Honda Fit
Honda Fit questions and answers
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Q: Honda Fit?
what is your opinion of the Honda Fit?
i am looking for a cute car that looks youthful and has a good amount of space in it and is moderately priced.
A: I have a Honda Fit Base model, I got it the first month they were available. It is equipped with an automatic transmission, and all the other standard features, AC, Power Windows and mirrors, radio with CD. It has been rated as a best buy for the money in the small car category by several national automotive magazines. I have around 12,000 miles on mine, I get 33-34 MPG around town and on a recent 1200 mile trip I got 41 MPG (the car was loaded with stuff and two people running 70 MPH most of the trip.). For the money, it is a great car, zippy, handles great, fun to drive, easy on gas and easy to park. The greatest compliment I can give it is; if something happens to this car, I will immediately buy another one just like it. Maybe the next one would be the sport model, which is what I wanted but I could not find one so I bought the base model.
The only downside of the car is it is hard to find and many dealers want to add a premium to the window price.
I have talked to a couple of other Honda Fit owners, without exception, all are of the opinion that it is a terrific car for the money. By the way, we also have a 06 MB CLS500, I would rather drive the Honda Fit.
I just checked the owner's manual, there is no requirement to change the timing belt, there is a service light indicating when oil change is due, displayed in percent left till change is required, the brake fluid is to be changed every 3 years and the idle speed is to be adjusted every 160,000 miles. The Mini is a cute little car that does not come close to the amount of "Stuff" the Fit can carry, I paid $16,000 out the door for my Fit, is there a Mini for that price? Ebay has a used 07 Mini for $25,000, nice car, but a drastically different type of car from the Honda Fit.
Q: How much would it cost to retro fit a 2007 honda fit sport with a drivers seat from a 2008 model?
Hi,
Just bought a 07 honda fit and love it... but wish it had pump in driver's seat for comfort and seating position adjustment like the 08...can it be retrofitted with one and how much would that be?
A: as far as i can tell everything is basically bolt on. so it all depends on who you get to do it, plus the price of parts. it can be done. But i cant give you a price
Q: Can a Honda Fit be mofified to make it perform better in the snow?
I like my Honda Fit now that it is summer; but I dread the winter. Last winter I repeatedly got stuck in the snow; the wheels are too small and it is too low to the ground. I actually had to get towed one snowy night. can anything be done to help; like snow tires or another modification? I have had 3 Civics and an Accord and never had the trouble in the snow that the Fit has had.
A: Studs don't help with snow, they are for ice. You may have touring tyres on your Fit, which are useless in snow. At the minimum, you need an all-season tyre with a HIGH snow rating, which can only be attained if your tread has good cleats on the outside edges of the tread. All-season tyres are not all equal, some are actually very poor in winter, no matter what the advertising says.
I suggest you buy actual winter tyres for that vehicle, tyres that go on just before the snow comes, and are taken off in the spring. The difference is amazing, they grip snow better, but, even better, they grip ice better because of the tread that doesn't harden at low temperatures.
NEVER deflate the tyres at all, unless you are actually stuck. It is a trick to use to get moving only when stuck, not while actually driving, whether or not the roads are clear. In 43 years of driving, well over 1 1/2 million miles, living in Edmonton, Saskatoon, and rural Manitoba, all snow belt areas, I have never once had to resort to deflating tyres.
Q: How much would it cost to install an iPod jack in a Honda Fit?
I have a brand new '08 Honda Fit which has auxiliary controls and equipment, but lacks the jack itself. How much would it cost to have the jack installed?
A: go to circuit city and if you buy an aftermarket Sony radio(>$99) the install will be free....... the Sony radio has the jack in the front of the radio and you have to control the songs off the ipod.....
Q: What is the best gas mileage you have gotten driving your Honda Fit?
I own a Honda Fit and am impressed with the gas mileage I get compaired to the advertised mileage.
A: I have gotted 49mpg with my Fit!!!
Q: Does anyone know where I can rent a Honda Fit in Southern California?
I am considering buying a Honda Fit and would like an extended test drive. Most renal car companies don't rent Hondas. If you know of some rental company that does rent them please let me know.
Thank you.
A: I doubt you will find any rental agencies that have them.
they don't usually buy Honda's because Honda will not sell to them at fleet prices.
the used ones are selling at very high prices due to gas going up up up.
check with a few enterprise rent a car places they might have one from a few years ago as they occasionally buy cars at auctions but it's a long shot at best.
it's a fine car much better than the Toyota Yaris.
