Honda has started the road trials of an all-new fifth-gen City hatchback. A first series of spy shots of this upcoming model has emerged in Thailand, offering us a taste at what the City-based hatchback is to do.
Although Honda had a City-based hatchback on sale in China named the Gienia, it is planned that the new edition would be offered in several countries, in both right and left drive configurations. Most likely, the new City hatchback will go on sale first in Thailand, followed by a rollout in other ASEAN markets, in China, and even emerging markets like South America. The latest Honda hatchback is offered alongside the City sedan and is set to succeed the Jazz in a few countries.
Heavily covered is the test mule seen in these spy shots, but it gives us a clear idea of what the hatchback might look like. A few months ago we posted on the City hatchback patent sketches and the vehicle shown in those pictures is identical to that one. The latest City hatchback would most certainly appear very identical to the sedan, up to the C-pillar. That is when it is hoped the parallels would finish. The City hatchback gets a perfectly built-in rear with horizontally mounted tail-lamps and a more streamlined appearance; the rear-end configuration sure doesn’t feel like an afterthought. The latest hatchback will share quite a bit with the sedan on the inside, although the legroom in the rear seat might be a little less than its three-box equivalent.
As of now, information regarding the powertrain are sparse. We can however confirm that in most markets the model will come with a 1.0 liter turbo-petrol engine. In markets like China, there are also car talks coming with a 1.5-liter petrol engine with mild-hybrid engineering. It is anticipated that the exact powertrain choices will be verified more closely to market launch of the vehicle.
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