Honda has apparently revealed that the new generation of the City sedan for India will get a petrol hybrid engine combination. The new generation Honda City which is also known as the Grace in some markets has started road testing, and we expect Honda to show us a pre-production concept at the 2020 Indian Auto Expo.
At the moment, Honda has the Hybrid i-MMD (Intelligent Multi-Mode Drive) system on the Grace / City sedan in the international market. However, this would prove to be too expensive at the moment here in India. Yes, Honda is planning to offer this tech on many other products in their portfolio which will bring the cost down by 25%, but still, for now it makes no sense in this mid-size sedan segment. It should be noted that Honda does offer the Hybrid i-MMD system with the Accord Hybrid in India which is priced upwards of INR 40 lakh.
Honda is currently developing a new small hybrid system which is going to be first introduced in the new generation of Jazz / Fit premium hatchback. The same tech could be used on a more powerful motor inside the City sedan here in India. Now if a new generation Jazz hybrid will be sold in India or not? That question remains. But the new gen Honda City will surely rival the Maruti Suzuki Ciaz which gets SHVS with this under development mild hybrid system.
The small / mild hybrid system is expected to bring to the table features such as brake energy regeneration, torque assist function for the engine, engine auto start / stop and better mileage as a result. Honda believes that instead of forcing electric vehicles to car showrooms, hybrid cars are the ideal stepping stone for the future. Hence, more practical and effective hybrid engine options will be launched in the near future.
Honda also revealed that looking at the stellar performance of the Amaze diesel CVT in terms of sales here in India, the new gen Honda City will also get a diesel automatic option which has never been offered till date.
The 2020 Honda City is expected to be longer and wider, to fight out in the space department with the Maruti Suzuki Ciaz which even puts the Toyota Corolla Altis to shame in cabin comfort.
