'O8 Jazz 1.3 GE purchase - advice?

G'day All.

I'm a new member looking for some advice on purchasing an automatic GE GLi Jazz (looked at a 2008 today and am tempted). Before anybody responds "try the search button" let me tell you why I'm asking: my partner wants a Jazz, we came across a CVT GD '08, I found nothing untoward in my google searches, so we went to go ahead with the purchase. At the eleventh hour I was told about the CVT problems, which I hadn't come across beforehand, and after explorations on google I cancelled the purchase - too much risk of suffering the problems, and we need this car to see us serve us for the next ten years as a young family on a tight budget. In the light of this experience I thought it wise to ask:

Are there any serious, any endemic, problems that we should know about when considering the GE, with automatic? The internet doesn't suggest anything, but perhaps I'm missing something. If not we will make a move on the one we looked at today.

Thanks for your help,
Matt

Hi Matt and welcome to Ozhonda.com.

Unfortunately I don't have anything useful to contribute as i own a '03 GD 1.5 manual. i have also read about CVT issues with Jazz's, and there are plenty of forum members who would gladly help you with any questions. I wish you all the best with your research and hope you get some positive feedback soon.

Enjoy your stay.

GD or GE, if it's CVT I'd stay away from it.
My GE is a normal auto ('10 onwards I think but I may be wrong).
I had an '05 GE before that and CVT was buggered (hence why I traded it).

I just acquired an 08' Jazz VTi 1.5 Auto (GE8, current shape) last month, to upgrade my wife's 94' Civic VTi Auto Hatch (EG5).

Yes we test drove a couple of 1st Gen GD Jazz VTi & VTiS automatics prior to settling on the GE, & found it not to our liking.

Primarily the way the CVT transmission surges, the blind spots on the A-Pillars & the rear vision out the back, the seating position too upright (feels like you're driving a Toyota Avensis lol), & the overall driving feel of the GD Jazz being tinny & cheap.

The 2nd gen GE was better in all the points mentioned above. It feels more solid due to stiffer chassis rigidity, better forward & rear vision, better seats & seating position, better suspension damping feel,& since it uses a conventional 5-Speed Auto Transmission it does not surge or experience all the problems of its earlier CVT counterpart.

All the Issues & Problems that were associated with the GD Jazz (Ex: Rear Wheel Bearing Failure, Rear Boot Leaks, Headlight Wiring Issue, Faulty Driver's Electric Window Switch, CVT Gearbox Shudder & Surging) Honda fixed on the new GE.

If you can stretch your budget get the 1.5 ltr GE8, power to weight ratio is better than the 1.3ltr, which will obviously drive better.

Thanks guys. We shook hands on a purchase tonight - '08 GE - will let you know how it goes when it's finalised over the coming days. As I do with my motorcycles I think I'll learn to service this myself, so I'll probably pop in here from time to time (never owned a car and this one is my wife's, I've just owned bikes, so car mechanicals are new to me, different but similar). This is a replacement for my wife Fee's 1990 Honda Civic, which has given us too many problems over the last five years, and which has run for a while now on only three cylinders. The Jazz feels like absolute luxury. Fee is happy that we can now go on weekend trips without her clinging to the back of a bike!

We had actually put a deposit down on that earlier CVT GD which we forfeited by pulling out of the deal, but I can't help but think that it was possibly money saved, and certainly anxiety averted.

Gratz on your purchase. Keep the forum updated for any updates :D

Specially if the mod bugs bite!

GD>GE hands down anyday. Not all GDs have the CVT problem.

11 years running and 85xxxKms after still going hard.

*knocks on wood*