[RavenAvi]

Thank you so much for the good wishes, guys.

Originally Posted by Pferdestarke

Regarding panel gaps, I have noticed similar gaps in my friend's city (delivered last week). It feels quite irksome to have such wide gaps in a 1.2 million INR car.

Originally Posted by harry10

Am Amazed by the panel gaps. It's not acceptable on a million rupee plus car no matter how much is the demand.

Indeed. After paying an arm and a leg for your dream car, you expect it to have at least the basics right. The Honda Quality Control team need to pull up their socks!

Originally Posted by harry10

Any plans to change tyres as Goodyears won't be good enough?

Do post a pic of Honda body cover on your car.

They aren't. They wail at 100 kmph speeds and the noise filtering into the cabin is really annoying. I know they are the worst choice of OEM tyres at the moment - would have preferred either Michelins or Bridgestones, even MRFs!! Tyre upgrade is a definite, as soon as I have enough funds. I have my eyes set on the Primacy 3STs.

Will do. Another photo session is on the cards as soon as I am done with March Closing.

Originally Posted by Rocketscience

Although city would be used for city driving by us and I have cruze to make the enthusiast in me happy , I still found the performance to be not bad at all, during my first test drive I hard revved the car and floored the pedal and the car reached three digit speeds fairly quickly and it still was pulling just fine and although its no match to vento/verna , its not too far behind either. I personally don't think anyone would be disappointed with its performance (if not overwhelmed).

The Vento TDI will absolutely smoke the i-DTEC, no doubt about it. Not sure about the Verna since the handling is highly questionable above speeds of 120 kmph. But yes, the City is no slouch either. It can go all the way to 200 kmph if the road conditions permitted it, and that too fairly quickly, since the i-DTEC provides the power needed for it in a very linear fashion. High-revving enthusiasts will prefer the Vento though, although City i-DTEC has comparatively better NVH levels at higher RPMs, whereas the Vento TDI sounds like a tractor on steroids.

Originally Posted by arup.misra

Sir Avi, take a bow. Your writing skills still makes me envy and now you have burdened me to make a tough choice - rate this better than the Pegasus "bible" or at par.

Her majesty will surely will make more than a few heads turn and the apt name suits her profile too well.

Would wait for you to clock some miles before I ask you a few questions on the d-Tech. Meanwhile get her some good shoes. An empress cant be seen without her Gucci.

Thank you so much for the kind words, my friend.

I had your quote in mind when I named my steed, and it seemed apt that the segment emperor in this fantastic shade got christened as the same.

Shoes are a definite - maybe I will go the Chanel route, if a lottery comes along!

Originally Posted by the_skyliner

Great review! Very detailed and informative.
Honestly speaking, I like the 3rd generation looks better than this one but interiors are much better in this one.

I too prefer the front of the 3rd gen to this garish one. But yes, the interiors are a HUGE step up from the 3rd gen City. Finally it feels like a 12L car on the inside.

Originally Posted by asit.kulkarni93

Though i never liked any City apart from the OHC. The new generation City is a perfect family sedan. It is fuel efficient, reliable, safe and has some real good features.

Thanks, Asit.

The 1st gen City is a classic. I love it even today. And yes, this 4th-gen City is THE perfect family car, plus it's reliability is without doubt.

Originally Posted by mkpiyengar

Hey Avi,
Congratulations on your new ride ..
Was wondering what made you change your mind, but your post details out the reasoning clearly.
Last time we spoke you were not pretty impressed with New City compared to your Pegasus, but then practically better to have 1 car than 2.

Nice to hear Pegasus is in great hands.. Congrats and Enjoy.

P.S: considering Switching Ikon with City i-Dtec. Let us see

Cheers
MKP

Hey MKP my friend, so glad you dropped by.

Yes I was not too keen on the new City. But I can vouch for this fact that production cars have been tweaked further and NVH levels have improved than the showroom display/review cars of December 2013. I urge anyone and everyone who had tested out the 2014 City in Dec '13 and scratched from their lists, to give it another TD and check it out again. The Honda engineers have been busy, and they have really worked on the car before it went commercial.

Would I recommend the City i-DTEC to anyone considering the Vento TDI, Verna CRDI, Fiesta, etc.? A big, resounding YES. Definitely at least for a long TD, preferably back-to-back with other cars. I have a feeling most people will leave impressed, because this car leaves an impression. A big one at that.

[mkpiyengar]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Hey MKP my friend, so glad you dropped by.

Kudos to your review, Once I read it immediately registered for TestDrive at the Honda Website. Lets see if they call over the weekend. Fingers crossed.

Only grudge I have against the Ford Diesel is the NOISE. Post re-map the car flies so very difficult to let go..

Happy Mile crunching on the Diesel Once Again.

Cheers
MKP

[vsrivatsa]

Thanks for the great report and details of your journey towards the Empress!

