Honda Fit New Owner Reports

genesomers

I picked up two new fits last week. One for my wife and I and one for my 93 year old mother. One was a fit and the other was a fit sport. After driving both for about 340 miles, I filled them both up and got 42.6 MPG on the sport, and 44.1 on the fit. I am totally impressed with the car. The ride is quiet . The motor and transmission work smoothly and pickup is great even with 4 full size people . Handling packages and my mothers wheel chair is a dream with the variable folding seats. Seats are confortable. All controls are easy to access and simple to understand. I love em!!!!! I am 6"-5" tall and can get in and out of car with absolutely no problem. I couldnt say the same for my Mercury Sable. If fact my friend Rudy is 6-3 and weighs over 300 # and he had no trouble driving the car. I have been waiting for a car like this for years, and now I have two of them. Terrific vehicles. If you dont drive this car, you are missing the boat. Gene

bobw3

Did you get auto or manual transmission?

Also, not that anyone is exaggerating, but there seems like a lot of 6'5" people driving around in Fits. The average height of a man is about 5'10", so it just seems odd to me that so many tall people post on Edmunds and drive Fits.

dewaltdakota

So, did the wife get the Base, and your 93yo mother get the Sport, or the other way around? If "Mom" got the Sport... that's so cool! :shades:

I can just see it now, some 20 year old is griping about how an old lady got the EXACT SAME CAR he's been saving up for! :P

Please note: I use the term "old lady" only to make a point. It should not be interpreted to mean I think your mother is an old lady, or that I think she's not hip enough to deserve a Fit Sport.

sliverworm

It all started when my 2004 SuzukiAerio SX was murderd on the higway by an 18 wheeler (with me in it). Luckily I was able to walk away without a scratch, the car however did not. I was without a car for a few weeks and my bro mentioned something about a Honda Fit.. a Honda wha? I say.. a Fit! A Honda Fit?! What is that?! So I goto the Honda site and find the car and look at it and configure it and everything.. a few days later I say ok I want that.. but my bro is in NM, he was able to track down my exact car I wanted. After a few more weeks I was
on a plane to NM to get my new 2007 Honda Fit teffta white 5spd with 12miles on it @ MSRP! The next two days we drove it back to Austin Texas and its been nothing but a blast since then!

fit2btied

Well, I'm finally in a Fit--literally. I began my interest in the car 9 months ago.Finally, put a deposit on one in June. It arrived Oct. 6. They can't get them in. Was told 30 people lined up for one FIT. "My" Fit came in. Test drove it and found it had power, style and WOW!--the handling. I'm a big guy and found I could enter and exit the car fine. So, I bought it! Great car--except....

..I went down the freeway about 30 miles and couldn't figure out why I was so uncomfortable. Came home with same angst but figured I was tired. Next day took a freeway drive for 40 minutes and it became unbearable. I figured it out--the driver seat steel frame tube was burrowing into my thigh. If you press it with your finger it has about 1/2 inch padding over it. Because I don't sport a 110lb asian derrier I take up more of the seat due to ABPS--American Big(ger)Person Syndrome. It wasn't apparent on the test drive. 10 minutes on a California freeway revealed it clearly, however, with the porous road and the firm suspension to the FIT>
I had the car 23 hours and called my salesperson telling him I was in 'trouble'. Went in and the sales manager said sympathetically that there was nothing to do but get a cushion or sell the car on Craigslist. Their hands were tied. They were sorry I'd lose my taxes and fees ($1500). After all that's just what happens!!?? All my enquiries about the matter result in the same solution(s)..pad the seat or sell the car.
I've placed two bought seat cushions on the seat and STILL feel the HARD knob-like pressure in my right thigh.
The car is up for sale. Bought it Friday...Monday began efforts to sell it.
I'm on a pension--worked up to make the plunge into a high mpg new car..and then this is how it's turned out. Oh, well.
PLEASE really make SURE that seat will sustain you for more than 10 minutes! Test out the right seat bar effect on yourself, first. Move around in that seat first.
Side note. THe car has 286 miles on it..about 200 of it from me TRYING to get past this problem--hoping My driving was 40%CITY/60%Highway resulting in 38.9 mpg. WOW. It is a GREAT CAR--but if you're stout--make sure the seat is right for you! PS. NO problem for me in Versa or Corolla. My other car is a small 88 Camry--no probllem. Sad. :sick:

frankbrooklyn

I picked up my Fit on June 28th after my 89 Delta 88 AC crashed. Bought the Black Sport Automatic because it was the only one avalable; blue would have beeen better. The looks cool, Great AC and Sound System, majic seats are truly majical and roomy. The car "FIT's" into tiny parking spaces saving me many hours. Fun to Drive, Handles like a dream; I now like to accelerate on curves! The Fit has turned me into a cool dude! In Brooklyn, we have a saying, "you are what you drive". I am now Fit. In spite of the 20 to 25 mpg I am now getting after 6000 miles, THE FIT IS GO! Get one!

