We welcome 'Thalaivaa' to our family

Exterior Exterior is truly imposing, even after being in existence for over five years. Urban Titanium color is like a chameleon. Looks the true color in day light, appears silver in twilight, changes biege in darkness.

Interior (Features, Space & Comfort) For a top variant, absence of leather seats and automatic climate control are disappointing. Back seat comfort is best in class. The otherwise good driver comfort gets compromised because of bad A pillar angles and restricted access to clutch (because of a bulge in body strucutre near clutch pedal), 500 litres of bootspace is ample for long drives.

Engine Performance, Fuel Economy and Gearbox Gem of an engine. Do not feel any lag in any gear. Overtaking is breeze. Managed maximum mileage of 21 KMPL on highway drive without A/C. Average mileage of 11-14 KMPL in city driving conditions. Gear shift could had been more smoother.

Ride Quality & Handling Steering is very responsive and adjusts the toughness to speed of drive. Suspensions are too stiff for city driving comfort, however, gives stability on highway. Braking is on target and confidence infusing.

While ground clearance has been improved in a manner managing to clear speed breakers with upto 3 passengers, takes a hit when the vehicle is fully loaded.

Final Words Chose to buy City after a tough assessment vis a vis Verna. Main reason being the discounts offered on City (being phased out end of this year), which made the price lower than Verna for a comparable variant. Overall, happy with the car.

Areas of improvement Need to have more features, atleast in the top variant. Honda engineers can explore the option of improving A pillar angle, ground clearance, moving from skinny to broader tyres in the new version planned for launch in 2014.

Imposing exteriors, gem of an engine, back seat comfortA pillar obstructing driver visibility, clutch access constrained by a bulge in body structure