Q: What type of bike rack should I get for my 2008 Honda Fit?
I have never owned a bike rack, which has put me at a disadvantage of searching for one for the fit. I have seen some things online in forums, but nothing really thorough that lets me know it will fit okay on the honda fit.
A: There are lots of choices of bike rack types and each one has its own advantages and disadvantages. You really need to figure out what type of rack you want first, then find the rack that provides the best fit for your car. The basic choices are: roof top, trunk and hitch mounted.
A roof top rack is great if you are going to be carrying your bike around a lot. The great things about a roof rack is you install it and largely forget about it and it doesn't get in your way like a trunk or hitch mounted rack. Roof rack companies make a wide variety of mounts that can hold nearly any type of bike quite securely. As well, they make boxes, mounts for boats, unruly relatives etc. A roof top rack gives you lots of flexibility, but is the most expensive option, may need a fairing to reduce wind noise, and will reduce your gas mileage.
A trunk rack is inexpensive and great for occasional use. Just pull it out of the garage (or trunk), unfold, mount it, load your bikes and go. Impact on gas mileage will be less than a roof rack. On the downside, the straps and clips that affix the rack to your car are a real pain and will scratch your car's paint. Trunk racks are also prone to scratching and/or rubbing the paint on your bike. The straps will make a tremendous racket in the wind if they are slightly loose. Forget access to your trunk when bikes are loaded. Furthermore, it may be nearly impossible to mount certain types of bikes on some trunk racks, so be sure your bike fits on the rack before leaving the store.
A hitch rack is easy to mount and dismount. They can hold bikes quite securely, as well. Cost is between a roof rack and a trunk rack. Your car will have to have a receiver hitch. Most hitch racks fold down, somewhat out of your way, to give access to your trunk. Because the bikes are held low and largely out of the wind stream, impact on mileage is usually minimal.
My recommendation is to think about the type of rack you want first and study the literature at the websites of Thule, Yakima, and Saris. All three of these companies also provide fit information for a variety of vehicles.
For your information, I had great luck at our local REI. They really knew racks there.
Hope this helps you out.
Good luck!
Q: Re: the Honda Fit - should one be concerned that the gas tank sits underneath the front seats?
In researching to buy a second car it came down to a Scion XD or a Honda Fit for me. I liked both fairly evenly until I learned that the Honda Fit has its gas tanks underneath the front seats. This caused me some concern as to its safety in the event of a crash. Any thoughts?
A: As has been stated by other posters, the position of the gas tank where it is should cause you no problems unless you get into an accident that would have other major catastrophic results.
Placing the tank between the steel framework of the chassis makes this among the safest places in case of a front or rear end collision. Even a 30MPH side collision would be fairly secure, though the occupants of the car might be in need of hospitalization (no matter what brand of car you drive!)
One of my first cars was a '71 VW Beetle and the gas tank was just behind the dash board at waist level when I sat in the car. I felt reasonably safe with that. Heck, I even managed to survive a couple of rides in a '59 Ford pick up truck, and the gas tank was right behind the passengers inside the cab!
I still plan to buy a Fit Sport. It's the best deal on the market this year!
Q: What color was the Honda Fit on America's Next Top Model tonight?
I watched the show but some how I must have missed the Honda Fit color. Please help!
A: Yeah me to! Like a Night hawk black pearl.
Q: What does a Honda Fit run on the quarter mile with a K20 Swap in it?
Honda Fit runs 17.3 seconds stock, I think. It weighs like 2,500. a K20Z3 has 220hp and about 152 torque or 142. K20Z3 is from a Honda Civic Si 2006+.
A: The easiest way to find your answer is to plug in the cars weight with driver and the hp into an online calculator. Here are some very good calculators I found.
http://spoonhonda.com/quarter_mile_et_calc.html - simple and fairly accurate ET calculator
http://www.nightrider.com/biketech/accel_sim.htm - not simple but very accurate ET calculator
2,390 lb First-generation Fit 2001-2008
2,646 lb Second-generation Fit 2008+
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_Fit
K20Z3 197 bhp (bhp= at the flywheel)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_K_engine#K20Z3
2,390 lb Fit + 160 lb driver = 2550 lb
2550lb @ 197 bhp = 14.42 sec. on 1/4 mile
You really should check out this site.
http://www.fitswap.org/
Q: Does anyone have the actual cargo dimensions for the Honda Fit?
I am considering buying a Honda Fit. However, I move displays for work and I wanted to find actual cargo dimensions, as opposed to volume in cubic feet. Anyone know the actual measurements of the cargo space with the back seats down? How about the hatchback opening?
