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November 2023 - Honda City Petrol, Hybrid Petrol Variants Explained - Which One To Buy?

In this variant explained article, you'll find out which variant of the Honda City petrol or hybrid you should buy based on the ex-showroom prices, variant-wise features and value for money. Here we compare and objectively analyse the 2023 City's petrol variants and the features to figure out which variant is worth buying for a good value for money and ownership experience. Then we will compare the engine specs, dimensions and mileage of the Honda City with its competitors and other petrol-powered C-segment sedans like Maruti Suzuki Ciaz, Skoda Slavia, Volkswagen Virtus and Hyundai Verna.

Honda City Petrol, Hybrid Variants Explained

Updated: This update of the Honda City petrol variants explained article includes the latest November 2023 prices of the 5th gen Honda City facelift. This article also includes the City’s dimension comparison with the next-gen Verna 2023.

Also Read: 2023 Kia Seltos Variants Explained - Which One To Buy?

Maruti Grand Vitara Petrol Variants Explained - Which One To Buy?

2023 Hyundai Verna Petrol Variants Explained - Which One To Buy?

What Are The Pros And Cons Of Honda City Petrol?

The pros or advantages of Honda City petrol are:

  • ADAS features available in V variant with manual as well as automatic transmission
  • 3 engine-transmission combinations to choose from: petrol-manual, petrol-automatic and hybrid petrol-automatic
  • Very well-equipped V variant offers phenomenal value for money and should suffice for most sedan buyers
  • Good number of standard safety features (ESP, TC, HSA, 4 airbags, projector headlamps, rear defogger, rear camera, TPMS, 5x 3-point seatbelts)
  • The highly-fuel efficient hybrid promises 27.13kmpl along with class-leading torque output from near-zero RPMs

The Honda City petrol has the following shortcomings or problems:

  • Hybrid petrol engine is obscenely expensive (with current fuel prices in Delhi and official mileage figures, it’ll take you more than 2,00,000km to recover the higher upfront cost for the hybrid powertrain — even after factoring in the perceived value of the features and better performance)
  • 185-section tyres even in the top variants are too narrow for a car of this size and price; even the Baleno has wider tyres
  • No turbo petrol engine option

What Is The Price Of Honda City Petrol Variants?

The 5th gen Honda City is available in 4 variants - SV, V, VX and ZX. All 4 variants are available with the petrol-manual powertrain while the higher 3 also get the option of CVT automatic transmission for an additional Rs. 1.25 lakh. The petrol-manual variants cost between Rs. 11.63 lakh and Rs. 14.86 lakh (ex-showroom). The City petrol-automatic variants start from Rs. 13.76 lakh and top out at Rs. 16.11 lakh.

The mid-spec V and the City’s top model also get the option of hybrid powertrain with automatic transmission. The City V hybrid and ZX hybrid cost Rs. 18.89 lakh and Rs. 20.39 lakh, respectively. Compared to the petrol-automatic variants, the respective hybrid options have a Rs. 5.13 lakh and Rs. 4.28 lakh higher ex-showroom price.

HONDA CITY PETROL | PRICES

EX-SHOWROOM | NOVEMBER 2023

Variant

Petrol-Manual

Difference

Petrol-Auto

Difference

Hybrid Petrol

SV

Rs. 11,62,900

-

-

-

-

V

Rs. 12,50,900

Rs. 1,25,000

Rs. 13,75,900

Rs. 5,13,100

Rs. 18,89,000

VX

Rs. 13,62,900

Rs. 1,25,000

Rs. 14,87,900

-

-

ZX

Rs. 14,85,900

Rs. 1,25,000

Rs. 16,10,900

Rs. 4,28,100

Rs. 20,39,000

Honda City Petrol SV - Base Model Standard Features

The base SV variant of the 5th gen Honda City costs Rs. 11.63 lakh and it’s only available with the manual transmission. The notable standard features of the 5th-gen City petrol are:

HONDA CITY SV

BASE MODEL STANDARD FEATURES

Safety

Style & Entertainment

Functional

Std. safety features

8-inch touchscreen

3x 12V power sockets

Traction control

Wired Android Auto

2x USB ports

Electronic stability control (ESC)

Wired Apple Carplay

Power mirrors with power folding

Hill start assist (HSA)

