My All New Honda City (Color: Bold Beige)

shrinivasap · 23rd March 2009, 10:13

After a long research across all Car Magazines, Team BHP and friends network – I finally made my choice for the Up gradation of my car. I had a Santro which I bought in 2002 October and after clocking 103000 KMs in 6.5 years, I decided to move on. After a deep thought and research, I narrowed done my requirements for the new car. i.e,

In the budget of 9 to 11 Lacs
Automatic – This was must
Petrol Engine
Mix of good performance, robust design and aesthetic value
Good resale value
Brand value – of course it should get me good social recognition
Good after sales support

My choices: ANHC and New Hyundai Verna
I test drive both the cars multiple times and decided to go for ANHC for following reasons:

ANHC is 5 AT and Verna is 4 AT
From pick-up and performance perspective, I found ANHC 1 up above Verna
Looks – Again – I go with ANHC
Features – I didn’t see much difference between both
In Built music system - ANHC has the best in class..it is simply superb
AC - Verna is a chiller… ANHC is OK- I think I can live with it.
After Sales support - Being with Hyundai family for last 6.5 years, I used authorized dealer for only free services. Rest of the times, I used my trusted family mechanic. My experice with Authorized Hyundai dealer is far below average. All they used to say is” Sir, we need to replace this part” . My mechanic was too good and trusted… hey.. he only bought my Santro for 1.7 Lac lats month . For ANHC, I think I have no choice, I will have to use Authorized dealer only
Cost - ANHC is bit over price d– but hey..do I have a Choice?
Freebees/Discounts - Honda is stingy….grr

Buying Experience:

Banker – I went with HDFC – Got my loan cleared in 24 Hours – No issues at all. Very satisfied – 10/10
Dealer – Magnum Honda/Kanakpura Road Bangalore - I asked them to get me test drive at least 5 times before making the choice. Tried on all bad speed breakers across south Bangalore – didn’t see sales guy fuming. Sales Manager was very responsive and whole buying experience was very nice. I would rate them 9/10.
Insurance – Went with Bajaj Alliance - Got good deal – almost 15% on what dealer had quoted.

Experience with my new Car so far:
What I liked:

Great Driving pleasure - Had a quick long drive to Mysore – great one
AC - Fine not great
Music System – best in class I have seen so far
FE – 8 in City and 10.1 in Highways
City maneuvering - Fantastic , no complaints at all
Very smooth steering

What I didn’t like:

Tough to reach horn
Headlight upgrade is must. It is quite poor for long drives

I will upload the pictures soon

agm · 23rd March 2009, 10:43

Ahha another ANHC Bold beige.Congrats mate,i am little surprised that people complaining about the ANHC a/c.Drive safe Cheers

srishiva · 23rd March 2009, 11:07

Second Bold Biege. Congrats and enjoy your drive.

SkyWalker · 23rd March 2009, 11:16

oh, well - suddenly the color isn't rare anymore

.
Congrats on your car Shrinivas - its a great car!

Guna · 23rd March 2009, 11:48

Congratulations!
Have you been using the paddleshifts? I find the 'auto' changes the gears little too late for my taste and started using the paddleshitfs to push to next gears early on. This has also helping in getting better FE(9.5 kmpl so far, but bound to improve further)

shrinivasap · 23rd March 2009, 11:55

Thanks all for the wishes.

Guna - No, i don't use paddle shift much. Prefer to go with pure Auto mode. happy so far with it as i am under run-in period. not crossing 80/100 KMPH and below 3X RPM

abhinav.gupta88 · 23rd March 2009, 12:42

Congrats on the purchase.
The ANHC A/T is an amazing car no doubt.
Bold Beige? Is it golden or something.
can we have some pictures?

shrinivasap · 23rd March 2009, 13:57

It is Golden Beige...Will try to take some snaps over the weekend and upload the same here. Thanks

---
Srini

shrinivasap · 12th May 2009, 10:23

Just completed second free service from Magnum Honda/Bangalore yesterday. I completed 5000 KM and done 3 long trips so far. Second service costed me 3250Rs [2131.92 for OIL, 125Rs for windscreen cleaner and 900Rs for Upholstery cleaning]

Feedback on service: Excellent. Service Manager is well behaved and responsive to my needs. I didn't had any issues/complaints and post service engine looks more smoother. Going to mangalore on another long drive tomorrow and will update on that later.

