2026 Honda N BOX Reviews

Are we headed for a world where petrol is only the fuel of the rich, powering their hypercars and luxury super SUVs? It certainly appears that way. And I don’t like it…This week the car world achieved a major milestone - the average global price of electric vehicles fell below that of hybrids for the first time. And before too long we’ll see the average price of EVs drop lower than the price of petrol cars.There’s nothing wrong with that - we’re watching the evolution of the motor car, and a change in buying habits and taste in real time.What could supercharge this process and fundamentally change what fuel we use, however, is the volatility of petrol prices which have spiked dramatically due to the conflict in the Middle East. Covering car news each day is revealing a trend and I’m not too sure I like it. High-performance and luxury car brands are doubling down on their fossil fuel focus, while mainstream brands are pushing the limits to make the most affordable electric cars.At the start of this year BMW announced it would reverse its decision to pivot away from petrol and return to producing V8 and V12 units due to their customer demands.Rival brand Mercedes-Benz did the same thing and scrapped its plan to go completely electric by 2030 and dived back into making V8s.Porsche, too, changed its mind after receiving a walloping from customers who made it very clear that Porsche to them meant power from petrol, not power from the electricity grid.Lamborghini also did an about face on EVs at the start of this year and went back to petrol, adding a hybrid system but only to make more mumbo.Yep, Lamborghini replaced its V10 Huracan which made 470kW with the V8 Temerario which makes 588kW plus another 220kW from its electric motors.Then there’s the mysterious case of Ferrari giving us the breathtaking 12Cilindri with yes a V12, which was closely followed by the even more gorgeous V8 Amalfi, before giving us the all-electric Luce which hurts to look at directly. It’s as if the brand was sending us some kind of message coded in ugliness about being asked to do something against its will. Of course the super high end brands appear completely unconcerned by prohibitively high petrol prices affecting sales or the climate.Bugatti announced an end to the reign of its enormous 8.0-litre quad-turbo W16 engines in its cars like the Veyron and Chiron, but before we could even think it was going green trumpeted in almost the same breath that it was doing V16s instead.Which it did with its current Tourbillon hypercar that houses a monstrous 8.3-litre V16 engine. Yes it has a hybrid system with electric motors but it’s not to save fuel, it’s to make more power. If you were to ask bespoke high performance vehicle maker Hennessey if it had electric cars the response would almost certainly be, “never heard of her." The brand just unveiled its US spy plane-inspired Blackbird hypercar with a naturally aspirated V8 and positioned it as the kind of vehicle that allows drivers to cover 1300km a day.Just days ago Aston Martin ran into the room boasting it was delaying its EV plans because it had found a loop hole which meant it could keep making V12s. The loop hole being that the brand had to keep V12 sales under 1000 a year.Low volume sales aren’t a worry for brands like these - not when an Aston Martin Vanquish costs more than $700,000. And unlike you and me, that's not the owner's only car… it joins a garage with five other cars in it… at least. Yes we’re talking millions of dollars and all petrol-powered.Meanwhile, the rest of us are trying to work out how we can get into an electric car for less than $40,000 because chaotic fuel prices are hurting us and we’re worried about the future resale value of petrol cars. I’m also highly concerned about the air that my children breathe and the thought of having a car powered by burning oil that just to drives to shops, school and work sounds more and more preposterous to me. It’s like having kerosene lanterns in every room of your house rather than light bulbsTo be completely clear, though, I love petrol performance cars and detest electric performance ones. Petrol has a place.My fear is that petrol’s happy place in performance cars will eventually exclude me as the fuel becomes more expensive, rarer and the food of exotic beasts I can’t afford.So what’s left? There’s the Cupra Leon VZx, Ford Mustang, Honda Civic Type R and Prelude, Hyundai i30N, Mazda MX-5, Nissan Z, Subaru WRX, Toyota GR Yaris and GR Corolla and VW Golf R.Watch these models closely, because they are the final 'affordable' petrol performance cars and they are all now endangered.    

