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Honda Fit v. Nissan Versa
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Comments
That means quality and reliability is on the Fits side.
I doubt your logic will convince anyone to forgo their trip to the Nissan dealer.
brothers & sisters? please.
overall, the japanese build the most reliable cars. better than mexican, american, german, etc.
this is a car forum, not a political forum.
Long Term Quality - Vehicle Dependability Study Rankings JD Power link
Honda is in 9th place. :surprise: Behind Cadillac, Mercury, Lincoln, Porsche and Buick. There are not too many Buicks and Mercury built in Japan. :surprise:
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/cars/reliability/used-car-reliability-406/man- ufacturers-as-they-age/index.htm
According to CR, the Asian brands are much more reliable than the other brands overall. I have never had much respect for JD Power's data as it seems to be all over the map and doesn't ever jive with any other studies that I see. Plus their whole "Initial Quality" rankings are completely useless. The first 90 days tell you almost nothing about how reliable a car will be as the miles add up.
Long Term Quality - Vehicle Dependability Study Rankings JD Power link
Honda is in 9th place. Behind Cadillac, Mercury, Lincoln, Porsche and Buick. There are not too many Buicks and Mercury built in Japan.
it looks like 5 of the top 10 are japanese, including number 1.
:surprise:
As a brief explanation, I personally don't buy into any of the vehicle ratings. I am not claiming they are not valuable, just that they each have too many variables. Some I know consider the least little problem a crime against humanity. They complain loudly to everyone that will listen. Others consider catastrophic breakdowns as the cost of routine maintenance and pay the dealer outrageous sums with a smile - always happy with their car. Are they wrong? I don't know, I just believe most products bought new and properly maintained will give good service regardless of where they are made.
BTW, the consumer reports graph shows Volkswagen as the worst after about 3 years and on.
Does VW have any involvement in making the Fit or the Versa?
Three of the top 5 are US manufacturers and only one is Japanese.
When 4 out of 5 of the top five are NOT made in Japan, it discredits the even the suggestion that Quality=Made in Japan.
In all seriousness. I don't use my vehicles for a Van every day. Also, In all seriousness, I don't even haul a passenger every day. But it is nice to have seats available when I do haul someone. It is good that the Versa has those seats available even though they are not used everyday.
It is also nice to have a flat floor in the rear when it is necessary to bring home a reasonably large item from Home Depot, Best Buys, or even the occasional garage or yard sale.
If I'm going to drive a Hatchback, why not have standard hatchback options. Options such as space to haul the occasional larger item! Versa missed the boat on this one. :sick:
Generally speaking, a sedan will perform a bit better with the same size engine do to aerodynamics. It is quieter inside and the cooling/heating work a bit better due to less CABIN space to heat and cool.
Kip
We use all four seats everyday even though most don't. Every one's use for a car varies but it is nice to have options on carrying bulky items.
discredits even the suggestion? wow, you get this from one JD power study. ignoring consumer reports. whatever floats your boat.
btw, i own a mercury. i wonder how many mercury owners feel their car is of better "quality" than a honda? not me. unless their honda was built in america...
I will be 65 the 18th of this month, August.
My first car was a well used 1939 Ford coupe which I bought on 1958. I/we have owned well over 50 new cars in my lifetime. Nearly all were American made until I traded my troublesome 87 Chevy Astro for a Mazda MPV about 1991 or so. In 95 we traded my wife's very troublesome 87 Olds Calis for a new 95 Maxima that she just had to have. Those Japanese cars just didn't break.
In '96 I broke down and bought a Dodge Ram Sport. The dealer got so tired of me complaining that they made a deal I couldn't refuse on an "IMPROVED" 98 model Ram Sport. It was a little better but not much.
In '03 we traded the troublesome Ram and the trouble free Maxima for '03 Pilot and '03 CR-V. Trouble Free! The reason for trading the Maxima was for more room for my wife's crafts and easier for her bad knees to get in and out of.
I simply don't trust the big 3 to build a reliable car. I grew up and grew old with them, They break too much. I don't know what J.D. Powers looks at. I look at real world for me and my family.
Kip
I agree. We have an 03 CRV also and sometimes getting in and out with the high door sills can be a basterage for older bodies. But as you stated, they don't break. I had an 74 Corolla that went 95K without ever going to the dealer for repairs.
Bubba
The problem with the Maxima was having to squat and fold into the seat due to the very low seat and low roof line. Her bad knees really acted up when getting out.
The CR-V seat is just about "Fanny" high when standing outside the car, which makes getting on the seat a lot easier. Then just twist around and get legs inside.
Also the driving position of the CR-V is more chair like and easier on the lower back. Just a lot more comfortable ride for us old timers!
The only Fit I have even seen was on the road and moving. What is the seating position in the front of those? Is it low like a sedan or higher, more like a chair?
Kip
The seat is not as high as the CRV, but the seating position is upright, chair like.