gearhead1

Because I don't sport a 110lb asian derrier I take up more of the seat due to ABPS--American Big(ger)Person Syndrome. It wasn't apparent on the test drive. 10 minutes on a California freeway revealed it clearly, however, with the porous road and the firm suspension to the FIT

So, the only options were to sell it or get a cushion?? I don't suppose the other option of dropping a few pounds ever came up. Come on man, do it for your Fit.

fitluver

Because I don't sport a 110lb asian derrier I take up more of the seat due to ABPS--American Big(ger)Person Syndrome. It wasn't apparent on the test drive. 10 minutes on a California freeway revealed it clearly, however, with the porous road and the firm suspension to the FIT

So, the only options were to sell it or get a cushion?? I don't suppose the other option of dropping a few pounds ever came up. Come on man, do it for your Fit.

lol i can see it now, the new Honda America Marketing:

You must be Fit enough to drive a Fit.

(no offense intended to anyone)

robmack9

Not really odd, because unlike the yaris and the versa as a 6'4" man who owned a 92 Honda Accord I found the Fit's headroom and leg room to be more spacious than other compact cars in this class. And the head room is even better than my old accord. Of course tall guys like this car.

crowb

I got my Fit two and a half weeks ago from Russell Honda, a dealership in Sherwood, AR, just north of Little Rock. The staff there was extremely nice and very informative. They wanted to sell me a car without any hassel, without any tricks or gimmicks, and that's exactly how I wanted to buy one. They prepared me for the worst: "You may have to wait up to sixty days for us to get your car in here."

Two days later, my salesman called me and said it was on the lot (another dealer a few miles away got one in and wanted to trade for the Black, base model that my dealership had so it all worked out). They even threw in the floor mats for free because the salesman had mistakenly told me that they come standard on the sport model. I didn't even have to mention this to him. He noticed it first and came straight over to me and told me this. I know its just a couple of floor mats, but that kind of up-front approach is what will send me back to that dealer, and that salesman, again in the future. This is my first Honda, but it won't be my last.

Now for the car. Far and away the best car that I've owned. This is the second new car that I've purchased, and the third one that I've ever owned. My previous car was a base model '98 Toyota Corolla (trouble free but boring), and the Fit is a step up in every category. Buying experience on down to the quality of the materials. Toyota certainly never called me to ask how I liked the car or my dealership experience (though they may do this now for all I know). I find the car to have ample power for accelerating into traffic. Also, Its very quiet on the highway when it is cruising at speed. People who complain about its acceleration are bit confusing to me. Lets keep in mind what kind of car it is to begin with, its a compact designed for gas efficiency. Secondly, if you bought this car because you want better fuel economy, then the first thing to do is change your driving habits. That is the number one factor in increasing your efficiency: you must drive conservatively. Lastly, why do you need to accelerate to 60 mph in under 9 seconds or even 10? If traffic is flowing nicely then you can easily find a place to merge (at least in my experience) and if traffic is backed up then you are basically racing into traffic only to come to a stop. I have had no problems at all thus far, and compared to my previous car, I find this engine-transmission combo to be very lively.

Road noise is minimal for a car in this price range. The materials are very nice as well. I love having keyless entry, power locks, actual glass headlight lenses, alloy wheels, Leather wrapped steering wheel, magic seats, cruise control (backlit and mounted on the steering wheel! How spoiled am I getting?). My last tank of mixed driving gave me just over 34 MPG with lots of idling in mixed driving(the Little Rock interstates are poorly designed and very crowded at rush hour).

