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-   -   4th-gen Honda City : Official Review (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/official-new-car-reviews/145656-4th-gen-honda-city-official-review-303.html)

Looks like cars are getting facelift/upgrade in shorter cycles than smartphones these days 😁😁. Ciaz which just made an entry last year is already going under the scalpel and coming out through Nexa this quarter, and so is the City.

The real game changer in this segment will probably be the Toyota Vios which may make its entry in late 2016.

[quote]Checked with a second dealership and they said the same thing. The fuses as well as wiring are missing and it will require wire cutting /splicing to get a second reversing light.:Frustrati

I got the same rexine pouch, what I was referring to was a thermocol like thing or some slot/box which separates the tools and keeps them from rattling. If you can let me know where you keep the rexine pouch in the boot it would be helpful.

I experience the exact same thing, on some days the car rattles and on other days it doesn't, along the same road!

Hope it improves after the third service which includes oil change. As it stands around 8-8.5 km/l it's burning quite a hole in my pocket. The engine auto accelerating doesn't help either, can anyone confirm this is normal for Honda City (Car accelerating in gears 1-3 without pressing accelerator)?

There was another issue I faced a few days ago, the stereo system would get reset and all the settings/ clock/ radio stations / Bluetooth etc. got reset. It happened a few times and then took it to the ASC who checked the connections and said everything was normal. Hope it doesn't happen again cause it's really inconvenient to set everything up every few days!

I keep it in the space around the spare tire, underneath the cardboard and the boot cardboard. Do make sure your car's jack is properly secured to its mount.
I remember seeing a hack for this somewhere in the previous 300 pages of this thread. I don't remember the exact thing it it was something like this.
The silver cowl around the speedometer console is removed by simply pulling it out towards yourself while seated in the driver's seat. You will see two or three screws there. Remove the screws, add a bit of foam therefor padding and then re-tighten them.
Pls note that I haven't actually tried this in my car. For actual firsthand experience, search this thread.
Here's something that works with my Jazz. The iVTEC apparently is sensitive to driving style. If it senses that you are constantly driving with a light foot, it throttles the power delivery in order to conserve fuel. But in typical city traffic, this leads to dull pick up and you end up stepping on the pedal every now and then. It feels a bit like turbo lag and in my experience, kills the mileage in a big way.

I get good mileage when the engine performs at 100%, when it gives me maximum response. This way, i can drip feed the exact amount of gas I need. The way I achieve this is that every time I tank up the car, I find an empty stretch and let the engine rip in the lower gears. I am talking about 80kmph in second gear and 120-130 in third. Hold the speed for a couple of seconds.This makes the engine responsive and I get good mileage in regular driving.

It took me a good 40-50k km to figure this out. But this technique has been serving me well for over an year now. Try it.

The car accelerating on its own is because of the ECU being overly aggressive in anticipating that you are about to stall the engine and feeding it gas to compensate. I always thought it was an iDTEC thing. Didnt knew this happened in the petrol City as well. My Jazz does not do it. You'll get used to it though.
This is new! I have never had to face anything like this. Was only the stereo resent or the ACC panel as well?

