While the first-generation City established itself as the benchmark in the late nineties and set the pace for Honda cars in India, the 'Type 2' City wowed all the performance freaks with the revvy VTEC. Even the regular 1.3 or 1.5 motors were quite peppy and this version of the City is still hailed as the best generation launched here. For Honda fans in India, the second-generation cars were a bit of a letdown. The odd shape took some time to get used to and people referred to the car as a 'fish', 'dolphin' or other such peaceful aquatic creatures! Yes, the cars had good engines (the i-DSi units were as smooth and reliable as only Honda powerplants can be) but the car did seem to lack the all-important Honda DNA. Hondas are to the true enthusiast owner low slung, with snug seats, smooth and revvy engines, sharp handling and exciting looks and driver appeal. This is where the second-generation City failed somewhat until the facelifted ZX arrived with the VTEC motor. But with this third-generation City now out, Honda in India seems to have reinserted the excitement that used to be associated with the City badge.

The enthusiast will notice that a lot of the styling cues on the car have been nicked from the Civic, the BMW 3-series (look at those rear lamps and lines), the Type R (Euro spec) and the US-spec 2008 Civic. But they’ve nicked the good looking bits so we wholeheartedly approve! The car is quite a looker and will remain contemporary even a couple of years down the line since it's the most freshly styled of the mid-size lot. Although the car is now lower and leaner in profile it does manage to carry plenty of presence and it does get you noticed quite a bit! (Also the fact that we were driving a car which most of the people have only heard of and not seen could have a lot to do with it!!!) We love the crease lines that so cleverly fold over the front wheel arch and merge with the waistline and the way the rear tail-lamp, bumper and fender form corners and crisp creases without looking overly fussy. It’s a good mix of manga madness and European elegance. Full marks for the looks, then.

Step inside the City and you are overwhelmed by a feeling of being inside a mini Civic. Beige seat fabric lends the cabin an airy feel, and the dashboard is a mix of black and silver. The deep-dish steering wheel with the audio controls is right off the Civic Hybrid. It may feel a little large to a few, but the vast majority will like its size. We like the thickness of the rim, it makes the wheel feel suitably substantial. The red-on-orange dials are quite visible, but we wish Honda had used colors that contrasted a little more. We like the layout of the dashboard – everything is logically arranged and falls to hand easily. However, what we don’t like is the finish of the silver bits on the center console. It looks a tad too downmarket for the prestigious H badge. The air-conditioning controls felt like they came from a class below as well. These are jarring notes in an otherwise impressive interior. The mirrors are large and display a good amount of the road behind. They will be particularly useful in city traffic. Special mention must be made of the inside of the front doors – if you pay careful attention to them, you’ll notice a number of surfaces and ridges that must have taken a LOT of effort to engineer and execute, and they make the doors look really nice, especially when open. And talking of opening, we wish the door levers on the inside were chrome instead of the slightly flimsy feeling plastic that they are.

The driving position is comfortable, but if you are a tall driver who likes to sit high, raising the seat with the help of the seat height adjustment might just put your head in close proximity to the roof. The steering wheel tilts but doesn’t telescope, but the wide range of seat adjustments has you sitting pretty in no time – however, we do wish that the steering wheel was a little closer to the driver like the Fiesta’s is. The person riding shotgun won’t have anything to complain about, the space in the front is generous. However, owners of the City ZX will certainly feel the difference in space – it appears smaller than its predecessor, although the numbers state that the new car is bigger. The new car is also a lot lower so the brownie points that the old city won for ease of getting in and out of are gone here. That’s the price one pays for the swoopy looks. The rear doors open a full ninety degrees, which will make getting in and out of the rear of the car easier.

The audio system has decent sound quality – we would appreciate better low-frequency response, though. The iPod-compatible mp3 dock is a neat feature: we were left scratching our heads on how to access the feature until we were told to press on the top of the screen. It is hinged at the bottom, and hides a USB port and enough space for your mp3 player. We’re not sure how City owners will react to being dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century – but there is an option to fit a conventional CD player in the car.

There are a number of cubbyholes for change, toll receipts and the like. The glovebox is quite large. The rear doors lack pockets, but the front doors have pockets of appreciable size. The boot is large enough for a big bag and a half, but it isn’t very deep.

Look at the space in the engine bay! Engine swap, anyone?

