Honda City CVT vs Honda City Hybrid drag race: Hybrid Theory

The Honda City hybrid is known for its fuel efficiency, but can it beat the high revving Honda City petrol in a drag race?

Published On Jun 16, 2023 08:00:00 AM

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The Honda City hybrid is known to offer staggering fuel efficiency, but, as highlighted in our road test, it is also a lively performer. To put its sprinting abilities into perspective, we race it against the Honda City petrol automatic in a quarter mile (or 402.34m) drag race.

The City hybrid is powered by a 1.5L petrol engine running the efficient Atkinson Cycle. It has a 109hp traction motor that draws its energy from a lithium-ion battery and a 95hp motor-generator that charges the battery using the petrol engine. The combined output is 126hp, and, for the hybrid tech it packs in, it weighs 1,280kg. The Honda City petrol, on the other hand, is powered by a 121hp 1.5-litre petrol engine, mated to a CVT automatic. Question is, will this engine’s high revving nature and its lighter kerb weight (1,153kg) swing the game in its favour?

City petrol-CVT vs City Hybrid specs
	City petrol-CVT	City Hybrid
Engine	1,498cc, 4 cyls, petrol	1,498cc, 4 cyls, petrol + Electric motor
Power	121hp @ 6,600 rpm	126hp(combined)
Torque	145Nm @ 4,500 rpm	127Nm (engine)/253Nm (motor)
Gearbox	7-step CVT	e-CVT
Weight	1,153kg	1,280kg
Power to weight ratio	104.9hp per tonne	98.4hp per tonne

Honda City CVT vs Honda City Hybrid quarter-mile race

Expectedly, the hybrid’s electric assist gives it the much-needed boost to scoot ahead and build a sizable lead over the petrol version. But, after that initial surge, the hybrid’s performance flattens, and the VTEC’s stronger top-end performance shines. This helps the petrol reel the hybrid in, managing to reduce the gap significantly.

The hybrid still manages to cross the finishing line first in 17.79 seconds, while the petrol CVT trails it by just 0.52 seconds. What’s interesting is that the petrol’s trap speed is 121.47kph, almost 7kph higher than the hybrid, which goes to show that in a longer race, the petrol would have certainly beaten the hybrid.

City petrol-CVT vs City hybrid
	City petrol-CVT	City hybrid
Quarter-mile time	18.31sec	17.79sec
Speed at finish line	121.47kph	114.66kph

Disclaimer

We race the cars multiple times and publish the quickest elapsed time only. Elapsed time is what each car takes to cross the finish line. We don’t consider reaction time since it could skew the result due to human error. Our drag races are conducted on closed stretches of road, in controlled environments, and the cars are driven by professionals. We urge you to drive safely and responsibly, and not indulge in racing activities on public roads.

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