Encouraged by the growth of cleaner forms
of mobility in India, reports suggest Honda Cars India is planning on
introducing a hybrid powertrain to its model line-up in the near future. This
will not be the first time Honda introducing hybrids in India either. In 2008,
the company dipped its feet in the Indian hybrid segment with the Honda Civic
Hybrid priced INR 21.5 lakh (ex-showroom).
While even the fact that Honda’s new hybrid will be based on the fifth-gen City
is still unconfirmed, unofficial reports suggest that is the most likely
choice. Along with that, Honda now has the infrastructure to build locally and
hence, price can be brought down significantly. However, while sales of Honda
Cars India were down by 60 per cent in the month of June, Mr Gaku Nakanishi,
President and CEO of Honda Cars India, has confirmed that there will be no
delay in the launch of the new hybrid vehicle.
While the possibility of the hybrid
vehicle being based on the all-new fifth-gen Honda City is high, information
about its powertrain is hard to anticipate. Yet, some sources speculate it will
borrow its motor from the Honda Jazz e:HEV in International markets. It will
still be a petrol-powered hybrid but is likely to be modified to suit India’s
needs. The Honda Jazz, in question, offers a 1.5-litre iVTEC engine paired to
two electric motors. Together, they produce 108 bhp and 256 Nm of peak torque. It
gets a fixed-gear transmission and a 0-100 km/h sprint time of 9.4 seconds. It
can be controlled via three drive modes - EV, Hybrid and Engine
