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Comments
That would never happen, right?
It ain't been on U.S. streets for 5 years - as far as we're concerned it's an all new model right now....and what's it got to worry about from the other car companies right now YARIS??? Nissan rehashed Mexicant Renault,The new Rio PLEASE.....
http://thehollywoodextra.blogspot.com/2006/02/next-honda-fit.html
The Yaris could have been competition for the Fit, but since Toyota isn't bringing a well-equipped 5-door, that idea is gone. I will be interested to see how sales of these cars turn out.
I still believe it would be inefficient for Honda to produce two generations of the Fit at once. It also brings into question the fact that the US and Canada weren't the only ones that got the car late. Mexico did too...just last October. Therefore, it would mean that the Japanese and Brazilian plants would make two kinds of Fit/Jazz while the Thailand and China plants would only make one. Also, the Brazilian plant would have to make the old Fit just for the Mexican market.
Oh well, I guess we will just have to wait and see.
Now that you put it that way it is a perplexing situation - also the never ending rumors of possible NA production(if the model is successful here) also say why make the older platform if your sitting up a new production line.
Point to ponder taken... :confuse:
The magic seat / seat folding options + the amount of useable space inside are one-up on the competition, but other than that, the Jazz/Fit IS starting to look a little dated. The stretched nose (to accomodate our bumper regulations) looks a bit out of place too. As do the old-fashioned flip-up door handles (just about everyone except Audi, Subaru and the low-rent Korean stuff has gone to grab&pulls). We may have this version for a year, year and a half tops, but a 2nd generation Fit/Jazz is already long overdue (what happened to Honda's 4-5 year cycles) and needs to show up here soon. My only other caveat with the Fit is road noise, a bugaboo for most Honda models.
Yes, it's no Accord. But it whomps on the competition. Go price a Cobalt. Then try to find one with ABS on it. Unobtainium other than a fully loaded model that is almost what you could get a base model Camry with no options.(which has ABS).
Yaris? Scion? 4 doors and a flat cargo area is nice, plus an amazing number or people aren't happy with Toyota's center console nonsense. It comes close, but ultimately, both cars feel ticky-tacky. Like you compromised. The others? Yeah - go get a Rio I guess - your loss when everything in the interior breaks.
The closest competitors to the Fit is probably the Mazda, which is a pretty nice little car. Subaru is also nice, if a little more money.
While the rest of the world that has seen Fit/Jazz for a while waits to see the second generation, Honda is perhaps trying to evaluate the US/Canadian reception for an entry level car. The nice thing about Fit is that Honda hit a homerun on the first pitch. Despite of being in the market for a long time, in most cases, if not all (although I will be hard pressed to name a better car) Fit/Jazz beats the newer competition. Dated ? Well, only if you go by age, and not the qualities.
Indeed Honda will have to redesign this car sooner or later. Perhaps we will see this older version for couple of years, and the new version a few months after it is launched in other markets. But that is a winning situation for US/Canadian market in a way what we get is a car that has withstood the test of time, while having a flawless qualities, and features that others can only imagine to copy.
Mazda3 and Matrix are good alternatives for $1-2K more, although both are bigger and less light on their feet.
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
I submit the Civic isn't necessarily moving up-market, rather the value of the USD and its resulting purchasing power is moving down-market.
The only real competitor that out-does it at this price-point is the VW Golf. A base Golf after incentives is about the same as a Fit Sport, but with more power and better handling. Plus a ten year warranty.
I'd get this instead of the Fit, but I don't personally like how it looks - purely my own asthetic-override on this one. Heh.
(From this site, including delivery charges)
MSRP INVOICE
$16,660 $15,588
Financing:
2.9% APR Term: 48 months
3.9% APR Term: 60 months
For $500 more than the Fit(assuming you haggle for $16,000 and the Sport is ~$15K plus delivery), it's a close call. The rest? 14-16K for a tin can isn't impressing me when Honda and VW can give this much car for so little money.
I hadn't realized it, but once you get into the $16k range (not as attractive to me, admittedly), options might include a Scion XB, a VW Golf, Toyota Matrix, etc. I don't like the look of the XB but didn't realize how large, versatile, and well-equipped it is.
I've said this 2 or 3 other times, but after being familiar with the European Base-vs-Sport models, it really makes me laugh to look down the U.S. spec sheet and see what the Sport offers compared to the Base. I guess the idea is it's more like a different trim package than a different car.
So, March is drawing close... nothing on price or arrival date. Everything I've seen points to April. What's the latest we might reasonably expect pricing information?
****
Update - Who knows how accurate this is, but a recent LA Times article is reporting prices for the Fit (alongside Yaris and Versa) and cites Honda:
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-smallcars14feb14,0,6159259.story?coll=la-h- ome-headlines
"$13,000 to $15,500"
http://www.latimes.com/media/thumbnails/graphic/2006-02/21942482.gif
I thought this graphic was priceless...
