Honda is all set to unveil the MY22 Honda City e:HEV today, the 14 April 2022. The City e:HEV will be the company’s third hybrid model to come to India. The other two didn’t set the sales chart on fire. We will have to see if Honda’s third time is the charm.
The new City e:HEV will be one of the country’s most fuel-efficient cars. The expected ARAI fuel-efficiency figure is 25-26 kmpl. Combined with the sedan’s 40-litre fuel tank, the estimated efficiency figures mean the tank range could be around 1000 km or more. These estimated figures surpass all the other cars in its segment.
Honda aims to deliver the most fuel-efficient car in the segment. The City e:HEV uses an Atkinson Cycle 1.5-litre, 4-cylinder petrol engine combined with two powerful electric motors. One electric motor functions primarily as an electric generator while the other handles the drive. The system keeps the engine around the 2,000rpm mark for maximum efficiency. If the engine reaches around 4,000rpm, it could use twice the fuel needed to run at 2,000rpm. Hence, keeping the engine RPM minimum is crucial.
Maximising the efficiency further is the gearbox or the lack of it. The car does not have a CVT, planetary gearset, or gear wheels and uses a single direct gear for higher speed applications instead. The two electric motors placed together at the engine’s end replace the gearbox. The motor-generator produces electricity that gets stored in a battery located in the car’s boot.
The engine produces power but is not sent directly to the wheels most of the time. It gets sent to the electric generator. The electric generator then stores this electricity in the battery. The battery then powers the electric motor up front, which sends it to the wheels. This whole process sees the utilisation of 95 per cent of the energy generated. For comparison, even one of the most fuel-efficient petrol engines can manage an efficiency of 40 or 45 per cent. At speeds above 120kmph, though, the engine directly powers the front wheels. Hence, the City e:HEV will most likely deliver a 1,000km+ range on a full fuel tank using all the technology mentioned above and fuel-efficiency figures.
The Honda City e:HEV uses the same 1.5-litre petrol engine as the non-hybrid model. The engine runs on the ‘Atkinson cycle’ and produces 98 HP of power. A 109 HP electric motor also aids the engine. The engine makes maximum torque of 127 Nm, while the electric motor has a maximum torque of 253 Nm. However, the combined maximum power output remains undisclosed.
The Honda City e:HEV will be available in V and ZX variants with equipment levels similar to the regular model. In addition, the City e:HEV will come with Honda Sensing – Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS). The Honda Sensing ADAS features include – Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS) + Front Collision Warning (FCW), Road Departure Mitigation System (RDMS) + Lane Departure Warning (LDW), Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), Lane Keeping Assist System (LKAS) and Auto High-Beam (AHB). Expect the whole suite of ADAS features to be available only in the range-topping ZX variant.
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