FastMotoring Motor News In Speed

Honda Malaysia Sdn Bhd is recalling 21,956 units of the City 2009 and 1,680 units of the Jazz 2009 and 2010 models to replace lost motion springs and the retainers for all vehicles with countermeasure parts.

In a statement today, Honda said lost motion springs, which are compressed by rocker arms in normal engine use, may bend or break over time resulting in irregular engine noise and potentially causing engine stalls. Though, it said no crashes or injuries have been reported that related to this issue.

The newly appointed Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Honda Malaysia, Yoichiro Ueno said the company is in the midst of preparing the replacement parts. Necessary inspection and replacement will be carried out when the parts are ready and all the charges incurred in this regard, will be borne by the company, he added.

More to the point, the Honda vehicle recalls not only applied in Malaysia but also other Honda City and Jazz/Fit in other region. In total recalled are 167,000 vehicles in Japan, 156,000 in China, 233,000 in the rest of Asia and about 122,000 in North America. Total up to 700,000 units worldwide.

We wasn’t expecting a Honda City to appear in the 2010 Kuala Lumpur International Motor Show (KLIMS). However, this one named as Honda City Concept is a white Honda City fitted with a nice 17″ rims and some exterior and interior modification.

The Honda City Concept in Taffeta White is fitted with standard Modulo kit and painted the roof top, the front grille, and the side mirror – all in black.

While this all these can be done at a car paint shop the 17″ rims are the one that caught our attention the most.

Inside, the Honda City Concept seats has been wrapped with black leather with red stitching for a sportier image,  the centre console is fitted with LCD screen.  With the recently launch of Honda’s Concept M variants,  we won’t surprise if there’s a Honda City Concept M similar to this to be on Honda’s product list soon.

Enjoy the Honda City Concept Photos below, if you want to see the real thing head to KLIMS 2010 – coming Sunday is the last day.

The market demand for Small Passenger Car in Sedans are getting very popular in many emerging market especially in South East Asia market like Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Philippine and etc As a result of that, many automakers from Japan started to come out Small Passengers Car in Sedan that originate from Small Hatchback platform. Like the Honda Jazz to Honda City, Toyota Yaris to Toyota Vios and Mazda2 turn to be a Sedan from a Hatch.

Basically all those cars are entry-level sedan. Therefore, we try to explore the best out of it for your precious hard earn money to be invested into those rides. In this post, we are going to puts Honda City Grade E Versus Mazda2 Sedan R-Spec to our test and comparisons head-to-head.

Honda City Grade E

Value:

- Paddle Shifter for Grade E

- 16-inch alloy in 185/55R16

- Power Steering with Electric Power Assist

- 42 Litres fuel tank.

Inside: It’s slightly longer car than the Mazda with same width. Good passengers and big boot space. 

Engine: 1.5 SOHC i-VTEC engine with 5 Speed Automatic Transmission. Max 120PS @ 6,600rpm with 145Nm of Torque @ 4,800rpm

Safety:

- All wheel Disc Brakes (Front Ventilated, Rear Solid),

- ABS, EBD, BA

- 4-star crash rating

Drivability: Suspension more for comfort than sportiness compared to the Mazda.

Warranty: 3 Years Warranty, only come with 6 months or 10,000km of FREE Service

Price: RM87,982.50 OTR without Insurance or RM90,480 OTR with Insurance (Optional Honda Modulo Aero kit & Wheels)

Mazda2 Sedan R-Spec

Value:  

- 16-inch alloy in 195/45R16 (Odd size tyres)

- Power Steering with Electric Power Assist too

- 42.8 Litres fuel tank (larger by 0.8 litres)

Inside: It’s a shorter car than the Honda, and has a smaller 450L boot and slightly tighter cabin.

Engine: MZR 1.5 DOHC 16-Valves with 4-Speed Automatic Transmission. Max 103PS @ 6,000rpm with 135Nm of Torque @ 4,000rpm. Slightly higher fuel consumption than Honda City.

Safety:

- Front wheel Ventilated Disc Brakes (Rear Drums)

- ABS, EBD, BA

- 5-star crash rating

Drivability: Better steering and handling for R-Spec compare to the Honda.

Warranty: 3 Years Warranty, now entitled to 3 years or 60,000KM of FREE Maintenance

Price: RM83,122 OTR without Insurance (Optional Leather Seat & Aero kit)

Click here to read our verdict and view the gallery of Honda City and Mazda2 Sedan