Electric cars are back in Honda's plans.Honda has chosen giant engineering and IT firm Tata Group subsidiary Tata Technologies to help develop a future EV and hybrid platform, according to NikkeiAsia.Tata Group owns Jaguar Land Rover and deals with a range of automotive and aeronautical projects, and its Technologies arm specialises in platform development.This will reduce costs for Honda as it grapples with heavy financial losses, expecting to lose $3.29 billion (or nearly $5 billion in Australian currency). Its new EV direction could have huge implications for Australia. This new platform is expected to be used on several new hybrid and fully-electric Honda models.These vehicles are earmarked for sale in Asia and other regions, but not North America.The brand has been undergoing a serious reshuffle of its future product lineup globally, ditching an EV strategy to focus on hybrid cars.The platform could help Honda get into the mainstream EV space at a cheaper rate than its now cancelled ‘0 series’ electric car plans.There is no news on what models will spawn from the platform, but don't expect official announcements anytime soon.The models developed from Honda’s Tata Group partnership will specifically target Asian markets and other non-North American regions, so Australia is a firm possibility.It is likely some of these cars will be built in right-hand drive, smoothing the path for any potential future launch Down Under.Honda is eager to obtain further electrified models in Australia as it faces substantial fines under the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES). Honda’s CR-V, HR-V and ZR-V SUV range now features hybrid set-ups, with electrified sales offsetting fines under the NVES emissions scheme. The brand released its Super-One electric city car as its first EV in Australia recently.Models will launch in Asia before feasibly entering Australia, but it is unclear when that might be.

Honda has just priced its first EV in Australia.The Honda Super-One is an ultra-compact electric car that will start from $36,900, drive-away.This places it as the second cheapest car in Honda’s lineup, costing $4000 more than the base HR-V small SUV. The top-spec grade starts from $37,400. It adds a two-tone purple exterior colour that mirrors the popular Super-N Kei car the Super-One is based on. Honda said it has had more than 6500 expressions of interest for the Super-One in Australia, which is more than the new-generation Honda Civic Type-R.Pre-orders are open now, with deliveries beginning on 1 October 2026.There will only be 130 units available in this first batch, but more examples will arrive in early 2027. The Honda Super-One is based on the brand’s N-One Kei car, which is designed to meet specific requirements for Japan’s smallest car segment. The Super-One is substantially longer, wider and taller than the N-One to ensure it meets Australia Design Rules. The Super-One will still be one of the smallest cars available.It shares similar dimensions to the Kia Picanto petrol-powered hatch (3595 mm long).It will be a more direct rival to the BYD Atto 1 electric hatch that starts from $23,990 (before on-road costs), and the more pricey Hyundai Inster (from $39,000, before on-road costs). The Super-One is powered by a single electric motor, making 47kW and 162Nm. The car has a special hot hatch setting if Boost Mode is selected that increases power to 70kW. Simulated gear shifts for a seven-speed transmission mimic the experience of a petrol engine. The car’s 30kWh lithium-ion battery offers a driving range of up to 253km, according to WLTP standards, and features regenerative braking. The car can charge from 15 to 80 per cent in 30 minutes. On the inside, there is a 9.0-inch central touchscreen and 7.0-inch digital driver display, along with an eight-speaker Bose sound system. 