The handling is far superior to what I'm used to. This car is plenty roomy enough for myself, my wife, our dog, and our luggage for our upcoming holiday trip to see the in-laws in New Orleans. The seats are comfortable (I'm 6'1" and 170 lbs.) though I do agree that a telescoping steering wheel would really seal the deal as far as getting the most comfortable driving position. Let me come back to that. These seats are wonderful. I feel very supported, especially in the lower back, but remember I'm coming from a car that was less in all respects. Some of you downsizing from the luxury type cars will doubltess have complaints. Also, it seems that the rear view mirror could be just a tad bigger. I feel like I can't fully see out of the back when I'm using the rear view. Visibility is pretty good over all (I removed the rear headrests to help with that) and the side mirrors are large and power adjustable. Very nice.

The paddles: I try not to use them, only because I don't want to mess with the car. I'm afraid I'll upset its natural rhythms or something. I guess I'm being overly cautious. The most I've used them for so far was to keep the car in 5th gear on certain inclines, as I am usually in no hurry and don't need the car to down shift.

I don't miss a center arm rest, but that's because my previous car didn't have one. I don't miss the dead pedal because I too have found that there is a sweet spot for my left foot to naturally slide into while I'm driving.

Let me take leave of my attempts to sound detached while writing this little review.

I LOVE THIS CAR!!!!! It is so awesome! I spend the whole day at my desk just aching to drive it. I can't wait for a nice long highway cruise. I want to nestle into those seats and get that thing up to 70-75 and let it roll. I love driving the Fit at night because the dash lights and the stereo are just so neat. The blue light is wonderful. I feel like I'm driving a space ship. This wonderful car has made driving fun. I never loved driving. I drove a boring, tan rent-a-car for almost 9 years. My youth was dying on the vine. This car has made me feel fun again. I LOVE THIS CAR. Efficient, versatile, peppy, good handling, good looking, ABS!!!!

Its got all I could want, but then I love small cars and abhor the wastefulness that I see so many of us Americans indulging in.

Sorry this review was so long, but I'm just a fanatic for this thing. Thanks to all in the forums for all of your posts you helped steer me toward this great car

scratchmarc

Amen, brother... couldn't have said it better, except I've got the M/T which even adds to the experience, IMHO.

I'm up over 2,000 now on the odometer, after a Thanksgiving trip to see family. A couple scares with tractor-trailers shaking loose gravel that I thought slightly cracked the windshield :mad: but those spots only turned out to be bug smears that wiped away upon later inspection... thank goodness.

~marc

crowb

Yep, got behind a dump truck that was dispensing gravel for all to enjoy one morning. A rather large rock thumped my windshield, but I guess Honda put in quality glass or I got lucky, because I had zero damage. Boy, Physics is something else...I'm just glad the Fit remained unscathed

pdjacob

I, too, got smacked in the windshield by a big chunk of gravel on the highway last week. I was surprised - no crack. I think the grade of the windsheild deflects some of the impact. That's my theory anyhow. 10,000 miles on my A/T Sport and still getting 36mpg. It was a great investment. :shades:

crowb

Those are some nice MPG figures. My last tank was dismal (28.76 MPG). I had tons of idling, bad weather, bad roads, and horrible commute on that tank thouh. Previously I've gotten 32, and 34 on my last two tanks. I'm hoping things will improve with this one.

By the way I accelerate very slowly and I don't punch the car when merging onto the interstate or anything like that.

The car is brilliant though. I love it. I even have found that there's room in the spare tire compartment to hold my jumper cables so that I can keep the cargo area free of any and all clutter.

crowb

I was looking around the internet for information on the Fit and I found these links:

link title

link title

Just to give a synopsis. A lawyer in my area used a GPS device that is accurate up to 1/100th of a mile to check his odometer in his Honda Odyssey. He realized that it was overstating his mileage by 4%. He and some other lawyers and an engineer (If memory serves) did a lot of testing on a lot of Honda cars, and they found that this problem is pretty much consistent for a lot of Honda Models with odometers manufactured by either Nippon Seiki or New Sabina (You should be able to call your dealer and find out who manufactured your odometer).

The settlement that they have in the works right now is for anyone who purchased certain Honda models (including the 2007 Honda Fit) between April 13, 2002 and November 7, 2006 would be elligible for either a warranty extension or reimbursement for work that was performed on their vehicle that should otherwise have been covered by the warranty had their odometer been providing accurate readings. This settlement is not finalized as of now, there is a further fairness hearing scheduled for May 30, 2007. So you still have time to look into this.

