Next-gen Honda Amaze India production to start in June 2018: Report

Honda has started working on the next-gen Amaze compact sedan in Japan, recent reports reveal. The model is expected to hit the assembly lines in India in 2018.

The new avatar of the Amaze, the first model of Honda India to come equipped with a diesel engine, is expected to undergo thorough changes both internally and externally. An Autocar Professional report reveals that the production of the next-gen Honda Amaze will begin in June in India and the company expects the production rate to be around 105,000 units per annum.

Though not many key details of the new model are known at these initial stages of development, reports indicate that the new Amaze will pack more safety features. The move will be in keeping with Honda's plans to ensure that its models meet the mandatory safety norms, which will come into effect by 2020.

Honda recently launched the new Amaze — a facelifted version of the compact sedan — in the domestic market, with a price range starting at Rs. 5.29 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). The new Amaze, which packs a host of changes both inside and outside, continues to be powered by the same 1.2-litre i-VTEC petrol engine, tuned to churn out 87bhp and a peak torque of 109Nm, and the 1.5-litre i-DTEC diesel motor that can belt out 99bhp of power and peak torque of 200Nm. The transmission is taken care of by 5-speed manual and CVT gearboxes. The Amaze is the first model in its segment to get CVT unit.

[1 lakh = 100,000 | 1 crore = 10 million | 100 crore = 1 billion]