I've been reading many positive reviews of the Honda Fit. It's being described as "fun to drive." Sound familiar? In a recent AutoWeek, however, they said "it's no MINI Cooper." I'm not planning on getting rid of my Cooper anytime soon, but thought maybe the Fit could replace my wife's '02 Civic. The Fit has side/side curtain airbags plus ABS. So adding safety plus fun is looking a bit tempting right now. My local Honda dealers don't seem to have the Fit available to test drive. I just want to see what all the fuss is about. I doubt that the Fit could have the same steering feel as the MINI and there's no way the chassis could be as good. Has anyone here been able to test drive the Fit?

On paper the Fit and the Cooper (non-S) compare pretty well. Here are some links:
http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do...0/pageId=69465
http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do...0/pageId=17868
http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/direct/view/.f0c3598/0
http://www.caranddriver.com/comparis...fit-sport.html
http://hondatuningmagazine.com/featu...nda_fit_spoon/

 

My father has been trying to convince me to get the Fit instead of ordering a MINI Cooper ( I think he's just trying to stall and save a few thousand, even though I'm paying for it). However, I simply can not stand the styling! It's a first model year car, so the reliability, even though it's a Honda, probably won't be as good or at the most will be comporable to an '06 MINI. I'm sticking with the Cooper.

Edit: First model year in America, but still...

 

I can't agree more! (my rant on my Civic...)

 

The fit / Jazz has been sold for 3 or 4 years in other markets. Not a new first year car by any means. I like the Fit, but wouldn't trade my MINI for one. It's nice that another practical small non-suv is being sold here.

 

im still not convinced.

 

The Honda Fit reminds me of the Suzuki Aerio 5 door hatchback.

Actually its a neat little car and probably a much better buy than the Scion xA it competes with.

I have only sit in it and the car has fairly decent room. The selling point is the "Magic" rear seat arragements that allow for multiple configurations.

Does MINI have anything to worry about with the Honda Fit? Nothing in my opinion. The Fit is another econobox, cheap transportation on a fairly decent package.

MINI is however doing a tremendous desservice to itself and its customers by delaying the 5 door Traveller station wagon until early 2008. MINI will continue to lose customers wanting a small 5 door alternative to other competitors until the Traveller becomes a reality.

The main problem with the Fit is the styling. I don't think the car is an eye sore (Unlike the Scion xB) but it isn't a beauty queen either.

I suspect Honda will be selling more and more Fits as gas prices continue to climb. Basically the Fit has occupied the model entry level position previously occupied by the Honda Civic which is priced as a "luxury" car by econo car standards.

How much is a new Civic sedan LX? $18-$19K? Compare that to $14K-$15K for a new nicely optioned Fit 5 door.

Unlike the Civic and Accord, the Fit is manufactured in Japan and the current car has been around for about 3 years. The Fit is sold in world markets as the "Honda Jazz".

Think of the Honda Fit as the "spiritual successor" of the Honda Civics made 15-20 years ago.

Last but not least, I think the marketing campaign of the Fit is dumb and it is clearly aimed at the Nintendo/Anime set.

But I am glad that we are seeing more effcient and high quality small cars in our roads. If it hadn't been for the success of MINI in America and the soaring gas prices, the Fit would have never been imported at all.

 

^ +1 and i would seriously consider the Mazda5 over the Fit if i was going
to get those small hatch-wagon thingerma giggers. the 5 looks so much
better and has 3rd row seating. but that 3rd row is for people you don't
like.

 

I like the Mazda 5 but it suffers from a fairly anemic 2.3L motor. Hopefully mazda will address this issue with more HP next year.

Actually, the Mazda 3 5 door hatch is a substantially better car than the Honda Fit, but then again, the Mazda 3 sits at a higher price point.

 

can you even compare the two? lol

as for the mazda i read in a tuner rag that they are bringing a 240hp turbocharged version of the new(er) 3 series.

 

yep, mazdaspeed 3, i gotta say, with ford on the helm, they are bringing out exciting cars... not better cars.... (i driven the mazdaspeed 6 my friend just got.... not very exciting, even though it is a step up)

all i wish, is for ford to re-kindle what made the RX7 such a car to own.....

back on topic... i like the Fit... i sat in one awhile ago and it was quite roomy... lots of headroom too

 

I test drove a Fit a couple of weeks ago since my wife and I were talking about getting another 4-door car at that time, to make hauling the kids (2 and 3 years old) back and forth to the babysitter every day a little easier (we already have a Ford Freestyle Wagon, but she drops them off and I pick them up in different cars).

The local dealership I went to only had autos in stock (I would only buy a manual trans Fit) but I went for a 10-15 mile test drive with some freeway and some city miles involved. I came away rather impressed with a lot of different aspects of the car. It has the best interior for its $15k price of any similar economy car I've sat in. Many aspects of the interior are superior to the Mini IMO, especially the extra room it has and the flexibility of different hauling configurations with the seating configurations available. I didn't care for the tall seating position though (I even feel I sit a bit high in the Mini), driving the Fit reminded me of driving a minivan.The handling is also quite remarkable for a car of its type, it is as good or better than most economy cars I've driven (my old ACR Neon being an exception) and leaps and bounds above most of its current competition. I've driven several automatic Minis, and the Fit feels like it would be comparable in power delivery, but I could never live with an auto (Fit or Mini). I think the manual transmission Fit would provide enough extra oomph to make the car liveable.