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

On a whim, and hoping that the all-new City equipped with the diesel heart would be a revolution of sorts (based on the current-gen Civic & C-Rider), I pre-booked it on November 7th without having any idea of what it might be like, in looks or in performance,

I did the same as well and had booked mine on 16th Nov. I had seen the rushes on the Ford Ecosport and wanted to get into the queue early even though I wasn't sure if I would stay in the queue and receive the car...in the end it all worked out fine.

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

While the 2014 City was fast garnering different opinions from different HPians, I was sure and positive that the 2014 City would proceed to become the newest bestseller in it's segment after it's launch, then settle down to a healthy monthly sales number of around 4500-5000 units later on.

I think Honda had starved the nation wanting a Diesel City. Now everyone is trying to grab one since its out. We are also hearing now that the prices are going to go up again from 01-Apr.

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Never considered the Vento because of Volkswagen's horrid after service sales reports, and the same went for the Rapid, although I was tempted for a wee bit when the new Rapid with projectors and steering-mounted controls was launched. But Skoda had enough horror stories around, specially on our forum, so left it out.

I totally agree with what you say above and I never considered these for the same reason. But I am surprised that the Vento is still #3 in the segment and sells quite a bit.

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Take away the features of the Verna and what you are left with is a pretty basic car, and not fitting it's 11.5 L price tag. The new cars come with stiffened suspension which takes care of it's handling, I was told.

Yes the 2014 Verna has indeed fixed these issues to a big extent and the same can be done to earlier Fluidics as well by just changing the coil springs with the newer springs. Check this post from Amyth for details on the same: URL

Congrats again and Keep Cruising

[neel911]

Avi,

First of all heartiest congratulations. Wishing you miles and miles of sheer driving pleasure with your Empress.

I just love reading your reports. They are so detailed and you feel as if you are right there.

The Brown is indeed looking very nice and I'm sure you'll love every bit of it through it's life

[S@ndy]

Congo Sir for owning the most-desirable C2 segment Sedan on sale right now!

Any car with a City badge is destined to be a best-seller, and the case is no different here. I had read your 'Silver Pegasus' and the Ritzy thread (sorry, forgot the name!) and your ownership reviews can set an example for all (including me). The only big downer in the new City is the high NVH level. Golden Brown shade does look unique and appealing! Haven't seen many in this shade yet. Rated the thread 5*.

But, as far as I remember, i had taken the TD of the City when t'was launched and I can't recall any misaligned or big panel gaps. As you mentioned, it could likely be a case of bigger tolerances allowed to cope up with the demand of this hot-selling item!

P.S. Mummy! I want a VX Petrol in black shade!

Keep revvin'
S@ndy

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

THE EMPRESS RIDES IN

Above all, it's a Honda. It's a City. It's an i-DTEC. 3 strong statements, two of which have proved their worth so as to be chiseled in stone for times immemorial.

As for the i-DTEC, let's see if it builds on it's predecessors' royal lineage and carves a niche for itself in the days to come.

Hearty congratulations Avi!

Good to see the review and finally it is out.

Hope this car is there for longer duration.

I was expecting LTD/Team-BHP keychain!

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Once the monthly numbers settle down in the future after this initial demand furore, we might see Citys with better fit and finish.

What are you trying to say here?

Does it mean that once the numbers settle and panel gaps etc are ironed out you'll exchange it for a better one is it?!

Congrats once again and happy mile munching.

Anurag.

[yash1229]

Post deleted by the Team-BHP Support : Please do NOT post messages that add little or no informational value to the thread. We need your co-operation to maintain the quality of this forum.

Please read our rules before proceeding any further. We request you to post ONLY when you have something substantial to add to a discussion.

[RavenAvi]

Thank you so much, guys.

Originally Posted by neel911

The Brown is indeed looking very nice and I'm sure you'll love every bit of it through it's life

Indeed. The Golden Brown shade is making the Empress stand out from every other car in her vicinity. It adds a lot of exclusiveness to her existing royalty. It is a dirt magnet though - I am having a fantastic full body exercise Jopasu-ing it every morning!

Originally Posted by S@ndy

Any car with a City badge is destined to be a best-seller, and the case is no different here. I had read your 'Silver Pegasus' and the Ritzy thread (sorry, forgot the name!) and your ownership reviews can set an example for all (including me). The only big downer in the new City is the high NVH level. Golden Brown shade does look unique and appealing! Haven't seen many in this shade yet. Rated the thread 5*.

Thank you so much, S@ndy my friend. My Ritzy was named Sylver, and I am glad my reports could help out others even a wee bit.

Yes, the Golden Brown Metallic is an exclusive shade for the 2014 City (the Brio, Amaze or CR-V don't have it). It resembles the Sparkling Brown offered in the previous gen City but Golden Brown is much darker.

The NVH levels have been taken care of, to some extent. The cabin insulation + the music system ensures that not much of it filters into the ears of the occupants. Like I said before, keep the engine under 2500 RPM in the top 2 gears and everything is almost butter smooth. At least compared to the Vento TDI, the City i-DTEC is quieter.

