| 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
The fuel economy in this car is great. Only about 15% of my driving is on the highway, and in New England winter I'm still getting about 30mpg, and I don't consider myself to be a very economical driver.
At $21k, the sport version is relatively inexpensive.
The car has 45k miles on it and the only time it spent at the dealership was for regular maintenance and one recall service.
The controls are pretty straight-forward and intuitive.
The 117bhp version is extremely under-powered. It's hard to maintain highway speeds at reasonable rpm's with 3 people of average weight in the car. The acceleration feels sluggish and throttle feels unresponsive at times.
The interior feels very cheap.
There's barely any space in the back for a child.
Driving this car with snow on the ground is really dangerous, even when compared to other economy FWD compacts.
Can vouch for all info listed above. I own an '09 Honda Fit Sport--bought it slightly used in 2014, and although it is a great commuter car (great MPG: averaging 34 city/highway) and can fit a ton of stuff, it falls woefully short in many other areas. Currently planning on trading it in for a compact SUV to accomodate a growing family, etc. Average reliability: have had several trips to dealership for minor to major repair. Have an open recall on it but Honda never gave me any followup information to handle the matter. To touch on the more negative points:
The 117 hp is abysmal...and I do not have a lead foot. The car hardly reacts to the acceleration pedal even when I am flooring it with no passengers in the car. Fit takes about 15 seconds to get up to highway traffic speeds from a dead stop...rather unsafe when you are cutting off the vehicles behind you and daring them to slam into your rear fender because of your lackluster acceleration.
Interior- EVERYTHING is hard, black or gray plastic. Scuffs easily. Very cheap feel. Only positives are the secondary glove box w/USB port, a myriad of cupholders and the highly regarded fold-down-flat back seats w/"magic seat."
Rear-seat Room & Comfort- Seats are hard and clothed. The rear seat is not meant to hold humans. Very tight squeeze for more than 1 person with uncomfortable postering. No lumbar support, rear airvents, cheap materials used. 60/40 fold down.
Safety and Braking- After much original research uncovered drivers' concerns with the light weightness of the vehicle and how the wind would push it (literally) all over the road, my initial test drive showed no signs for alarm. After 2.5 years of driving it, I can really see what those buyers were talking about: the car is so light weight that the wind (on even a light-to-moderately windy day) pushes violently against the broadside of the car. Have to grip the steering wheel with two hands to keep it on the road. Additionally, the IIHS and NHTSA ratings for this model year are extremely mediocre- I do not feel safe driving my wife and are soon to be infant around in this Honda. Not surprisingly, the Fit handles horribly in snowy, icy or even rainy conditions, as the ground clearance is so low. Even regular rainfall is tricky, as the wheel-wells easily flood with water and massively slow down the car.
Other concerns:
-Due to the small front end, mechanic service bills are painful and parts are extremely hard to find for this car--even the wheels are a special small size (says Honda dealership) that must be special ordered. Major auto retailers do not carry the correct sized battery and this must be special ordered too. Most auto stores are inadequate to help in this issue.
-A/C: If I lived anywhere where it is humid (like NC where I bought the car) or sweltering in hot, dry heat (like Phoenix where the car travels often) I would not be able to take it and would sell the car to the first person who offered me money for it. The A/C is not cold. I had a Honda Civic for 9 years that never once struggled with this issue. This is not a refrigerant/freon/recharging issue. Multiple Honda dealerships and trusted, outside auto experts cannot fix the problem. They say "the front end is too small." Once the vehicle warms up on the road, and that sun beats down on the hood, the car cannot muster the strength to exert any cold air, and whats left is a muggy, lukewarm, miserable breeze coming from the air vents. Shifting the in-cabin flow/outside flow or different power settings make no difference. During one particularly perspire-filled trip to the NC beach in July, we found that opening the windows and letting the 103-degree air into the car was more fresh and desirable than using those vents. Car must be stopped, hidden in the shade, turned off and left to sit until unit can recover...then 5 mins down the road it happens again.
I am still overall a fan of the Honda brand, but would not buy a Fit again. Too many troubling issues that raise too many red flags. 2009 Honda Fit Sport: 6/10.
| 2 |
You've got more than enough in the above comment to post your own review :)
| 1 |