Honda accepts no responsibility as they didn't manufacture the odometers, but they are dealing with the situation. I find that laudable, because its nice they are willing to take care of the situation. This sucks for me though, because I bought my Fit on November 13 (six days too late)

So if you have a Honda that was purchased between those dates, and you had maintanence issues near the warranty dead line (especially if you bought an extended warranty), you may want to look into these articles.

Sorry for the long post, but I thought it might be important. Thanks again all for the great forums.

bobw3

Thanks for the info. From what I read, it doesn't look like us new Fit owners need to do anything, but down the road if we need a warranty repair before 3 years and 37,500 miles we'll now be covered.

wrkoutgrl1

It would seem that the lawsuit would pertain to vehicles that were manufactured between those dates, as opposed to the purchase date of the vehicle... am I wrong? My little BOM fit was built on October 27, but we didnt actually purchase it until last week because of transit/delivery time. I wonder, is there a way to find out who manufactured my odometer?

wrkoutgrl1

I have had my cute little BOM fit for a week and a half now, and still I am telling my dh "dont worry, I will run out and get that/pick up the kids/etc." I absolutely love driving this car. My only 'fuss' would be the color... we didnt see it in person until it was delivered... online, the orange looks like a deep, rusty color, I assumed it would look like the element orange... WRONG. It is not quite a pastel orange, but definitely not as bright as it looks online, nor as bright as it appears in my pictures (I posted some on my page on here, but dont know the url... still not very tech savvy). I think that my car looks a little brighter on here also, but certainly not quite the color i was expecting. DH said "it looks like a kind of peachy,orangey" color. Oh well, if thats my only problem, I am still a happy camper

Everyone is right about the 'carpet', its not really carpet at all... just some cheap junk, and i wont be able to steam clean them or they will probably fall apart. We have 6 children, all of whom are very hard on car floors, so I make sure to keep mine completely covered with rubber mats (same for the cargo area).

Also, I wouldnt consider putting anything extremely heavy in the cargo area without something to distribute the load, since the only thing covering the spare tire is a pressboard piece with the 'carpet' glued to it... I can see that breaking or cracking under extreme pressure. (Or, in my case more likely, one of the kids stomping on it really hard

I just washed my 'dinosaur' (thats what my kids think it looks like, with the headlights, so thats her name) for the first time, and noticed some water inside the tail lights... has anyone else experienced this? I will be sure to keep a close eye on it.

Isis

hondaful

My Storm Silver Sport Automatic was delivered on 12/13 after a five month wait, and I am pretty happy with it so far. After joining this forum and reading the comments of others, though, I was surprised by a few things.

One of the first things I noticed was how far the fuel tank structure intrudes into the front seat foot well. I've had to learn to place my foot well forward of the spot that I would naturally put it when stepping into the car, otherwise I'm stepping on an uneven surface. This is somewhat disconcerting in the dark, and I'm surprised that no one else has mentioned it. The situation is aggravated by the hooks for the floor mat, which I had the dealer install.

I was expecting the seating position to be similar to my previous vehicle, an Isuzu Oasis (first generation Honda Odyssey), but I'm finding that it's more difficult to achieve a seating position where both the pedals and steering wheel are where I want them. I know several people have complained about the steering wheel being too far away, but I though that with a 30" inseam and 34" sleeve length I wouldn't have this problem. I think I've finally worked out a comfortable position, though.

On the basis of so many complaints about the lack of a dead pedal, I had ordered one from Zeta Products before the car arrived. Now that I've driven it for a few days, the left foot position doesn't seem all that bad. My wife's 1996 Civic DX hatchback has a dead pedal that I find very comfortable, while the Oasis had none, which was very annoying. The Fit is nowhere near as bad as the Oasis/Odyssey. I'll install the Zeta Products dead pedal anyway, and see how much difference it makes.

bobw3

One of the first things I noticed was how far the fuel tank structure intrudes into the front seat foot well.

