Honda and its Chinese partner GAC (Guangzhou Auto) announced the official introduction of the Crider in Beijing on June 26th.

Available in three trim levels, the new compact sedan is priced in the range of 114,800-149,800 Yuan (US$ 18,700-24,400).

In GAC-Honda's lineup, Crider fills the space between City and Accord - thus substituting the Civic, which is built by another venture, Dongfeng-Honda.

Based on the Concept C from the 2012 Beijing motor show and launched earlier this year in Shanghai, Honda Crider is essentially an extended version of the City subcompact - a notchback sibling of the Fit - and not a variant of the Civic as some have claimed.

It has a 2650mm wheelbase, compared with the 2550mm of the City and the 2700mm of Civic. Although sitting on a shorter wheelbase, Crider exceeds Civic by 130mm in overall length.

Intending to compete with the SAIC-VW Sagitar, FAW-VW Lavida, and Buick Excelle, Crider clearly pays more attention to practicality than performance, offering a large interior space and basic amenities. In contrast with Civic which has independent suspensions for all four wheels and a sporty feel, Crider employs the more affordable torsion-beam type in the rear.

Under the hood Crider gets the 1.8L i-VTEC engine of 102kW and 172Nm. A 5AT is provided for all three trim levels, while the 5MT is only available on the entry, Comfort level. Future models may get an additional engine choice, the 1.5L on Fit and City.

GAC-Honda targets to sell over 100,000 units of Crider per year.