My 5th-gen Honda City: 2-yr update including fuel efficiency & comfort

In these 20,000 km, I did not feel even once that I should have purchased a midsize "SUV".

BHPian divirokr recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Reflecting on 2 years and 20,000 kilometres with my Honda City

Introduction

My yearly mileage continues to be consistent at approximately 10,000 kms a year as I continue working from home majorly. The first year was a hassle-free experience and things continue to be the same in the second year with a few niggles which I will talk about in the subsequent sections.

Performance Evolution

My love affair with this 1.5 iVTEC continues and every month or so I make sure to rev it to 7000 rpm whenever I am feeling meh. It's an instant therapy shooting past all the other vehicles as the traffic light turns green with a sports car-style grunt.

Fuel Efficiency

I have noticed 3 levels of fuel economy.

• Short drives nearby which include a 150-second red light and notorious E-rickshaws every now and then where the mileage is close to 12-13 kmpl (with/without AC).
• Office drives from Ghaziabad to Gurgaon, which are ~50 kms one side and include nice open stretches where the mileage depends on the time of taking the route. In the early morning hours, I have managed 15-16 kmpl with less traffic and 14 kmpl when there is traffic in a few stretches.
• Intercity highway / expressway drives, where I have clocked 20+ kmpl with intermittent AC use maintaining speeds of 90-100 kmph. I noticed a significant improvement post 2nd-year service as before that the best mileage I had been able to manage on a similar highway was under 20 kmpl. Driving on the hills does impact the mileage and in my last trip from Ghaziabad to Bhowali (Uttarakhand), I clocked 17.5 kmpl in the round trip (500 kms plain and 60 kms hills)

Overall, between 10,000 to 20,000 kms, the mileage was ~14-15 kmpl (odometer showed 15.2 and I have noticed the actual mileage is lesser by ~0.5 kmpl)

In terms of drivability, it continues to be comfortable and is surely ageing like a fine wine so far.

Durability and Maintenance

While there haven't been any major issues in the car, the first issue I faced in the City was in the rear parking sensor which stopped working and would just keep on beeping irrespective of the distance. This was solved in the second year service free of cost.

Another issue was with the co-pilot door handle where many co-passengers were struggling to open the door as the door handle seemed to not work smoothly. I used some WD-40 to lubricate the handle which seems to have fixed the issue.

Sometimes, the front power window wouldn't go up automatically, in fact, it abruptly goes down again and I have to pull the button firmly until the window is completely up. This is also something which does not happen all the time but I thought is worth mentioning.

The other issue which I have recently noticed is a mild clicking noise from the steering while turning it. I have heard from other City owners about this issue but since it's very faint and does not come all the time, it does not bother me as of now but I hope it's not something which turns into a bigger issue.

Lastly, I scraped the front side part of the bumper on a concrete pillar while taking the car out of a tight parking which I got corrected from a good quality local paint shop as I don't feel like spending almost twice the amount from Honda for a not so major paint job.

Apart from that, I gave the car the annual detailing job it deserves and the shine made me fall in love with it all over again. It is so difficult to maintain a dark color but every time it comes out of a car wash, it looks brand new!

Look at the difference between left vs right in the bonnet

Good as new

Interior and overall cabin comfort

The dashboard looks and feels good as new although the beige upholstery gets dirty especially the door panels where power window buttons are located.

The suspension works like a charm although NVH levels continue to be average as the road noise at higher speeds is there but this has been the case since the beginning.

I switched to Android from iOS and am happy to report that Android Auto works equally well in the infotainment system.

Few more random photo shots

Rear profile which I love the most

Daring to be a sedan in the sea SUVs

Trying to capture an artistic shot

Closing Thoughts

Overall, I am happy with the car and not once, felt that I should have purchased a midsize "SUV" instead. The combination of power and comfort make me forget all those small issues I encountered. I have also driven the Honda Elevate where I could sense the Honda City DNA in the drivability but the overall comfort of a sedan is unmatched. Sad to see the numbers dropping down for the City after the launch of the Elevate.

I also drove the VW Virtus 1.0 Turbo which was exciting once the turbo kicked in but I guess I am a sucker for naturally aspirated engines where there is no turbo lag and power delivery is linear before iVTEC kicks in yo.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.