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Also, you might find this interesting:
"According to analysis of online "buzz" about new cars introduced at January's Detroit and Los Angeles auto shows, consumers were most chatty about muscle-car concepts Chevrolet Camaro and Dodge Challenger last month. And when it comes to production cars, the Toyota Camry was the buzz leader.
Intelliseek, which is about to join firms BuzzMetrics and Nielsen to offer the Nielsen BuzzMetrics solution, analyzed thousands of online discussions (Dec. 1, 2005 to Jan. 23, 2006) that originated on auto forums and blogs, including "buzz" about production vehicles and concept cars introduced at the auto shows...
...And among the top ten production vehicles, the Toyota Camry captured 17 percent of buzz, followed by the Honda Fit (13 percent), Lexus LS 460 (10 percent), Ford Edge (8 percent), Chevrolet Tahoe (8 percent), Nissan Sentra (8 percent), Jeep Compass (8 percent)... Carmakers more and more are tracking online buzz to find out what consumers and influential bloggers and online communities are spreading about their brands. And in the case of greenlighting auto show concepts, online buzz has become as valuable to companies as show floor interviews and chatter. -Jim Burt "
http://www.thecarconnection.com/index.asp?DID=RSS&n=173&sid=173&article=9957
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
The only other "new" Honda introduction that I've followed was the CRV back in 97, and I recall a lot more information preceding its arrival. Why is Honda being so low key and downright secretive about this car? The good news is for those of you who are waiting for the Fit to arrive first before putting your money down, I don’t think you'll have to wait too long to buy one. When I bought my Toyota Prius the waiting lists were 3-4 MONTHS long because of all the buzz about the car. The word on the Fit, other than among those of us on these boards is just not out there. I'm just not sure what Hondas strategy is and I really wish that they would be more forthcoming especially with the pricing.
I have the Mazda 3i base with power package and seeing the Fit Sport and comparing my car, it does not come close.
My Mazda has:
1. Audio controls on the steering wheel
2. 16 inch wheels that are actually nicer
3. IMHO, a better interior build (luxurious like quality)
4. Bigger bigger engine (148hp). My car picks up fast!
5. Auto-Manual shift
6. Have you seen a glove compartment this big?
7. Lots of cupholders
8. I would have to say the Mazda 3i suspension/handling is way better than the Fit.
The Mazda 3i is more comparable to the Jetta than the Honda Fit Sport. Its a very solid car. The only thing I don't like about it is the red dash. I'm a fan of the white/blue illuminescent lights.
However, he brought me a Ridgeline concept brochure and that was 14 months before the truck would even be released!!!! Granted that was a concept in a completely new market for Honda, but still. We are now only two weeks away from March, the month in which us pre-orderers will have our cars built in, and the dealer is asking me if I have heard anything new.
I think Honda is going to hit their 50k/year sales goal with ease, but I don't know why they are keeping their mouths so tightly sealed about this car.
A poor rating doesn't mean certain death for a passenger/driver of the car, just that the risk of injury is higher than a car with a higher rating.
First off, it is a sedan. To get 5 doors, you need the 3s which starts at $17,930. Both body styles are about 20 inches longer than the fit. The engine on the 5-door is bigger (160 hp), but you barely top 30 mpg on the highway (AT: 25/31, MT: 26/32).
You really should be comparing the Mazda 3i to the civic. It doesnt come close to the Fit in terms of cost, versatility, or fuel economy.
I would however like to see the crash tests results for the Fit...
ANCAP crash test
http://www.mynrma.com.au/jazz_03_hondajazz.asp
http://www.euroncap.com/content/safety_ratings/details.php?id1=1&id2=188
Note that the car in the EuroNCAP test was equipped with only single-stage driver and passenger front airbags, while the US version will have side and side-curtain airbags, along with the dual-stage driver and passenger front airbags.
These two models are in different classes in size, performance, and cost. Both are good and have advantages, but they are not normally competitors. The Civic is comparable to the 3. The Mazda2 will be a Fit competitor.
I can easily compare my 2005 Mazda 3i to my previous 2004 Acura TSX. Equipment wise, it pretty much has the ones "I was used to" on the TSX.
Any car class can have different levels of equipment so we should just keep the comparisons of the Fit to other cars that have 1.5 or 1.6L engines.
1. No EPA mpg ratings were given at the show, but the preliminary internet information suggests 33-38 city-highway. If so, this is completely unacceptable. There is no incentive to get this car over a Civic (30-40) unless the price is much lower. I was expecting to see 37-45 mpg from a Honda engine.