You must have the seat pretty far back to notice that, since the gas tank is under the front seat, unless you meant the front "wheel" intruding on the front seat foot well and not "fuel tank."

nuknuk

Hi, Cate66 just came across your message while reading through the forum for a while. I wanted to ask you Where did you get your Fit through? And did you have a good experience there? I also live in the chicago suburbs and want to find a good dealer for my hopeful Fit purchase. thanks for your help

crowb

You are correct, it would be more logical for the lawsuit to encompass cars manufactured within certain dates or containing certain odometers. This is not the case as I read it on the website. The legal wording is very clear. The settlement is based upon purchase date of the vehicle. I believe that this agreement was reached through negotiations with Honda for a specific reason. Honda has changed their particular margin of error for odometers as a result of this lawsuit. The odometers listed as being "inaccurate" in the settlement are still within the regulated margin of error, just not Honda's margin of error. So basically Honda will throw a bone to people who bought their cars within a certain date, and they are revising the odometer accuracy range for the rest of us. I assume that they will also strive for better accuracy in their odometers at some point, but obviously they aren't going to go back and redesign the thing and shut down the assembly lines while they do it for the current year model. So for those of us who didn't buy their Fit on or before November 6, 2006 don't expect a warranty extension.

But since you bought a Honda, you shouldn't expect to need that warranty anyway :shades:

radish

Hey nuknuk-
I'm also looking to make a Fit purchase, and was wondering if you've had any luck, yet? So far, I've only visited Pauly's in Libertyville, which was one of the few in the area with a Fit available for test drive (AT, Sport). O'hare Auto Group is the only one that has given me a quote via email, which was decent - actually, it was exactly the TMV price given by Edmunds.

Anyone else out there have a good/bad experience with a Chicagoland Honda dealer, specifically for a Fit purchase? I fear a high markup, because of the demand.

bobw3

700 mile road trip to Chicago with a lot of stuff in the luggage area with 2 adults and a child. About 37mpg with 90%hwy & 10%city. Drove great. The "refresh" position was great for my wife to take care of the baby.

jkandell

Picked up my Base MT on Saturday, drove it home from Phoenix to Tucson, and around town a few times. I bought the car sight unseen and without even test-driving it--and I am happy to report that it totally matches what I had imagined. (On way to dealer for a moment I had a nightmarish vision: what if I hate it, or can't fit my legs in?) The shape looks cuter in person than in photos. It's not as euro-style "cool" looking at the yaris liftback, but with the Fit's utilitarian cargo emphasis, I don't want it to be. The lunar-mist color looks nicer in person than in photos. I was worried it would be too fem, but it's nice.

I have driven used corollas my whole life, and my last car is an '03 Toyota Echo. The Fit reminds me of those in the sense it's basic but doesn't feel cheap. You get the feeling it's going to last. (Time will tell.)

Visibility out the front is surprisingly panoramic--love it. Has a blind spot on driver's side, though, so I'll need to buy a little concave mirror to attach, which I would have thought would not occur in the 21st century. Controls are intuitive, no need to open the manual to figure out the air or radio or dash (nice job Honda). I appreciate the "luxury" convenience features like doors not locking with key in ignition, cabin light turning off automatically, and maintenance minder; didn't expect those in an entry-level auto. Sound on base radio is fine; about what I expected: not great but not so bad you can't listen to music. I am going to hook up an auxiliary jack somehow in order to play Ipods and other devices; I think all autos should have aux inputs at this point in time. Magic seats worked as advertised, and I'm very pleased. Seats are surprisingly comfortable compared to my Echo, and to my old Corollas. I find the dashboard lights distracting. Too colorful, especially at night. They glare off side window if you don't take effort to turn them down. My Echo is much simpler and sparser, which I prefer. Similar interior plastic as my Echo, slightly 'cheaper' feeling: I can feel the glove compartment bend when I shut it, the plastic map holder bends as its thin plastic, the air vents not as "solid" as the Echo, appear more likely to eventually break.

Cargo area is just as versatile as everyone says. On way home we stopped at Ikea (just like the Honda ads); we picked up a queen-sized bed, four dining room chairs, a bench, a desk, and other stuff, and it fit into the rear without blocking my vision! We were stunned. I used long-mode for the bed, and driving was cramped but not too bad. This stuff was packed flat, mind you, but still. Some japanese folks were laughing at my car while loading; not sure what they were saying in Japanese; maybe they recognized the Fit from Japan.

The ride is not nearly as smooth as my Echo. I swear I can feel every bump in this thing! And I can hear every roughness in road too. This is the one aspect of this car which does feel "low end". I don't know if it's just the sports car tuning, it being low-to-the-ground, or a design defect. Other than that it rides fine, no complaints. The manual transmission seems to have a lot of overlap between gears so it's easy to use. The clutch engages further down than I'm used to.

In short, initial impressions of the the car are exactly as I had hoped it would be: well-built, utilitarian, flexible. I'm eager to see what my mileage is once it breaks in.

ten_year_man

What is the heaviest load you've carried in your Fit, and how did it affect the car?

