Guangzhou Honda to develop Honda City-based C-segment sedan
Honda in China is sold by two companies – Dongfeng Honda and Guangzhou Honda. In the C-segment market, the Honda Civic is sold by Dongfeng Honda, leaving Guangzhou Honda with no car to pitch against Dongfeng’s Civic and other C-segment competitors such as FAW Toyota’s Corolla.
The C-Segment market must be quite important as it warrants Guangzhou Honda taking this problem into its own hands, with the support from Honda Japan of course. Guangzhou Honda will be putting a 1.8 liter motor in the new Honda City and will be stretching it to more Civic-like proportions to pitch it against Honda’s own Honda Civic.
As with all other 1.8 liter latest generation Hondas, the 1.8 liter motor is likely to be from the new R-series SOHC i-VTEC family of engines. As it is based on the City, the new car will probably carry over its rear torsion beam design and other technical features such as the positioning of the fuel tank underneath the passenger cabin.
Chinese publications are currently calling it the CC (City+Civic), and according to a Guangzhou Honda engineer, it will not be called the City and will get a new name. The new car will be priced at roughly the same level as the Civic, currently sold in China for about 150,000 yuan (about RM75,150). It may even be marketed under Guangzhou Honda’s separate “Li Nian” marque.
September 22, 2008 @ 4:37 pm
A totally different model from Honda China?
Excited to what it have in store.
September 22, 2008 @ 4:51 pm
Hope they do not get a poison car…just like the milk
September 22, 2008 @ 4:56 pm
lol, kinda difficult to imagine if they take City head to Civic tail, or City tail to Civic Head..or just increase the wheel base of the City, and make it C-segment?
September 22, 2008 @ 5:05 pm
Odd. Why would they go through all that trouble.
Wonder why don’t they just stick a larger engine in the Airwave? Or just market the Airwave?
I might not be too far off if I guessed that they might market a sedan version on the Airwave chassis..
September 22, 2008 @ 5:12 pm
Stretched Honda City??? No high hopes I think
September 22, 2008 @ 6:05 pm
One of the thing that is annoying about City is the fact that it’s so tall, you have trouble enjoying corners.
If they want to compete with Civic, forget the big boot, put the fuel tank under the passenger seat & lower it a little bit.
I prefer a comfortable ride compared to a 500 liter boot.
September 22, 2008 @ 6:22 pm
Maybe they should bring in our kind JDM-style Civic. Since the one on sale in China is the US version.
September 22, 2008 @ 6:24 pm
looks pretty bad
September 22, 2008 @ 11:27 pm
bad enough having struts at the front, now they want torsion beam at the rear. i suppose ultimate goal is to make the china people buy it.
if u want a low centre of gravity and better distribution of weight in the car why not follow the ah beng civic crowd that push the chair all the way to the back and have thier head sticking just above the door shoulder and straining thier back up right/front just to corner or park the car let alone barely reaching the steering wheel. i think it will improve the cornering efficiency of the car by 27.94% A red type r sticker should bring that up to about 31.36%
September 23, 2008 @ 6:50 am
Can I get those halfcut from China after this?
September 23, 2008 @ 9:28 am
Theo..may do some photoshoping for this?
and put some funny or sport or muscle element.
Tq
September 23, 2008 @ 10:59 pm
I doubt Honda China can fight other competitor in C-segment… With Corolla, Elantra Yuedong, Lavida, New Bora and Excelle around, it will be a very tough competition. Only Accord can make it to be a big player…
September 25, 2008 @ 6:42 pm
china is a screwed up market