FE: 10/12 [City/Highway] [PS: Mine is a AT Version]

netarchie · 12th May 2009, 11:14

@ shrinivasap ,
congrats for your new honda.
just curious, why did your 2nd service cost you 2131 , mine (same car) costed 825 for oil chage ??

shrinivasap · 12th May 2009, 11:16

Well, I used Synthetic Oil and went for Upholstery cleaning

netarchie · 12th May 2009, 11:27

@ shrini , the new city has oil change interval of evey 5K I suppose, will you be changing oil every 5k ? and failing to do will have warranty issue as informed by my local honda dealer !!
That discouraged me shifting to synt oil .

shrinivasap · 12th May 2009, 13:53

I know, 5K interval is bit irritating and i have no other option but to adhere them :(. My problem is normally i cover 5000KM in less than 3 months. But i really liked the way Magnum folks handled my service... very smooth...

sandeep.mishra · 12th May 2009, 14:09

I am not happy with the ANHCs headlights. They are just not adequate. I wish to upgrade the stalk bulbs into one of a higher wattage without affecting the warranty!

Can anyone please advise what wattage and brand to go for and the possible negative effect on the reflector due to the upgrade? Secondly, do I necessarily approach the dealer to avoid any warranty issues?

shrinivasap · 12th May 2009, 14:11

Yes, Agree Sandeep. Even i wanted to upgrade but i was warned about warranty void. But driving 5000 KM, i got used to it and looks like I am fine with it.

23rd March 2009, 10:13	#1
shrinivasap BHPian Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 92 Thanked: 0 Times	My All New Honda City (Color: Bold Beige) After a long research across all Car Magazines, Team BHP and friends network – I finally made my choice for the Up gradation of my car. I had a Santro which I bought in 2002 October and after clocking 103000 KMs in 6.5 years, I decided to move on. After a deep thought and research, I narrowed done my requirements for the new car. i.e, In the budget of 9 to 11 Lacs Automatic – This was must Petrol Engine Mix of good performance, robust design and aesthetic value Good resale value Brand value – of course it should get me good social recognition Good after sales support My choices: ANHC and New Hyundai Verna I test drive both the cars multiple times and decided to go for ANHC for following reasons: ANHC is 5 AT and Verna is 4 AT From pick-up and performance perspective, I found ANHC 1 up above Verna Looks – Again – I go with ANHC Features – I didn’t see much difference between both In Built music system - ANHC has the best in class..it is simply superb AC - Verna is a chiller… ANHC is OK- I think I can live with it. After Sales support - Being with Hyundai family for last 6.5 years, I used authorized dealer for only free services. Rest of the times, I used my trusted family mechanic. My experice with Authorized Hyundai dealer is far below average. All they used to say is” Sir, we need to replace this part” . My mechanic was too good and trusted… hey.. he only bought my Santro for 1.7 Lac lats month . For ANHC, I think I have no choice, I will have to use Authorized dealer only Cost - ANHC is bit over price d– but hey..do I have a Choice? Freebees/Discounts - Honda is stingy….grr Buying Experience: Banker – I went with HDFC – Got my loan cleared in 24 Hours – No issues at all. Very satisfied – 10/10 Dealer – Magnum Honda/Kanakpura Road Bangalore - I asked them to get me test drive at least 5 times before making the choice. Tried on all bad speed breakers across south Bangalore – didn’t see sales guy fuming. Sales Manager was very responsive and whole buying experience was very nice. I would rate them 9/10. Insurance – Went with Bajaj Alliance - Got good deal – almost 15% on what dealer had quoted. Experience with my new Car so far: What I liked: Great Driving pleasure - Had a quick long drive to Mysore – great one AC - Fine not great Music System – best in class I have seen so far FE – 8 in City and 10.1 in Highways City maneuvering - Fantastic , no complaints at all Very smooth steering What I didn’t like: Tough to reach horn Headlight upgrade is must. It is quite poor for long drives I will upload the pictures soon
	() Thanks

23rd March 2009, 10:43	#2
agm BHPian Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Central India Posts: 186 Thanked: 152 Times	Ahha another ANHC Bold beige.Congrats mate,i am little surprised that people complaining about the ANHC a/c.Drive safe Cheers
	() Thanks