I brought my new Sport MT home yesterday, and while perusing the owner's manual I noticed the maximum load was listed at 850 lbs. I'm 6 feet tall and weigh 225 lbs fully clothed. Four of me can easily fit (no pun intended) in this car, but four of me weighs 900 lbs.

I'm curious as to how much weight this car can actually carry without damaging the suspension or overtaxing the engine.

dgecho1

EXACTLY my impressions on the interior and ride of the fit compared to an echo I had previously.........................

acura03g

what's the payload of Fit? I couldn't find this info anywhere. Is Honda hiding it?

ten_year_man

I just bought my new Sport MT four days ago, and while perusing the owners manual I came across this on page 141:

Load limits
The maximum load for your vehicle is 850 lbs (385 kg) for U.S. models and 395 kg for Canadian models. This figure includes the total weight of all occupants, cargo, and accessories.

WARNING
Overloading or improper
loading can affect handling and
stability and cause a crash in
which you can be hurt or killed.

Follow all load limits and other
loading guidelines in this
manual.

850 lbs isn't very much when you consider the seating can easily accommodate 4 large men. I weigh 225 lbs fully clothed. 4 guys my size weigh 900 lbs. Do I really have to limit the number and/or size of my passengers? Could I safely carry 1000 lbs if I accelerate slowly, upshift at higher RPM, and take it easy around the corners & over bumps?

backy

You can do whatever you want to do. The warning in the manual is telling you, "Don't try to sue Honda, or bring the car in for a warranty repair, if you exceed 850 lbs and something bad happens! We warned you!"

ten_year_man

Obviously I can do whatever I want, but what I need to know is how far I can safely exceed the stated capacity.

Has anyone in this forum driven the Fit loaded beyond 850 lbs?

If so, what was the load and how did it affect the car?

crimsona

Drove 7 people once (2 in the hatch), averaged 150 lbs each. Go real slow (not that you can go fast)... it was only across campus! Parking was a bit harder with all the heads in the way.

tom500k

Help! I would really appreciate fast advice for my newbi problems from experienced folks who may have dealt with new Fit tire problems.

Our 2007 Fit is just a couple of months old with about 1,000 miles on it.

When I hit a curb at extremely low speed, one tire blew out-- a total loss according to the AAA person, who replaced it with the donut spare.

Question 1: are other owners of the 2007 Fit experiencing similar tire problems?

Question 2: The Honda dealer we bought from is not helpful. What can I do? Does Honda have a regional dispute resolution center? How can I find its phone #?

Question 3: Am I better off pursuing the tire maker? It seems the tire had to be defective, since it disintegrated from such a tiny impact with the curb.

Question 4: I've been driving on the donut spare for about a week. If I buy a new tire, what type should I get and does anyone have suggestions for a tire vendor in the Washington, D.C. area. Will I need a realignment of the front end (the tire that disintegrated was the front, passenger tire)?

Finally, if I buy a new tire on my own, does this mean I have no case for financial reimbursement for the cost of the new tire from Honda or from the tire supplier for Honda Fits?

Thanks in advance for any help to any or all questions I raised,
Tom

kagedude

Question 1: are other owners of the 2007 Fit experiencing similar tire problems?
After owning my Fit a few months, a nail punctured one of the tires causing it to lose air. Just went to my local tire shop and they plugged it for $20. I would say 15K miles later, it is still running like new.

Question 2: The Honda dealer we bought from is not helpful. What can I do? Does Honda have a regional dispute resolution center? How can I find its phone #?
Check your manual/booklet. The tire company should have their number for warranty issues. I believe you need to go through the tire company.

Question 3: Am I better off pursuing the tire maker? It seems the tire had to be defective, since it disintegrated from such a tiny impact with the curb.
If they find your scenario under their warranty guidelines, I'm sure they can replace it.

Question 4: I've been driving on the donut spare for about a week. If I buy a new tire, what type should I get and does anyone have suggestions for a tire vendor in the Washington, D.C. area. Will I need a realignment of the front end (the tire that disintegrated was the front, passenger tire)?
Definitely get the same tire model. Your car is so new that I doubt you would need an alignment. I would get the tire, drive it and see if the alignment is okay. My Fit now has 24K miles and I've had my share of potholes and I have to say that the alignment is holding up even after a few tire rotations.

tom500k

Hi,

Thanks for the excellent help from kagedude!