Originally Posted by S@ndy

But, as far as I remember, i had taken the TD of the City when t'was launched and I can't recall any misaligned or big panel gaps. As you mentioned, it could likely be a case of bigger tolerances allowed to cope up with the demand of this hot-selling item!

Production cars right now must be suffering from this, because of the high demand and hurried production schedules to meet them. As GTO pointed out, the Team-BHP review cars didn't have them either.

Originally Posted by S@ndy

P.S. Mummy! I want a VX Petrol in black shade!

Nag her continuously till she gets you one!

Originally Posted by a4anurag

Hope this car is there for longer duration.

I was expecting LTD/Team-BHP keychain!

It will, at least for the next 4 years till I pay off the loan. Planning for at least 9-10 years, hopefully without any major niggles or issues (touchwood!).

Team-BHP keychains on the way!

Originally Posted by a4anurag

What are you trying to say here?

Does it mean that once the numbers settle and panel gaps etc are ironed out you'll exchange it for a better one is it?!

Don't tempt me!!


A few more pictures of interest:

Delivery day pictures.









The entire staff of Shubh Honda. Key being presented to me by Mr. Harjinder Sodhi, Manager.




This service truck (worth 2 crores I am told!) can do every job for the minor/major service of all Honda cars, except wheel alignment.
Truck will be visiting my city every 2 months with technicians, so I don't have to drive 600 kms to and fro to avail Empress's services.



The armrest base is carpeted.



The map light at the front when lit up by pressing on it's side. Illumination is fairly bright.



The ORVMs only fold halfway through, not all the way.



A snippet from an ACI mag supplement, covering details of the Earth Dreams i-DTEC powertrain.







Official Honda accessories and their prices (added by me).







A de-badged City S MT i-DTEC inside the hangar, possibly used for TD purposes.



Wheel covers on the steel rims.



Interiors of the S MT i-DTEC.



The key provided with the S MT (and E MT as well).




And lastly, for my friend harry10, pics of Empress covered up. The green tinge is of the newly-built shed (exclusively for Empress) covered with green sheets. Apologies.



Space provided for the shark-fin antenna and ORVMs.



From the front. It's Tyvek, a really tight and snug fit at the bottom, and should last for some time.

[driving_smartly]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

This service truck (worth 2 crores I am told!) can do every job for the minor/major service of all Honda cars, except wheel alignment.
Truck will be visiting my city every 2 months with technicians, so I don't have to drive 600 kms to and fro to avail Empress's services.

@ RavenAvi, Heartiest congratulations !

I am Empress(impressed) with your review All the details are very well covered in your description.

Was this service truck option offered to you OR you requested for this facility ?

Is it managed by Honda themselves or its dealers initiative to provide the service ?

I am sure the more you drive the Empress the more you will love to cover those 600 kms

[harry10]

Thanks Avi.
2 cr for that truck sounds a lot!

After seeing the city cover guess i will have to buy it too. Looks good.
My drive in is quite similar as yours. Am thinking of getting the same green shade cover built. Any estimate of the cost involved?

[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by driving_smartly

Was this service truck option offered to you OR you requested for this facility ?

Is it managed by Honda themselves or its dealers initiative to provide the service ?

I am sure the more you drive the Empress the more you will love to cover those 600 kms

Thank you, my friend.

The service truck has been brought from the factory exclusively for this dealership and it's After Sales Service camps in places far away from them. For example, my city is 300 kms from the city which houses the dealership, so the service truck will do a round here every 2 months. They will inform me via telephone about the same and book the service appointment. It will be managed by the dealership, so it's the dealership's initiative to provide Honda servicings.

The whole state of Chhattisgarh has only ONE dealership (and 2 sub-dealers, of the same), so an initiative like this by them is very, very welcome and relieving indeed, specially for customers like me.

Of course, I always have the excuse to drive all the way to them, just to taste the joys of the i-DTEC and the pure driving bliss provided by the Empress.

Originally Posted by harry10

After seeing the city cover guess i will have to buy it too. Looks good.
My drive in is quite similar as yours. Am thinking of getting the same green shade cover built. Any estimate of the cost involved?

I would recommend the same as well. I don't think a better aftermarket offering is available right now.

Well, the final cost of the shed came to 35,000/-. Labour and materials were brought by the contractor himself. We just paid for it all. The finished job is superb.

[Seran Manian]

Thanks for the wonderful review. Very thoughtful of you to add the price of each accessory (Some of them look very costly though).

Wish you many more miles with your new buy. All the best.

[thebfg]

A very crisp and detailed review. the brown shade is similar to the one offered on VWs'. I think Honda is (one of, other is Ford) the only company which actually provides proper accessories which offer a little customisation. How about a performance upgrade by ECU remap and new exhaust? And why don't you purchase the same alloys you had on Pegasus

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by thebfg

why don't you purchase the same alloys you had on Pegasus

+1, The stock alloys spoil the look of the car along with that front chrome strip

Something should be done by Honda!

Anurag.

[//M]

Congratulations Avi. The Golden Brown metallic shade looks stunning. I recently saw a City in this shade and yes it looks terrific. Happy mile munching !!