2020 Honda City ZX: Is The Top Variant Worth The Premium?

We see if the full bells and whistles of the new City offers enough value to match its price

The fifth-gen Honda City is meant to be better at being a sedan, i.e., finding the balance of the ingredients that define its segment - premium feel, sportiness, modern technology and practicality. So, Honda made the City bigger, packed it with updated petrol and diesel engines, redesigned the cabin and sprinkled it with tech. It is offered in three variants with a well-equipped entry model. But is the top-spec City with the full bells and whistles worth the price? Or would you be content with a lower variant too? Let’s find out.

Before we dive into the variants, here’s a quick look at the powertrain specifications of the new Honda City:

Honda’s three variants for the fifth-gen City are:

V - Feature packed for a base variant

VX - Gets more safety features and tech

ZX - Fully loaded with segment-first features

Let’s see what the base ZX variant has to offer.

Honda City ZX

Summary: Feature loaded with all the tech you’d want but at a hefty premium

All prices are ex-showroom, Delhi

Exterior: 9-unit LED headlamps, integrated LED daytime running lights, LED front fog lamps, LED taillamps, 16-inch alloy wheels, shark fin antenna, LED turn indicators on outside rear view mirrors(ORVMs), front and rear mud guards and chrome door handles.

Interior: Leatherette upholstery, glossy wood finish on the  instrument panel, soft pads around the cabin touchpoints, sunroof, chrome finish on inside door handle, chrome finish on AC vents, front centre armrest with storage, rear foldout armrest with cupholders, all four windows with auto open-close and pinch guard, auto-dimming IRVM, rear sunshade, front seat back pockets with smartphone sub-pockets, front footwell ambient lighting and LED cabin lamps.

Infotainment: 8.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, Honda Connect with telematics, Alexa remote capability, voice command, 8 speakers, steering mounted controls, Bluetooth compatibility and USB-in ports.

Comfort and convenience: LaneWatch camera (relays video feed from the camera mounted under the left ORVM on the central display, handy for checking the driver’s blind spot), 7.0-inch full colour TFT multi-information display with G-meter, Honda smart keyless remote, push-button engine start-stop, remote engine start (CVT only), paddle shifters (CVT only), follow-me-home headlamps, power adjustable and power folding ORVMs, auto AC with rear AC vents, tilt and telescopic steering adjust, height-adjustable driver’s seat, remote to open windows and sunroof, walk away auto lock, auto folding ORVMs.

Safety: Dual front, front side and side curtain airbags (total 6), ABS with EBD and brake assist, three-point seatbelts for all seats, headrests for all seats, ISOFIX child seat anchor, multi-angle rear view camera, rear parking sensors, vehicle stability assist, traction control, hill start assist, tyre deflation warning system, automatic headlight control, rear windshield defogger, front seatbelt reminder, diesel particulate filter indicator (diesel only), ECU immobiliser and speed alert.

Verdict

The Honda City ZX is easy to recognize as the top variant thanks to those distinct LED headlamps with the integrated L-shaped turn indicators. That chunkier left-hand ORVM houses the new City’s segment-first feature - the LaneWatch camera. A truly useful feature on an almost daily basis in a country with poor lane driving etiquette and people trying to squeeze past the driver’s blind spot. It also has the full suite of connected tech which allows you to remotely open and close all windows and the sunroof too. Auto folding ORVMs almost always add to the premium feel of a car and the ZX has those too.

Inside the cabin too, it's easy to tell that the ZX is the top of the range model with its leatherette upholstery and soft pads on the armrests and the dash. At night, you can enjoy the ambient lighting in the front footwell. The ZX offers a little more privacy for the rear seat occupants with the rear sunshade and offers better cabin lighting too with LEDs instead of regular bulbs. 

The top-spec Honda City ticks all the premium boxes and does introduce some useful features to the segment. But at this price, it should have had a little more tech such as front parking sensors and a wireless charging pad as part of the feature list instead of offering them as accessories. The City ZX offers the premium compact sedan experience but it's hard to justify the added cost of more than Rs 1 lakh over the VX and also in comparison to rivals like the Hyundai Verna and Toyota Yaris. But, if you want bells and whistles, then the City ZX is offering you more than before. However, our pick of the City lineup is the VX. To know why the City VX is the variant to go for read our analysis here.

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