TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
New style to the family car
Smooth ride: A lineup of Honda Mobilio RS passes through the Suramadu bridge in East Java, connecting Java and Madura Island
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
Smooth ride: A lineup of Honda Mobilio RS passes through the Suramadu bridge in East Java, connecting Java and Madura Island.
It was probably love at first sight. The most luxurious of the three Mobilio models speaks loudly in its design and features.
The edgy design of the exterior perfectly camouflages its seven-seat capacity. It does not look large until you open the door and nestle into the seat.
The attractive exterior includes a stylish chrome grill that forms a masculine line alongside futuristic projector headlights and an LED light guide.
At the other end, the LED rear lights and rear bumper add a modern touch to a car that already looks handsome from behind, especially compared with other low-cost multi-purpose vehicles (LMPV). The look is enhanced by the new 15-inch racecar-like alloy wheels.
As we left the airport and headed toward Batu city, my two fellow journalists and I began to compare this newcomer with its competitors, such as the Toyota Avanza Veloz Luxury, the Nissan Grand Livina and the Maruti Suzuki Ertiga.
The 189 mm-ground clearance of the Mobilio RS is less than on the Avanza, but slightly more than the Ertiga. The spacious inside is similar to that of the Grand Livina.
Passengers sitting in the middle of the Mobilio RS can adjust the seats to enjoy more legroom. The back of the car, which is 4.4 meters in length, also provides decent legroom.
Leaving the airport en route to a popular tourist site in Batu, we went over a bumpy part of the road and could feel the performance of the suspension, which uses MacPherson Strut and H-shape torsion beam types.
We immediately explored the touch-screen audio system and the steering wheel audio controls. The audio is of a good quality, with two tweeter speakers in the corners of the windshield.
Next day, the two-hour journey from Malang to Surabaya was smooth as we tried out the engine performance.
Honda's i-VTEC 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine system with 118 PS of maximum power and 145Nm of maximum torque boasts high power with low fuel consumption. The Mobilio RS also comes with an eco-drive indicator.
The comfortable driving experience behind the wheel is very similar to its low-cost green car (LCGC) sister, the Brio Satya, which is also furnished with power steering.
For the passengers' safety, the Mobilio RS is equipped with an anti-lock braking system (ABS) and dual supplemental restraint system (SRS). The brake pedal is a little too sensitive for me, but certainly useful should the driver need to emergency brake.
Honda clearly wants to make ground on the competition in the LMPV class, and the Mobilio has excited considerable enthusiasm from the market.
In May, the Honda Mobilio managed to replace the Suzuki Ertiga in second position with a market share of 22 percent, while the Toyota Avanza continued to hold top position.
According to data from the Association of Indonesian Automotive Manufacturers (Gaikindo), the Mobilio recorded sales of 9,684 units in May, and 35,550 units during the first five months of this year.
'I think customers are aware that the Mobilio offers the best driving comfort,' president director of Honda Prospect Motor (HPM) Tomoki Uchida stated.
He said that the company planned to raise its target for sales of all Honda products from 170,000 units this year to 200,000 units in 2015. The Mobilio, with a total of 80,000 units to be produced this year, is expected to contribute 55 percent of the total.
Uchida said he was happy with the monthly sales of Mobilio and planned to maintain the price to keep competitors at bay.
In Jakarta, the car with manual transmission is on offer at Rp 203.5 million (US$ 17,433) and Rp 214 for automatic one.
'It's not reasonable to increase the price because the competition is very tight. We could suffer if we increased the price,' he said.
He believed the Jakarta administration's current plan to raise the progressive vehicle ownership taxes would not greatly discourage people from buying cars in the capital city.
A long row of the new Honda Mobilio RS greeted us at Abdul Rachman Saleh Airport in Malang, East Java.
In June, the city administration submitted a revision of Bylaw No. 8/2010 on vehicle taxes to the City Council in a move to combat congestion.
According to the draft, the taxes will be raised from 1.5 percent to 2 percent of the assessed value of a vehicle owner's first motorized vehicle; 2 percent to 4 percent for the second; 2.5 percent to 6 percent for the third; and 4 percent to 10 percent for the fourth.
'This kind of tax has never influenced car sales. Besides, the buying power of Jakartans is very great,' Uchida said.
Car sales, a basic indicator by which to measure consumption in Southeast Asia's largest economy, grew modestly by 6.6 percent to 642,311 from January to June this year. Industry figures anticipate flat sales of just 1.2 million this year.
HPM marketing and after-sales director Jonfis Fandy said this year's car sales were dominated by the LMPV and LCGC segments.
He stated his belief that the LMPV segment would next year remain the strongest market in the country with better distribution in areas outside Jakarta.
'The characteristic of Indonesians is clear. They love family cars,' Jonfis said.
' Photos Courtesy of Honda
