Team-BHP - My New Honda City VMT.

Well guys this is my first ownership review here.I have just got my ANHC VMT and i am really excited about the car.Its an awesome car and i have spent a lot of time looking at various cars before finalizing on this one.This car will be used by my dad for weekend drives.He is currently using the new E-class for his daily drive and Hyundai Accent(Petrol) for weekend.He loves the Accent for its power and has been using it for last 7 years.Many cars have joined our stable in the mean time but my dad never agreed on selling the Accent.I love the car too and really admire for its VFM package.Not even a single breakdown in so many years and nor anything has fallen apart.It still doesn't rattle at all.Its has clocked 90k km and still isn't showing any sign of age.
Few months back i convinced my dad on buying a new car and he agreed.So the search began.The priorities were that car should be petrol as running is very low,should be safe,spacious and comfortable, good after sale service and performance should be thrilling.

Now the cars that were shortlisted:-

Hyundai Verna:

After driving the Accent for years it was the obvious choice.I drove the Verna 1.6(P) and 1.5(D).I like the diesel more and its performance was really good.The engine was a performer.The after sale service of Hyundai has been satisfying.But lack of safety features like airbag and that weird new look didn't appeal to me.So Verna was dropped from the list.

Ford Fiesta:

I was not able to drive the car because the dealership didn't have the test drive vehicle.I read many review on Tbhp about it being a driver's car so i kept it in my list.But the dealership experience was not good.On the other hand saw many spy pictures of the new fiesta on the forum but no confirmed date of launch i decided to give the car a miss.

VW Vento:

I really loved this car.I think VW has really launched well engineered cars both Polo and Vento.Vento is really well built and have decent performance from the petrol motor but it was the diesel i liked more.The dealership experience was very good.I was offered test drive for both the variants.
Now comes the problem part THE WAITING PERIOD!.I was told it will take upto three to four months to deliver the car.I was in mood to wait that long because i knew my dad will change his mind.My other interest was the New Passat which they told me will be available from May 2011.Looking forward to that car.

Skoda Laura TSi:

I had almost finalized this car.I sent many pm to various owners on the forum and they suggested me to go for the car.The dealership here in Dehradun is pathetic.Forget after sale service the pre sale service is worse.No car is ever on display except one Fabia.For last six months they were not able to get a car for display forget the test drive.Whenever i use to call them to inquire if they are getting the car the answer would be."Saar i will call you back in 10 min".So many months have passed and many 10 minutes have also passed but i have yet to see the car.
Finally got frustrated and removed the car from my list.

Honda City:

It was the final car that was left.The dealership experience was very good.I was provided with test drive of both City and Civic.Civic again was headed towards a major facelift so i thought it won't be good option.So finally decided on the City VMT.The engine was really smooth and refined.White was the color choice because all our cars are white.

I will post a detailed review shortly.I am attaching few pics which are of poor quality because it was late when i took delivery.Sorry for that and will post better quality pics by tomorrow.

Thanks guys for your wishes.I really appreciate it.

Now coming to the question of why not choosing Linea T-jet?

The car was my first choice because of its sheer performance.I test drove the car in Chandigarh and it was a stonker of a motor.But now comes the problem part.I went to the dealership here in Dehradun to book the car and to my surprise the dealer told me the car has not been launched in lower tier cities.The car was available in metros mostly.I cross checked it with fiat customer care and they confirmed the same.So i decided to buy the car from Chandigarh itself.Then again a shock came that dealership in our city won't be able to service the car because they don't have trained staff.I was really put off by this because it won't be easy to go to Chandigarh if small niggles crop up so i had to drop the idea.But i still say that it is the best loaded performance car in this segment.

Now Driving Impressions

I have driven 130 kms in the car and completely in the city.Its a pleasure to drive this car and its so smooth and refined.Here is what i feel about:

Engine:

The engine is silky smooth.Its so refined and silent it feels class apart.Performance is also really good and the car accelerates very quickly.At lower speeds car didn't require much of the downshifts and pulled up effortlessly.Even in third gear car was pulling up really well at some low speeds.I feel the torque at lower rpm's is good. I am not a redline driver but i can easily say that the car is good for spirited driving.The key thing that i like about the engine is how silent it is.This is the first Honda car in my family and now i have understood what is refinement.I was playing April Fool in the month of December with my family & friends asking them to tell whether engine is running or not.Until you look at the rev counter you can't tell whether engine is running or not.I usually drive the safari and fortuner but after driving the city it feels out of this world.
I will compare it to my Accent in coming posts and will let you guys know what i feel the difference in both cars.

Gearbox:

Gearbox is very slick and smooth.Sometimes i felt that one can use his fingers to change gears unlike safari where sometimes one hand feels less effective.Even the gearshift of accent is a bit notchy compared to the city.
Now one problem i feel with the gearshift is that sometimes when the car drops to very low speeds it becomes difficult to engage the first gear and even second gear requires quite an effort.It feels a bit notchy.It will be really helpful if owners can shed some light on this problem and if they have faced the same.
But apart from this the gear shift is smooth and precise.

