Best fuel saver vehicle in the market

Good way to save on oil using this Honda City

Engines

Diesel

The most important addition to the City however is the diesel motor, it's the same all aluminium 1.5-litre i-DTEC engine seen in the Amaze and the power figures haven't changed, max power is 100PS@3600rpm while max torque is 200Nm@1750rpm. However the engine is mated to a new 6-speed manual transmission with optimized gear ratios. Honda engineers felt that the torque was sufficient for the car and have focused more on the driveability and efficiency of the engine. Whether it's driving in town or on the highway, the engine feels effortless.

Turbo lag is minimal and the car accelerates easily in any gear. The gear shifts are notchy but are precise. In terms of performance, the car hits 100kmph in 12.8 seconds. Unlike the Amaze that's limited to 140kmph, the City diesel maxes out at 163kmph, however compared to competition, the top speed is still much lower. What the car excels in is fuel efficiency, the ARAI claimed figure is a shocking 26kmpl making it more efficient than the Amaze even and as a result, the most fuel efficient car in India.

While both the petrol and diesel variants get added sound and vibration absorption material, the latter gets a lot more. The damper, dashboard, trunk, doors, roof, engine bay and hood get extra insulation. Even the side glass is thicker and different from the petrol variant. All this has definitely helped in keeping the NVH levels low but at idle and higher engine speeds, cabin noise is slightly higher than a few rival diesel cars. The cabin does get quiter as the engine settles down.

Petrol

The petrol City uses the same L15A i-VTEC engine seen in the earlier model but receives a few updates. Power has improved slightly while efficiency has gone up too. This has been possible by optimizing the valve timing and the use of a double needle plug. The piston gets a special coating to help reduce friction. Max power is now 119PS@6600rpm while maximum torque of 145Nm is available at 4600rpm.

The engine is a rev happy unit and redlines at 6800rpm. Power delivery is impressive and performance is still best in segment. The 5-speed manual transmission is the same slick unit seen before but with changes made to the gear ratios. The sprint to 100kmph now comes up in just 10.67 seconds making it quicker than the previous City by a second almost.

An automatic variant is also on offer but unlike the previous generation car that used a 5-speed automatic transmission with a torque convertor, the new City automatic features a CVT. The new transmission has been developed using Honda's Earth Dreams Technology.

The unit is light and compact and is claimed to improve fuel efficiency and acceleration. Paddle shifters are standard and can be used in either D or S mode, the shifts are quick and there is hardly any delay in upshifts as well as downshifts.

In S mode, one can even shift gears at the redline. Acceleration is impressive too, the car crosses 100kmph in 12.3 seconds making it one of the quickest automatic cars in the segment. The automatic variant gets an ECON button similar to the CR-V that helps improve fuel economy. Surprisingly the ARAI claimed fuel efficiency of 17.9kmpl is 0.1kmpl more than the MT variant.

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