[apurva512]

Great report as always. Is it just me or has Honda appointed some sub-teenage level people to design the dash? The Brio/Amaze and now the City just have a very amateur look to their overall front dash design(end to end, not the instrument cluster). There seems to be no symmetry anymore.

I have never been able to figure out why they didn't just scale the Civic interior to their other cars. The Civic was standout imo, and its sad that they haven't tried to port that into their smaller cars.

Overall though, its good to see Honda making changes like promoting diesel engines and for a change being at the front of the pack where features are concerned. Hopefully this will force VW into action and have them revamp the Vento to match the features(Start/Stop, integrated rear camera etc) and maybe even have them launch the Vento GT with the 1.4TSI

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by sarathlal

True. This was one of the main highlights for back seat comfort in the outgoing model.

Could be due to structural support for the increase in wheelbase?

You mention a good point but the raised portion is more of cushion design than the structure. The cushioning is usually a few inches thick.

Also, something interesting is that from the pics, the fuel tank is now below the rear seats and not below the front seats like the earlier City. Quite interesting why they did this change.

[Tats07]

Originally Posted by vb-san

Honda has not taken the fluidic route with the new City

But is that right? This picture made me think it was Verna - hard to tell the difference!

[D'Artagnan]

Odd looking dashboard design. There is no style for style or design theme followed. The ac vents look rectangular with rounded edges but the center air con vents look like a jail cell bars. The oddly shaped hazard light button is rectangular but the start stop button is round in shape and also in red colour. The center console buttons are square and round it sorta looks like a pasta gone really wrong!

[sourabhzen]

Originally Posted by joy_swift

Totally agree,very uninspiring design and doesnt look like a car costing 12L.Another lac and you can get a Chevy Cruze.

Ex showroom price of Cruze is close to 14L. Itcosts 15.45 on road in Gurgaon. For reference, we may also take a 12L Duster for comparison!

[RavenAvi]

Just noticed another thing. The black insert just behind the rear door, given on the body to cover the sloping curves of the roof line, looks a bit out of place. Wouldn't it have been a better idea to extend the design of the rear door in such a manner that it covered that specific part in it's quarter glass?



Notice the same on my Pegasus? That part is actually the entire quarter glass, and looks much more clean and neat.




Anyway, a spark of relief amidst all the negatives. Notice the gear-stick for the diesel:-



6-speed transmission, and not a 5-speed one like some others.

Pic courtesy - TAI.

[aravind.anand]

Originally Posted by vvijay

Was wondering was it just me or the design itself has this letdown but for the hi-fi blue dials and LCD audio. Also the gear lever, to add to your list

Honestly, if we calm down a bit from the features frenzy and analyze the interiors -

- The dash is unconventional, but more like a sophisticated Brio, and the nice thin chrome highlights that VW uses to give that premium feel is missing ( that's coming in the Suzuki SX4 now! ) so not much up-market, but still better than the 3rd Gen City.

- The gear lever in full black is uninspiring - At least the 3rd Gen had a Black golf ball lever with a silver insert to break the monotony, while Vento black plactic insert with chrome surround.

- The door pads are very ordinary, that too the plastic surface shows a wavy pattern in some of the photos. I do not like the design of the Vento too, but not quite as ordinary as this.

- The instrument console is good, but the New Fiesta and the 3rd Gen City had cooler fonts and binacles, VW & Skoda are very staid and boring in this parameter.

Would still sit inside and get a feel of the whole ambience before I comment if I like it or not.

As, the Fiesta has all nice bits when seen individually, but while on the driver's seat, something just doesnt make you feel comfortable in there!

[zenren]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Just noticed another thing. The black insert just behind the rear door, given on the body to cover the sloping curves of the roof line, looks a bit out of place. Wouldn't it have been a better idea to extend the design of the rear door in such a manner that it covered that specific part in it's quarter glass?

Notice the same on my Pegasus? That part is actually the entire quarter glass, and looks much more clean and neat.

Only advantage I can see from that change is that the length of rear door has decreased. With the new design, I guess the rear door can be opened a bit more in tight parking spots since the edge of the door is more inwards with this projection avoided.

I'm not sure how bad the situation was with previous generation. As an owner, you might have a better idea if it was a nuisance or whether it didn't matter at all.