Ride & Handling:

Right now i can't comment much on handling because i have mostly driven in the city.But it is nice car for the city conditions.The car is running on Michelin XM1 Energy 175/65 R15.I can say that they feel better than the MRF's but in my opinion the tyres feel skinny for the car.185 would have been better and have really helped handling department.
Ride quality is pretty decent.Luckily roads of Dehradun are very good so had difficulty finding bumps.But i managed to find some and i can say that small ones are not felt but slight bigger ones get noticed and a thud noise get transmitted into the cabin.Didn't see passengers shaken or uncomfortable which is a good thing.I will rate the car good in this department.We don't have high speed breakers in our city except some in the interior lanes but i managed to cross them with four passengers on board without scrapping the underneath of the car.But i doubt with 5 passengers and luggage the car will scrap for sure.

Steering & Turning Radius:

The steering is perfectly weighted for city driving.I have yet to get the feel of it on the highway but for city condition its really good.The turning is also very short.We have narrow roads here so taking U-turns were very easy.Unlike safari which holds the traffic first and then after few back & fro movements turns.

Brakes:

Brakes are really effective.Didn't had any moments where hard braking was required but still i can say they are really powerful.The manual says to avoid hard braking for first 300 kms so i am trying not to get in any such situation.

Fuel Economy:

To early to guage but the car's average fuel consumption indicator is displaying 13.1 km/l currently.I am sticking to a maximum of 3000 rpm and a max speed of 60 kmph till first service.After that will stick to 80 to 100 kmph till 5000 kms.Another thing to note is that we don't have Euro-4 fuel in our city.Only Euro-3 fuel is available so i don't know what will be the impact.I am using normal octane petrol and no additive fuel like speed or other brands because the sales guy told me that it will damage the engine.Same thing was told to me by most service adviser's at various dealerships.So i am sticking to normal unleaded petrol.

Build Quality:

Build quality of the car is really good.I won't say its on par with the VW Vento but still its better than other competition.Fit and Finish is good and satisfactory.Though i feel that Honda should have used better material in terms of knobs like ones which control A/c temp and Airflow modes.

Legroom & Space:

In terms of space the car scores high on my list.It gives a sense of roominess and space.Legroom both in the back and front is good.No one complained about it.Accent was cramped in terms of space.The rear legroom was really bad.But i have to admit that city is really spacious in the back.The seats are comfortable for long journeys though under thigh support could be slight better in the rear bench.The boot will be hardly used but it has ample space.It is a bit deep so it can swallow ample luggage.At last i will say that city is very comfortable car.

A/C:

The A/c is really good and effective.I have only tested the heating capability of the car because its really cold in Dehradun these days.The car cabin heated very quickly.
I have one problem and need help of you guys on this.As soon as i switch on the A/c button the radiator fans turns on.They make a lot of noise when they are running.They stop for a second or two but the again turn on.This is happening both when the car is stationery or moving.Its very irritating specially when you are not using the music system or driving on empty road.Does any city owners have this issue.

NVH Levels:

NVH levels are pretty high.I feel the Vento and Linea are better insulated.Specially the Vento which is very well dampened.The Michelin are still very silent compared to the MRF's so tyre noise is less, but when radiator fans kick in the noise gets transmitted into the cabin.Honda could have dampened the car more.

Head Lights & Music System:

I found headlights along with fog lamps very effective.The road coverage is good but i have yet to see there performance on the highway.But as far as city driving goes i found the low beams very effective.

Music System was a surprise.I found it really good for an OE.It is better than the fortuner and using it with ipod was a breeze.Plus steering mounted controls make it more easier in terms of usability.The sound quality is good and i really like it.Right now i am not planning any upgrade to the music system.

The Deal:

As you guys know that discounts are the last thing you can expect from Honda.Though i bought the car in December still they were not offering any deal on the city.But i managed to extract few things from them.They are as follows:
Insurance:Honda is running an exchange bonus offer.If you trade in your old car you will get insurance free.Though i didn't have any car to trade in so they took a copy of RC of my safari to adjust that scheme.They gave me free insurance worth Rs 25,000/-.

I also managed to get accessories from them which they were not giving but i held my ground and they agreed.

Prices of accessories according to there price list:

Floor Mats: Rs 1850/-
Body Cover: Rs 1350/-
Two Honda Cushions(Biege):Rs 690 each
Tissue Box:Free
Two Balloons:Free

Final price i paid:9,18,319/- This is the ex-showroom price i have paid.
Registration cost is Rs 25,000/- which i will get it done myself.
Insurance Rs 25,000/- was free.

I will post the pictures soon.Any questions and suggestions are welcome.