Exclusive: Honda City Hybrid To Get More Affordable, Lower Trim Coming Back!

The Honda City has had immense acceptance in the Indian market. There was a time when it used to dominate in sales. However, things haven't been quite smooth in recent years, and Honda has been struggling with the hybrid- City e:HEV. The hybrid sedan failed to impress the crowd with its price, when it was first launched in 2022. We have now learnt that Honda is planning to expand the City eHEV lineup with more affordable variants. The carmaker seems to have started working on this. It could launch before the festive season.

When it was first launched, the hybrid City came in just one, fully loaded variant. It had all the bells and whistles and sat at the top of the City lineup. It was desirable for sure, but not accessible to everyone. Its hefty price tag narrowed down the e:HEV's scope and appeal.

Taking lessons from this, the carmaker rolled out an update in 2023, which added a more affordable V trim to the eHEV's lineup. With an ex-showroom price of 18.89 lakh, it was more affordable than the ZX variant that was being sold at 20.39 lakh, ex-showroom.

Later in time, Honda silently retired the V variant. At the time of writing this article, the hybrid City comes in just one variant with an ex-showroom price of Rs 20.85 lakh!

Why Is Honda Mulling Over A More Affordable City Hybrid?

From what we have learnt from sources, Honda is working on more affordable variants of the eHEV. This could mean that they bring back the V variant which was previously on sale, at a price that roughly equates the last recorded price. The idea here, is to benefit from the new governmental policies which intend to subsidize hybrid cars priced under 20 lakh. The current City eHEV will not qualify for these, with its 20+ lakh price.

The Delhi government, in April, announced its draft Electric Vehicle Policy 2.0, which proposes to offer massive incentives to mass-market hybrids. These could often be as big as those given to electric vehicles. The draft was circulated among manufacturers for feedback and the same triggered widespread discussions within the industry.

According to the draft policy, hybrid vehicles would qualify for road tax and registration concessions similar to those enjoyed by EVs. Delhi's push for hybrids is also a thoughtful response to the city's rising pollution levels, which are mostly caused by vehicular emissions. As hybrid vehicles have significantly lower emissions, they would pollute a lot less in comparison.

The draft was welcomed by manufacturers like Maruti Suzuki, Toyota and Honda, which already have mass-market hybrids on sale. The expansion of the City hybrid lineup seems essential for benefitting from the upcoming policies.

Unlike Toyota which has a strong presence in the sub-20 lakh hybrid space, and Maruti Suzuki which sells rebadged versions of the same at even lower prices, Honda is left with just the City that sits at 20 lakh, ex-showroom! Rolling out variants and iterations with the same powertrain and less equipment at lower prices seems to be the easiest way out.

The expansion will likely have long-term benefits, as more states are likely to adopt hybrid-friendly policies in the future. Even Delhi-NCR isn't something a manufacturer can shut eyes to, as it is one of the largest car markets in the country.

The larger goal, is to save the City moniker. We regret to say this, but the City sales have lately been slumping- just 406 units were sold in April 2025! It isn't just the customer inclination towards SUVs to blame here. Footfalls to the sedan segment aren't negligible anymore.

Models like the Volkswagen Virtus and Skoda Slavia have been leading the game. Even the Hyundai Verna pulls volumes that aren't too bad. The City, however, has been riding rough waves. The introduction of more affordable variants could give the City eHEV a new lease of life in the Indian market.