Honda’s HR-V small SUV has been an Aussie favourite for more than a decade but a lot has changed lately with the influx of more rivals, many of them new-gen hybrids and electric vehicles.So is the HR-V still outstanding? Or has it been left standing?We’ve tested the newest grade added to the line-up, the top-of-the-range hybrid, the HR-V e:HEV RS. I know, it's catchy right? Let's just call it the HR-V RS from here on.My small family of four lived with it in the inner suburbs for a week and I thought I knew this car well until this test, and there’s a few things you should know, too.First, how much does the HR-V RS cost and is it worth the money? Being the top grade in the HR-V line-up the RS is also the most expensive at $44,400 drive-away, $11,500 more than the petrol-powered entry-grade HR-V, or $4500 pricier than the most affordable hybrid HR-V.    That is a lot of money for a small SUV these days, what with so many feature-packed Chinese SUVs for a lot less.There’s the top grade MG ZS hybrid for $33,888 drive-away, the top of-the-range GWM Haval Jolion hybrid for $38,990 d/a, the top-spec Chery Tiggo 4 hybrid for $34,990 d/a… the list goes on.There are also electric SUVs for less. The Jaecoo J5 is $36,990 d/a, while the excellent MG S5 EV is the pretty much same price at $44,990 d/a.The HR-V hybrid grades are, however, more competitive than the Hyundai Kona hybrid ($36,950-$48,950), and Nissan Qashqai e-Power ($45,640-$54,140), both of which are priced before on-road costs.Features wise the HR-V RS is lacking a few things. The nine-inch media screen looks small now, the seats are heated but you get these on the L grade below, and that goes for almost all the other features, including dual-zone climate control, sat-nav, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and a six-speaker stereo.As for what the RS brings there’s RS body styling elements such as the black mesh grille and the leatherette sports seats.The RS grade doesn’t bring any performance edge to the HR-V. All three hybrid grades have the same output of 96kW and 253Nm, which is plenty of power for a little SUV. Just don’t expect the RS to be any sportier than other grades.The hybrid system combines a 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with two electric motors. The engine’s primary job is to produce electricity to charge the battery and that powers the motors which drives the wheels.The resulting fuel economy is good but not outstanding. Officially, Honda says the combined fuel consumption is 4.3L/100km. After 330km, the trip computer said my fuel consumption was 5.6L/100km. That came down to a lot of motorway miles, which uses battery charge quickly before the engine is called on to help drive the wheels and charge the battery.On the road the HR-V RS is excellent, and this is the area Honda has the edge over its Chinese rivals, which don’t tend to steer, stop, handle and ride as well as this.The engine can be a bit noisy and will often start up and switch off randomly, unrelated to acceleration. But that’s it charging the battery. For the most part, however, the HR-V is quiet with smooth acceleration at lower speeds and it drives like an EV. At higher speeds the engine assists the electric motors.It's easy to drive with good visibility, excellent stability and a feeling of safety, even on highways between big trucks. The driving position and seats aren't as comfortable as I wanted.Just as an aside, I also recently drove the slightly larger Honda ZR-V and found the seats and driving position to be much better.We used the HR-V for all our daily commutes, the school drop offs, sport and grocery shopping. From a practicality perspective the HR-V is excellent as well. There’s more than enough room for a child seat in the second row and space for somebody to sit in the front passenger seat at the same time. The legroom in the second row is great, too.We were thrown at one point when we discovered that there was no middle seat in the second row. Yes, the HR-V is a four seater only, something I’d forgotten since testing it last.Storage is great with cup holders, door pockets, shelves and trays built into the dashboard, and a deep storage area under the front-centre armrest.I also love the HR-V’s 'magic seats' in the rear which fold up to provide a cavernous cargo area behind the front seats for tall objects.The HR-V's only real impracticality is the rear-door handles which are integrated into the door frame. They're too high for little kids to reach and not easy even for adults to use. It bit my hand on one occasion!From a safety angle the HR-V scored four out of five ANCAP stars in 2022 and part of that lower score was the lack of rear auto emergency braking (AEB), which is important for families with small children. There is forward AEB, lane keeping assistance and a blind spot warning.For child seats there are two ISOFX points and two top tether anchor points in the second row.Finally, I like the look of the HR-V. As with all Hondas there’s a premium look and feel, much like Mazdas. That goes for the interior, too, with the high-quality feel and stylish design.

