Honda City celebrates 20 years in India

Honda Cars India Ltd. is celebrating 20 years of the Honda City in India. The model was first launched back in 1998. Now in its fourth generation, the City is one of the longest running models in the Indian market and amounts to 25% of the car's current worldwide sales. The Honda City was developed as an Asia-specific model but went on to be sold in over 60 countries clocking cumulative sales of 36 lakh units.

Initially in 1998, Honda offered the City with the choice of two petrol engines - a 1.3-litre and a 1.5-litre. The 1.5-litre VTEC was introduced in the year 2000 (59,378 units sold). The second generation (1,77,742 units sold) arrived in 2003 with a 1.5-litre i-DSI engine. Two years later, the City ZX was launched with updated looks and a 1.5-litre VTEC engine. The third generation (1,92,939 units sold) arrived in 2008, which had safety equipment like ABS and airbags as standard. In 2012, Honda introduced a CNG ready version. In 2013, the fourth generation City (2,76,095 units sold) made its global debut in India and went on sale in 2014. This time Honda introduced a 1.5-litre i-DTEC diesel engine alongside the 1.5-litre i-VTEC petrol. A new-generation CVT was also launched. 

Furthermore, according to figures shared by Honda, the City has gradually gained popularity in Tier 3 cities. From 2014 onwards, Tier 3 cities contributed to 19% of its total sales, while Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities amounted to 53% and 28% respectively. The Tier 3 cities accounted for 2% and 7% in case of the second and third-generation respectively. The strong penetration of the 4th-gen Honda City in Tier 3 markets can be attributed to dealer expansion and the availability of a diesel variant. Currently, there are 349 dealerships spread across 234 cities, up from 12 dealers in 11 cities back in 1998.

According to past data, Tier 1 cities amounted to 68%, 70% and 67%, while Tier 2 cities registered 32%, 28% and 26% of the total sales during the first, second and third-generation Honda City respectively.