2022 Honda City Hatchback launching in Malaysia – RS e:HEV, 1.5L DOHC, Honda Sensing; order books open

At long last, the order books for the 2022 Honda City Hatchback are finally open. Bookings for the Jazz‘s successor can be made at all Honda dealerships nationwide, and two powertrains have been confirmed – the regular 1.5 litre DOHC i-VTEC petrol, as well as the e:HEV i-MMD Hybrid.

Much like the City sedan, the e:HEV variant is the range-topper, and arrives in Road Sailing (RS) trim. That includes high-gloss piano black front grille, solid wing, side mirror caps, and RS-specific exterior trimmings.

The RS and V will get full LED headlights with LED daytime running lights, LED fog lights, LED rear combination tail lights, and 16-inch wheels. There’s more good news – the City Hatchback will get the Jazz’s famous four-mode ULTRA seats, allowing the rear seats to be folded completely flat or flipped up to maximise loading space.

Other conveniences include remote engine start and climate pre-conditioning (RS and V only; first-in-class), rear air vents, electric parking brake (RS only), Honda LaneWatch (RS and V), as well as Honda Sensing. So far, Sensing is only available for the RS – the City V sedan recently got upgraded with Sensing.

The Sensing kit is identical between the two City models, so the hatch also gets adaptive cruise control (without low speed follow), collision mitigation braking system (AEB, front only), forward collision warning, lane keep assist system, road departure mitigation, lane departure warning, and auto high beam.

To recap, the City Hatchback is essentially the sedan without a boot. At 4,345 mm long (4,349 mm with RS bumpers), it’s 208 mm shorter than the sedan, while the 1,488 mm height is up 21 mm. No difference in width and wheelbase, which remain at 1,748 mm and 2,589 mm respectively. Compared to the outgoing Jazz, the City Hatch is longer and wider, but less tall. The Jazz’s wheelbase is 59 mm shorter.

The 1.5 litre DOHC i-VTEC mill delivers 121 PS and 145 Nm of torque, making it among the most powerful in its segment. A CVT drives the front wheels. Meanwhile, the RS e:HEV gets Honda’s complex i-MMD hybrid system, which offers 109 PS and 253 Nm of torque. You may learn all about how the system works in our review of the City RS. The 2022 Honda City Hatchback will be launched soon, so watch this space!