Although it was never a huge seller, the GM2 (Honda’s in-house code) Honda City four-door sedan was eventually replaced by the GM6 model, and with that update came a bigger car in pretty much every direction, further differentiating the City from the more popular Honda Jazz hatchback.The GM6 City was both longer and taller than the car it replaced and, crucially, there was an extra 50mm in the wheelbase, giving both a larger cabin and more boot space. Clearly, Honda had worked out that City buyers were a pragmatic bunch.Mechanically, not much had changed, though, and the 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine with its fairly meagre 88kW remained the only choice. You could still get a five-speed manual, but only in the entry-level version, and just about everybody who bought a City brand new specified the continuously variable transmission (CVT) anyway.Trim levels were also unchanged with the VTi the base version and the VTi-L for those who had a bit more to spend. The VTi-L step-up got you paddle shifters for the CVT (an affectation, to be sure) a leather-clad steering wheel, better stereo and 16-inch alloy wheels. Curiously, the VTi had simple, steel wheels of 15 inches.Generally, yes. Even though the City is built in Thailand and not Honda’s home-base of Japan, quality seems pretty good. You also get Honda’s engineering flair in the case of the zingy little engine with its variable valve timing and great fuel economy. But that doesn’t mean the City will appeal to keener drivers out there; the suspension is too soft and the steering too slow for that.If you don’t need the arguably more versatile packaging of a hatchback, then the City’s roomy interior and boot makes plenty of sense.Just bear in mind that `good’ doesn’t mean sexy.But in this case it does mean safe and the City scored the maximum five stars for safety in local independent testing.Like the vast majority of Hondas built anywhere in the world, the City seems to be pretty robust and able to go the distance. That, however, is on the proviso that it’s been maintained, but that goes for any make and model.Overall, instances of major failures and owner complaints are few and far between.Probably the most common problem exhibited by the Honda City is a CVT that shudders on take-off or slips or jerks when the driver applies a load to the driveline. The good news is that, unlike many CVTs from other makers, the Honda’s unit is a lot stronger (possibly due to the fact that Honda makes its own CVT to its own standards) and problems like these are often fixed with a change of transmission fluid to replace the old, dirty fluid.The exception is the model year 2014 City, a batch of which was fitted with an incorrect shaft within the transmission. Under high loads, this shaft could sheer off, leaving the vehicle with either no drive at all, or locked front wheels. A Honda dealer can check the VIN of a particular City and know whether it was affected by this.Most experts reckon the CVT fluid should be changed every 50,000km to keep everything running smoothly and reduce wear to a minimum.The exception to this good track record will be the City that has been neglected in regards to its routine maintenance. The complex little engine uses a maze of tiny oilways to power its variable valve timing and lift function (which gives the engine its sparkle). But if regular servicing has been missed, these oilways can soon fill up with sludge and dirt, at which point the engine can’t perform properly.The City also uses a timing chain, so that component should last the life of the car and not need periodic replacement like a toothed rubber belt in many other makes and models.The City GM6 was recalled twice, the first for that CVT with the dodgy internal shaft that could fail at any time. The other recall was for a batch of cars built across 2019 and 2020, in which the electric fuel pump could suddenly die, leaving you stranded wherever that failure occurred.You can search for more recall data at: https://www.vehiclerecalls.gov.au/That 2014 batch of Citys with the iffy shaft in their CVT are the ones to avoid now. Although if the car has been fixed as part of the associated safety recall, then the modified City should be just as robust as any other City. But if the City you’re looking at is a manual-transmission car, disregard the above as it was only the CVT that was affected.Beyond that, buy on condition and service history rather than build date.The majority of Citys have never strayed too far from the, er, city. Nor have they been embraced by couriers and Uber drivers, so you don’t see too many with a lot of kilometres on board.That said, there’s absolutely no reason to think that a well-serviced City won’t push through the 200,000km mark with lots of life left in it. In any case, a high percentage of Citys for sale right now have less than 100,000km on their odometers, suggesting lots of reliable motoring still to be had.We’d often advise against the version of any car with a CVT, but the Honda’s in-house CVT seems a lot better than most of the rest out there. So there’s no problem with a City with two pedals if that makes life easier. It will certainly make the car a lot easier to unload come trade-in time, too.And since the price difference between the VTi and the ritzier VTi-L version is a lot less now than when the car was brand new, there seems little reason not to opt for the more luxurious latter variant as a second-hand buy.Prices for early GM6 Citys start at around the $9000 or $10,000 mark, but they’ll nearly always be high-mileage cars (say, 160,000km or more, if that bothers you).Prices top out at closer to mid-to-high teens and for that, you’ll be buying a low-kilometre car in excellent condition. Just don’t forget to check the service history.Even though the City was not a huge seller here, parts and servicing are no problem. You can tap into the Honda dealer network and pay a little more, but the popularity of the Honda brand means there’s a huge aftermarket and enthusiast scene for the brand.Global popularity for Honda products generally means there’s also a healthy online marketplace for sourcing spare parts, service items and accessories.The City sales story is one of steadily falling volumes as the years have passed. Although the car sold a few thousand units in its first year or two of sales, buy the end of 2019, that figure had fallen to just over 600 sales for the year.That’s not a judgment on the Honda, but the reality of the small sedan market in this country as we shifted to hatchbacks and, notably, SUVs.

