| This Valentine: My Wife's gift to me - The ANHC VAT (Polished Metallic)
Finally the wait is over; yes I have waited for around 18 months before I got my hands on this beauty. Ever since I heard Honda is launching next generation Honda city in 2008. I started dreaming one someday.
Grief: As I wrote elsewhere in some thread that I wish I could have borne 5-7 years earlier which would have given me a chance to have my hands on the first generation beauties of my rides / drive, just to re-iterate followings are (were) my ride/drives.
1.) Yamaha RX135: I missed the original RX100, but RX135 was not bad either.
2.) Maruti Suzuki Zen (2005): This was the 2nd best shaped after the original jelly bean one; I wish someday I could have one carbon 2 door.
3.) ANHC: Again this is the nearest match to the original OHC VTec, but at least I have the original automatic gear box with paddle shifters in it.
Happiness: I am more than happy that I always had what I wanted from my heart, in college days I always wanted a Yamaha RX series and then in final year had decided the first car we (me and my GF who is my wife now) will have will be Zen and when I started learning automobiles I always dreamt of having a Honda one day. Today I can say to myself well done boy.
History: I wish ‘sidindica’ can lend me even 2% of his writing skills which will enable me describe my feelings in a sense which will be enjoyable for the readers as well.
To start with most of the time we change our jobs for better growth, career, money etc .etc. but what I feel at the end of day it’s about happiness and living your life the way you want it. In my experience owing a new automobile gives the same feel.
So, whenever I changed job I started thinking if I can change to next dream automobile as well.
Year 2001: I got the first job with a reputed company after working for 2 small firms and immediately started planning for the Yamaha RX series and the option was only RX135, no other ride was consider, blame it on my lack of knowledge or one minded (rather heart) decision to go for Yamaha RX series.
Year 2002: Got married to my GF, I would like to write my story with her from first look/meet to falling in love to rising in life with her. Our friends have heard it from us many times and from face expression I can say they never got bored (or all of them are just too good actors).
My wife loves bikes more than cars and our RX135 served us very well, someday I will buy another bike and we will enjoy riding again.
Year 2005: Changed the 2 jobs in successions and got very good career growth and good money, time to buy first car, again no lookout for any other (though Palio was in back of the mind), and went ahead with the available Zen model.
Note: I was very upset when the jelly bean model was replaced and this new design came in and the first time I regret not being borne earlier.
Year 2008: Another change of job which gave me more stability, but by this time my Zen was serving me well. In the same year I got to know about team-bhp and started gathering the knowledge of automobiles. The same year heard next gen Honda city is going to launch. I was very excited and was glued to Thailand Honda website and waited for its launch.
Then the wait was there for its launch in India, and just one fine day when I reached my office I was surprise to see Honda City being displayed in my office campus, had a lot of ‘dekho’ (look) of the car and felt the exterior is very good, the rear doesn’t suit my likings and interiors are horrible (I can’t help it, I just love looks).
Post launch of ANHC there were more and more debate over its price, interiors, plastic quality, but one thing everyone agreed its engine is a gem. Read the first review by our ‘vivekj’ again and again.
It was out of my budget, was just reading its reviews and different threads going on at team-bhp and many congrats and thanks to early owners for sharing their detail reviews, they are helping newer ones like anything.
The GTO’s thread on ‘Honda city is not over priced’ was very interesting and I guess it must be the most controversial thread of TBHP in its 6 years life (I want to celebrate its 60 b’day).
Well since sept’08 a lot of car got launched and few of them got my attention like Linea, i20, punto, at one point of time I was interested in Verna petrol as well.
Jul’09: Introduced to Driver’s Car: This was the month when I started reading about The Ford Fiesta 1.6 and was stunned rather shocked by its performance and praises and reviews. For next 1-2 months I was just reading about it and decided this is the one I will own, under my budget and extremely powerful the way I want.
Well my love for fiesta got me membership of TBHP as well.
Grief Moment: Finally I sold my Yamaha RX135 as I was not riding it and I was not able to maintain it as well. I felt I am insulting the legend by doing that and I should let it go and serve someone who will love it and will maintain it. I hope I made the correct decision.
Oct’09: Me and wife got the test drive of Ford Fiesta 1.6 SXI (I know 1.6S is the one to go for but as I said I love looks as well and SXI is the one for me) and finalized it. If you search for threads started by me, you will know how deep I studied for it and everything was finalized from dealer to deal to accessories to add-ons to modifications. All in detail with exact description and prices. I would be very happy if it can help anyone.
Wife finalized that the new car will be bought in Feb’10 which is my B’day month, our first meeting month and our anniversary month as well, no arguments.
Jan’10: The final budgeting was in process and this time the ANHC from my back of the mind popped up and came in front and the heart also said yes.
Buy this time Honda had taken some measure to make the interiors look good; exteriors already got chrome things with alloys.
Started doing the Test Drive again (of course for ANHC but manual), Was very satisfied with the exteriors and interiors and by this time TBHP gave me enough knowledge which guided me to look for the engine first and then looks can be modified / enhanced anytime.
Went with wife to finalize the deal and more importantly the color, Wife is the decision maker for color and she approved ‘Polished Metallic’, my personal favorite was ‘Bold Beige Metallic’.
When the deal was almost finalized, wife reminded me of something I had said to her at the launch of ANHC that, “If in future we buy the city we will buy automatic, so that you can drive as well”.
I asked the price difference and it was INR72,000 extra, did a little calculation which was like if I own this car for 6 years which is like 72 months then I will be paying INR1,000 extra per month for automatic, which will make my wife happy (peace of mind, one of the major reason any one buys a honda car) and more importantly I will enjoy the paddle shifting.
I have a feeling that in coming years sell of automatic will only increase and might be just might be after 6 years the demand of 2nd hand automatic will more than the manual.
22nd Jan’10: Booking Day: So everything was finalized, on 22nd Jan’10 booking was done and the delivery day was fixed as 14th Feb. Another wait was started, which I would rate 2nd longest wait after the wait period of my ‘engagement to marriage day’.
31st Jan’10: This time not grief but happy moment: Got good deal for my Zen and didn’t wait for ANHC to come in, so that the story of RX135 is not repeated with this one.
14th Feb’10: Finally the big day came and went, but it took me 3 days to overcome and come to my sense of owning the ANHC Automatic and hence delay in writing it.
I will take few more days before I write the actual initial review, till then some snaps to start with, apologies for attaching very basic and low quality once, but really at this time I don’t want to click pictures, explore the features of car like music system (I haven’t attached my iPod to it either) or anything else other than just enjoying the engine, automatic transmission and not to miss immediate upgrade to Michelin Primacy LC 195/60R15.
At this time I can only comment that the engine is really a cream, Automatic transmission in ‘D’ mode is superb (Still to test the ‘S’ and paddle shifts) and 195/60R15 feeling is just like having soft cushion under wheels. I felt the difference immediately after swapping them though I drive with stock only for around 15 KMs.
Note: By the time ANHC saga started I forgot about the job change and its relationship with my owning the new automobiles but seems destiny had other plans for me and the very next day of booking ANHC I got a lucrative job offer but position was in Bangalore which I humbly denied (I have been in Delhi-NCR for last 10 years). But destiny, it always has its share; the very same company offered the Noida location on 12th Feb which I grabbed with both hands. I will be joining them by mid of Apr’10.
Last edited by TheBeastFieast : 17th February 2010 at 11:05.
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17th February 2010, 10:58
The ANHC is really a good car. And now with the all improvements to the interiors it's even better and appeals both to the heart and the mind.