23rd March 2009, 11:07	#3
srishiva Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Bengaluru Posts: 4,375 Thanked: 2,256 Times	Second Bold Biege. Congrats and enjoy your drive.
	() Thanks

23rd March 2009, 11:16	#4
SkyWalker Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Bangalore Posts: 1,531 Thanked: 136 Times	oh, well - suddenly the color isn't rare anymore . Congrats on your car Shrinivas - its a great car!
	() Thanks

23rd March 2009, 11:48	#5
Guna Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 4,010 Thanked: 4,202 Times	Congratulations! Have you been using the paddleshifts? I find the 'auto' changes the gears little too late for my taste and started using the paddleshitfs to push to next gears early on. This has also helping in getting better FE(9.5 kmpl so far, but bound to improve further) Last edited by Guna : 23rd March 2009 at 11:50.
	() Thanks

23rd March 2009, 11:55	#6
shrinivasap BHPian Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 92 Thanked: 0 Times	Thanks all for the wishes. Guna - No, i don't use paddle shift much. Prefer to go with pure Auto mode. happy so far with it as i am under run-in period. not crossing 80/100 KMPH and below 3X RPM
	() Thanks

23rd March 2009, 12:42	#7
abhinav.gupta88 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Delhi , India Posts: 4,092 Thanked: 325 Times View My Garage	Congrats on the purchase. The ANHC A/T is an amazing car no doubt. Bold Beige? Is it golden or something. can we have some pictures?
	() Thanks

23rd March 2009, 13:57	#8
shrinivasap BHPian Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 92 Thanked: 0 Times	It is Golden Beige...Will try to take some snaps over the weekend and upload the same here. Thanks --- Srini
	() Thanks

12th May 2009, 10:23	#9
shrinivasap BHPian Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 92 Thanked: 0 Times	My All New Honda City (Color: Bold Beige): Last Upadte : 5000 KMs completed Just completed second free service from Magnum Honda/Bangalore yesterday. I completed 5000 KM and done 3 long trips so far. Second service costed me 3250Rs [2131.92 for OIL, 125Rs for windscreen cleaner and 900Rs for Upholstery cleaning] Feedback on service: Excellent. Service Manager is well behaved and responsive to my needs. I didn't had any issues/complaints and post service engine looks more smoother. Going to mangalore on another long drive tomorrow and will update on that later. FE: 10/12 [City/Highway] [PS: Mine is a AT Version]
	() Thanks

12th May 2009, 11:14	#10
netarchie BHPian Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Navi Mumbai Posts: 397 Thanked: 10 Times View My Garage	@ shrinivasap , congrats for your new honda. just curious, why did your 2nd service cost you 2131 , mine (same car) costed 825 for oil chage ??
	() Thanks

12th May 2009, 11:16	#11
shrinivasap BHPian Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 92 Thanked: 0 Times	Well, I used Synthetic Oil and went for Upholstery cleaning
	() Thanks

12th May 2009, 11:27	#12
netarchie BHPian Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Navi Mumbai Posts: 397 Thanked: 10 Times View My Garage	@ shrini , the new city has oil change interval of evey 5K I suppose, will you be changing oil every 5k ? and failing to do will have warranty issue as informed by my local honda dealer !! That discouraged me shifting to synt oil .
	() Thanks

12th May 2009, 13:53	#13
shrinivasap BHPian Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 92 Thanked: 0 Times	I know, 5K interval is bit irritating and i have no other option but to adhere them :(. My problem is normally i cover 5000KM in less than 3 months. But i really liked the way Magnum folks handled my service... very smooth...
	() Thanks

12th May 2009, 14:09	#14
sandeep.mishra BHPian Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: New Delhi Posts: 88 Thanked: 4 Times	I am not happy with the ANHCs headlights. They are just not adequate. I wish to upgrade the stalk bulbs into one of a higher wattage without affecting the warranty! Can anyone please advise what wattage and brand to go for and the possible negative effect on the reflector due to the upgrade? Secondly, do I necessarily approach the dealer to avoid any warranty issues?
	() Thanks

12th May 2009, 14:11	#15
shrinivasap BHPian Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 92 Thanked: 0 Times	Yes, Agree Sandeep. Even i wanted to upgrade but i was warned about warranty void. But driving 5000 KM, i got used to it and looks like I am fine with it.
	() Thanks