[Sumed]

NHC – 10,000 KM report

Model: NHC Exi
Colour – Sebring Silver
Date of Purchase – Aug 2005
Extras - Seat covers, Pioneer music system with 450 Watt speakers

Review

Looks – Well.. you all know how it looks. I bought it because I liked the looks, specially the rear!

Interiors – Well laid out interiors with a high quality feel. Though I liked the interiors of the Gxi, wife did not like the wood and also it was out of budget so settled for Exi. However, the feel of the switches, knobs etc. is very high quality. Also, a lot of pockets and holes to carry bottles, sunglasses, books etc. Overall a pleasant place to be in with a noise free cabin.

Space – I think this is where it scores the most. Lots of room both in the front and rear seat. Family calls it a room rather than a car. Seats are also very comfortable, though I miss the seat height adjustment in the driver’s seat.

Gear box – The gear box is very smooth and the gears fits into the slots almost effortlessly. You just need to pull it a bit harder to move to 5th otherwise gear shift is smooth as silk. Also, the gear ratios are excellent for city driving. You can reach the 5th gear quite quickly and you can drive in 5th at speeds of 30 kmph onwards! Really helps when you want to take it easy and drive with a light foot.

AC – AC is competent and is performing well in the high 30 degrees temperature of Pune. The car takes about a minute to cool after standing in the hot sun.

Drive – Extremely comfortable to drive in the city. Due to the cab forward design, it is very easy to drive in the city traffic. The light steering does its job very well in the city.

Highway driving – I have taken it to highway a few , once from Pune to Goa &back and second time from Pune to Bhopal & back. Pune to Goa was not very challenging as most of the road is 4 lane highway with divider t Pune to Bhopal was a big challenge as most of the road is 2 lane without a divider. I did not face much problems in overtaking on those narrow roads. Also the road quality was bad t at higher speeds, the suspension was smooth. Though at lower speeds, the car becomes bouncy.

Boot – Huge boot which really comes in handy for long journeys with family.

Mileage – I think it is a winner here. The worst I have got during the initial days was 11-11.5 and the best is 18. In Pune city, I regularly get between 13 to 14 depending upon the traffic conditions. Mostly I use high octane fuel.

After Sales Service – The Deccan Honda service department is competent. No issues so far in dealing with them. After my trip to Goa, there was a squeaking sound from the rear wheel. During the second service, that was taken care as it was from the rear wheel cap. No other issues till date.

Negatives:
You don’t see many negatives above as I thought they should be mentioned separately:

There is always a reflection (of the dashboard) on the windscreen, which can some distract attention. Possibly a flaw in the design.
Size of the petrol tank is small. It can hold only 42 litres of petrol. Though the mileage compensates for it t I think for this size, the tank should have been a minimum of 45 or more.
Braking at very high speed is not very inspiring. The tyres lock and tend to skid.
As mentioned above, the car is bouncy at low speeds on bad roads, though at high speeds it sails fine on the same roads.
The front pillars on both sides are too big. Specially during right turns, you really need to stretch and ensure a clean turn.
Not very comfortable at extremely high speeds. I have done 160 kmph t brought it back to the 120-140 band as it did not feel planted at 160.
Would have loved to have some goodies like fuel meter (distance to empty), outside inside thermometer etc. at that price… but you can’t have everything!

Overall
I feel it is very well built car with good quality interiors. I understand that some of the negatives (suspension, braking(?) etc.) mentioned above have been taken care by Honda with the ZXi launch. The car is excellent for city driving and a competent highway car. Obviously not good for drags but good to carry executives to office and families to weekend getaways!

Note from Mod
Please do not use formating from another application. Compose in plain text and add formats over here. Spent 10 min editing your post

[RX135]

Can you reformat it to remove those tags?

[Sumed]

Mods... I had already formatted my post correctly after copying it first time. I think both of us were doing it at the same time. I see my modifications have been overwritten now!

[BUSA]

There is always a reflection (of the dashboard) on the windscreen, which can some distract attention. Possibly a flaw in the design.

Always noticed it with my NHC to. I thought it was because of the sun control film in the front.

Size of the petrol tank is small. It can hold only 42 litres of petrol. Though the mileage compensates for it t I think for this size, the tank should have been a minimum of 45 or more.

Since the cars tank is placed in the front you can easely fill 45L when tank is almost empty because the rest stays in the long pipe. I once filled 48L.

Braking at very high speed is not very inspiring. The tyres lock and tend to skid.

You seriously need to upgrade rubber to 195s and try again it wont lock or skid.

