Honda may have established itself in the automotive industry with an aggressive approach to vehicle design, engineering, and tuning, but its number-one priority, as reinforced by its latest model releases, is still customer safety.
Honda Cars Philippines, Inc. (HCPI) recently held the Honda City and Jazz VSA Safety Driving Experience for the local motoring media, featuring the newest generations of its top-selling subcompact offerings. The event highlighted the Anti-lock Brake System with Electronic Brake-Force Distribution (ABS with EBD) and the Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA) systems, both state-of-the-art active safety features inherent in the top variants of the two models (City VX+, Jazz VX and Jazz VX+).
Mr. Toshio Kuwahara, HCPI president and general manager, stressed that Honda has kept passenger safety its top consideration over the years. “Our cars have always been infused with the latest vehicle safety systems available on the market,” he said. “We are proud to be one of the first brands to include these high-end safety features in our affordable sedan and hatchback models. This makes the Honda City and the Honda Jazz two of the safest and most technically advanced vehicles in the subcompact class today.”
In the VSA Safety Driving Experience, 15 motoring press personalities were instructed to do three different driving exercises using both the City VX+ and the Jazz VX+, in order for them to experience the said safety systems at work. The first was Slip and Grip, an emergency-braking and full-acceleration exercise with one side of the vehicle on a slippery and wet surface, and the other on a high-grip and dry surface. It made use of ABS with EBD and the Traction Control feature standard on both top-tier variants.
The second driving exercise was Side Slip, which simulated a panic-braking situation in the middle of a high-speed turn. VSA limited the cars’ tendencies to plow and fishtail during such maneuvers, while ABS with EBD delivered stronger braking force to the wheels with more grip. These kept the cars on their intended path of travel.
The third hands-on driving exercise, Brake and Evade, involved simultaneous sudden braking and lane change over a slippery surface. Again, ABS with EBD and VSA were automatically deployed to maintain the cars’ balance and prevent them from completely losing traction throughout the maneuver. They also allowed the drivers to avoid an obstacle on the road despite the low-grip surface. And as in the previous exercises, the Emergency Stop Signal (ESS) feature flashed the brake lights to warn trailing cars of the sudden brake application.
Mr. Georges Ramirez, HCPI event organizer, described the objectives of the three driving exercises: “The last thing you would want as a driver is to be involved in an accident. These exercises illustrated how both the top variants of the Honda Jazz and the Honda City are well-equipped to give you confidence on the road in order to handle emergency driving situations.”
All variants of the Honda City and Jazz are equipped with standard safety features such as the Anti-Lock Brake System with Electronic Brake-Force Distribution and Dual Airbags. Suggested retail prices start from P756,000 for the City and P768,000 for the Jazz. The models tested in this activity retails for P970,000 (City 1.5 VX+) and P948,000 (Jazz VX+). More details are available at www.hondaphil.com or any of the authorized Honda dealerships nationwide.