[stringbh]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

1. Alloy wheel design is very poor.

3. Rear bumper is too slim... need to be careful when reversing... Vento and Verna have a couple of inches bumper protruding.

9. Boot lid has no cladding carpeting. The cables and wires hanging loose looks really shabby and cheap.

1. Agree with this, but, Honda knows that all these will be forgotten once the action kicks in, as they have taken care of other important issues like rear AC Vents, ACC, i-DTEC, more Space, improved FE, touch screen etc.. Customers are willing to let-go of some things if basic issues are addressed; and btw we have to remember, that they have called it, "Iconic model which has redefined automotive design and technology".

2. Like it or not, we have to develop our taste buds, as City v4 will sell well. What will be interesting to see is the petrol-diesel selling ratio.

3. Quick question: Where will GTO add this car to the following list

Originally Posted by GTO

There are cars and then, there are cars.

cheers !

[anu21v]

So after three generation of market beating styling; Honda have a launch oh-so-similar designed City. Did they send their design team to maruti design or is it the norm with all automobiles these days.

After two similar changes by Maruti on WagonR and Swift (design cues are still the previous generation) is it going to be a new norm in Indian Auto Industry.

The front Bumper it seems can be straight away lifted from 4th-Gen and fitted to 3rd-Gen car. too bad.

It seems the changes are a major (MCE) to combine the launch with Diesel.

[veyron_head]

I haven't had a chance to read through all the pages of this thread, so not sure if the pricing has been discussed already.

But looking at the features and the new diesel engine, and above all, knowing Honda and their ridiculous pricing, the cost of this car will hover on the civic territory. That would push all their models to the next segment. Civic diesel when it arrives may touch 20 lacs OTR.

[mints21]

I am disappointed when I noticed that the new Honda city has a naked boot like it's sibling amaze. I wonder why Honda didn't cover it to give a better look to the otherwise aesthetically nice looking car. Moreover, I wonder why most of the car manufacturers have started the trend of not offering an alloy wheel as a spare? Does this mean that the concept of tyre rotation does not apply to the top variant of cars which are equipped with four alloy wheels? Quite strange.

[motorworks]

Whenever there is too much buzz around a new launch, it is also followed with a lot of criticism once the product is launched, and this seems to be the norm with many cars like the new fiesta, Safari, Ecosport and many others. I think its just that the expectations build sky high and once the car is launched it seems to draw too much of negativity.
Anyway, coming to the new city, the exterior looks more like a facelift and Honda will have a hard time trying to convince the common man that this is a all new car and not just a facelift.
Secondly the Japanese folks just dont seem to be investing time and effort in the interiors. Its not just the new city, but the brio/amaze, etios/liva dont have very clean interiors and somehow seem very cluttered. I remember sitting in a Brio once and found the interior very distracting. Some switches / AC consoles in the wrong place. The japanese surely have to learn from Hyundai as to how to put together interiors that appeal to the mass market. Suzuki is not bad in this front though.
I prefer the interiors of VW/Skoda since they are far more clean and functional.

[Tats07]

Originally Posted by stringbh

3. Quick question: Where will GTO add this car to the following list
cheers !

I doubt that it will at all feature in THAT list, though I will await the official review. Honda would not have done anything substantial to the petrol mill/transmission/handling to turn it to a car. Maybe the diesel engine? That still may not be enough to make the cut.

[aravind.anand]

Originally Posted by mints21

I am disappointed when I noticed that the new Honda city has a naked boot like it's sibling amaze. I wonder why Honda didn't cover it to give a better look to the otherwise aesthetically nice looking car.

Even the current Gen City has no cover / cladding for the boot. Heck! they don't even provide it for the wheel-arches, making the suspension and tyre noises very audible inside the cabin.

Originally Posted by mints21

Moreover, I wonder why most of the car manufacturers have started the trend of not offering an alloy wheel as a spare? Does this mean that the concept of tyre rotation does not apply to the top variant of cars which are equipped with four alloy wheels? Quite strange.

The concept of tyre rotation is applied 'Only' to the four wheels supporting the car. The 5th wheel or the spare wheel needs to be used only when one of those wheels are punctured or damaged beyond use.
Please go through the owner's manual, and you will find a line that says -users are advised to get the punctured tyre repaired and the spare to be put back in the boot at the earliest. Infact, many manufacturers provide smaller wheels with thinner weight saving tyres to reduce weight and also to maximize boot space!