As the recent development regarding the unveiling of next generation Honda City diesel have taken the Indian car market by storm, the rival companies are presumably in for a tough time ahead. As far as industry experts are concerned, the general consensus is that Honda City diesel would possess tremendous ability to overturn the mid-size sedan segment. Going by reports, the upcoming next generation sedan of Honda would be available in both petrol and diesel versions. Numerous reports have indicated that the Honda City 2014 shall be showcased on 25th of November 2013, after which the deliveries would get underway from January 2014. On taking into account the rivalry of Honda City, it would be pitted against the likes of Skoda Rapid, which poses a stiff competition. So in order to assess the different aspects of both the cars, an assessment has been made.
Talking about the Honda City first, the car would be available in both diesel and petrol versions. The car would be offered in two engine options, namely 1.5-litre i-VTEC and 1.5-litre i-DTEC. The diesel version of City is expected to get a Variable Geometry Turbo that will render the engine to give away 120 bhp of maximum power alongside a peak torque of 225 Nm. On the other hand, the petrol version of Honda City would be powered by the same i-VTEC engine that gives away 116 bhp of power and 146 Nm of torque. However, it is still not clear that whether Honda would change the power and torque levels of this engine or not.
On the other hand, the Skoda Rapid is presently available in two engine options that are 1.6-litre MPI and 1.6-litre TDI. Both the engine have a displacement of 1598 cc and are available in different state of tunes. The petrol version of Rapid gives away 103 bhp of power and 153 Nm of torque, whereas the diesel Rapid puts out 103 bhp of power while attaining 250 Nm of torque. In terms of transmission, the car is offered in both 5-speed manual and 6-speed automatic gearbox.
Talking about features, the future generation Honda City might get leather seat upholstery, automatic air conditioning system and touch screen multimedia system compatible with AUX-in, USB, iPod and Bluetooth, besides the audio-visual navigation system. Skoda Rapid also gets some premium features like Halogen projector headlamps, driver seat height adjuster, length and height adjustable steering wheel and manually regulated air conditioner with rear vents.
It must be mentioned that the competition mainly lies between the brand value that Honda shares in India as compared to Skoda. It must be noted that the City sedan has been the flagship model for the Japanese car maker, which has single handedly guided the company towards the path of success in the Indian auto market. Although in the recent past the sales of Honda City has suffered owing to the lack of diesel option, the auto maker is likely to address that need in the future generation City. On the other hand, its been quite a while since Skoda Rapid made its debut in India and so far the car has had a decent run in India; however the performance has not been instrumental.
So to assess the competition between the two, it must be said that Honda City poses a serious threat to Skoda Rapid as it is a tried and tested sedan. Now with its availability in the diesel version, the mid-size sedan segment would be in for a surprise, as believed by the industry experts.