Honda is gearing up to reveal a new-generation version of its ute, though don’t expect it to be coming to Australia.The Japanese carmaker has confirmed it has begun development of a new, third-generation Ridgeline pick-up that will be revealed within two years.It will continue to be manufactured at Honda’s production facility in Alabama, US, alongside the Passport, Pilot and Odyssey, using both domestic and globally made parts.Production of the current Ridgeline is set to end later in 2026. This means there will be a period where Honda isn’t producing any utes.Honda claims the new Ridgeline is already being designed at its styling studio in Southern California and it will feature an “even more rugged design”. It’s also set to be engineered in Ohio.Ahead of the reveal of this new ute, Honda has shown off a single teaser image that shows a shadowy front three-quarter angle.There aren't many design features that can be distinguished, but it appears it will retain a similar silhouette.No other details have been confirmed just yet, however this new Ridgeline is expected to continue being built on a unibody platform, which typically prioritises passenger comfort over outright payload capabilities.This differs from top-selling utes in Australia, the Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux, which have a ladder-frame chassis and typically allow for a higher payload capacity and superior off-road capabilities.Overseas reports indicate the new-generation Ridgeline will be powered by an updated version of Honda’s 3.5-litre naturally aspirated V6 engine.A hybrid powertrain with a new V6 engine and multiple electric motors is reportedly something that’s expected to launch in the early 2030s.It will reportedly bring better fuel economy, torque and towing capabilities.Honda has offered two generations of the Ridgeline to date. They have always been aimed at the North American market and produced in left-hand drive only.This makes an Australian launch of the Honda Ridgeline more difficult to get over the line as while utes are a very popular body style locally, a right-hand drive version would need to be engineered and developed.It’s unclear if this is set to change with the forthcoming, third-generation model.Back in 2020, then Honda Australia Chief Operating Officer Stephen Collins, who is now at BYD Australia, told CarsGuide the Ridgeline was strongly requested by dealers and customers.

Honda has renewed its partnership with GAC in China, after months of speculation it would pull out of the agreement when its original 30 year contract ended.The GAC/Honda joint-venture in China has struggled for market share, even amongst other foreign partnerships. With the rise of China’s automakers such as BYD, Geely and SAIC, not to mention even smaller players XPeng and Xiaomi soaking up domestic market share, even once-successful joint venture players such as Volkswagen (the longest serving and most successful of all) are faltering.Nikkei Asia reports Honda’s market share in China has fallen 60 per cent last year, with GAC Honda specifically fallen to 340,000 units. While that might seem enormous given the brand’s mere 15,383 unit tally in Australia last year, it makes it a relative minnow in the enormous Chinese market, where annual sales for the biggest brands are frequently measured in the millions.Honda has renewed its agreement with the Chinese giant for a further 10 years, a Honda spokesperson told Nikkei Asia.“We’ve made this decision in order to assess the business environment,” the spokesperson said.An executive from one of the JV’s suppliers told the outlet, "this is Honda sending a message that it won't give up on China".It is notable the Honda/GAC operation currently has less joint-venture models than most rivals, and only one purely electric model in a market, which is demanding more zero-emissions options.GAC Honda currently sells the Honda Breeze (a re-styled CR-V), ageing Avancier coupe SUV, and a sedan Integra (not related to the coupe sold in Australia) all as unique combustion models, while also selling Chinese domestic versions of the Accord, Odyssey, and HR-V (as the Vezel).The only electric car the JV sells is the P7 mid-size SUV in an EV-hungry market, while the Dongfeng joint venture sells its own version, dubbed the S7, and the more affordable e:NS2 crossover. Despite showing several concept models at Chinese motor shows in previous years, new and more desirable models are yet to materialise in the fast-moving market.Even GAC’s joint venture with Toyota was significantly more successful last year, moving around 756,000 units, with popular JV models including the bZ3X, which shares its platform with the GAC Aion V.The bZ3X has since become available in right-hand drive form for Hong Kong. Toyota Australia hasn’t ruled the China-built model out for our market either, given it will need to sell more electric vehicles in the near future to comply with the strict new vehicle emissions standards (NVES), which closes the vice on hybrid models before long.As for Honda using the sought-after ‘China Speed’ manufacturing for more cost-effective export models, it is only just testing the waters resurrecting the Insight nameplate for a version of the China-built e:NS2 from its Dongfeng venture sold in Japan.Meanwhile rivals are forging ahead with Chinese partnerships for export, with Kia and Hyundai already selling the Chinese-built EV5 and Elexio in Australia respectively, and Nissan announcing its intention to make its Dongfeng joint-venture models like the Frontier Pro PHEV ute and NX8 large SUV available globally.