Not very comfortable at extremely high speeds. I have done 160 kmph t brought it back to the 120-140 band as it did not feel planted at 160.

Again thats because of the tyres.

Would have loved to have some goodies like fuel meter (distance to empty), outside inside thermometer etc. at that price… but you can’t have everything!

Knowing Honda even if they add 185 tyres it will be a achivement.

mentioned above have been taken care by Honda with the ZXi launch.

ZX - but not much. The car still is not great as far as ride is concerned and the ZX has not done much to it. Brakes are still poor as always they were nothing has been done even the Vtec with discs at the rear doesnot have much differentiable braking as the NHC.

Anywayz nice review any pics.

[Sumed]

Originally Posted by BUSA

Always noticed it with my NHC to. I thought it was because of the sun control film in the front.

I do not have any sun control film (is it standard?). I think it is due to design flaw!

Originally Posted by BUSA

Since the cars tank is placed in the front you can easely fill 45L when tank is almost empty because the rest stays in the long pipe. I once filled 48L.

48L.. .. Is the pipe that long? When the car was brand new, I remember that the meter touched 42. Are you sure that the pump was not tampering with the meter. And I understand that the tank is in the middle (between the front and the rear seats).

Originally Posted by BUSA

You seriously need to upgrade rubber to 195s and try again it wont lock or skid..

No plans now but will keep this in mind during the first tyre change.

No pics yet.. will try to take some in the coming days!

[supremeBaleno]

Originally Posted by BUSA

Always noticed it with my NHC to. I thought it was because of the sun control film in the front.

See it on my Baleno too. Very irritating, especially when driving in city traffic. I don't have sun control, so that does not seem to be the reason.
I assumed that it is because the dash is black plastic - but then the NHC dash is not black I guess.

[BUSA]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

I assumed that it is because the dash is black plastic - but then the NHC dash is not black I guess.

The Exi is black. Main reason is due to sun film butttttttt then thats not there in your car so cant say. However i would advise you to change tyres because i have seen many NHCs outbraking themselves due to the tyres it offers. Its better for your safety.

P.S Clear you PM account

[Surprise]

Good report.

I had felt the reflection of the dashboard while driving OHC. Keeping any booklets or brouchure fatten up the problem & it distracts a lot. Also just want to check whether NHC had comfortable headroom for a person of around 6ft.

[Sumed]

Originally Posted by Surprise

Good report.

I had felt the reflection of the dashboard while driving OHC. Keeping any booklets or brouchure fatten up the problem & it distracts a lot. Also just want to check whether NHC had comfortable headroom for a person of around 6ft.

The tallest person to sit in my car was around 5 10' and no problems in getting in or out. I do not think it will be a problem for a 6 feet person due to high roof but maybe someone with practicle experience can comment.

[Tech]

No problems I have seen so far for 5 11' So I guess for 6 feets also it will be fine. Nice review Sumed. Have fun !

[venkatrx]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

See it on my Baleno too. Very irritating, especially when driving in city traffic. I don't have sun control, so that does not seem to be the reason.
I assumed that it is because the dash is black plastic - but then the NHC dash is not black I guess.

The reflection is mainly due to the shiny surface, after getting my baleno's first service i noticed this reflection and observed that this was due to the fact that those service guys had appliced the 'dashboard polish' which causes the shine and hence the reflection.

I always try to keep that part of the dashboard clean and devoid of any polish.

[WhiteKnight]

Originally Posted by venkatrx

The reflection is mainly due to the shiny surface, after getting my baleno's first service i noticed this reflection and observed that this was due to the fact that those service guys had appliced the 'dashboard polish' which causes the shine and hence the reflection.

I always try to keep that part of the dashboard clean and devoid of any polish.

I agree. This problem seems to be there with all cars. One more culprit could be the windshield. Ideally the reflection should be minimum on a good glass

[cool_sizzlers]

Even I find the same problem (of reflection ) in my Maruti 800 as well as Aveo. I agree this problem seems to pertain to most of the cars in the country.

[aZa]

Tints on the front screen just increases the reflection in most cars... happens in my santro too and also in accent, sonata

[goldie_malhotra]

Nice report, Sumed

Originally Posted by Surprise

Also just want to check whether NHC had comfortable headroom for a person of around 6ft.

Am 6'1" and have no problems at all with space in any dimension, including the headroom - though my seat is normally at its lowest position. Also, the legroom in the front is quite sufficient - never have to push the seat fully back.

And, my dad who is also 6' (though a lot more wider), gave two thumbs up for the rear seat space and comfort. He is also quite pleased with the ingress/egress compared to other lower-height cars.