Disappointed of my new Honda City

[arslansarwar]

Hi everyone, here’s my review after my 3 months usage of honda city 1.3 MT.
It’s been my first car so my review will be more focused towards the comfort, driving pleasure and the fuel economy, instead of the technicalities. I’m not here to offend any Honda lover. Please take it as a review.

For me, it was really hard to choose a car in a budget of 2 million. A new car was always my preferred choice so i went for the honda city. I was more than happy to buy a brand new car, who won’t btw?
The first and the foremost thing, the point where i felt disappointed was the fuel economy. The meter reading is totally a SCAM. The car shows something about 16 and may be 17 on a light foot. But actually it is no more than 13.3 km/l with light foot without AC. It has consumed a gas of worth 70,000 and is driven 9000 KMs.
The point where i got disappointed was that i missed a prius 2012 model in immaculate condition in the same price. And could have bought an Aqua as well. Bigger engine, hybrid with airbags and an automatic transmission makes them way ahead.
Comfort is a BIG NO in a honda city. It is uncomfortable enough to make me think if i want to have a drive or not. And believe me, braking power of honda is really overrated. You may think I’m exaggerating things but that’s really what i feel.
I’M NEVER EVER GOING TO THINK ABOUT THE RESALE OF MY NEXT CAR.
The car is really noisy at 120 on motorway. I have to play music to avoid the noise .
As it was my first car, so i had no idea which car do i really need. Like if i need comfort, resale, a good looking sedan or a fuel efficient vehicle.
But now my focus is comfort and the fuel because i drive a quite a bit.
Any suggestions for my next purchase will be highly appreciated.
My preferred choise is a Prius 2011 or 2012. Expert suggestions will be great. Thank you.

Update
After driving the car for 15000 KMs, now my views are somehow different.
Fuel average has increased to 530km/tank (32 litres) in city with AC on light foot. (RPM below 2000 all the time)
The car is still on stock tyres. Car seems comfortable now and i think it’s because I’ve got used to it.
If you are looking for leather/Raxine covers for your seats, make sure they support your back well.
The car has some noise coming from right door, i think some nut is loose or something.
I drove a vitz yesterday and found out that i have a way better car compare to the drive. Anyhow I’m planning to buy another vehicle too, and this time it will be an altis 1.6.
I’ll post a review about Altis too.

[nfssaad]

the whole point of a brand new car is factory support.

you will not need much maintenance apart from routine.

with prius, aqua etc, there is no factory support. parts are either through scrap market or dubai imports, spares are expensive, not readily available.

if you are a technical person, handy with maintaining car your self, its not really an issue with older cars.

other wise, stick to the city. mileage will improve with time, use fully synthetic oils.

for comfort, nothing you can do.

[nab.ahm09]

Its a sedan and still if its giving 13 then its fine. If u compare it with others u wont get even that avg.
Apart from that regarding comfort 100 percent agreed its not comfortable suspension is v hard u feel every pothole although brakes are alright.
Well not sure about prius never drove it but regarding aqua if u can compromise on boot and rear seats leg space then aqua is perfect one for u. Avg nd cmfort is great the only drawback is low ground clearance and rear seats space issue.

[F1]

the main nightmare for imported cars is their maintenance and their spares cost that balances out somewhere as compared to local .

[yasirkhanpk]

In sedan segment it has decent average. I bought brand new in 2011 and have driven it for 100k in almost 7 years. It has never gone to workshop for any repair. The only thing I have done in last many years is maintenance i.e oils, different filters plugs etc.
I have driven it from Karachi to Kunjerab and it never occurred to me that it will malfunction anywhere. The only positive about local cars is locally available spares and maintenance. It is not a comfortable car at all. Braking is good enough if it is driven like a family car.
I upgraded to Altis 1.6 and it is a much comfortable car but city is still cheaper by more than 500k.

Personally I am afraid of visiting scrapyards in case of any accident so my choice is locally manufactured cars at the moment, otherwise there is no doubt they are better built.

