MOM'S TAXI - Peta Lee bonds with the new Honda Ballade:
I knew I would love this car. As a former Ballade owner, I was awaiting the launch of the 2011 model with anticipation.
I wasn't disappointed: better looking, bigger, more spacious, than my old runabout, yet it still felt like home when I slid behind the wheel. There was that same smooth gearbox, and even a kind of déjà vu about the seating position.
Except it's all new, of course. Hard to believe the Ballade first came out 29 years ago. Yikes. Where has time gone?
Honda South Africa's Sales and Marketing Director Graham Eagle said the car always had a great reputation. “Good value, decent economy, reliable, tough . . .it was well loved,” he told us at the launch.
Enter the reincarnation. And very nice it is, too. While boy-racers might turn up their noses... it's a sedan, with no LED lights, no hidden turbo-boosters to blow your hair back, no lurking V8 to share the skit out of neighbourhood kids ... it's an exceptionally well priced, well made, well designed, well specced car.
Add the cachet of being produced by Honda, and you can bet your Kruger rands that like the Ballade of old, this will be another winner.
Pricing, sisters, starts from an affordable R184 900. There are various options available (all powered by the 1.5 VTEC Jazz engine); starting with the Comfort manual (at the price I've just mentioned), the Comfort auto (R196 900), the higher specced Elegance manual (R193 900) and the Elegance auto (R205 900).
I never got to sample the auto at the launch, but I can tell you on our incredibly scenic (and occasionally white-knuckled) tour through the heart of KwaMashu, the Elegance was fantastic.
Smoother, quieter, bigger and better than my Ballade of yesteryear, it was easy to drive, handled well, swallowed up the lumps and bumps of those township roads without complaint, and generally provided a very comfy and enjoyable couple of hours' driving.
The increased space in this new model is thanks to the centrally mounted fuel tank, explained Eagle. And talking of which, the 88kW (at 6600rpm) engine delivers a combined fuel consumption of about 6.3 litres per 100km, the auto a little thirstier at 6.6. What's not to like about that?
The Ballade is highly specced, as I said, and aircon, multi info display, four speakers, remote controls on steering wheels, curtain, front and side airbags, etc, are all standard.
There's a whopping 506 litres of boot space, plus you get a full sized spare - as you always did with a Ballade. The Elegance models boast 16 inch alloy wheels, and a rear seat under-tray, while the Comfort runs on 15-inchers and has no under tray.
Car fanatics will want to know the Ballade shares the same platform as the hybrid CR-Z and Insight, and moms will be reassured by the car's 5-star ANCAP crash test safety rating.
By the way, the car was actually built in Thailand, home of the third largest Honda factory in the world.
Bet you didn't know that!
Bet you also guessed I'm already saving for my new Ballade ... this one maybe in Alabaster Silver.