Called the regional Honda desk. Weird-- I expected better from a company with the reputation of Honda. The person would not or could could not give me the criteria for judging if the failure of the new tire was the fault of the tire or me. Further he would not or could not give me the phone # of the technical folks at Honda who should be able to answer such a simple question.

If I understood the Honda guy, then ***any*** impact at any speed which caused tire failure absolved Honda. (I had previous wasted an hour going through the Fit documentation got unhelpful phone #s of the tire manufacturer and the stance that tire problems were not in the domain of Honda.

I feel Honda has some responsibility for the equipment it puts on its new cars...

Tomorrow should be interesting when I take the corpse of the tire in question to a different dealership than the one I bought the car from.

Sad to see Honda playing by the old Detroit mindset which I feel led to Detroit's steady decline.

But this is my lst (possibly last) Honda. What do you experienced folks think?

Thanks in advance for any perspective, advice on this hassle,
Tom

jkandell

My Honda dealer made a big point of mentioning that the tire manufacturer deals directly with tire problems, not Honda. You should have the tire warranty in your materials you received from dealer at purchase (either Bridgestone or Dunlap). Your tires are prorated, so by the sounds of things you should get some money toward the replacement tire.

suzieq9980

So I picked up my brand new Fit Sport MT on Tuesday. I have been off from work this entire week so i haven't done much driving in it but so far so good. Judging by all these posts I was fortunate to find a dealer with a Fit on the lot to sell immediately. There was no waiting period.

I previously had an RSX Type S and opted to trade it in for a Fit. I did this to save money on insurance (about $500/yr) and to save on gas (still waiting to see what my mpg is). Hopefully all will work out. But so far I am very pleased with the car. I like the short shifts, the clutch is similar to my RSX, and it handles much the same too. Best part is all that cargo room!

twohorse

I have had my ABS since Oct. I was thrilled to be able to get about 38 MPG. However,the best that I have achieved is 34. Average is 27. Mostly city driving. When I called the Bloomington-Richfield Honda dealership, the service department told be I would get much better mpg in the summer. I have never heard that before. Now I see that the revised est. mpg is down by quite a bit. Between 26 and 43 mpg. Sure wish I was on the 43 end.

tgun

Hey twohorse;

I also purchased by Blaze Orange Metallic Sport 5 speed manual transmission through RB Honda!

I ordered mine last May and picked it up the end of July. Very happy thus far.

I average 36 MPG, and have had a "high" of 39 MPG. Yes, the fuel economy is lower in really cold temperatures (teens and lower). No different than any other car however. Simple physics and thermodynamics. Cold temps = denser air = higher resistance against vehicle = poor performance and higher fuel consumption. My Ford F150 also drops about 10% in mileage just like my Fit. Yes, I get about 32-33 in the really cold temps with my 5MT fit.

I've also found that highway speeds affect mileage. Go above 65 MPH and the fuel economy starts to drop. Go above 70-75 and really experience a drop. Fit could use a 6 speed to reduce engine RPM's at highway speeds.

RB Honda told me that the wait for a new Fit is over 6 months now and that they will not accept any more deposits.

The new Honda factory in Indiana is rumoured to have a Fit production line capable of 200,000 per year for the North American market. Let's hope so.

Congrats on your recent Fit aquisition.

fitluver

Drove 7 people once (2 in the hatch), averaged 150 lbs each. Go real slow (not that you can go fast)... it was only across campus! Parking was a bit harder with all the heads in the way.

LOL now THAT's a funny mental image.

fitluver

I average 36 MPG, and have had a "high" of 39 MPG. Yes, the fuel economy is lower in really cold temperatures (teens and lower). No different than any other car however. Simple physics and thermodynamics. Cold temps = denser air = higher resistance against vehicle = poor performance and higher fuel consumption. My Ford F150 also drops about 10% in mileage just like my Fit. Yes, I get about 32-33 in the really cold temps with my 5MT fit.

That would be good if that were truly the case, regarding cold starts. I am definately seeing a huge drop in cold starts.

I am alternating weeks in the garage, so I wonder if it will improve again when I get it back. (this is my week off, quite cold and limited mileage.)

dap2006

Well, I've had my Storm Silver/Auto Fit just over 8 months now and I'm happy to report it's been a great ride. I just went over 6000 miles and I haven't had one problem with the car! Not so much as a rattle has diminished the ownership experience. It's great fun to drive and I get 30 MPG in the city without driving like an old lady (no offense to old ladies - my Mom is one, though I wouldn't want to ride with her!)