Some of the pros and cons as I saw them:
Pro:
Small in size
Lightweight
Good handling
Acceptable power
Great interior - very roomy
Good price and value

Con:
Uninspiring styling
High seating position
No heated seat or sunroof option

For now we've just decided to make do with our Freestyle and Mini to haul the kids around, but if we needed another 4-door car in the future, I'd take a serious look at a Fit, but if it vcame down to the Fit or the Mini, I'd make due with less interior room and worse gas mileage (and premium fuel needed) and keep my Mini, no question about it.

-Keith

 

The 5th gear folks did a segment a few years ago about a bloke with money to burn and wanted 5th gear to recommend a bunch of vehicles to fit his needs. Among other things, he needed a urban go getter. 5th gear suggested the Focus, Honda Jazz or the Mini Cooper. They had brought the entire assortment to a wide open area (I think it was an aerodrome), so the fella could let loose the rides.

It was a wet surface (misty). 5th gear presented their recommendations. He wouldn't even look at the Focus and didn't think much of the Cooper. Driving the Jazz, he thought it was okay. The Mini was next. Suffice it to say, he was amazed at the handling of the Cooper.

At least at the end of the segment, he decided to buy the Mini.

YMMV

 

I have been car shopping as well. In Hawaii each Honda dealership gets in about 3 to 5 Honda Fit (always the S and never the base model!) each month. There are none to test drive and they virtually are all spoken for.

The sales person says you deposit $500 and get in line, choose a color and style then wait 3-5 months for a match (first right of refusal). While MSRP is about $16,500 for the S, there is "retail" at the dealership which is the true selling price of about $19,500. That's right and then you add the fees and tax and license. They have no trouble selling at that price at every dealership here.

A MINI loaded is on the order of about $21,000 in my area and a much better performance car but with a little less versatile cargo holding capacity.

A Civic LX 4 door in my area is as low as about 18,500 while the EX is $1700 more and Civic Hybrid is $4700 more minus rebate. Dealers get in about 15-18 civics per month and sell out in the first week so no need to sell below MSRP and in fact it's common to spend $1500 over MSRP or more as in the case of the Civic SI.

 

I just bought my MINI and considered the Scion xA, the Honda Fit and others. I really wanted a compact 5-door, but the xA felt like a tin can inside. The drive was OK.

When I went to Honda, they didn't have a Fit in stock, but I talked with the sales guy. After describing what I was looking for, he said, "The Fit is going to feel too anemic for you." It's possible he was just trying to sell me a Civic Si, but he was one of the very rare car dealers whose word I actually trust.

In the end, I decided to give up the other 2 doors and get my MCS. (Just landed in New York harbor _today_!)

 

^ I think you made the right choice.

 

Congrats on your MINI.

I talked to the Honda sales person about the Fit's power. He said it's just adequate. OK on the highway for speedlimit driving and OK on urban streets but don't expect too much. Probably worse if you load it up with four people.

Just this weekend I took two passengers with me in my MCS for a "test drive" and the guest driver liked it so much he's in the market for a MINI now. I usually don't consider test drives with three people as optimal for performance but we did some hilly driving and there was no lack of traction and power.

 

Bringing a thread back from the dead:

I just saw my first Fit this week at the auto show, and I was crazy impressed with the back seat mechanism. Both the seat backs and cushions are on a common pivot, so as the back folds down, the cushion lowers as well. Everything is so flush when folded down that if it weren't for the back doors, you wouldn't think it came with a back seat at all. The cargo floor with the seats lowered is a good 5-6" lower than the height of the seats when upright. Massive cargo space.

Of course, I'm not going to get rid of my MINI for it. But, it would be a perfect fit (HA!) for my parents. If anyone has other test drive reports, I'd love to hear 'em.

 

why for your parents? you're old enough to
drive your ownself, right? are they gonna toss you in the
back as luggage? imho fit is a better fit for younger folks
like college kids/kids just out of college.

 

Funny, I was thinking it might be a good car for my Mom - her Civic is at the end of its rope and I'd like to see her in a safe reliable car that is not too big (she is not a big person and the car should fit, I see too many older people trying to handle cars that are too big for them with some bad results). I'd love to hear of any experiences with them as well.

Its too bad, as much as I had thought a CVT Cooper might have been a good car for her before I now wouldn't feel that it was reliable enough and service is too far away from where she is.

 

I've long since moved away, but I still keep an eye out for their automotive well being.

My dad has a thing for odd-shaped, 'unique' cars and whatnot. Going through a mid-life crisis as he is, if I don't steer him towards this, he's going to end up in an xB.
That, and at some point in the lifetime of every vehicle he's owned, he's completely maxed out the cargo capacity. He's a packrat and a hauler.

 

I went and looked at the Fit Sport, thinking it would interesting. It's ok I guess, but a gutless wonder. There's never a feeling of acceleration and if you own an MCS, it will feel slow.

 

But how would it feel coming from a late 90s Civic?

 

about the same. maybe a bit better handling. The selling point is the tall wagon form factor

 

Even if (and that is a huge if) that vehicle compares in every other conceivable way to the MINI Cooper, it doesn't come close in terms of appearance.

I wouldn't go as far as saying it's ugly, but it's close. And it's certainly not in the same class as the MC !

 

fit and finish is better than an MC