Honda Car India reportedly working on a facelift version of the City sedan and launch of the new version is expected in early 2017. The City is the bread and butter model of Honda and is the default choice of many C-segment car buyers. However, with the arrival of Maruti Suzuki Ciaz, Honda City started to feel the pressure like never before. In some months of this year, Ciaz outsold City. Hence, it is crucial for Honda to regain its supremacy in the segment with the new City. Here are the details you can expect from new version of Honda's workhorse.
Design
New version of the sedan is expected to feature a design in line with the Greiz sedan sold in China. Greiz is based on the current generation of the City sedan and features slightly tweaked styling. The thick horizontal slat grille that is a part of the new design language of Honda will be left untouched in the facelift, though it may get a dark colour treatment. The grille and the newly-designed headlamps will have a more integrated layout. The front and rear bumpers will be tweaked, while the rear of the facelift is expected to sport C-shaped tail lamps. Side profile will largely remain untouched barring newly designed alloy wheels.
Interior and features
The basic design and layout of the interior will remain untouched. It is expected to get a dashboard in line with the BR-V and the new Amaze. One of the major add-ons will be will be the new infotainment system with Android Auto and a mobile mirror feature co-developed with Blaupunkt reports Autocar. Higher variants of new City will get six airbags as standard, along with leather seats and a soft-touch dashboard.
Other features expected include an automatic climate control system, paddle shift, cruise control, electric sunroof and a sat-nav system can also be expected.
Powertrain
The same 1.5-litre petrol and diesel engines in the current model will be carried over in new model as well. However, emerging reports also suggests Honda Car India is actively considering hybrid engine for India. Honda already sells City hybrid in Japan under the brand name Grace. The Grace hybrid is powered by a 1.5-litre DOHC i-VTEC four-cylinder petrol engine that produces 108bhp working in tandem with an electric motor that produces 28bhp that draws power from a built-in lithium-ion battery. The hybrid system is mated to even-speed dual clutch transmission.
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