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05/08/2009
By EWAN KENNEDY
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Honda's new City is more than a Honda Jazz with a boot instead of a hatchback. Though there are many out-of-sight similarities in the two models, as well as in the visible areas of the cabin, the City has a totally different body and sits on a longer wheelbase.
 Interestingly, several people who saw our test car though it was a two-door, not necessarily a bad thing as other makers, for example Alfa Romeo, go to a lot of trouble to give their four-door models the sleeker looks of a two-door coupe.
The new City is significantly longer than Jazz, meaning that interior space is impressive for a car in this class. There's good head and legroom front and rear. The front seats are a decent size and offer better support than is normal in vehicles of this size. The flat floor in the rear seat area means three adults can be carried, though two and a child would be a more reasonable limit.
The boot of this sedan is most impressive, having a volume greater than that of many big rear-drive family cars. That's partly due to the lack of a differential under the Honda's floor.
Honda City isn’t a lot smaller than its big brother the Civic. Indeed, it's larger than Civics of a few generations back. However, that's not a fair comparison, because a reasonable bit of the added size in current model cars is due to extra length in the nose to provide crash protection for both occupants and pedestrians.
Honda City is impressively quiet for a small sedan, with little increase in sound levels when on coarse surfaces. Rough country roads can cause some bumping around at times, but the little Honda was generally happy if treated with a reasonable degree of caution.
 Handling is competent, with the City being happy to turn into corners and stable once in them. It's willing to change direction if required to do so at very short notice. Only when you are pushing it hard does understeer come into the equation. Even then it's safe and predicable and while it's unlikely to make keen drivers enthusiastic, it's safe in the way it scrubs off speed.
Fuel economy and low emissions are high on the list of features of the Honda City. Economy is obtained by using a smaller than average engine for a car of this size, at 1.5 litres. But this capacity makes a lot of sense in an era when people are finally coming to realise the probable effects we are having on the atmosphere of the planet on which we all live.
That engine size of 1.5 litres is interesting in a time when most competitors in cars of this size have 1.8-litre units. Top torque is generated a very-high 4800 rpm, but the 145 Nm is impressive from an engine of this size. Peak power is 88 kW, again good for an engine of this size. And the spread of the torque isn't too bad, with a healthy amount being offered below about 2000 rpm.
On the road the City doesn’t have a huge amount of performance, but more and more buyers who are willing to forgo performance in the interests of low fuel consumption. We found that the City we have been road testing for the last week is capable of having consumption below six litres per hundred kilometres in easy running, and even when spending a lot of time in the city you aren’t likely to see much over eight litres per hundred figures.
The automatic works nicely with the engine characteristics and is willing to change down a gear or two to get the revs to somewhere near its torque peak.
 The Australian dollar’s drop in value compared with the Japanese yen has meant a starting price of $20,490 for the Honda City. Even then the cost-cutting in the interior is visible in plastics and some of the minor controls. Keep in mind that this model sits below others in the range, including big brother Honda Civic so quality has undergone some trimming.
Balancing that out is the fact that this is a well-built machine. While it may come from one of Honda's plants in Thailand, rather than from Japan, it has been screwed together well and seems sure to stand the test of time.
Honda's new City sedan is very much a car for the times. It is aimed at providing a comfortable car with excellent fuel economy to those who can think outside the square. Though not the cheapest in its class, it provides good equipment levels and that slight aura of prestige you don’t get in many cars in this class.
AT A GLANCE
MODEL RANGE
City VTi 1.5-litre four-door sedan: $20,490 (manual), $22,790 (automatic)
City VTi-L 1.5-litre four-door sedan: $22,990 (manual), $25,290 (automatic)
FEATURES
ABS Brakes: Standard in both models
Air Conditioning: Standard in both models
Automatic Transmission: $2300 option in both models
CD Player: Standard in both models
Central Locking: Standard in both models
Cruise Control: Standard in both models
Dual Front Airbags: Standard in both models
Front Side Airbags: Standard in both models
Stability Control: Not offered
Traction Control: Not offered
SPECIFICATIONS (Honda City VTi 1.5-litre four-door sedan)
ENGINE:
Capacity: 1.497 litres
Configuration: Four cylinders in line
Head Design: SOHC, four valves per cylinder
Compression Ratio: 10.4:1
Bore/Stroke: 73.0 mm x 89.4 mm
Maximum Power: 88 kW @ 6600 rpm
Maximum Torque: 145 Nm @ 4800 rpm
DRIVELINE:
Driven Wheels: Front
Manual Transmission: Five-speed
Automatic Transmission: Five-speed
Final Drive Ratio: 4.294:1
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES:
Length: 4410 mm
Wheelbase: 2550 mm
Width: 1695 mm
Height: 1470 mm
Turning Circle: 10.0 metres
Kerb Mass: 1110 kg
Fuel Tank Capacity: 42 litres
Towing Ability: 800 kg with braked trailer
SUSPENSION AND BRAKES:
Front Suspension: MacPherson struts, anti-roll bar
Rear Suspension: Torsion beam, anti-roll bar
Front Brakes: Ventilated disc
Rear Brakes: Disc
PERFORMANCE:
0-100 km/h Acceleration: N/A
FUEL CONSUMPTION:
Type: Petrol 91RON
Combined Cycle (ADR 81/01): 6.3 L/100km
GREEN VEHICLE GUIDE RATINGS:
Greenhouse Rating: 7.5/10
Air Pollution Rating: 6.5/10
STANDARD WARRANTY:
Three years/100,000 km |
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