Bluetooth, USB

4x door pockets

Tyre pressure sensors

Steering-mounted controls

Tilt and telescopic steering

Rear camera

4x speakers

Front armrest

Day/night inside mirror

Shark fin antenna

Rear armrest

Auto door lock/unlock

Fabric upholstery

Boot lamp

Front seatbelt pretensioner, load limiter

Body-coloured bumpers, door handles

Keyless entry with push-button start/stop

Rear defogger

LED Tail lamps

2x vanity mirrors

5x 3-point seatbelts

LED DRLs

Air purifier

2x front side thorax airbags

Body-coloured outside mirrors

Follow-me-home headlamps

Halogen projector headlamps

15-inch steel wheels with wheel covers

Auto AC with rear AC vents

   

Height-adjustable driver seat

The only features you may miss in this variant are:

  • Alloy wheels
  • Cruise control
  • Wireless phone connectivity
  • Fog lamps

As you can see, the base variant of the City is very well equipped and gets all of the must-have features. For most buyers, this variant will suffice and will offer a decent ownership experience. It’s especially suitable for budget buyers who are absolutely against having ADAS features. For most buyers, we’ll strongly recommend upgrading to the higher V variant, which offers better value for money even if you exclude the ADAS features. With the perceived value of the ADAS factored in, the higher V variant offers bonkers value for money.

Honda City Petrol SV vs V Variant - Price, Feature Comparison

The V variant of the new Honda City is available with all 3 powertrain options. With the petrol-manual, it costs Rs. 12.51 lakh, which is Rs. 88,000 more than the base variant. For an additional Rs. 1.25 lakh, you can buy the petrol-automatic as it costs Rs. 13.76 lakh (ex-showroom). The V variant is also available with the hybrid powertrain for an additional Rs. 5.13 lakh. While the price jump for the hybrid powertrain may seem too high at first glance, it’s worth noting that it gets some exclusive additional features.

HONDA CITY SV vs V | PRICE COMPARISON

 

SV

Difference

V

Petrol-Manual

Rs. 11,62,900

Rs. 88,000

Rs. 12,50,900

Difference

-

 

Rs. 1,25,000

Petrol-Automatic

-

-

Rs. 13,75,900

Difference

-

 

Rs. 5,13,100

Petrol-Hybrid

-

-

Rs. 18,89,000

For the additional sum, you get the following notable features over the City base model:

HONDA CITY V

FEATURES OVER SV

ADAS & Safety

Style & Entertainment

Functional

Auto emergency braking

Telematics

Auto headlamps

Adaptive cruise control

Wireless Apple Carplay

Walk-away auto door lock

Lane departure warning

Wireless Android Auto

Paddle shifters (CVT only)

Lane keep assist

Alexa & Google voice commands

Mud flaps

Auto high beam

15-inch machined alloy wheels

 

Fog lamps

Chrome interior door handles and accents

 

The City hybrid adds the following notable features over the City V petrol:

HONDA CITY V HYBRID

FEATURES OVER V PETROL

Others

Style

Rear disc brakes

Larger 16-inch alloy wheels

Electronic parking brakes

Different front grille

Auto hold

Sportier bumper detailing

LED fog lamps

Rear spoiler

Stop-and-go with adaptive cruise control

7-inch full-colour LCD instrument cluster

Wireless phone charger

 

For petrol-manual and petrol-automatic buyers, the City V variant is the best option. It offers the best value for money and doesn’t miss out on any must-have feature we expect from a car at this price. Even if you don’t want the ADAS features, the other features alone justify the upgrade to the V trim over the SV.

If you are absolutely interested in the City hybrid, then it’s worth noting that even after factoring in the cost of the additional features over the City petrol-automatic and the value of better performance, the City hybrid only justifies about Rs. 1.20 lakh worth of price jump. So, you have to recover almost Rs. 4.0 lakh from the lower fuel costs.

With the official mileage figures and fuel cost in Delhi, you can expect to recover this in about 2.20 lakh kilometres. Therefore, we’ll not recommend buying the City hybrid just for the better fuel efficiency. You can consider this upgrade for the features or performance, but know that this is not a value for money upgrade at all.