A friends wife mentioned to my wife yesterday that she was surprised I enjoy the car so much - she obviously doesn't know the powers of the Fit!! :shades:

will25

My daughter has had her Fit for 6 weeks. Last week the AC stopped blowing cold air. The dealer showed where there is no protection for rocks or other road debri from entering the lower vents and damaging the condenser. They are stating that this is not covered by warranty. In looking at other Honda models and the Toyota Matrix, I noticed where they have a protective mesh around the AC. On the Fit it has it for the radiator but not AC. Any suggestions on how to handle this. It appears that it could occur again.

fitman548

damage from road debris..sounds like something your insurance should cover, right?

anahita61

I just washed my Fit for the first time since I bought it nine days ago. I hand dried it (something I hadn't done in years for my old Toyota Tercel I traded in), and just wanted to stand there staring it instead of going back to work after my lunch break.

It's a Silver Sport MT. It took me a few days to get used to the shifting, though I'm used to driving a manual (22 years in the Tercel), because it has a much different feel. I love the quiet ride with the windows up, I love the keyless entry, basic things that most new cars have, but I never have had until now, and the stereo. I also love how compact it is - super easy to park, though I've not yet tried to parallel park it. Great head room, not that I'm tall, but it feels like I'm in a big car. Comfortable, love the seat belt height adjuster, the seats in general, and the little windows in front.

I still wish I'd gotten the cargo cover, but when I can scrape up some cash I'll get that too, but I didn't get any extras at all. The dealer threw in some all-season floor mats, at my begging, and I went to get them installed twice, but the Service dept. had not digested my appointment time and turned me away. Other than that bit of bad service, it's been great, the Internet Sales Manager who got the car to the dealership for me has been great (she is sending me info on a referral program, so I can try to convince others to buy Fits and maybe get some cash back!), and every time I go to get in the car I'm excited that I get to drive it!

After I washed it today I got in and the a/c wasn't blowing as cold as before, so I'm worried I aimed the water at the outside vents or something, but maybe it's just hot out today - it got cold after a while anyway.

Overall, I could not be happier with this car. I'm not sure what my mileage is yet (I've only re-filled the tank once since I bought it, and I've got the trip meter set so I can gauge the mileage), but I have a feeling it will be 30-35 mpg.

fitman548

I can't vouch for the All weather mats, but my carpet mats also came with these huge plastic hooks and ridiculous instructions about popping out holes in the floor carpet and cutting things with scissors.

Just skip all that and simply lay them on the ground. They aren't going anywhere.

anahita61

Right, I decided not to cut up the carpeting (actually, I read the posts in the thread about accessories, and that was what convinced me I didn't really need to "install" them), but it was the fact that I drove out to the dealer twice to get them installed, and they said I had to come back at a later date, even made an appointment that they claimed was not in the system in the morning, then appeared later, blah, blah, blah, that has left a bad taste in my mouth. The only negative experience thus far... aside from possibly/probably paying too much for the car in the first place.

But that falls into the "couldashouldawoulda" category, and we won't go there. I love the car. I park it outside my apartment and I go to the window and look at it all during the night. Yes, I am weird.

bmp956

anahita, did you happen to experience the "swirlies" after your first wash like I did? I've got the NHBP and after 2 days of road salt on my 2 day old car I couldn't take it anymore. Picked up a terry covered sponge at Pep Boys and Simonize car wash and went to town. After it dried, bingo. All kinds of scratches from the sponge that are noticeable when the sun is really highlighting the color. I'm seriously bummed. I'm hoping that maybe a good waxing can alleviate some of it, even though I'm probably the only one who sees it 'cause I know it's there.

anahita61

Wow, no, no swirlies I've noticed. What color is your Fit? The silver is so metallic-y it doesn't look like anything other than great. But then again, I didn't use a sponge, I just sprayed the soap and then rinsed really well and dried super well. I used some terry cloth towels to dry and it came out great.

I hope the waxing helps yours!

chrisp81

if you really want to spend some time on it, get a clay bar & some corrective detailer... follow the instructions & do the whole car. Then lay a nice deep coat of your fav wax on it... remove it with a terry cloth.

makes it wet & shiny!