I don’t know how many of you have ever driven the now Ford Fiesta Classic around the track, I for one have and swear by it. I never tire of praising this half a decade plus old car which still manages to compete with the latest models with ease. Combine that with Ford’s success with the more recent Figo and you have a restless car journalist waiting with a baited breath for the release of Ford’s Global Ford Fiesta 2011. I am sure though most people with any interest in the brand would have yapped up the launch on the 14^th of this month inspite of the spy pictures and brochures that were leaked all over the internet days before the car’s unveiling.

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Honda recently introduced the new HONDA CITY 1.5V.

Exteriors:

The City’s looks need not much talking. This urbane roadster speaks for itself as it silently conquers the roads. Err … *clears throat*... Well calling a sedan, a roadster is far sell, but damn have you checked out how massively hot this one is! A cursory glance at the new ‘arrow look’  and one may mistake this to be a Futuristic Zone Raider from one those Anime thingamajigs the kids love to watch nowadays. Needless to say we love the looks courtesy, the inherent Aerodynamics, the City boldly sports.

The most significant change in the new look is the new stylish grill or the arrow nose as we like to call it. Then comes the brilliantly intense eyes i.e. front headlamps which have been modified to add sharpness to an already sharp car. Following which one notices the expulsion of A pillars in the front, which is a refreshing new change this time on, adding both to style as well as visibility.

But the moment one starts falling in love with the car comes the kick in the nuts - No alloys! What adds insult to njury is the lack of even an optional accessorizing option. Although the disappointment doesn’t last too long. As soon as one reaches the rear, damage control begins - It is the stylish C Pillars that takes away the bitter after taste. The rear headlamps or the arrow tail adds nicely to the cars overall sharpness.

The boot is a good 506 liters, though the opening is a tad narrow, the carrying capacity is reasonably good.

Interiors:

The seating both the front and the rear is quite comfortable for its segment.  It definitely isn’t a lot but it works. What bites though is head room. Yes it bothers us so much that I would like to delve into this first and foremost. The head room is abysmally low. Period. For a six foot plus man it is hell, yes literally hell! If you are a man or woman who is less than six feet tall proceed to read this further or give up the thought of buying this otherwise great vehicle.

Assuming you are below the threshold height and meet the aforementioned criterion I suggest we move on. The meter gauges include the regular: trip meter, tachometer, mileage and range meters. The driver seat is four-way adjustable and the steering wheel is two-way adjustable. For its segment the city has kept up the usual features - The steering mounted controls, arm rests and adequate holding space for front and rear passengers, electronically adjustable mirrors. Going with the overall design, the three spoke steering wheel is also been devised aesthetically. Once again just things began to look up, our sights landed on the music system. Shockingly Honda ignored to put the CD player in this Audio Deck! The otherwise good music system which comes with 4 speakers and FM/ USB input mode accepts no disks! There is an AUX port that is supposedly supposed to compensate though.

Nevertheless, the thing that makes all bad, good; what we positively loved, was a feature we hadn’t witnessed in this segment before - Rear AC vents! The City comes with two rear AC Vents underneath the front seats. Ten hours of direct Delhi sun exposure, cross the threshold into a Honda City … Ah, cooler for the crotch, what a blessing!

Ride:

The engine being relatively silent to the slightest touch of the accelerator paddle. Light as a feather, yes this car is in actuality the lightest car in this segment which is why the engine despite being only 1.5 L generates 118 PS of power. And this is also why we see an excellent power-to-weight ratio of 107.27PS/ton.

The overall ride is quite typical of the 1.5 L intelligent V-Tec engine which in one word can be summed up as smooth. The car whizzes in straight lines and I mean literally whizzes away to glory.  Its also quite comfortable assuming you aren’t above the six feet threshold, in which case my friend, you shall squirm inexcusably. The A and B pillars are placed strategically providing the adequate vision. The C pillar, which although adds to the looks, is not as well crafted as the rest when it comes to visibility and can be obtrusive.

Honda engineering is quite evident in the maneuvering and the handling lives up to the Honda standards. Although at 160 mm the ground clearance of this Honda is not what we bargained for and we hit quite a many potholes on our adventures. As compared to other sedans available in this segment, this is quite less but lower ground clearance means a better grip and thus more stability, where the city wins hands down. What needs improvement is the City’s soft suspensions and narrow tires which despite its lower clearance resulted in more than normal body roll.

Engine and Transmission:

The new Honda City is driven by a 4 cylinder, 16 Valve ‘intelligent V-Tec’ engine with 1497 cc displacement. The transmission is synchronized 5 Speed forward and 1 reverse. It generates a max power of 118 PS on 6600 rpm and a max torque of 146 Nm at 4800 rpm. Coming back to the current description there is something worth noting here. The City has been designed such to leave ample space around the engine. This space is advantageous as firstly it helps the engine cool quicker and secondly in case of accidents the engine is safer from direct impacts.

And oh in case you’re interested to know more about the iV-Tec engine and how it manages to generate so much power at a mere 1.5l follow Honda iV-Tec.