Japan’s major carmakers are reportedly looking to band together and standardise componentry in order to stand up against the rise of Chinese players.As reported by Automotive News, this directive is coming from Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA) Chairman Koji Sato who is also the Toyota Vice Chairman and Chief Industry Officer.As a start, Sato is looking to standardise wiring harnesses across the Honda, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Subaru, Suzuki and Toyota brands, which could reportedly increase productivity more than tenfold.There could also be scope to widen the commonality to steel grades, plastics, among other common components to manufacture cars.“Right now, the most important theme facing the Japanese auto industry is improving ‘international competitiveness’,” said Sato to Automotive News.“We aim to strategically create ‘areas of cooperation’ to improve efficiency, thereby accelerating coexistence in the essential ‘areas of competition.“We have a strong sense of crisis that the Japanese auto industry is in a massive period of transition.“Now is exactly the time to further develop and evolve with the challenges and reform initiatives that the auto industry as a whole must face.“Unless things change, we will not survive.”“We are really talking about what we can do together, because we do see that other industries in other countries or other parts of the world are better organised than us,” said Nissan Motor Company CEO Ivan Espinosa to Automotive News.“We will see a lot more collaboration among Japanese OEMs.“We have a big opportunity to start sharing critical commodities, at least having a common spec on certain things.“We’d have something like a JAMA standard that complies with the requirements of all of us, where we certify some suppliers, and then use this freely.”Beyond this parts standardisation across the Japanese carmakers, JAMA is also reportedly looking to commonise logistics, simplify Japan’s automobile taxing system, redesign the country’s autonomous driving infrastructure, secure access to raw materials, commercialise a circular recycling economy, as well as improve talent recruitment.Even if Japan’s major OEMs can band together and standardise componentry, it still may not be enough to compete against the so-called 'China Speed.'As recently reported, BYD Executive Vice President He Zhiqi claimed that 650 new or updated cars have launched in China in the first half of 2026. This equals around 25 vehicles per week.Many Chinese brands are also having breakthrough success in many export markets, including Australia.China overtook Japan earlier this year to become the largest importer of new vehicles in Australia, ending a 28-year streak.In the first half of 2026 a total of 175,151 new vehicles sold in Australia were manufactured in China, according to VFACTS. This is up 70.2 per cent year-on-year.This number is higher when sales figures from the Electric Vehicle Council (EVC) are factored in, however it doesn’t stipulate the vehicle’s country of origin in its reports. Polestar and Tesla report their sales figures through the EVC, rather than VFACTS.On the other hand, a total of 144,430 new vehicles sold in Australia in the first half of 2026 were imported from Japan. This is down 22.8 per cent year-on-year.It’s worth noting that many Japanese carmakers already have partnerships or joint ventures with Chinese carmakers to produce vehicles in China, mainly for China.However, some of these brands are exporting these Chinese-made models to other markets, including Australia.Examples include the Mazda 6e and soon the Mazda CX-6e, and Nissan is still assessing whether to bring some of its popular Chinese-made vehicles Down Under, like the Frontier Pro plug-in hybrid ute and NX8 hybrid and electric SUV.

