Honda has launched the new City hatchback which will go on sale in Thailand first. It is essentially a shorter, hatchback version of the existing 5th Gen Honda City Sedan which was recently launched in India.

Design:

The new Honda City hatchback looks almost same as the Sedan, till the C-pillar. However, instead of an elongated trunk, the car gets a hatch beyond that. The rear too resembles the Sedan when it comes to the wide, horizontally placed tail-lights and the number plate housing. However, the hatchback gets a shorter overhang and a

more rounded appearance. The rear bumper too is sporty with vertically placed faux air vents and a contrast black rear faux diffuser.

The new Honda City hatchback RS Turbo gets more sporty bits like a blacked-out grille and dark-chrome finish for the 16-inch alloy wheels, similar to the City Sedan RS Turbo version sold in Thailand.

The new Honda City hatchback is 4,349mm long, 1,748mm wide and 1,488mm tall and has a 2,589mm long wheelbase. It is 200mm shorter than the Thailand-spec City sedan but is 314mm longer, 53mm wider and has a 59mm longer wheelbase than the Honda Jazz.

Interior:

On the inside too, the City hatchback is exactly the same as the sedan without any significant changes. However unlike the Sedan, the hatchback gets Honda’s innovative rear seats that can split 60:40, fold down to increase boot space, fold up to increase vertical space and sit flush with the front seats to create a bed.

Powertrain:

The City hatchback will be currently available with only a 1.0-liter turbo-petrol engine that produces 122hp through a CVT gearbox. More powertrain options will be offered based on the different markets.

 Launch markets:

The new City hatchback will be introduced in many markets like South America and in countries like Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia where it will also replace the third-gen Jazz. However, the fourth-gen Jazz has already been launched in markets like Japan, Europe and even North America where the City hatchback is not expected to be launched.

In India however, Honda has just introduced a facelift version of the 3rd Gen Jazz with more features. This Jazz facelift will not be replaced by any new model anytime soon.

Stay tuned for further updates.

Toyota India is preparing to launch the facelifted Toyota Fortuner on the 6th of January, 2021. Apart from launching the facelifted version of the existing Fortuner, Toyota is also bringing the Legender version of the SUV as well. The Legender is essentially a highly upgraded flagship Variant of the Fortuner SUV, previously launched in Thailand and Australia. Bookings have commenced unofficially for the new facelifted SUV at select dealerships for an advance of ?50,000.

Exterior:

The majority of the upgrades will occur at the front end of the Fortuner. While the facelift of the existing model will feature a new grille, LED

headlights with LED DRLs, redesigned fog lights and a new silver skid plate, the highest-spec Legender variant will feature a sharper front design with Bi-projector LED Headlamps with LED DRLs. Other changes will include redesigned 18” alloy wheels and re-profiled LED taillights. The Legender will feature unique design 20” alloy wheels.

Interior:

The new Fortuner launched in Thailand features an all-black interior with a new instrument cluster and a larger, 9” touchscreen infotainment system. The Fortuner Legender edition also offers a powered tailgate with the swipe-to-open function, wireless charging and a 360-degree parking camera. Similar to the facelifted Innova Crysta, the new Fortuner will also include Android auto and Apple carplay finally. 

Powertrains:

The first powertrain for the facelifted Fortuner will be the 2.7L petrol engine which produces 166 PS and 245 Nm through either a 6 speed manual or automatic gearbox. The highest spec Fortuner Legender will get a new 2.8L turbo diesel engine which produces 204 PS and 500 Nm. While all the models will be 2WD as standard, only the diesel will get a 4WD option.

Price:

The current BS6 Toyota Fortuner is available from ?28.66 lakh to ?36.88 lakh (ex-showroom).

The price of the upgraded models will be available on the launch date, 6th January 2021.

Stay tuned for further updates on the new Fortuner.

Kawasaki has been teasing them riders with short clips of the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-25R. Jumping straight to the heart of the matter, what has been the most fascinating point of this motorcycle is the engine. A 250cc, inline four motor is just what every biker would yearn for. Not just for the performance but also mostly for the kind of tunes it would produce. Just like the old days when 250cc four cylinder motors revved up to around 20000 rpm. Not that this one would but 17000 rpm is still sounds very, very exciting.

There are rumours that there could be

two variants of this motorcycle but the news of its official launch date in Indonesia is still not out. We suspect it could happen once the world is out of the Covid- 19 menace. Showcased in the Tokyo Motor Show, the Ninja Zx-25R takes a lot of styling from the Ninja ZX-10R. Obviously, this has been the trend for quite sometime.

Princing is expected to hover around the equivalent of 5 Lakh Rupees in the Indonesia. Now, you would think that sort of money is pretty high for a 250cc motorcycle. But, this new Ninja’s four cylinder motor is expected to have a power output between 50 and 60 PS which in our books is a great! Combine that kind of power with the its lightweight body. What you’d get is a power to weight ratio that matches some big motorcycles.

In fact, that sort of power would surpass the kind of competition that 300cc- 400cc single cylinder motorcycles offer. The Ninja ZX-25R’s performance package and the its sleek, sharp stance could mostly make is a highly desirable track tool, ready to keep up with some of the big boys for almost a fraction of the price as it would attract lesser taxes, lesser insurance premiums. What’s even better is that one would get the inline four soundtrack that you often get from big capacity motorcycles and, one would also save on maintenance money as the Ninja ZX-25R would be cheaper to maintain than the bigger monsters.

From what we’ve seen in the videos released by Kawasaki, the ZX-25R could come with adjustable suspension at the front and back, electronics in the form of rider aids like traction control, quick shifter and ABS. Once launched, the Ninja would be available in Indonesia initially. But the arrival of this dream motorcycle to India isn’t confirmed, mostly owing to the high value price tag it would attract via the CKD route. In fact, it could get more expensive than a Kawasaki Ninja 400. As a result, enthusiasts would definitely think a lot before buying such an expensive 250cc motorcycle. But, this could be the least expensive inline- four motorcycle one could get their hands on. Would you buy it?

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