Honda City Petrol V vs VX Variant - Price, Feature Comparison

The Honda City VX petrol costs Rs. 13.63 lakh (manual transmission) and Rs. 14.88 lakh (automatic). These prices are Rs. 1.12 lakh higher than the V variant.

HONDA CITY V vs VX | PRICE COMPARISON

 

V

Difference

VX

Petrol-Manual

Rs. 12,50,900

Rs. 1,12,000

Rs. 13,62,900

Difference

Rs. 1,25,000

 

Rs. 1,25,000

Petrol-Automatic

Rs. 13,75,900

Rs. 1,12,000

Rs. 14,87,900

Difference

Rs. 5,13,100

 

-

Petrol-Hybrid

Rs. 18,89,000

-

-

For this price gap, this variant adds the following notable features:

HONDA CITY VX

FEATURES OVER V

Safety

Functional

Style

2x curtain airbags

Wireless phone charger

Sunroof

Blind spot camera

Rear cabin lights

Piano black interior accents

For the additional safety and style features, you can upgrade to the VX variant. Otherwise, the V variant is satisfactorily loaded with features and offers far better value than the VX variant.

Honda City Petrol VX vs ZX Variant - Price, Feature Comparison

The Honda City ZX petrol costs Rs. 14.86 lakh with the manual and Rs. 16.11 lakh with the automatic transmission. These prices are Rs. 1.23 lakh higher than the VX variant. The City ZX is also available with the hybrid powertrain with the automatic transmission. It’s almost Rs. 4.28 lakh more expensive than the ZX normal petrol-automatic.

HONDA CITY VX vs ZX | PRICE COMPARISON

 

VX

Difference

ZX

Petrol-Manual

Rs. 13,62,900

Rs. 1,23,000

Rs. 14,85,900

Difference

Rs. 1,25,000

 

Rs. 1,25,000

Petrol-Automatic

Rs. 14,87,900

Rs. 1,23,000

Rs. 16,10,900

Difference

-

 

Rs. 4,28,100

Petrol-Hybrid

-

-

Rs. 20,39,000

The ZX variant adds the following features over the lower VX variant:

HONDA CITY ZX

FEATURES OVER VX

Style

Others

Different front grille design

Leather upholstery

Auto-dimming inside mirror

Sporty fog lamp detailing

Leather gear lever trim

4x tweeters

Larger 16-inch alloy wheels (normal petrol also)

Leather-wrapped steering wheel

All windows one-touch up/down

Rear spoiler

Soft-touch detailing

Rear windshield curtain

Different bumpers design

Ambient lighting

LED headlamps

Chrome outside door handles

LED cabin lights

Auto wipers

7-inch full-colour LCD instrument cluster (normal petrol also)

Wooden dashboard detailing

LED fog lamps (normal petrol also)

   

Auto-folding outside mirrors

The ZX variant mostly adds good-to-have features and doesn’t offer better value than the lower VX variant either. Financially, it doesn’t make sense to upgrade to this variant, but you can consider this jump if you value these features. Thanks to the significant value boost from the V variant’s ADAS features, both higher trims justify the upgrade over the base model of the City.

Which Variant Of The Honda City Petrol Should You Buy?

The base SV variant offers a balanced set of features and covers the basics quite well. However, we’ll highly recommend upgrading to the V variant as it offers phenomenal value for money because of the ADAS features. Even if you exclude the ADAS features of the V variant, it still justifies the upgrade cost. So, we’ll strongly recommend the upgrade to the V variant for all City petrol-manual and automatic buyers. It also wins our top recommendation among all variants of the new Honda City.

From there, the VX variant is worth considering for the safety and style upgrades but the ZX variant doesn’t feel like a compelling upgrade at all.

HONDA CITY PETROL | BUYING RECOMMENDATION

Variant

VFM %

Petrol-Manual

Petrol-Auto

Recommendation

SV

100%

Rs. 11,62,900

-

Gets most must-have features. Not value for money. Upgrade to V recommended.

V

218%

Rs. 12,50,900

Rs. 13,75,900

Top recommended

VX

134%

Rs. 13,62,900

Rs. 14,87,900

Can upgrade for safety & good-to-have features

ZX

113%

Rs. 14,85,900

Rs. 16,10,900

Not a compelling upgrade

Because of the higher upfront cost of the hybrid powertrain, we’ll not recommend buyers to consider this variant for its better fuel efficiency alone. With the official mileage figures and fuel prices in Delhi, you should expect to recover the higher upfront cost in about 2.10 - 2.30 lakh kilometres. This is too high to even consider buying the City hybrid. Mind you, this is after factoring in the performance and additional features you get with the hybrid powertrain.