Honda only provides the measurements in terms of cubic feet of cargo room, not actual measurements in terms on width, height, etc
A: look on the honda website
Q: how much should i expect to spend on a honda fit?
i got the sales men down to 15,000 for a basic honda fit. this was the drive off the lot price. sound good?
A: Sounds about right if it is an automatic.
You could probably get them to invoice if you really pushed.
Invoice is $14,856 including destination for the Fit base Automatic.
Q: Who has the lowest price on the Honda Fit Sport?
I am looking for the best price right now on the Honda Fit Sport, manual or automatic is fine. Vivid blue, Black, Red, or white are the colors I am interested in.
A: I live in So Cal. I bought my Honda Fit Sport in June sight unseen and waited 2 weeks to get the car. I was LUCKY to only pay $300 over sticker. That may vary depending on where you live. They wanted $1500 over sticker.
I bought a red, automatic which comes with the paddle shifters. They are kind of cool.
Mileage at first was 29-30 mpg. Now I'm up to 33-34, mostly freeway driving.
Good luck!
Q: When will the Honda Fit be available in New Orleans?
The Honda Fit is set to be released sometime in April in the U.S., but I heard that some cities recieve them before others. When will New Orleans have the Honda Fit?
A: Check out this website:
http://automobiles.honda.com/fit/events.aspx
It doesn't look like New Orleans will get it early.
Q: What is the best winter tire for Honda Fit in Edmonton?
I am driving Honda Fit Sport(P195/55 R15 84H)
I am wondering what is the best winter tire for this car in Edmonton.
Tires I am considering are..
Continental Nord Frost
Michelin X-Ice
Semperit
Because of price, Continental is the top on my list so far.
Has anyone used these tires?
Or if you could recommend any other brand, I appreciate it.
This is my first car in my life.
65% City Drive
35% Highway
A: The Bridgestone Blizzak series have been the standard by which all other winter tires have been compared for nearly 2 decades. They have 3 models to chose from in this size:
The Blizzak WS-50 has been around for a few years and is well proven, using Bridgestone's multi-cell technology for traction on ice. It is heavily optimized towards winter weather but has recently been discontinued. There are still plenty available though and because of this there are deals to be had. www.tirerack.com is closing them out at $77 USD each + shipping. I have these tires currently and swear by them in the cold, ice and snow but find them squirmy on dry pavement under even moderate cornering loads on my high-performance FWD car. Take them off as soon as winter is over too as they really don't like warm weather.
The Blizzak WS-60 is Bridgestone's 3rd generation Blizzak and the replacement for the WS-50 with enhanced dry-weather performance without sacrificing snow and ice traction. Have not tried this one yet because they are just starting to ship the first production batches but I can guarantee this will be the new standard by which all other winter tires are compared. Still waiting to get the first ones in my store actually. I should be getting 15 sets on Friday.
The Blizzak LM-25 is a "performance winter tire" with a higher speed rating. This gives up a little bit of snow and ice traction in favor so that it doesn't have to give up so much dry-pavement grip and steering response. In other words, this is a better handling tire than the WS-50 or WS-60 but slightly inferior is severe weather. If you are an aggressive driver you may find this one more to your liking. They may also wear somewhat better. Comparable tires would be the Michelin Pilot Alpin PA2 and Nokian WR. The Nokian WR is the only winter tire you can leave on the car all year-round, it performs very well in the snow and has better dry pavement performance than a WS-50 but not as good on ice. I use the WR on my wife's minivan. For a while I used it all year round but this year have relegated it to strictly winter use.
The Michelin X-ice is in roughly the same legue as the Blizzak WS-50. Is it better? Probably not. Is it good? Absolutely. The Nokian RSi would be another one worth considering. It, unlike the WR is strictly for winter use only and is Nokian's non-studded winter tire. They also make the famous Hakkapalitta studdable winter tire which has achieved quite a cult following.
Just FYI - the Nikia telecom company and Nokian Tyre were one and the same company up until about a dozen years ago and both are based out of Nokia Finland. Those Finn's know a thing or two about winter driving.
Continental's winter tires are not very popular. Theirs are among the few winter tires I have not personally tested simply because I have never had anyone request them nor have I encounted a customers car already so fitted. They are probably decent enough but there are better choices out there.
Semperit's I have no recent experience with. I wasn't even aware the brand was still alive and kicking.
Always use winter tires as complete sets of 4. Never use just two on a car or you are asking for trouble.