Honda City

The Fun and Sensible Sedan

All the way back in 1998, Honda entered the Indian market with the City. It was initially launched with 2 petrol engine options - a 1.3-litre and a 1.5-litre - and Honda followed it up in a couple of years with the introduction of a VTEC engine. By then, the Honda City had attracted the attention of almost every car buyer in the country. Enthusiasts and families alike, the Honda City was a perfect fit for almost every buyer in India. It was spacious and comfortable, and the VTEC was also one of the first few sedans to cross the 100 bhp mark. Tuners made sure they went even beyond that, making it one of the most sought after generations of the City even today. In many ways, the Honda City was one of the pioneer cars that started the car culture in India. 

Now in its 5th generation, the Honda City has changed significantly from what it was back in the day. It looks entirely different, packs more features and tech than ever before. But its core values remain the same - a car suited for families and enthusiasts alike. 

Pros and Cons 

Exterior Design 

If its modern and aggressive looks that interest you, then you will perhaps be let down by the looks of the 5th gen Honda City. With the competition resorting to more radical looking designs, The Honda City sticks to its roots and keeps the design simplistic. The front is elegant, and in some shades the rear looks sporty too. And for many buyers out there, this approach surely will be desirable. After all, not everyone wants attention drawn to them. 

The facelift is an evolution from the last couple of iterations of the City, and the design - while refreshed - appears dated now. It gets all-LED headlights and other details that bring it up to modern spec, but the design outline that it all sits in has definitely started to show its age. The wheels look a tad too small as well, and the tyres are also amongst the narrowest in the segment, which is something Honda should’ve changed with the latest generation. And with the City also having the shortest wheelbase in its segment, the long rear overhang extending behind the small wheels just makes the car appear a bit disproportionate.

Interiors

Honda City’s interiors follow a similar pattern to what’s on the outside. Premium, elegant, but lacks flare. The dashboard is neatly laid out and gets a very traditional looking design. Nothing that’s disappointing, but when compared to the German and Korean rivals it's just a generation behind. Simplistic 8-inch touchscreen infotainment, AC vents flanking the display, traditional 3-spoke steering wheel, it's all just too normal. In fact, the Honda Civic from 2006 had a more radical design than this.

The interior has a very premium finish to it. The quality of materials used in most places are right up there with others in the segment. The cabin also has plenty of storage spaces and pockets, adding to the practicality. All the seats are well bolstered and cushioned, and are very comfortable over longer journeys. The rear seat has ample amount of legroom and headroom, and the floor is also considerably flat, so the middle passenger will have sufficient legroom as well. However, the rear seats are contoured for two, so the middle passenger won’t be very comfortable over longer journeys. The feeling of space in the car is further accentuated by a low shoulderline and beige interiors, which give the car a very airy feel. Unlike the hybrid variant of the car, the naturally aspirated Honda City’s boot space is also large enough to accommodate your weekend luggage, and is rated at 506 litres.

Comfort 

We really wish that the Honda City had ventilated seats. Because if it did, the car would have a perfect score on the comfort front! Yes, the not-so-sleek AC vents will surely chill the cabin even on a hot day, but the level of comfort a ventilated seat offers can never be matched by AC alone. Leaving that aside, there are no balls dropped by Honda in the comfort department. One of the key contributing factors to the comfort levels are the car’s seats. Not only do they have a premium finish, but they also have a very comfortable shape. They are well contoured, bolstered, and the cushioning also hits the sweet spot. 

The suspension is also soft and rounds off bumps and potholes really well. Even when compared to the Hyundai Verna, the suspension is quieter when going through rough stuff. Interestingly, despite the softness the suspension doesn’t let the Honda City feel floaty at high speeds, and keeps the sense of security intact. The cabin could’ve been quieter though, as the amount of road noise that filters in is higher than other cars. Also, if you opt for the CVT variant and drive spiritedly, be prepared to hear the engine noise inside the cabin.

Performance and handling

Apart from the hybrid powertrain, the Honda City is offered with a 1.5-litre naturally aspirated in-line 4 cylinder i-VTEC engine. The engine puts out 119 bhp and 145 Nm torque. In typical Honda fashion, the VTEC engine has a free revving nature, and can go close to 7,000 rpm. The responsive motor makes the Honda City a very fun to drive car, while the VTEC keeps the fuel economy in check when you’re driving sedately, making it an economical option. 

The engine can be mated to either a 6-speed manual or a CVT automatic gearbox. The manual is the driver’s choice though, as the CVT’s rubber band effect makes the engine almost too loud in the cabin and unnerving to push. The City is also an agile handler, but gets thin tyres with 185 mm width — that’s considerably narrower than its rivals. This does take away from the car’s braking and cornering performance too, apart from aesthetics. The sacrifice is done in order to help the fuel economy figures and the cost, but we wish Honda had included wider wheels with the facelift, at least in the higher variants.

Key specifications 

Safety Features

While the City is lacking a few creature comfort features, where Honda hasn’t shied away is in terms of safety features. The City gets four airbags as standard, and the top end variants get six. There’s 3-point seatbelts for all five passengers too. Other features include ABS, EBD, Brake Assist, ISOFIX child seat mounts, TPMS, Traction control, and much more. The most important safety addition though is the inclusion of ADAS features. While City in its pre-facelifted guise offered ADAS only in the hybrid model, the new Honda City gets ADAS in the higher variant petrols as well. This includes collision mitigation braking system, adaptive cruise control, lane keeping assist system, lead car departure notification system, road departure mitigation system, and auto high beam. The pre-facelift version of the Honda City also scored a 4-star GNCAP crash test rating.

Technology and Infotainment

While almost all rivals have upgraded to a 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system by now, Honda has stuck with an 8-inch unit, even in the top variants. The screen has good resolution and is paired with a high resolution reverse camera too, but it is angled in such a way that it does reflect a lot of sunlight, making it hard to view on bright days. The system does get Wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, but the music system it's paired with is not up to the standards set by rivals. The instrument cluster is part digital, and gets a 7-inch TFT display paired with some analog dials. 

There are a few other bits that are left a generation behind too. For example, the charging ports on the front end are USB type-A, not type-C, and at the rear end you don’t get any charging ports at all, you just get a pair of 12 A power sockets. The top end variants get a wireless smartphone charger, but it's not integrated into the centre console. Instead, it sits in the cupholders of the centre console and is a detachable unit, so you have to sacrifice either the cupholders, or the charger. In fact, if it would’ve had a longer cable, you could’ve put it in the rear seat centre armrest’s cup holders too, which makes it appear not just like an afterthought, but an aftermarket accessory.

Is the Honda City for you?

The Honda City packs a great mix of the everyday passenger’s preferences as well as the enthusiastic driver’s preferences. The naturally aspirated engine, while less powerful than rivals, is still plenty fun to drive especially with the manual gearbox. The CVT meanwhile is great for people who want to be driven around or drive only to their offices and back, and will return great fuel economy. On top of that, the comfort levels offered by the suspension and the premium seats is extraordinary, making the Honda City a safe option to pick. It does however miss out on multiple features that are offered by rivals and have become a norm in the segment, and also gets a lacklustre design. But if you are willing to look beyond that, then the City truly packs everything for all your needs.