[Panther]

I have a Honda City 1.3 AT. By June 2019 it will be 9 years of ownership. I find it's seats and drive comfort up to the mark with no complaints at all. Incidently it came fitted with Goodyear tires at delivery and has black interior with Thai cloth seats that are very comfortable. I have no problem with the suspension even.
It seems that after launch in early 2009, the company used very less local parts and hence better quality and comfort.
I am getting around 12-13kmpl in city and around 16kmpl on motorway. I have counter checked through manual calculations as well. To me it's a good car and perhaps you had very high expectations.

[gilgiti]

Get a JDM with a varifiable auction sheet. Local cars are shit.

[Nabeel_Ali]

City indeed is a horrible and outdated car.
But only get a JDM with verified auction sheet or in case a fresh import.
Anything that is used here either PKDM or JDM is a disaster.

[SALAR_R]

Apart from other issues, comfort level can be very much improved by just replacing the factory fitted tyres with some branded tyres.Experienced this first hand , we have replaced the factory fitted tyres after first 60k kms and the difference is remarkable.The noise at 120 km/h is gone , and also the ride has become comfortable.Try changing the tyres to get a little satisfaction.

[darthvader]

I was more than happy to buy a brand new car, who won’t btw?

Who won't? Anyone who wants a good experience. For 2 million you could have gotten an extremely clean 9th generation Civic, which beats the shit out of the City in every way.

But hey, I hope the new 'car smell' and plastic sheets on the seats are worth it. Even that won't last more than a week.

[arslansarwar]

Well that’s true. I actually don’t like used cars because I’m a sort of “Wehmi” banda. Why would i buy a tention for me for 2 millions when i know myself. That’s the reason i went for a new one.
I’d also looked for a 9th gen civic but the cars i saw were not upto my expectations.
B2b geniun in ads and when i went to see them, they were crap .
I think my expectations from a city were too high. But I’ve started developing pain in my back.

[nab.ahm09]

well that point is outdated now as well. When the price of side mirror of wagonR is 15k which is not even retractable then it does not balance out at all. Maintenance of local after every 5k is around 5-7k so i dont find any advantage over imported ones regarding price but yes in case of parts availability from brand itself.

[israrmuaziz]

I can confirm this statement. My 1.3 MT will turn 10 years old this June and it still feels a lot better and is somehow more comfortable than the new aspire PT we have. The black interior ones somehow have better seats, probably Thai imported ones for the first batch.

[pwuser154691780142]

Oh man...change the tyres...get those yokohamas...the ride will get beautiful after that....I have a city with yokohamas and the ride is buttery smooth....it goes to 160 without a sound...I can make a video to show you...

[mehran]

A sedan which does 13 km/l in the city is fine. On the long run it will give you 16+. No doubt used JDM cars are superior but I don't want to be the person posting on pakwheels about undecipherable warning signs lighting up on the dash or asking here about parts availability. For peace of mind sometimes a few things have to be overlooked. Drive and enjoy your new car.

[hayatumer82]

going by what you said....i have a strong feeling that you are running those eurostars....just get rid of them man....take them out and burn them to show respect to our national flag....and the kind of shit it produces....get those yokohamas or continentals and you will feel the difference...

[Panther]

True, The seats are definitely not local and suspension is also good. I have not found any quality issue in last 9 years. Drives perfectly till date and I find no reason to replace it.

[zee5han]

The thing is if you are not satisfied go ahead and sell it , Buy an Aqua , you can easily get a very clean one for 20 (the 2015 single projector headlights FL) its a wonderful car , A friend bought one and he couldn't be more happy, on 30L he almost gets 600km within city.
2 bad points about aqua, the rear seats are a bit congested as per my observation, Ground Clerence is an issue if you have 2 people in the back, depends on where you drive tho.

[arslansarwar]

Are you sure the tyres can be a reason? Yes the vehicle is still on stock tyres. Eurostar 165/75.

[pwuser150303125737]

Major reason I installed michellin suspensions softens and road noise ends