So, you should buy the City hybrid knowing well in advance that you can’t expect to save money with this powertrain. If you have made up your mind about buying the City hybrid, then the V variant is a better choice than the City ZX.

HONDA CITY HYBRID-PETROL | BUYING RECOMMENDATION

Variant

VFM %

Hybrid Prices

Recommendation

V

100%

Rs. 18,89,000

Top recommended

ZX

111%

Rs. 20,39,000

Can upgrade for the added features

What Are The Engine Specifications Of The Honda City Petrol?

The Honda City’s normal petrol engine is better than the older City’s engine. It makes a littler better power and it delivers its peak torque a littler sooner in the RPM range. The 5th gen City also gets a 6-speed manual transmission while the older City had a 5-speed transmission. The mileage figures also show a marginal improvement over the older City.

However, neither the mileage figures nor the torque output of the new City are setting any benchmarks in the segment. Even the Virtus and Slavia 1.0L turbo petrol engine has a higher torque output than the City’s 1.5L normal petrol engine. Moreover, it’s available at a much lower RPM and for most of the rev band. Thus, the Virtus and Slavia with their base turbo petrol engines will offer better drivability than the City petrol along with better fuel efficiency.

Only the hybrid petrol engine of the City offers notable advantages over its rivals. It has a segment-best 253Nm of peak torque coming in early at near-zero RPMs. While the Verna also has similar torque output, its torque comes at a slightly higher RPMs. The City hybrid also offers a phenomenal mileage figure of 27.13kmpl. But, it doesn’t justify the cost of upgrading over the City with the normal petrol-automatic powertrain.

HONDA CITY 5TH GEN VS RIVALS

PETROL ENGINE SPECS COMPARISON

 

New City

City Hybrid

New Verna

Ciaz

Virtus/Slavia

Engine

1.5L Normal

1.5L Hybrid

1.5L Normal

1.5L Turbo

1.5L Mild Hybrid

1.0L Turbo

1.5L Turbo

Displacement

1498cc

1498cc

1497cc

1482cc

1462cc

999cc

1498cc

Cylinder

4

4

4

4

4

3

4

Power

121PS @ 6600rpm

126PS

115PS @ 6000rpm

160PS @ 5500rpm

105PS @ 6000rpm

115PS @ 5000rpm

150PS @ 5000rpm

Peak Torque

145Nm @ 4300rpm

253Nm @ ~0 - 3000rpm

144Nm @ 4500rpm

253Nm @ 1500 - 3500rpm

138Nm @ 4400rpm

178Nm @ 1750 - 4500rpm

250Nm @ 1600 - 3500rpm

Manual 

6MT

-

6MT

6MT

5MT

6MT

6MT

Manual FE

17.8kmpl

-

18.60kmpl

20.0kmpl

20.65kmpl

20.08kmpl/

20.32kmpl

18.88kmpl/

19.0kmpl

Auto 

CVT

1-speed

CVT

7DCT

4TC

6TC

7DCT

Auto FE

18.4kmpl

27.13kmpl

19.60kmpl

20.60kmpl

20.04kmpl

18.45kmpl/

18.73kmpl

19.62kmpl/

19.36kmpl

*Estimated

You can use our Fuel Cost Calculator to see how much any petrol, diesel or CNG car will cost to run based on the latest fuel price in your city.

V3Cars Fuel Cost Calculator

What Are The Dimensions Of The Honda City?

In terms of dimensions, the new City was the first car with a length of more than 4.5 metres. But now, almost all C-segment sedans measure more than 4.5m. Only the Ciaz is a shade under 4500mm. In this segment, the new Verna is the widest while the Virtus is the longest. The other notable thing about the Slavia and Virtus is their SUV-like ground clearance, which makes them very practical for Indian road conditions. This also eliminates the need to buy a tall SUV and makes them great cross country touring cars.

The thing that hurts the City the most is its tyre size. It has the narrowest tyres in the segment. Even its top variant offers 185-section tyres when the Baleno has wider tyres despite belonging to a lower segment.