2. Has anyone seen the Aveo and Fit side by side?
On the plus side, there is plenty of room in the back with the easy fold down seats. I could fit a bicycle in the back with less effort than my current car.
I agree, i would have liked to have seen better fuel economy, but i'm not complaining. The LA Times article linked above listed the fit as getting 34/39 for a manual transimission. I had never seen that before, has anyone else?
No incentive to get a Fit over a Civic? how about 5 doors?
Yup... a 5-door hatchback option with more flexible interior layout (and supposedly similar in cabin room), ten percent better in rated city fuel economy (where the car is likely to be driven), lower MSRP (potentially by about $2-3K). And if European reviews are to be believed, it is a fun car to drive (although may feel stiff riding car to many who want/expect a cushier ride but that is unlikely to be the need of a younger audience).
We were absolutely amazed with the versatility/flexibility of its interior. I'm 6'5" and after adjusting the front seat for comfort, I could fit in the rear comfortably. The magic seats are very easy to work and we could visualize using them in their different modes.
There was no comparison to the Aveo, Rio, and even the newer Yaris and Versa. The Fit is much more intelligently designed, offering more usable space on a similar footprint. The Yaris has a noticably smaller cargo hold, whether seats up or down. The Fit also seemed to be finished with higher quality materials -- the dash switch gear, seat fabrics and overall construction seemed higher grade to me.
We were told that it goes on sale April 1st, and pricing should come out in the next 3-4 weeks.
BTW: Honda Civic and Ridgeline won the Automotive Journalist's Association of Canada (AJAC) awards for best new passenger car and best new light truck.
Base manual Fit: $12,800 before destination
Sport manual Fit: $14,800 before destination
Add ~$800 for the 5AT.
Just pure and complete speculation, and a little bit of "The Price is Right" game.
Base manual Fit: $13,350
Base 5AT Fit: $14,150
Sport manual Fit: $15,350
Sport 5AT Fit: $16,150
It'll be interesting to see what the true numbers are.
I can just imagine Fit drivers ratcheting up and down in the crazy stop-and-go traffic we have around here!
I strongly agree with Backy's points and think that a telescoping wheel should be mandatory on ALL cars. With a 36" inseam I normally have the seat all the way back in the track and have to reach like an ape to grab the wheel. I rarely have enough thigh support and wind up leaning my knees against the door and console (and if there isn't one, it is very uncomfortable). Putting the seat to the highest height helps, but only if there's headroom (there is in the Fit).
http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060220/SUB/60216041/1003
- "'By the time Scion was released (in 2003), we were pretty well into the planning,' Ra says. 'It didn't matter that Scion came out first.'"
I think they took one too many coffee breaks. I mean, it is different, but the average customer would have trouble recognizing any differences between the USDM and JDM or European versions considering they have spent about 4 years on it. Oh well, I'm just glad its here.
Neat article. Thanks!
This is common in this country, it has happened to me mostly on the first week after buying a car. If the door is damage too I bet insurance would take this into consideration to increase cost. This is one of the things that I dislike from the Fit, that side mirror, it looks ugly! and maybe very costly if damaged!
I have never heard of this being a common occurance (where do you live?), but in the unfortunate case that your mirror might be vandalized, it would probably just be the casing that was ripped off. Worse case scenario would include the arm, but since it is independent of the door, there would just be a hole...no significant damage to the door itself.
The only vandalism worry I have is when I look at those big headlights and I think of that scene from Fight Club :surprise:
Of course this is all academic as the Fit is marketed as an entry-level subcompact hatch. But if you put 140hp in a car that weighs what a Fit does, it could be sporty. Like the original Mini...and that would be Si-worthy.
25 NX 450h+ / 24 Sienna Plat AWD / 23 Civic Type-R / 21 Boxster GTS 4.0
Lower the Fit a little, give it the 16s and the Civic's engine, and it would be VERY sporty, I think. Certainly more sporty than anything else at its price point or in its class, except the Cooper S which would cost several thousand more.
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
Anyways...sporty is in the eye of the beholder....
The current Civic SI has 197 ponies under the hood - almost the same as my wife's 2001 EX V6 Accord - so I'd say it is a "sports" version fo the Civic line.
A Corvette is a "sports" car - as they don't make a sedan version
So, what does make a car "sporty" - I think my wife's car is "sporty" - even though it has 4 doors - but it does have ground effects and a spoiler - so it is "sporty" looking....
Some of us like cars that are "sporty" looking - I for one can't afford a Porsche 911 - so a "sporty" looking Accord (or my next purchase) a "sporty" looking FIT will have to do.
I for one (and I'm sure others agree) do think "Putting a whopping 140hp engine, 16 inch rims, a factory aero kit, and a slighty tighter suspension does make a car sporty".
So tell us Tifighter - what is your definition of "sporty"