The much awaited Honda City has been officially launched. The car will be powered by a 1.5L i-Vtec engine and a 1.5L i-Dtec engine. This is the first time the City is powered by a diesel engine. This is the same engine that powers the Amaze diesel and it has already had some great reviews. The City has been a success story for Honda since it was introduced to India in 1998. The City has always been the bench mark and the competition has always had the advantage only by virtue of having a diesel engine. India is country where it is an absolute necessity to ensure a diesel model in the range, and now Honda seems to have finally addressed the issue.
The prices have been announced, and with it’s main competition being the Toyota Etios, VW Vento, Hyundai Verna and the Skoda Rapid, these prices look to be very competitive. The petrol variant starts from 7.42 lakhs and the diesel starts from 8.62 lakhs. The diesel is available in five trim levels, and the diesel top-of-the-range model is priced at 11.10 lakhs, which is still very competitive.
The New City looks amazing, and the diesel delivers an efficiency of 26 Kmpl. It is going to be hard to justify purchasing any of it’s competitors. Honda has thrown the gauntlet and now it’s time for the competition to respond.