Suspensions:

Speaking of the suspensions, I would personally rate those 3.0 on a scale of 5. Equipped with coil springs both in front and rear the City drives smooth even through the bumps on the road. The front suspension is a Mc Pherson Strut with Stabilizer, Coil Spring and the rear suspension a Torsion Beam Axle with Stabilizer, Coil Spring. But like we mentioned earlier tighter suspensions would be a god sent for this vehicle.

Brakes and Safety:

The brakes are regular front disk rear drum combination here but the difference is the standard ABS (EBD BA) provision. The ABS or the Anti Braking System is a better braking technology providing better braking while maneuvering the vehicle at high speeds and is very common in SUVs nowadays. Honda bringing it standard in its sedan is ensuring not just better braking but stability on road and safety too.

Apart from ABS the City is equipped with airbags for both the front passengers.

Pros:  Great looks. Good drive quality. Rear AC Vents.

Cons: Very little head room. No Disc Changer. No provisions for alloys.

The New Chevy Beat – Conception to Execution... FINALLY!

Ever since GM first unveiled its concept car trio in the New York 2007 Motor Show, we’ve been awaiting with baited breath, the launch of well any of the breathtaking beauties we saw that warm spring day.

The most common lag with any concept car launch anywhere in the world is what we like to call the Concept-Execution Paradigm. Every year we come across a plethora of concept cars and eventually the ‘Production Ready’, ‘Market Viable’ final products. Some match the original concept impeccably, others exceed expectations, many conceptualizations remain forever only on paper, but more often than not what the consumer gets is a down trodden version what vaguely resembles the original deliberation.

Enter the new Chevrolet Beat. The first and foremost of the critique to follow is what filled our media ridden hearts with glee. The new Chevy Beat managed to avoid the detested final segregation mentioned above and bears striking resemblance to the original concept. What is better is that the Indian Beat is 5-Door model as opposed to the original 3-Door conceptualization.

The Chevy beat which was the best received at the 2007 New York Auto Show bears uncanny resemblance to its preconceived version. Well almost we do miss the sporty front angular split finish beneath the grill in the original concept.

On first looks what one encounters is a car well finished - The newfound norm of angular modelling on the sides and a fair number of acute angles in the right places, from the hood to the front grille to the split rear bumper. We positively relished the slanting window sill and the arrogantly grinning front bumper. And this is one of the main things that distinguish it from its more boring counter parts running the Indian roads. The rear door handle is mounted very slyly next to the rear seat window. And this whether or not you like it, is well your call. Personally from a design perspective it looks nice although this form of handle placement does mar the view outside for the rear seat passengers.

Doors opened and enter inside. The first thing that one notices is the steering mounted control panel, the main highlight of which is the LCD Screen that displays the digital tachometer, odometer, fuel gauge and time. The speedometer is a conventional analogue. Everything is LED lit icy-blue. And it looks gorgeous! Shut the background lights and you’ll know what we mean! The top end model comes equipped with Air Bags, a USB Music System, ABS and Climate Control … Phew! Another plus is ample leg room, albeit it’s only so much in the front.

On a negative note, something that bothered us a lot is the positioning of the LCD screen. To Keep the LCD at the same height as that of the steering wheel Chevrolet has mounted the LCD screen atop the steering wheel back. This although ensures that the screen moves with the steering wheel if and when the need to adjust may arise has led to the screen being placed abysmally close to the driver. The result is the constant effort of focusing and re-focusing every time one tries to look at the LCD or the speedometer. This especially while driving can get very cumbersome. Another minus is the small boot.

All this talking done and we finally got behind the wheel. At 1.2 litre, the 79 bhp petrol engine lacks in the beginning, but four gears up, the car starts to run quite well. What we also noticed was how hushed and still the engine is at lower revs although at higher revs the effectiveness of the noise depreciation decreases substantially. Typical of the Chevrolet Vehicles the drive is smooth, light and crisp. The car absorbs the bumps nicely and interestingly this was a special tweak, worked upon by Chevrolet bearing in mind the Indian roads. Also we loved how the car took turns; I for one was particularly impressed by the feel of the grip. The car promises an average of 18 kmpl on the Indian roads what we managed to attain was almost 12 kmpl in the city and about 15 kmpl on the highway.

In a market flooded with small cars the Chevrolet Beat manages to shine on many fronts and is by far the most interesting small car on the Indian Roads for its segment. The car for the young Indian family says Chevrolet. It’s definitely ‘young’ and would be a fair fit for the intended demographic but we see the Beat as the car for the young and the restless of India- A great first car to gift your daughter.

Intentions no bar we see a winner in the new Chevrolet Beat and it shines pretty much the whole way through.

VERDICT:

Pros: Well finished. Competitively priced. An all pervading sharp design. Handles well.

Cons: Visually uncomfortable LCD Screen placement. Rear Passenger and boot space. The engine could’ve been better – Acceleration issues, Increased torque would’ve been much better.