2014 Honda City Compact Sedan Review
Honda shows us how it built its City on clocking goals
While they may not produce headline performance figures,
small hatchbacks and sedans are the bread and butter of the automotive world.
Laugh and point all you want but when it comes to laying down your own cold,
hard cash on a car that simply needs to get you to and from work, costs peanuts
to run and will handle the kind of every day abuse you'll fling at it, small
cars rock.
The Honda City has been around in various forms since 1981
but it's only in the past 12 years that the model has really proved its worth.
More than 2.2 million City sedans have been sold to customers in 55 countries
around the globe, and it's certainly made fans in the Middle East.
2014 Honda City
rear three-quarter view
This is the sixth generation City and while the company's
“evolution of satisfaction” catchphrase may not be up there with the BMW i8's
“Born Electric” or Maserati's “Now we strike” message, it utterly sums up the
car's character. Sometimes you simply just need a car to do what it's designed
to do without the fuss and frippery that comes from a premium badge.
Functionality is core and, coupled with Honda's reputation for precision and
quality build, the City has the right elements for mass market appeal.
2014 Honda City
side view
The car looks bigger than its predecessor. Its engorged
appearance comes from a dramatically altered body-to-glass ratio. The part of
the car you can't see through is much taller, even if the car itself is not.
This gives the City a more substantial appearance. And it is more substantial,
although only slightly. Curb weights are up ever so slightly over the old car's
but remain at the skinny end of the class.
Honda says it's using more high-strength steel than ever in
this Fit, which means that, in spite of the small increase in curb weight, the
car sees big gains in rigidity in major areas. With this, Honda expects passing
grades in all NHTSA and IIHS crash tests.
Cabin is well
appointed though glossy surfaces mark easily. Green button is for eco mode
It still displaces 1.5 liters, but that's about all the new
City's four-cylinder shares with the old one. Now the engine is loaded with
direct injection and dual overhead cams (whereas before it had port injection
and one lobestick), and in addition to i-VTEC's dual-profile cams, the 1.5
packs variable timing control. VTC does exactly what you'd expect based on its
name, retarding cam timing at low rpm and advancing it at high engine speeds.
There are oil jets to cool the underside of the pistons and a crankshaft that's
been lightened a claimed 27 percent through a 50 percent reduction in
counterweights, from eight to four. An additional 13 horsepower and 11 Nm of
torque, for totals of 130 and 154, respectively, don't sound like much for all
that effort, but it is just a 1.5-litre.
Nicely packaged
1.5 litre iVTEC engine loves to rev. It needs to
Unfortunately, it's all funnelled into a five-speed CVT
gearbox that turns it all to mush. While acceleration may not be a prime
concern for City drivers, get-up is - and the car needs to be hustled if you
really need to pull on to a roundabout with any semblance of vigour. Get the
car above 60 km/h and the pace quickens a little, and the car becomes a lot more
repsonsive. Steering is light at any speed, and the brakes tremendously
effective.
The interior is enormous too. An extra 30 mm between the
axles has been used to good effect, and there's loads of rear legroom - and the
new touchscreen display with multiple inputs is impressive.
2014 Honda City
rear view
The Yaris sedan is probably a better investment but the City
is a credible rival that matches it on almost every level. And, if your
satisfaction evolves, then Honda can consider its mission accomplished.
|
Specifications
·
Vehicle type: front-engine, front-wheeldrive, 5-passenger,
4-door sedan
·
Engine type: inline four with fuel injection
·
Displacement: 1497 cc
·
Power: 118 hp @ 5000 rpm
·
Torque: 145 nm @ 1200 rpm
·
Transmissions: five speed electronically controlled CVT
Dimensions
·
Wheelbase: 2550 mm
·
Length: 4435 mm
·
Width: 1695 mm
·
Height: 1470 mm
·
Weight (dry): 1120 kg
Performance
·
Zero to 100 km/h: <10 sec
·
1/4-mile: 17 sec
·
Top speed: Not stated
Projected fuel economy
·
Combined: 11.2 l/100 km
|