HONDA CITY VS COMPETITION

DIMENSION COMPARISON

 

City

New Verna

Slavia

Virtus

Ciaz

Length

4574 - 4583mm

4535mm

4541mm

4561mm

4490mm

Width

1748mm

1765mm

1752mm

1752mm

1730mm

Height

1489mm

1475mm

1507mm

1507mm

1485mm

Wheelbase

2600mm

2670mm

2651mm

2651mm

2650mm

Ground Clearance

165mm*

165mm^

179mm

179mm

170mm

Boot Space

506L (306L Hybrid)

528L

521L

521L

510L

Fuel Tank

40L

45L

45L

45L

43L

Tyre Size (Base)

185/60 R15

185/65 R15

195/65 R15

205/55 R16

185/65 R15 

Tyre Size (Top)

185/55 R16

205/55 R16

205/55 R16

205/55 R16

195/55 R16

*Estimated

Find out how you can get the best mileage or fuel efficiency from your car:

10 Tips To Get Better Mileage From Your Petrol, Diesel Or CNG Car

What Are The Colour Options Of The Honda City Petrol?

The 2023 City petrol is available in the following 6 colours:

  • White (+Rs. 8,000)
  • Blue (+Rs. 8,000)
  • Red
  • Brown
  • Grey
  • Silver

Note: Here is a quick look at our length-based segmentation of cars to give you an idea of how we are classifying cars based on their size.

CLASSIFICATION OF CARS

UPDATED: MARCH 2023

SEGMENT

LENGTH

BODY STYLES

EXAMPLE

A Segment

< 3699mm

Hatchback

Alto, Alto K10, Celerio

SUV (Micro)

Exception: Kwid

S-Presso

       

B1 Segment

3700 - 3850mm

Hatchback

Grand i10 Nios, Swift, Tiago

SUV (Mini)

Punch, Ignis, Tiago NRG

       

B2 Segment

3850 - 3999mm

Hatchback

Altroz, Baleno, i20

Sedan

Dzire, Amaze, Aura

MPV

Triber

SUV (Sub-Compact)

Brezza, Nexon, Venue, Magnite, Fronx, C3, Kiger, Fronx, Sonet, XUV300

Off-Road

Thar, Jimny

       

C1 Segment

4000 - 4399mm

SUV (Compact)

Kushaq, Creta, Seltos, Grand Vitara, XUV400, Hyryder, Taigun, XUV400

MPV

Ertiga

       

C2 Segment

4400 - 4599mm

Sedan

City, Verna, Ciaz, Slavia, Virtus

SUV (Mid-size)

Alcazar, Scorpio Classic

MPV

Carens, XL6

       

D1 Segment

4600 - 4799mm

SUV (Large)

Harrier, XUV700, Innova Hycross, Hector, Safari, Scorpio N, Ioniq 5, Kodiaq

Sedan

Octavia

MPV

Innova Crysta

       

D2 Segment

> 4800mm

SUV (Full-size)

Exception: Fortuner (5mm less)

Gloster

MPV

Carnival

Sedan

Superb, Camry

Also Read: Car Segments Explained - With Body Styles And Examples

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mahesh Yadav

Mahesh is a fan of compact, quirky and underrated vehicles that punch above their weight. Multix, Nano and Navi are his favorites.

4 Comments

  1. A Ajay says:
    March 15 2023 11:29:29

    Great article with an in-depth explanation. Best website to clear my doubts.

  2. N Nagesh says:
    May 02 2023 04:30:42

    Hi, this report is quite well done. Analysis is fairly in depth. One missing aspect is sunroof availability on models. In India, it's quite a nuisance though. Based on the length of new Honda City it should be in D1 segment! Please keep up the good work!

  3. N Nagesh says:
    May 02 2023 04:30:46

    Hi, this report is quite well done. Analysis is fairly in depth. One missing aspect is sunroof availability on models. In India, it's quite a nuisance though. Based on the length of new Honda City it should be in D1 segment! Please keep up the good work!

  4. M Malkam Mogal says:
    November 29 2023 14:26:23

    Which is safer for a child in child seat? V with 4 airbags but no suroof or vx with 6 airbags and sunroof. Isn't sunroof an active safety hazard?

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