This newly-revised Honda City Hatchback is set to land locally sometime in the 2nd quarter of 2024.
Following on from its debut over in our neighbour to the north earlier this year, Honda Malaysia has since announced that the facelift for its City Hatchback will soon be landing locally within the second quarter of this year. And for those who wish to get their hands on one of these updated versions as soon as it comes out, the Japanese automaker has also recently swung open the order books for it too.
As for what has changed with this update meanwhile, the facelifted City Hatchback predictably has been graced with a slightly tweaked face from its pre-facelift iteration. Honda Malaysia has pointed out that its flagship e:HEV RS variant in particular nets a newly redesigned honeycomb front grille, front lower grille and a more aggressive front bumper with an integrated front fog light garnish.
Moving on rearwards, Honda Malaysia further touts for the top-tier hybrid variant to have its sporty appeal further accentuated by a new sleek rear bumper lower garnish design. A captivating new design of its side sill garnish in turn that adds a touch of sophistication to its overall sporty appearance of this electrified trim, as does a sportier looking design for its Berlina Black 16-inch alloy wheels.
In terms of what will be turning those black rollers now, the e:HEV RS trim is to net the same 1.5-litre Intelligent Multi-Mode Drive (i-MMD) hybrid powertrain that delivers 109 PS and a Camry-beating 253 Nm of torque. Under the hood of the updated non-electrified City Hatchbacks meanwhile will similarly continue to be feature the same 1.5 litre naturally-aspirated four-cylinder, which sends 121 PS and 145 Nm to its front wheels via a CVT.
Honda Malaysia has yet to reveal any changes that has been brought along with this update, but the Thai-spec facelift shows for the addition of a new inner pocket for smartphones on its seat backs and a change in USB ports to Type C being about all that was revised within.
What has nevertheless been significantly changed however is the levels of safety kit that has been added to this facelifted City Hatchback, with Honda Malaysia confirming that all all variants of this updated compact Japanese hatchback will land locally with the Honda SENSING suite of ADAS as standard. Lead Car Departure Notification (LCDN) has also since been added into the mix of active driver aids, with the e:HEV RS variant further netting the rather handy Low Speed Follow (LSF) for its Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC).
Honda Malaysia Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Hironobu Yoshimura said: “Back in 2021, Honda Malaysia created a milestone by introducing the City in Hatchback body type for the first time. This model gained instant popularity with its eye-catching design, advanced technology and practicality. From city streets to open highways, this Energetic Hatchback has captured hearts since its 2021 debut, surpassing 28,700 units in sales and confirming its status as Malaysia’s ultimate hatchback sensation.”
The City Hatchback was Honda Malaysia’s second model with the e:HEV technology, introduced in 2021. Since then, the e:HEV RS for City Hatchback contributed 16% to Honda Malaysia’s total hybrid sales to-date, marking a significant contribution to the Company’s e:HEV model expansion in the market. In 2023, Honda Malaysia sold a total of 10,300 units of City Hatchback, attaining a strong presence in the Non-National hatchback segment.