Last month I travelled from Blr to Goa and back to Blr, about 1350km in a Honda City iDTech that had covered around 35k kms. It was a hired car from zoom. The first City that was allotted to me rattled like Ambassadors did in 90s. We made big noise about how bad the car was, though it had only 45k kms on the odo, and got a replacement car, the 35k run one.
This one didn't rattle but looked like it was done it's life. The whole dashboard vibrated, as a friend pointed out, which we first thought was vibrating on the music. But after some time when music was not playing, still we could see the dash vibrating, I touched it and could feel vibrating it big time. It was not like when gear stick of a car vibrates, it was the whole dashboard thumping along engine's notes. You could see it vibrating from a distance with naked eyes.
The bits I liked were relatively harder suspension, what I mean is that even with 4-5 guys and luggage, the rear didn't sink and the car tackled speed brakers quite easily. I also liked the rev happy nature of the iDTech, drivability is really good too. Rest all of it, I hated, just hated. The paint quality is pathetic, the wafer thin doors, the poor plastics used inside. We encountered two issues with the car wherein we had to stop and make do with whatever we had. The plastic cladding in wheel well gave up, and why not, when we observed the poor quality of that plastic and fitment, it had to fail on the way, some day.
I have been a big fan of the City right from childhood. The first gen will always be my choice to own. The second gen was the car of dreams for many and why not, it was the best City in terms of quality. The interiors felt yummy on that one. The 3rd gen had the most powerful iVTech, ABS and 2 airbags as standard and great looks, though it was not as good to drive as the first gen. The 4th gen left me speechless. We knew City for it's quality but Honda has screwed it up and now it has niggles. I mean interiors of my father's Zest feel better to touch than this City's. Paint quality? There is no contest here.
2 of my friends on that Goa trip have purchased the City and man they looked worried. I overheard one of them whispering his concerns over long term reliability to the other. Though I said that the car in question was on hire and is supposed to be used roughly, their concern was evident. They could see the poor quality stuff giving up at just 35k kms, wherein they have invested 13.50L for petrol VX Option, rediculous pricing for this product. Even the rear number plate lights popped out and we had to push ot back and apply some cellotape over it. Perhaps I am being paranoid just because I have been a big City fan, but the poor quality got to show up with some mileage and I won't want to own and maintain a 4th gen City after 30k kms.

Some real world numbers:
I leave early (7:30AM) to office on few days and the mileage has been around 13.5 to 14 km/l. Bumper to bumper Bangalore traffic mileage is around 10KM/l. Overall I am getting 11-11.5 which I feel is good for my VX CVT.

Reason to choose VX:


With the sunroof, the cabin feels so airy and comfortable, though cant open fully inside the city. Using just the shutters to let more light. My son is thoroughly enjoying the car and gives a demo to anyone seeing our car the first time clap:

One more shot of the car


All the way very happy with the car and mileage (CVT knowledge of City ZX helping with this I guess).

I think I have tried this but the metal clang continued whenever I went over rough roads or speed breakers. Fixed it by wrapping the tools in lots of plastic from my seats.

In my case, the rattling seems to be coming from the centre of the dash deeper inside. There seems to be multiple things that could be rattling in this car so I'm sure your suggestions will help someone.

I do the same in 1st and 2nd gears, can't find the space in my city to do 120-130 in 3rd gear.

This isn't exactly a behavior which is normal to any car, and pressing the clutch or moving into neutral every time I just want to maintain speed, is not something to get 'used' to. I'm not sure but wasn't Toyota's lawsuit in US was similar to this. If my car accelerates without me pressing the accelerator and injures someone (or worse) I'll show them proof of the issue reported to Honda.

What do you mean by ACC. In my case, only the stereo (and everything in it) is getting reset. The ODO, dash clock etc are working fine.

Judging by my experience so far I'm not surprised. I see some current gen Honda Citys in my office parking that are looking 5 years old. My latest issue is that every time I turn on my blower / AC I get a bad smell (which goes away after a while), not like a dead rat but more like fungus or something. I guess it could be the AC filter- which was designed for only 2500Km.

I have been looking at some of the posts replied to your above post and your counter response. Couldn't resist to stay away from the discussions.

Car Rattling Noise - It's just an ON & OFF thing. You just have to live with it. I have had some rattling in between, but it just goes away on its own and comes back at times on its own.

Fuel Economy - This is something very difficult to decide who is wrong or what is wrong. 9 out of 10 times, its a case of a heavy right foot. I have achieved FE ranging from 11 to 13 kmpl on the same route based on different driving styles. This is City Roads that I am referring too. Regarding the highway FE, its the same. I have done Mumbai - Pune - Mumbai at 15 kmpl also and at 17.5 kmpl also. Try a more sedate driving style for a few days and if the problem still persists, talk to the ASC guys.

The Presumed Auto-Acceleration - This is normal. Nothing different than other cars or high-end bikes. Yes, high-end bikes too. I have driven a Harley Davidson Iron 883 on first gear upto speeds of 10-15 kmph without any accelerator input. The bigger the engine and bottom-end torque, the more the so called auto-acceleration.

