VTEC pangs
Wanting to upgrade to a contemporary mid-size sedan with money not being much of an issue (thanks to low EMIs), the New Honda City seemed to be one of the best choices for me, with my only gripe being the under-powered engine. Had almost made up my mind to go in for the Optra 1.6 for sheer comfort and luxury, when the City VTEC was launched.
The golden four lettered word "VTEC" flashed like a lightning bolt in my mind - was this really the V-T-E-C technology that powered the older honda city, or just another marketing gimmick. Immediately rushed to the Honda website and found that the figures indeed indicated this to be true. (Must mention here that Honda ppl had updated their site as soon as the announcment was made with all the details regarding the car, unlike Ford which launched their fiesta website way, way later)
The City was coming in a new avatar called the ZX, which featured some minor changes in looks and suspension, and the 1.5L, 16-valve, VTEC engine option at the highest end. It was a no-brainer for me and I rushed to the nearest Honda showroom which had this new Baby on display (South-end Honda, Delhi). The car on display looked way better than the earlier model (standing on the sidelines), and resembled the Accord in the background. The interiors were as good as the high standards set by its predecessor (if nor better). Could not take the test-drive of the car as they had only one piece on display - but I trust Honda on the VTEC part :)
So, I booked this new dream of mine and was told that the deliveries would start in the last week of November. I parted ways with my trusty old santro to get a good price before the year-end ans so was without means of transportation for the past few weeks.
Have been after the dealer since Monday now and they say that they have received the first batch of cars from the factory, but there seems to be some issue with the delivery. Apparently, the RTO guys are holding things up and the Honda management is over there trying to sort things out. Maybe they want to haggle out a good deal on the registration and road tax front, with the RTO also wanting some share of the pie. So, the registration cost of the vehicle is in a state of flux.
So, I keep on waiting for my VTEC ......
Meanwhile, the new Fiesta from Ford looks like a neat bargain, if you consider the package that they are giving for the price. The top-end model SXi has everything that the City VTEC offers, for about 100k lesser. Though I have my reservations on the Fiesta considering that it will give a mileage of max 10kmpl in the city, and have higher spares and service cost (Fusion spares and services cost 60% more than City's). Moreover, my wife was not particularly impressed with the interiors and remarked that passenger seat was a bit cramped (for a sedan).
As for me, give me V-TEC over Dura-TEC anyday :)
(Dont care much for the auto-journalists or enthusiasts, they are more excited about fiesta being a new car to look at any comparisons with similar models)
The golden four lettered word "VTEC" flashed like a lightning bolt in my mind - was this really the V-T-E-C technology that powered the older honda city, or just another marketing gimmick. Immediately rushed to the Honda website and found that the figures indeed indicated this to be true. (Must mention here that Honda ppl had updated their site as soon as the announcment was made with all the details regarding the car, unlike Ford which launched their fiesta website way, way later)
The City was coming in a new avatar called the ZX, which featured some minor changes in looks and suspension, and the 1.5L, 16-valve, VTEC engine option at the highest end. It was a no-brainer for me and I rushed to the nearest Honda showroom which had this new Baby on display (South-end Honda, Delhi). The car on display looked way better than the earlier model (standing on the sidelines), and resembled the Accord in the background. The interiors were as good as the high standards set by its predecessor (if nor better). Could not take the test-drive of the car as they had only one piece on display - but I trust Honda on the VTEC part :)
So, I booked this new dream of mine and was told that the deliveries would start in the last week of November. I parted ways with my trusty old santro to get a good price before the year-end ans so was without means of transportation for the past few weeks.
Have been after the dealer since Monday now and they say that they have received the first batch of cars from the factory, but there seems to be some issue with the delivery. Apparently, the RTO guys are holding things up and the Honda management is over there trying to sort things out. Maybe they want to haggle out a good deal on the registration and road tax front, with the RTO also wanting some share of the pie. So, the registration cost of the vehicle is in a state of flux.
So, I keep on waiting for my VTEC ......
Meanwhile, the new Fiesta from Ford looks like a neat bargain, if you consider the package that they are giving for the price. The top-end model SXi has everything that the City VTEC offers, for about 100k lesser. Though I have my reservations on the Fiesta considering that it will give a mileage of max 10kmpl in the city, and have higher spares and service cost (Fusion spares and services cost 60% more than City's). Moreover, my wife was not particularly impressed with the interiors and remarked that passenger seat was a bit cramped (for a sedan).
As for me, give me V-TEC over Dura-TEC anyday :)
(Dont care much for the auto-journalists or enthusiasts, they are more excited about fiesta being a new car to look at any comparisons with similar models)
posted by Ravi Malhotra | 2:10 AM
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