If you go right back into Honda history, you may recall the original Honda City was a tiny hatchback with odd, upright looks and a good dollop of charm. But fast forward to 2009 when this version, the GM2 hit showrooms, and the whole City concept had grown up somewhat.Yes, it was still a small car and undercut the Honda Civic in terms of price and size, but didn’t Honda already have the Jazz hatchback to fill the gap left by the original City?Or course it did. So where did that leave the City? Well, kind of in a no-man’s-land, and considering it was more or less mechanically a Jazz in sedan’s clothes, Honda was making things hard for itself. At this end of the market, hatchbacks were always the stronger players in Australia, by a huge margin in most cases, too. So the City’s straight-laced duds were pretty much guaranteed to hold it back.Launched here in 2009, the City was built in Thailand and was available in VTi and VTi-L specifications. All Cities were four-door sedans and the engine was the same in every variant; a 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine making 88kW and 145Nm. The only mechanical choice lay in the transmission and you could have a five-speed manual or a five-speed conventional automatic.But even though it was somewhat ignored by new-car buyers, as a used-car buy, the Honda starts to come back into the running as buyers’ original concerns over fashion and fripperies are replaced by a focus on reliability and long-term prospects.The City was a slow seller, but that had nothing to do with its quality or reliability. Instead, the somewhat dowdy four-door sedan styling was the sticking point, combined with the fact that everybody in this market segment really wanted a hatchback Honda Jazz.As a used-car, however, that fashionista stuff goes straight out the window, and the City re-emerges as a smart buy thanks to its sharp build quality and long-term prospects. This type of car was also usually bought brand-new by pretty conservative buyers who understood proper maintenance. And that makes the City an even better bet now.The City faithfully follows decades of Honda tradition by being well made and reliable. Chronic problems are few and most owners have enjoyed trouble-free experiences with the Honda.Although it’s a very clever mechanical system, Honda’s V-Tec variable valve timing system operates on tiny oilways and passages. That means any dirt of sludge in the oil is bad news as it can block these oilways and cause the V-Tec to simply not work. It’s certainly not a common problem on these cars, but a check of the service history is mandatory.We’ve also heard of a few Citys where the heater’s blower motor has failed. The first symptom will be a fan that only works on the flat-out setting. Replacing the fan is the only permanent fix, apparently.The majority of other complaints surround the build quality (this was a Thai-built car, not Japanese, remember) and things like high levels of interior noise. Again, the thinner carpet fitted to many Thai-built cars might be the culprit. Either way, the City never quite measured up to Honda’s otherwise lofty quality standards.The City is relatively free of recall notices apart form one major safety issue. The car was caught up in the Takata airbag fiasco that saw millions of cars affected by potentially faulty airbags that could injure and even kill passengers in a crash.As time passed and more and more cars were added to the list of affected vehicles, more and more recalls were issued for these airbags. A Honda dealer should be able to identify whether your car has been fixed or not. In some states, cars that have not had their Takata airbags replaced cannot even be re-registered.Beyond that, the City has a pretty clean record with just one other recall being for a potential fault within the clever V-Tec engine valve assembly. In some cases, a spring could break, allowing the car to stall without warning.You can check the details at https://www.vehiclerecalls.gov.au/.Since pretty much all Citys of this generation were affected by the Takara airbag recall, there’s not much to choose between the various years. Buy on condition and service history rather than build date.There’s the odd City out there from this generation with better than 200,000km on board, backing up the car’s reputation for overall reliability. But most of them for sale right now have travelled fewer kilometres than that, backing up the typical usage profile of the people who bought them brand-new.You can still find them with less then 100,000km showing, but we wouldn’t be put off by one with 160,000km on the odometer, provided the service history is complete and intact.A facelift in 2012 was the only real change to the City formula across its 'GM2' lifespan. And while it