What was Honda Thinking?????

Have been doing 9 months of research and getting opinions from people on various mid-segment cars. Went last week for a test drive of the cars I shortlisted, among which was the Honda City which I had almost made up my mind to buy. Was absolutely shocked by what I saw. The car no doubt looks good and drives well but everything else about the car totally sucked.

Firstly, I was speechless at the quality of the interiors and plastics. It made the interiors of my Accent look like a Mercedes. The central dashboard and console where the music system is housed is a combination of an ugly silver and black which made it look really cheap. The cup holders, rear dashboard and other plastics were really cheap.

Secondly, I was shocked that a car of this value did not have a CD player. When I asked the dealer, he told me that CD players will be extinct in 2 years. I asked him why Jazz and Civic offer CD players if this is the case, to which he had no answer.

Thirdly, we hit quite a few bumps along the way (I live in Bangalore where speed bumps outnumber lampposts). It was not a good feeling at all as every time you hit one your heart skips a beat.

Fourthly, the tyres. With such a huge wheelbase, you would expect at least 195 R15 tyres but the tyres offered are 175 R15 which is undersized for this car.

The dealer had no answer to my questions and all he kept harping on were the looks of the car and how it drives. But for 10+ lakhs on road, I would want something that gives me that all important 'Feel Good Factor'. The impressive exteriors of the car are for people on the outside to admire. The high power (118 ps) can only be used on highways as in Bangalore traffic, it is difficult to do even 30 km/hr consistently. When I drive, I want to feel the overall product convenience which to me is a combination of the driving pleasure, mileage, interior features, additional features such as tyres, electrically adjustable mirrors, etc. The Fiat Linea and the new SX4 score much higher overall.