda Jazz scored a commendable 32.49 out of 37 during its ANCAP crash testing, recording a 4-star rating.

"Although the total score was sufficient for a 5-star rating the lack of ESC meant the Australasian Jazz was not eligible for this top rating and so the score was limited to 32.49 and 4 stars," reads the ANCAP statement.

But as the Federal government moves to introduce legislation that would make the fitment of stability control on all vehicles sold in Australia mandatory by the end of 2011, cars like the Jazz won't have any excuse in the near future. For more information on the ANCAP testing regime see the official website.

STABILITY CONTROL

Variously referred to as ESC, ESP, DSC, VSA and many other acronyms, stability control does just what the name suggests -- it stabilises a car should it encounter slippery roads or careen out of control.

Simply put, these systems will automatically apply brakes to individual wheels -- for instance the front right brake initially then the rear right brake -- in order to correct a skid or the loss of control. These stability control systems work by using yaw rate and other sensors to determine the actual direction of the car with the intended direction gauged via the steering wheel.

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