didn’t amount to a whole lot, it did bring thicker windscreen glass and carpets to help muffle some of the interior noise the vehicle was criticised for when new. Beyond that, buy purely on condition and service history.And, of course, if the budget will allow, buy the VTi-L for its extra standard equipment, since the price difference between VTi-L and the base-model VTi will be very small now.Prices start at around the $7000 to $8000 mark and top out at about $12,000 for exceptionally clean examples with moderate kilometres. Those prices are, in fact, pretty much line-ball with the City’s stablemate the Jazz. And given the latter’s hatchback layout and much greater popularity, that starts to make the City look a bit expensive, to be honest. That said, somewhere around $10K for a modern small sedan with a decent pedigree and plenty of life left in it is hardly extortion, is it?Even though the City was not a huge seller here, parts and servicing are no problem. You can tap into the Honda dealer network and pay a little more, but the popularity of the Honda brand means there’s a huge aftermarket and enthusiast scene for the brand.Global popularity for Honda products generally means there’s also a healthy online marketplace for sourcing spare parts, service items and accessories. Be wary of any overseas seller you haven’t used before, as aftermarket parts quality can vary enormously.Buyer indifference when it was brand new meant the City is now pretty thin on the ground as a used buy. In fact, after a brief flurry of sales when it was first launched, annual sales of the City dropped back to less than 2000 per year. Even a price-cut for the facelifted version in 2012 couldn’t stop the rot and probably less than a thousand City’s were sold after that.And that is why there’s now maybe a half a dozen GM2 Citys for sale even on the bigger online sales sites. Compared with the 40 or 50 Honda Jazzes from the same period for sale right now, you can see how the consumers voted.

Honda has rolled out upgrades to its Fit hatchback, which was known as the Jazz in Australia.Once one of our markets most popular hatchbacks, Honda Australia discontinued it in 2021 and has since cited the shrinking market share for hatchbacks and higher entry price of the new model as reasons that it has yet to return.Despite this, the new fourth-generation model has been on sale in the UK for some time and has now been updated in its home market of Japan.Celebrating its 25th anniversary, the new version has tweaked styling and variant structures, as well as upgraded materials inside and out, with an upgraded multimedia suite.In addition, the RS variant scores sportier gloss-finish design touches, while the range-topping Crosstar gets SUV-like plastic overfenders, with a higher level of standard inclusions for this update like a heated steering wheel and front seats.The new Fit continues to be available in Japan with two powertrains, either a 1.5-litre dual-motor plugless hybrid (90kW/253Nm) or a 1.5-litre petrol (87kW/142Nm) with a CVT automatic. In Japan, the Fit can be had in front- or all-wheel drive layouts in any variant and with any powertrain, while in the UK it can only be had as a front-wheel drive in hybrid form.In Japan the Fit range spans from the equivalent of $16,084 for a base front-wheel drive non-hybrid to $26,320 for the range-topping Crosstar e:HEV AWD. In the UK the pre-update Jazz version starts from a much more expensive A$52,388 for a base e:HEV Elegance, and tops out at an eye-watering $56,868 for the top-spec Crosstar e:HEV.At the time of its discontinuation, the locally-sold Honda Jazz was one of the most affordable new cars on sale in Australia, with a starting price of just $14,990 before on-roads for an entry-level VTi manual, with the top-spec send-off VTi Limited Edition priced at $19,990 before on-roads.The entry-point to the Honda range now is the Fit-related HR-V Vi X small SUV, which is priced from $32,900 drive-away.Honda has said it won’t return to the hatch segment with the Jazz, but it will return with its fully electric Super-One city hatchback, which is due in Australia before the end of the year.The Super One is priced lower than the Jazz, in the UK anyway, from the equivalent of $36,704.Whether it has what it takes to challenge the growing array of Chinese offerings in the electric hatchback space, spanning from the similarly-sized BYD Atto 1 ($23,990 BOCs) to the BYD Dolphin ($29,990 BOCs) and MG4 Urban ($31,990 drive-away) remains to be seen.Honda is in the process of expanding on its range of plugless hybrid offerings in Australia as it looks to improve its fortunes since it changed its business model to an ‘agency’ style from a traditional dealer model in 2021 coinciding with the discontinuation of the Jazz.