One of the most awaited cars this year, new Honda City has been launched at a starting price of Rs 10.90 lakh
Fifth-gen City packs in style upgrades, several best-in-class and segment-first features and new engine options. New City will be sold alongside its fourth-gen counterpart that also comes with BS6 compliant engine options. To understand how it will fare against rivals, here’s a quick comparison between new City vs. old City vs. Hyundai Verna vs. Maruti Suzuki Ciaz vs. Skoda Rapid vs. VW Vento.
Design and styling
New City comes with refreshed exteriors, as is evident in features such as full LED headlamps with integrated LED DRLs, a segment-first offering. However, the sedan continues with the basic silhouette and signature chrome front grille of the current City. Another style upgrade is the snazzy turn signals. The shoulder line has also been extended and made more prominent. It now stretches across the entire length of the car, starting from the headlamps and going all the way to the tail lamps. Other key features of new City include 16-inch diamond cut alloy wheels and trendy Z-shaped wraparound 3D LED tail lamps. These changes make the new City sleeker and sportier as compared to its predecessor.
Talking about rivals Verna and Ciaz, both sedans are elegantly designed and come with a distinctive set of features. Verna appears to have the most charismatic design in the group with features such as cascading chrome front grille, premium projector fog lamps, projector headlamps with LED DRLs, upswept beltline, chrome window lining, R16 diamond cut alloy wheels, and split style LED tail lamps. Maruti Ciaz has a gorgeous front fascia and packs in features such as chrome infused front grille, sweptback LED projector headlamps, integrated LED DRLs, body-coloured ORVMs, dual-tone alloy wheels, and LED rear combination lamps.
Dimensions
New City is longer and wider than current City, even though the wheelbase is the same at 2600 mm. New City measures 4559 mm in length and 1748 mm in width in comparison to 4440 mm x 1695 mm of current City. New City is also longer and wider than Verna and Ciaz. In terms of wheelbase, Ciaz is ahead at 2650 mm.
Interiors
New City has toned-down interiors, featuring a minimalistic look and feel. The focus is more on comfort and convenience. Some key features include a clutter-free dashboard design, vertically positioned AC vents, and 7-inch full colour MID with integrated analogue meters. In comparison, current City has relatively flashier interiors with piano black accents used liberally in the front section. As compared to touch-based AC controls in fourth-gen City, new City is equipped with classic rotary AC control dials.
The premiumness has been enhanced in the new City with updated steering wheel and leather seats. Another key addition is the G-meter, a segment first feature. G-meter aids the driver by measuring the magnitude and direction of acceleration during cornering or braking. Other key features of new City include one-touch electric sunroof and 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system with support for Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
Hyundai Verna’s interiors are designed to make you feel at home and it conveys a sense of elegance and premium quality. Some key features include multi-function steering wheel, smart electric sunroof, cooled glove box, ventilated front seats, segment first wireless phone charging, and 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system.
Maruti Ciaz comes with the promise of delivering the lounge experience, made possible with spacious, comfy and indulgent interiors. Some key features include leather seat upholstery, leather wrapped steering wheel, chrome garnish, wooden finish on the door, eco illumination and satin finish on AC louvers.
Engine and transmission
Both new City and current City have 1.5-litre BS6 compliant petrol engines, but these are quite different. While the older unit has iVTEC with SOHC, the new engine comes with iVTEC with DOHC and VTC. Engine intervals have also been altered, resulting in superior performance and more power for new City. At 121 ps, new City delivers 2 ps more than the current model. However, torque output is the same at 145 Nm for both.
Another change is the 6-speed manual transmission replacing the earlier 5-speed MT. Both new and current City automatic variants have CVT and paddle shifters. Diesel option is available only with new City. The 1.5 litre i-DTEC engine churns out 100 ps / 200 Nm and is mated to a 6-speed manual gearbox. Fuel efficiency is rated at 24.1 kmpl.
Hyundai Verna offers three engine options, a 1.5 litre petrol, a 1.0 litre turbo petrol and a 1.5 litre diesel unit. Power and torque output are 115 ps / 144 Nm, 120 ps / 170 Nm, and 115 ps / 250 Nm, respectively. Transmission options are 6-speed MT & 6-speed IVT, 7-speed DTC and 6-speed manual & 6-speed automatic, respectively.
Maruti is following a petrol-only product strategy, so Ciaz is not offered with diesel option. It gets a 1.5 litre smart hybrid petrol engine that delivers 105 ps / 138 Nm. It is mated to a 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic transmission. The engine is equipped with advanced functions such as brake energy regeneration, torque assist and idle start stop.
Safety
Fifth generation City comes with several new safety features such as tyre pressure monitoring system with deflation warning, vehicle stability control, hill start assist and lanewatch camera. New City (Thai-spec model) was also rated 5-star in ASEAN NCAP crash test. Standard safety features such as multi-airbags, ABS with EBD, electronic stability control (ESC), reverse parking camera and sensor, speed alert system, etc. are common across all four sedans.
Price
New City is available in the price range of Rs 10.94 lakh to Rs 14.69 lakh. In comparison, current City is offered from 9.30 lakh to Rs 10 lakh. Verna is priced in the range of Rs 10.41 lakh to Rs 15.11 lakh. Ciaz is priced from Rs 8.32 lakh to Rs 11.10 lakh. Skoda Rapid is the most affordable of all, with prices starting from Rs 7.49 lakhs while VW Vento is priced from Rs 8.98 lakhs. All prices are ex-sh.
Petrol | Ex-Sh Prices |
---|---|
New City | 10.94 – 14.49 |
Old City | 9.30 – 10.00 |
Verna | 9.31 – 14.00 |
Ciaz | 8.32 – 11.10 |
Rapid | 7.49 – 13.29 |
Vento | 8.9 – 13.3 |
Diesel | Ex-Sh Prices |
New City | 12.44 – 14.69 |
Old City | NA |
Verna | 10.66 – 15.11 |
Ciaz | NA |
Rapid | NA |
Vento | NA |