If cars can be likened to fairy tale characters, then the Honda City would probably be Cinderella. When it was first launched about two years ago, many found the styling hard to take. The City's boot looked like it had been suddenly attached to the back of a Honda Jazz (on which the City is actually based) and this did not make for a particularly cohesive overall design.

That fact might have kept a fair number of would-be buyers from City ownership, but no longer. Honda's designers have given the facelifted City re-proportioned head and tail lamps, which together with the new grille help visually align the City with the out-going Civic.

In addition, the re-profiled bumpers and side mouldings do much to erase memories of the old car's tip-toed stance.

As before, the City is available with your choice of two smooth-revving 1.5-litre power units, an i-DSI as well as a VTEC variant. We tested the less expensive i-DSI variant, which interestingly sports two spark plugs per cylinder.

DRIVING IT

It's no bad thing that the City's engine and transmission remain largely unchanged because the performance, refinement and fuel efficiency this combination offers makes this Honda one the best cars in its class.

While the manual gearbox our test car came with lives up to Honda's typically high standards with its sweet shift action, the Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT) available for an extra $2,000, is an option that's well worth the premium.

For starters, the City's CVT comes with a "7 speed mode" that lets the driver manually choose between seven virtual ratios by way of buttons mounted on the steering wheel.

Aside from letting racing fans live out their vicarious F1 fantasies, this mode also has a practical benefit in the form of eliciting quicker acceleration than simply leaving the gearbox to its own devices. Handy for say, overtaking manoeuvres or merging with faster-moving expressway traffic.

The City's suspension however, does not encourage over-enthusiastic driving as faster-than-normal steering inputs tend to be met with lots of body roll and understeering, tyre squealing drama. Drive at a moderate pace, though, and few will have reason to complain about the City's dynamics.

INSIDE IT

From the driver's seat, the view forward is just about identical to the City's hatchback counterpart, the Jazz, which also means that ergonomics and build quality are also equally superb. While those who opt for the more expensive VTEC model get the same clever 'Ultra' rear seats as those in the Jazz (these flip and fold every which way to accommodate tall (up to 1.2m) and long (up to 2.4m) loads), those in the City i-DSI don't fold. Still, Honda makes up for this by hiding a pair of handy storage bins below the rear seat squabs.

Both versions however, benefit from a 500-litre capacity boot, which to put things in perspective, is almost as big as that of a Mercedes-Benz E-Class. This also means that golfers should have no problems fitting more than one golf bag into the City's boot.

DOLLARS AND SENSE

Previously, deciding between the i-DSI and VTEC models was easy. You would have picked the latter simply because in addition to the extra performance, you also got airbags up front and four disc brakes with ABS, which together would have made for plenty of peace of mind where passenger safety was concerned.

Now the decision isn't quite so obvious as spending an extra $4,000 over the base model will get you the City VTEC's additional features minus the clever seats. Basically, you could get a Civic i-DSI with CVT that would still work out to be about $3,000 less than the VTEC variant.

VERDICT

The City has always been a class leader, ungainly looks or not. The facelift should correct this niggle, and the more flexible spec options will no doubt further boost this little Honda's attractiveness.

Still, more important perhaps, is the fact that one of the most accomplished cars in
this class now looks the part.

NEED TO KNOW

Honda City I-DSI
ENGINE TYPE 1,497cc, 16v in-line 4
MAX POWER 88bhp at 5,500rpm
MAX TORQUE 131Nm at 2,700rpm
GEARBOX 5-speed manual
TOP SPEED 180km/h
0-100 KM/H 10.8 seconds
PRICE $57,000 with COE
WARRANTY 3 years / 100,000km
CONTACT Kah Motor
TELEPHONE 6840-6888 / 6339-9880

SIMILAR CARS WE HAVE DRIVEN

TOYOTA VIOS 1.5E $51,988 with COE
The Vios is the City's most direct rival in terms of positioning and both cars are built in Thailand. The Toyota, however, is more conventionally engineered.

NISSAN LATIO 1.5 (A) $60,000 with COE
Unlike the City, the Latio comes with an automatic so those looking for a manual gearbox might overlook the Nissan altogether. Still there are plenty of other note worthy features to consider like the very handy keyless entry system.