The 2020 Honda City has made its first
appearance in Malaysia – spyshots of a camouflaged mule undergoing localised
road trials on the Federal Highway in Kuala Lumpur have emerged on The Ajerul‘s
Facebook page. Before you get too excited, the car’s market debut is expected
to be some time away, possibly late in the year.
The fifth-gen City made its world debut
last November, and in Thailand will go on sale with only one engine option, a
1.0 litre turbocharged three-cylinder VTEC mill offering 122 PS at 5,500 rpm
and 173 Nm of torque from 2,000 to 4,500 rpm. This is paired with a
continuously variable transmission (CVT) with seven virtual speeds.
Dimension-wise, the new City is 113 mm
longer (4,553 mm) and 53 mm wider (1,748 mm) than its predecessor, but gets a
10 mm decrease in height (1,467 mm) and a wheelbase that is 11 mm shorter
(2,589 mm). Despite the shorter wheelbase, there’s actually more leg room and
knee clearance, thanks to the reprofiled rear seats.
The cabin features an entirely new
dashboard design, with slight hints of the new Jazz (not such a bad thing,
really). There’s an off-centred infotainment display, vertical-style air vents,
new steering wheel design with a smaller centre boss, as well as a generally
tidier cockpit that’s more pleasant to the eyes. In Thailand, the City is available
in four variants (Grade S, V, SV and RS), with prices ranging from 579,500 baht for the entry-level S to 739,000 baht for the
range-topping RS.
