New Honda Jazz Crosstar is well thought out and so perfectly executed

SOME say you lot are only interested in affordable cars.

I disagree. I say it’s nice to dream. You don’t eat a microwaved meal every day and not want steak.

You don’t go to Margate on holiday and not wish it was the Maldives. You don’t watch Top Gear to learn about the leg room in a Suzuki Vitara.

You watch it because when your ship comes in, the first thing you’re going to buy is a supercar. And what is affordable anyway? If you’re a Premier League footballer you can afford anything you fancy. And footballers read The Sun. As do thousands of factory workers who make the expensive cars we desire.

I’m sure they’re delighted when they see the fruits of their labour in the Currant Bun. So, today I’m reviewing . . . the Honda Jazz. The most sensible car for old people that’s ever been thought of.

Call it a bingo bus or a washing machine with windscreen wipers or whatever you like but Honda doesn’t care because it knows exactly what its customers want. And it sells them by the boatload.

In a nutshell, the all-new Jazz is incredibly easy to live with. Light steering. Nippy. Impossible to stall. Nice big speedo. Chunky controls. Comfy seats. Quiet. Safe. Strong. And those super-thin windscreen pillars give you better visibility than a lighthouse.

The new mild hybrid engine nudges 60mpg so it costs pennies to run and — don’t fret — there’s no faffing about with a plug because the battery recharges on the move.

For those who like detail, the hybrid unit comprises a 1.5-litre petrol engine, two electric motors and a fixed-gear transmission driving the front wheels. Around town at low speed, it spends most of its time in EV mode.

Now we come to Honda’s trademark “Magic Seats” which really are magic and turn Jazz into a Tardis. Flip up the rear seats like a cinema seat for storing tall things like plant pots in the footwell. Easy.

Need to do a tip run? Flip down the rear seats and the seat bases sink into the footwell to create a huge load space. Then there’s what I call afternoon-nap-at-the-allotment mode. Remove the headrest from the front passenger seat and recline it and you’ve got a bed.

This little car is so well thought out and so perfectly executed, I’d recommend it for your Nana above all else. And now she’s got a choice of two: The standard Jazz from £18,985 or the Jazz Crosstar at £22,635.

The Crosstar looks more rufty tufty with blobs of plastic and roof rails and it rides a little higher but otherwise it is the same.

Actually, it’s based on the top-spec EX trim with reversing camera and heated seats and heated steering wheel, so that’s why the sticker price looks much steeper than the entry Jazz.

Other observations. The slim horizontal dash reminds me of the retro cool Honda e and the 9in central touchscreen has all the connectivity you’d expect in a modern car.

I can’t imagine my old girl using voice-control to ask the Honda Personal Assistant to “turn up the volume” or anything else totally unnecessary but it’s there anyway.

To sum up, then. You don’t buy a Honda Jazz for prestige. The neighbours won’t get jealous when they see one on the drive. But you will buy a Honda Jazz because it is well engineered and affordable. And because it’s good enough to see you out.

Can I drive an NSX now, please?

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