PETALING JAYA: Honda Malaysia has confirmed the upcoming launch of the Honda City Hatchback with the release of a teaser on its Facebook page and HondaTouch app.
The teaser also came with a catchy phrase: "Move aside. Y? Because. This Is. It."
The "Y" can be cheekily assumed as a reference to the Toyota Yaris, one of the two best-selling non-national B-segment hatchback models aside from the Honda Jazz.
As the third-generation Jazz model currently sold in Malaysia is phased out, the void created in Honda Malaysia's line-up would be filled up by the new five-door City Hatchback.
This also follows the practice in Honda's other regional markets such as Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines which are already offering the City sedan to include the City Hatchback as a companion product.
The City Hatchback is essentially the City sedan which launched locally in October last year, except the hatchback model is 208mm shorter, gets a large tailgate design and has Ultra-type rear seats.
While the City sedan may appear to be targeted at a mature set of buyers, the City Hatchback is likely to be intended for a younger and hip crowd due to a sportier outlook.
The current City sedan, which is arguably the roomiest in its class, is offered in four variants of S, E, V and RS hybrid with retail prices ranging from RM74,000 to RM106,000.
It would be interesting to see how the City Hatchback would be specified and priced as a worthy replacement to the Jazz.
