Honda City

Overview

The smallest offering from Honda in UAE, the Honda City is the compact offering in the sedan space and is worldwide famous for offering a big-car appeal at a price and a footprint of a premium hatchback. The Honda City in its UAE specific version is being offered with a single powertrain and three different variants – DX, LX and EX, with six paint schemes – White Orchid, Modern Steel, Carnelian Red, Lunar Silver, Crystal Black, and Nocturne Light.

Interior & Features

The interior cabin of the Honda City too has begun to show its age and it is primarily down to the lack of many modern features that are there in the ASEAN spec City, but not in the model sold here.

The multifunctional steering wheel with round buttons and a simple all-analog meter console look a bit dated, however, their placement and ergonomics feel spot on. The wide and flat centre console is tilted slightly towards the driver, and comes with a large touchscreen infotainment system, with sleek AC vents above it and a trapezoidal housing for touch-sensitive panel of climate control below it.

Apart from the aforementioned features, Honda City lacks many premium creature comforts of the modern-day era. Still, features like push-button start with keyless entry, cruise control, driver seat height adjustment, and rear AC vents make up for this entry-level sedan. However, it makes up for the lack of features with a generous amount of space and under-thigh support from the seats on offer, which feel plush and comfortable enough.

Exterior

It is true that the Honda City is still one of the most timeless designed cars in the market right now, with its aerodynamic and sleek design still managing to make it look premium enough. However, the car has been on the shelf for quite a long time now, and is now proving to be a bit too long in the tooth.

The angular front fascia of the Honda City consists of angular headlamps with a thick and wide chrome slab joining both of them from the inside. The headlamps do come with daytime running LEDs, but miss out projector units or full LED treatment.

The side profile of the Honda City looks quite long and aerodynamic which gives it the necessary big-car appeal, something which only gets better with the presence of machined alloy wheels and a thick and prominent character line flowing sideways till the edges of the tail lamp.

The sweptback tail lamps do miss out on LED treatment, but they are big and wide enough to make the boot look big enough, which looks premium with a thin strip of chrome in between.

Ride & Handling

Built on a modern lightweight monocoque frame, the Honda City comes with a set of Macpherson struts at the front and a torsion beam at the rear, which are tuned on a softer side. While it lacks the outright stiffness of the previous generation models in the wake of more comfortable ride quality, it still feels precise and good to drive.

Engine & Fuel Consumption

The Honda City sources its power from a tried and tested 1.5-litre four-cylinder naturally aspirated petrol engine under its hood. Coupled with a CVT gearbox as standard transmission, this engine pumps out a maximum power output of 118 PS and a peak torque output of 145 Nm. In the traditional VTEC fashion, the engine feels rev-happy and is refined across the rev range.

Braking & Safety

The Honda City suffices with a basic list of safety features, consisting of dual front airbags, ABS with EBD and Brake Assist, vehicle stability assist, emergency stop signal and tire pressure monitoring system.

Verdict

The Honda City in this UAE-spec version feels under-equipped compared to the one sold in other global markets, as it lacks many comfort and convenience as well as safety features in it. However, what it still manages to be is a handsome looking car which comes with a potent powertrain and a supple ride and handling balance.