Performance

The engine lies transversely in the nose like all conventional small cars, but what interested us was the sheer space between the headers and the nose of the car. This car is very obviously built to take a range of engines, including larger-than-1.5 litres. The performance tuning fraternity will be licking their chops already. 118bhp@6600rpm isn’t to be sneezed at, neither is the addition of the i-VTEC system which on the preceding Citys was merely ‘VTEC,’ a mechanical switch to the aggressive camshaft profile at a predetermined rpm. The i-VTEC system is electronically controlled and switches to the aggressive cam profile whenever required. This car is no slouch – it gets to 100kph from a standing start in 12.4 seconds and gets to its top speed of 180kph with a heavy right foot. Response is quite quick – in auto mode, the gearbox hesitates for a second before downshifting, and then the City makes tracks for the horizon. If you’re in the right gear, pressure on the right foot is all it takes for the car to exhibit a sense of urgency.

The engine’s refinement is typically Honda – no vibrations filter through to the cabin or through the gear lever or pedals. A nice growl and induction roar accompanies revving the engine, but it does sound strained near its redline. For shrieking madness near the redline, the Hyper 16 VTEC D15 of the first- and second-generation is still where it is at. The current engine is quite drivable – there’s never a shortage of torque or power whether you’re overtaking someone on clear two-lane blacktop or crawling along during rush hour.

The new City automatic has reverted to a five-speed torque lock-up converter from the City ZX’s CVT, and offers paddles behind the steering wheel for shifting gears manually – right for up, left for down. Shifts in auto mode are quick when required, and manual mode holds on to a gear at the redline without upshifting – finally, a (relatively) affordable automatic car that will allow you to have fun on the twisties without intruding to save itself! The paddles are convenient to use, and although they aren’t really necessary, they add to the car’s sporty aura. The shift lever is conventionally designed, and the plastic quality of the lever could have been better.

Fuel economy

Talk about automatics, and people immediately think low mileage but even we were quite pleasantly surprised when we tanked up the car. Even with high speed antics and a lot of steady slow moving traffic, we managed a combined cycle figure of 10.84kmpl. Impressive, especially if you have owned the older generation City CVT which was quite dismal on the economy front.

The City rides well at low speeds – bumps are kept away from the cabin, and the steering is direct and light. However we found that some sharp ridges do filter through once in a while and it isn’t as compliant as the Hyundai Verna’s. As its name suggests, this car fares well in urban conditions. Up speed, and – here’s the bit you City fans have been skimming through to find – the City has gone back to its roots. This one’s a handler, folks, you can smile again! It does roll a bit, but the levels of grip are high. The Fiesta 1.6 S is still the best handler in the segment, but the City trades handling prowess for better ride quality. The compromise is to the City’s benefit. The steering is a little too light to enjoy at speed, but it does weigh up in turns.

ABS is standard on the City, which makes it stop confidently during emergency stops. The pedal has good feel and progression.

175/65 R15 Goodyear GT3s shod the City’s wheels. They’re quiet, have adequate grip and contribute positively to the ride quality at low speeds.

ABS and two airbags are standard on all variants of the City – something we appreciate a lot. We need all the safety we can get with our chaotic road conditions, and Honda hasn't skimped on this front at all - the ABS has Brake Assist and EBD, which help it come to a halt as quickly as possible.

At Rs 9.5 lakh on-road Delhi for the automatic, the City isn’t getting any cheaper to buy! We do feel that the car is a tad overpriced but then the auto will be purchased by people who have the dough. The manual transmission variants will no doubt battle competitively with the Fiesta and Verna. And from the excitement we experienced on the roads with people pointing fingers at the car and passersby stopping and asking the price and loving the car’s looks and interior, we think that Honda will have no trouble whatsoever in moving the model off the showroom floor.

Running cost

Being typically Honda, the powertrain will be quite reliable and won’t be a cause for concern for a long time. However visits to the dealership aren’t exactly cheap but that’s what comes of owning a premium badge. Bodywork and suspension won’t be the cheapest of the lot either, but generally Honda service is good and running costs won’t be high the first few years of owning the car. And with the good economy figures we’ve seen, it won’t burn a hole when you’re tanking up either.

Overall evaluation

Cars in India don’t change themselves very quickly. Some models have remained unchanged for so long, we’re sure life is evolving faster. HSCI hasn’t been caught napping - they’ve introduced three generations of the City in a single decade, and successive generations weren’t mere facelifts. No matter what they’ve done, though, the City has been a success. It isn’t hard to see why, and we can see why this generation will be successful as well, if not even more of a success. We have a feeling it might just walk away with the crown at the car of the year awards, like it did a few years ago.

Test Data

Engine Specifications

1497cc, four cylinders in line petrol. 116bhp@6600rpm and 146Nm@4600rpm. View specifications

Max in Gear

Performance Test Data

Fuel Efficiency