We really want the all-new Honda City, now.
The all-new fifth generation of the Honda City made its global debut in Thailand back November 2019. That was at least 10 months ago. Right now, we still have the previous generation of the popular subcompact sold in dealerships. Honda Cars Philippines closed down its Sta. Rosa, Laguna manufacturing plant in late March. That was where Honda built the local-spec City. So where’s the new one?
While the COVID-19 has understandably caused delays, we still can’t wait for the launch of the all-new Honda City. Our neighbor, Malaysia, is about to get theirs very soon and we really hope that we’re next. Why do we want the new City?
It has an RS variant
Those familiar with Honda’s local lineup will know that the Brio, Jazz, Civic, Mobilio, and HR-V all have RS variants which are the top-spec models. While 4 out of 5 of these models don’t have performance upgrades, the RS version of the City in Thailand, just like the Civic, gets a turbocharged engine. More on that later. Now just like every RS variant, the City RS in Thailand gets sporty upgrades on the exterior which not only make it look sportier, but also much more premium.
Sporty Exterior
With that RS variant comes a very sporty exterior. The top-spec Honda City RS gets various enhancements such as full LED headlights, a blacked-out front grille and side mirrors, sportier alloy wheels, and a lip spoiler just to name a few. Even without the RS treatment, the all-new City is already a lot sportier than all previous generations. The front end gets some inspiration from the Honda Civic and maybe the previous generation Accord. The hood also appears to be slightly longer.
The rear on the other hand gets taillights that also look a lot sportier. It actually reminds us of a BMW and that’s not a bad thing, and well that has actually been the case with the City since the third generation. There is also a small diffuser on the lower bumper. Lastly, the Ignite Red paint job in the photos enhances the City’s sporty looks even more and makes it more aggressive.
Technology
Cars these days just keep getting more and more technology. The all-new City is no different. First, it gets a new 8-inch touchscreen infotainment display with Apple CarPlay. Sound is sent through an 8-speaker audio system. There is also a Honda CONNECT phone app which will let you lock and unlock the car, start the engine, turn on signal lights, and a Find My Car option. It also comes with an Idle-Stop System where the engine will automatically turn off when at a stop to save fuel.
It will also be equipped with Honda’s Lane Watch Camera. The camera is located underneath the passenger-side mirror and sends a live video to the infotainment screen when using the right-turn signal. This feature will help eliminate blind spots when changing lanes.
The Indian versions of the all-new City come with Amazon Alexa support which can help you in playing music, making to-do lists, set alarms, stream podcasts, play audiobooks, get weather and traffic information, and other real-time updates.
New Safety Features
Other than Honda’s Lane Watch Camera finding its way to this more entry-level model on the Indian version, the all-new City also gets more additional safety features. It is now equipped with six airbags and vehicle stability assist. It also comes with a new agile handling assist feature. The agile handling assist feature gives the vehicle better handling and makes the driving experience sportier.
Better Engine Performance
Another big change for the all-new Honda City is the engine. The old 1.5-liter four cylinder engine of the previous generation is now replaced by a new 1.0-liter three cylinder Earth Dreams VTEC Turbo engine. Despite it being smaller and having one cylinder less, it is still slightly more powerful than the old engine. It has 120 horsepower, 2 hp more than the old engine. It also has 173 Newton-meters of torque which is 28 Nm more than before.
The Malaysian-spec Honda City will also come with an i-MMD powertrain which is a hybrid. This hybrid powertrain, known as e:HEV globally has a displacement of 1.5-liters and is paired to an electric motor. Together they produce 108 horsepower, a bit lower than the 1.0 turbo, but also produces 253 Nm of torque which is a lot more than the competition. This is the same powertrain found in the all-new Honda Jazz in Japan.
Again knowing that Honda Cars Philippines has closed down its factory, and will be sourcing the City from outside the country, We hope to see the all-new Honda City in the market soon, especially with the recent launch of the updated Toyota Vios. We also hope that it comes with all the features mentioned here and everything that makes it so exciting.
Photos from Honda Thailand.