Sound Insulation - I think I have seen this complaint regarding the new Honda City for the first time. If its real, there some issue in your car. I have never felt that way anytime, not has anybody pointed out yet. Specially for a Petrol Variant.

AC Air Filter - I saw your comment on the AC Air Filter life being just 2500 Kms. I changed my AC Air Filter at 18 Months / 30K Kms Service (18K Kms actual running of the car). The foul smell must be due to something else. Ask the ASC to get it checked.

Its very real. Its not about engine being loud, just that the overall sound insulation is bad, so you not only hear engine's sound but everything that is happening outside the car, same for petrol and diesel.

Really don't care to respond to you when you don't even believe what I am writing is real. Go back and read this thread from the beginning. All the issues I mentioned have been faced by someone or the other. You might live in a deluded word where you convince yourself that whatever you put your money on has to be the best product, I do not. The issues i mentioned are faced only in this car and none of the other 5 cars I've owned in the past or currently.

Owning Multiple Cars does not really mean that the person could be knowledgeable.

Yes, Honda City is my first car and I am loving it. I still stand by the statement that out of the Options available in the C2 Segment Sedans, considering all aspects, Honda City does edge out from the competition. The point is not just about quality when choosing a car. If that was the case, then probably you should have gone with Vento which has a highly superior build quality. But even you chose peace of mind by going with a Honda City despite knowing all the bashing that has been going around on this Thread and other threads.

Well there are people who are really unhappy with the car and went on to sell the car and buy a different car. That's also a part of this thread. Probably you must have read those posts too. Still you chose to buy the Honda City.

Sound Insulation is an individual's perspective. Probably your expectations are much higher which may require further sound-proofing of the car. This is something one can easily make out while taking a test drive and it's not something which becomes known only after buying the vehicle.

I do not wish to throw back at you, but certainly the above derived statement itself shows some lack of knowledge. None of the AC Filters are designed for such a low life of 2500 Kms. Also the AC filters are not Honda make. These are from some other suppliers who must be supplying to other car manufacturer's too.

With regards to the issues faced by you and being discussed on the forums the rattling noise, I mentioned that I am facing it too. Live with it or Sell it are the only options available.

Fuel Economy, I would once again iterate, is again an individual's driving style. There are a lot of people who have indicated similar FE as what I indicated. FE as low as yours is either driving style problem or something in the car. Even if you go to the ASC, they will deny it saying it's your driving style. Hence, my suggestion was to try a more sedate driving style and if the problem persists take it up with the ASC.

Auto-Acceleration - Down-shift to third gear at 50 and take your foot of the accelerator, the car speed will come down to 35 kmph and keep cruising at that. What else is expected? should the car come to a standstill and stall on third gear because there is no accelerator input.

FYI, no Ac filter is designed to be thrown away at 2500. Yes, it may have a 2500km service interval. That's another thing. If you are staying in dustier environments or drive through such places more often lay then the filter might clog up sooner. But that would effect your cooling instead, not smelly situation. Musty smelling car Ac's were more common in the older non-filter Ac systems where the dust used to directly clog up the evaporator coil and create sludge which used to smell. In the newer Ac's that's not the case as the filter traps all the stuff before it reaches further. That's what it's meant to do. So, if there still is smell, then either your filter is torn and hence not working or has been removed by technician(happens in a lot of places) or then your floor carpet may have got wet and that develops a stink and you can't see it under the rubber matting unless you lift up the matting. So checking on the filter itself can be the first inspection followed by a more detailed Ac inspection if needed.

I have a 7 months old City VX (Petrol, AT) and I too feel that the insulation isn't up to the mark. Without music playing in the car, the amount of traffic noise I get to hear is higher than what I believe is acceptable.

Looks like the perspective on insulation is very subjective. I for one feel that the insulation is pretty good (Petrol CVT) and eons better than my Swift earlier.

Exactly. My brother drives a Verito and he was stunned when I started rolling the car, while he thought I have not started the car :-)

Ha ha. I jokingly refer to my City as the "Ghost" based on how silently it moves at low speeds. Further the CVT masks the virtual gear changes so well that it is a superb experience for someone getting chauffeured around. I remember GTOs words from the official review that the Petrol version has no insulation under the bonnet and it "doesn't need it either".