Bubba
It ain't the greatest, but the Maxima and Forester and most other cars are just not back friendly (for me) in the low lay down type of seating.
Thanks
fit_ness
I had one of those Civic wagons. Seems I bought it new in 81 or 82. It had a 3 speed auto with only 2 selections for forward. "2" would start off in 2nd gear and D would use all 3. No selection for 1st gear only.
In 83 we had the mother of ice storms for Georgia. Things were paralyzed for several days. The "Wagon" got me home from work while others could not. I went all over the neighborhood picking up kids that had gotten home from school and their parents were unable to get there. We had a house full of 5-8 year old young'uns, and no electricity, thus no water from the well. Therefore no toilet operation. :sick: But we managed !
Our emergency water and food did us well and the wood burning stove kept us warm. What a hoot that was!
The FWD "Wagon" shuttled all those kids home when there parents got there and a couple of other errands that only 4WD were supposed to be able to do in those days.
Another time we brought home TWO full grown Nubian Goat Does at the same time. They each weighed near 150#.
With the 3 spd auto and carburetor it still managed to deliver 32 MPG most every time I filled it,whether loaded down with tools and parts for my job, errands, or strictly highway. 32
What a great car that was. Should have kept that one.
Kip
The "Fit" is very easy to get in and out of. The seat is a little higher then a sedan. boatfloyd
That car was amazing, and I hope my 1996 Accord lasts like that (I'm only at 165,000 miles now, barely broken in!!).
Wonder what their comments will be!
Did those old '06-'07 cars, of days gone by, produce fond memories, did they hold up, or are they best forgotten?
Kip
Odd that they don't provide it here.
Hrm, I wonder if that would be available for purchase in the states from a 3rd-party accessories dealer.
When 4 out of 5 of the top five are NOT made in Japan, it discredits the even the suggestion that Quality=Made in Japan."
You must have a short memory.
My vision is fine, and I can see that the topic is Honda Fit vs. Nissan Versa. Two vehicles that are not manufactured in the USA. And even if they were, Nissan and Honda are both Japanese corporations.
Resale value of American cars is hardly relevant.
On the other hand, I can see that if you climb into a Ford or Chevy, and then enter a Honda or Toyota, the overall look and feel you get in the Honda & Toyata makes it feel that you're in a higher quality car (in my opinion) even if it's just superficial quality of the materials, versus the quality of the guts of a car.
American iron is better than it was. It may be better than Asian made. I'm just not willing to try it again any time soon.
Kip
But after driving the Fit, the car was pretty noisy on the highway, which is my regular commute, and this is with the automatic which revs a lot lower than the manual. I'm still waiting for a Versa to test drive
However, Nissan does not have, for some reason, the same kind of quality track record when it comes to its North American manufacturing facilities. Nissan's Tennessee and Mississippi plants have terrible QA issues, producing some of the least reliable Japanese-branded vehicles in the recent memory. I do not know anything about the Mexican (Aguascalientes) facility where the Versa is being assembled, but it does make one feel a bit weary considering how other NA facilities are doing. I know that Carlos Ghosn came over recently to yell at people in Tennessee for their lousy job.
That said, the problem with the Fit is that I can't get the cruise control without getting the Sport with the spoiler and ground effects, which look too "punk" to me. But right now there are no Versa SLs available, and none with ABS in the near future, and I want to buy something in the next few weeks. As far as price, both are about $16,500 for the Versa SL with CVT or Fit Sport with Automatic.
If I had both cars sitting in front of me with my exact options I'd probably go with the Versa for the quieter ride and larger back seat. The Fit would win with it's better reputation of quality, the dash layout and the overall more solid feeling.
As far as the dash, I wasn't leaning into the dash with my hand, just pushing here and there to see how it felt. My comment was that the Fit's dash just felt more solid, while when I pushed on the Versa's dash it squeeked here and there and just didn't feel as solid.
For me it was a toss-up between the Versa SL with CVT and ABS and the Fit Sport. The deciding factor was that I couldn't wait until next Feb, so I went with the Fit, but if I were to buy next spring, then it would have been a harder decision.
The deciding factors had to do with reliability, handling, mpg, braking, and interior space. Negatives on the Fit were road noise, acceleration with the auto, steering wheel position and lack of height adjustable drivers seat. The Versa had better marks for interior comforts, noise levels, but the driving characteristics were not as good on the Fit.
In the Manual category, the Fit was in first place by a pretty wide margin, while in the Auto category, the Versa SL beat out the base Fit auto by only one point.
It seems like with other reviews I've read, and based on my own experience, the Fit and Versa are the top two in this category of tall 4dr hatchbacks with good interior room, with the Versa being quieter and with more comforts, and the Honda having better driving characteristics and quality.
The Rio, Accent and Yaris were grouped at the bottom for various reasons.
Or is it that different cars with different equipment were tested in automatic and manual transmissions? For example, was it an Accent sedan as an automatic and an Accent SE with a stick? Or a Rio sedan with automatic and Rio5 with a stick?