New Honda City ZX vs Hyundai Creta SX Petrol Comparison - Which One To Buy?

New Honda City ZX vs Hyundai Creta SX - Price Comparison

The 5th gen Honda City ZX petrol costs Rs. 13.15 lakh with the manual transmission and Rs. 14.45 lakh with the CVT automatic transmission. The Hyundai Creta SX petrol variant costs Rs. 13.46 lakh with the manual and Rs. 14.94 lakh with the CVT automatic transmission.

The City ZX petrol manual is Rs. 31,000 cheaper than the Creta SX petrol manual. The 2020 Honda City ZX petrol CVT automatic is Rs. 49,000 cheaper than the Hyundai Creta SX petrol XCT automatic.

New City ZX vs Creta SX - Safety Features Comparison

Let’s first go through the common safety features available in these two cars.

Common Safety Features

Heres the list of common safety features available in the City ZX and Creta SX:

• Std Safety Features
• Day/Night IRVM
• Central Locking
• Impact Sensing Auto Door Unlock
• Speed Sensing Auto Door Lock
• Front Seatbelt Pretensioners
• Automatic Projector Headlamps
• Tyre Pressure Monitoring System
• Fog Lamps
• Rear Defogger
• Rear Parking Camera
• Electronic Stability Control
• Vehicle Stability Management
• Hill Start Assist
• Automatic LED Headlamps

Unique Safety Features

With the common features out of the way, let’s now compare what unique features the New City ZX and Creta SX bring to the table.

New City ZX vs Creta SX - Functional Features Comparison

Lets first get the common functional features between these two cars out of the way.

Common Functional Features

The City ZX and Creta SX have the following functional features in common:

• USB Charger
• Follow-me-home Headlamps
• Height Adjustable Driver Seat
• Adjustable Front Headrests
• Integrated Rear Headrests
• Front & Rear Power Windows
• Electrically Adjustable ORVMs
• Tilt Steering
• Front Armrest
• Auto AC w/ Rear AC Vents
• Front & Rear Power Outlet
• Smart Key w/ Push-button Start/Stop
• Cruise control
• Rear Armrest

Unique Functional Features

The New City ZX and Creta SX offer the following unique functional features:

New City ZX vs Creta SX - Entertainment Features Comparison

Lets first list out the common entertainment features of these two cars.

Common Entertainment Features

The New City ZX and Creta SX have the following entertainment features in common:

• Touchscreen Infotainment System
• Apple CarPlay & Android Auto
• Voice Recognition
• Front & Rear Speakers
• AUX-in, USB & Bluetooth
• Steering-mounted Audio Controls

Unique Entertainment Features

The New City ZX and Creta SX offer the following unique entertainment features:

New City ZX vs Creta SX - Style Features Comparison

First, well go through the common style features of these two cars.

Common Style Features

The new City ZX and Creta SX have the following style features in common:

• LED DRLs
• Body-coloured Bumpers & Door Handles
• Body-coloured ORVMs w. Turn Indicators
• Shark Fin Antenna
• Fabric Seats
• LED Taillamps
• Leather-Wrapped Steering
• Ambient lighting

Unique Style Features

The 2020 City ZX and Creta SX offer the following unique style features:

5th-Gen City ZX vs Creta SX - Dimension Comparison

The 5th-gen Honda City is a big car and there’s no denying that. The new City is longer than 4.5m and long enough to qualify to be part of the D segment. The Creta makes up for its shorter length with a slightly wider and a much taller body. The Creta SX also has a much better ground clearance and wider tyres on bigger wheels than the New City ZX.

While the City has a larger boot, the Creta’s hatch-like design allows you to fold the rear seats and carry larger cargo. The City’s 3-box design makes it impossible to carry big items like a refrigerator or a large washing machine if you ever have to in a pinch.

In terms of dimensions, the Creta’s larger dimensions, bigger tyres and higher ground clearance give it a stronger road presence than the new City.

New City ZX vs Creta SX - Qualitative Analysis (Safety, Style, Warranty)

The City has a better safety rating (5-star ASEAN test) and it also has 2 extra airbags than the Creta SX. But in terms of the service network and dimensions, the Creta wins as it’s bigger and has a wider service network. Both the cars have a similar standard warranty and there’s no way to objectively give one car the advantage in build quality. Therefore, we can’t hand the award to either of the two cars in these two aspects.

New City ZX vs Creta SX - Engine Specs Comparison

The City has a more powerful engine than the Creta and 1Nm better torque rating too. But, in the real world driving, we rarely drive at 6000rpm. So, we instead need to focus on the torque-to-weight ratios of these two cars.

In that regard, the Creta’s heavier weight gives the City a notable advantage. The Honda City is also more fuel-efficient and part of that is because of the aerodynamic profile and lighter kerb weight.

5th-Gen City ZX vs Creta SX - Quantitative Analysis (Maintenance, Depreciation, Fuel Cost)

The new Honda City’s estimated routine service cost for 5 years will come out to be Rs. 25,000 (source: Honda India). The Creta’s routine maintenance costs much less (source: Hyundai India - based on previous-gen Creta).

Both of these cars have a high residual value in their respective segments. Therefore, our estimates suggest that they’ll have a comparable impact from depreciation with the City enjoying a slight edge because of 1% lower depreciation.

In terms of fuel cost, Honda City’s better mileage figure helps it a bit as it costs Rs. 2.25 lakh to run 50,000km with the manual transmission. With the automatic, it’ll cost around Rs. 2.17 lakh for the City ZX to cover 50,000. The Creta SX fuel costs are about the same with the manual and automatic transmission and around Rs. 2.4 lakh. Note that, we’re using claimed mileage figures but in real driving, it’ll vary based on driving conditions, driving style and how well you maintain your vehicle.

The total cost of ownership for these two cars comes down to Rs. 8.35 lakh for the 2020 City ZX MT and Rs. 8.92 lakh for the City ZX automatic. The Creta’s cost of ownership after 5 years is Rs. 8.2 lakh for SX petrol manual and Rs. 8.84 lakh for the petrol automatic.

This means, there’s only about Rs. 5,000 price difference between the City ZX and Creta SX manual and Rs. 19,000 with both of these tipping in favour of the City.

The City has a lower cost of ownership after factoring in the maintenance, fuel cost and depreciation/resale price after 5 years of ownership.

Verdict Of 5th-Gen 2020 City ZX vs Creta SX - Which Car Should You Buy?

Between the Creta SX and City ZX petrol, you should buy the Hyundai Creta SX. Objectively, it’s offering a little better value than the 5th gen City ZX with the manual transmission but less in case of the automatic. In both cases, the difference is negligible. You could choose either one but we would recommend you go with the Creta. It’s because of the panoramic sunroof. This single upmarket feature will drastically impact the overall ownership and cabin experience.

The Creta SX has a Rs 9,000 advantage over the City ZX with the manual transmission. With the automatic, the City ZX comes out on top with a similarly small margin. The City automatic’s better mileage and lower upfront cost help it beat the Creta automatic by a narrow margin.