Hi all,

Thought i'd toss in my 2 yen to give my own review of the EX-6MT Fit. To preface, just wanted to say that I've driven stick for 12 years and my last three cars have been manual ('89 Nissan Maxima, '04 Nissan Sentra SE-R Spec V, '11 Audi A4). This review will focus mainly on the 6MT.

I ordered my car without driving a manual GK5, so I had no clue what to expect. The clutch pedal travel is very short and ridiculously light. There's almost no pedal feedback so it was a little vague at first. After my 2nd stop and go, I was able to find the engagement point easily.

The engine rev's freely so matching upshifts is easy. The throw is pretty long, so by the time you are in gear, revs are pretty much at the correct point and you can clutch out without jerking. (Also, I believe there is a clutch delay valve. It aids in making lazy shifts a little more smooth. But makes fast up-shifting not as smooth).

The engine happily revs when you blip the throttle for a downshift. Pedals are positioned well for heel-toe. Was able to do it easily on my first try.

The engine feels plenty peppy and can accelerate around town very easily. Highway speeds is a little different. Merging is okay, but not recommended to try and beat cars that are moving faster than you.

Now for some negatives. Lots of negatives.

The shifter feels incredibly vague--almost like a toy. I find myself concentrating to make sure I put the shifter into the correct gear. Also the throws are a bit long. I've noticed that 5th gear is an abnormally far throw, and I have to lean forward to reach to be able to put it into gear. As soon as solid shifter bushings and a true short shifter is available, I will most likely get them. It just feels terrible.

The shift knob is also a piece of crap. It's really light and thin. When squeezing it, I can feel the shape of the metal shifter in the middle of the knob. I think a heavier, weighted knob will do wonders.

For me, a comfortable seating position with the clutch and shifter is awkward. If I sit low, I have to move the chair back to compensate for my legs, but the shifter is positioned really far forward and I have trouble reaching it (I am 5'7"). So if I move the seat higher, I am able to sit closer, and can reach the shifter better. I need to play around with seating positions more, still haven't found something 100% comfortable yet. But no matter what, 5th gear is always slightly out of comfortable throw range.

4th/5th/6th gears are absolutely terrible and useless. The gearing is so close, there is no reason for them to even exist. You could shift from 3 to 6 and it would feel normal. Cruising at 65 mph is something ridiculous like 3200 rpm. The engine is SO LOUD with SO MUCH DRONE at highway speeds. This almost discourages you from driving above 60 mph. I feel like im cruising in 3rd or 4th gear in any other normal manual car. This is my one serious complaint that needs to be addressed. This car does not have a real overdrive gear to aid in gas saving. Even if they made 4th and 5th gears short, but then made 6th longer, it would have helped so much. I swear, if Honda corrects this in the 2016+ Fits, they better offer to swap 2015 manual Fits for free.

As others have mentioned, there is no usable armrest. However, similar to my old SE-R, I find it comfortable to rest my arm on the side bolster when driving and shifting. Works better and is far more comfortable than the non-existent armrest. If you haven't given it a try yet (for either 6MT or CVT), try using the side bolster with your elbow.

A couple other gripes include not having a self-dimming rear view or side view mirrors. Had it in my Audi and found myself missing it a lot. Also noticed that the sideview lane watch camera is useless at night. Can't see anything in the dark, or the camera flares from headlights making the entire screen mostly white. When hitting the turn signal, does anyone else have a 1 to 2 sec delay before the screen turns on? I find myself using the mirror or turning my head instead.

If you have anything in particular you are curious about, feel free to ask.

My dealer did a bad job cleaning up the car after unwrapping it. There is lots of blue and scuffs everywhere. Also noticed LOTS of swirl marks. After I can do a proper detail, I will take some nice pictures and post.

 

I had the same issue from time to time. It would fix itself after restarting the car. I just brought it in this morning and the dealer said that the system was not properly initialized during PDI and needed a reset. We'll see if that's actually the issue or it needs some kind of firmware update down the road.

Nice review. I'm noticing that I'm jumping from 3-6 quite often myself. At this point though I've just kind of accepted that the gearing is quirky as I like the car otherwise and I've been able to get 45mpg out of it. I do wish it was geared better though.

 

Nice review! I find it amazing you are still able to get 45mpg out of it despite the gearing. I would've expected less.

 

Great review! I'm happy to see some people get their MT's in, my dealer said end of August for a Blue manual EX.

Engine drone on the highway was my biggest concern... Is it really bad, like intolerable? I drive mostly on the highway and have a bad habit of doing 80mph. I am thinking a smaller engine will curb that anyway, but I don't want to imagine that cruising at 75-80mph will be deafening and undoable.

I feel like the manual will be a lot of fun in this small car though and was willing to overlook/get used to high revs. I drive a Mustang now and it is loud on the highway. I want to test drive the manual because I wasn't too into the CVT when i drove it. However, the dealer is dying to have me come in and get a CVT off his lot so I'm sure I could get a deal if I change my mind. These reviews help a lot. Thank you!

 

interesting, i'll keep an eye on mine as well

in my Audi (even with full exhaust, upgraded turbo, etc etc), it was more quiet than the stock Fit at highway speeds. the engine is really, really loud. you could turn the radio up to mask it, but then it's still loud radio on top of loud engine.

 

It's weird that you found the clutch pedal travel short. I found it to be very long, and it seems by feel that the clutch pedal sticks out an inch closer to me than the brake pedal almost. I wish the seat went back further, and I'm only 5'9". I feel that my left leg has to come back a whole lot when letting out the clutch. I definitely agree on the other points, and will probably almost never use 5th gear. In twisty back roads driving I was using mostly 3rd and 4th, with 2nd for the really tight turns and was having a blast. I also agree on the shift knob, and as soon as I can find a Japanese Fit RS shift knob, I'll get one of those. As far as engine drone goes, I don't think it's that bad, but I keep my radio volume up pretty high anyway.

 

Wow! This is another great review from the heart. Nothing held back. As for engine rpm, guess we all expected that for the GK, but nothing beats an owner's feedback. This may not be the best for 80mph cruising and that "drone" will be irritating after a couple of hours.

Knowing these previously, have already conditioned my mind to accept these high rpm faults. Have planned ahead and will try to address the noise issue by adding insulation and deadening. Expect this to add 80lbs.+. The effect on MPG will be reported (once the damn thing is finally delivered).

Followed ETFitRS lead and got a Blox shifter to add "beef" to the shifting motion. Its sad though, that the OP finds the shift pattern spaced to wide, especially on 5th. Will follow his further developements on a short shift kit that, hopefully, will be available by year-end. Personally, what would please me more is that the shifts are not mushy. May be able to live without the kit but have to drive one first.

Due to this informative review, I now know what to look for. Great effort and looking forward to the pics.

 

I accept what you're saying but don't see the issues as big. From my previous M/T it took me some doing getting used to the new Fit throttle sensitivity and the electronic rev safety setups, but after about a week I have it down to where it all goes pretty smooth now when accelerating slow or fast.

Yeah, 6th revs higher than my previous car but I rode a motorcycle for years all year round and was on a work road trip just about every week, so noise in comparison to that, the Fit seems VERY quiet in 6th. Since the engine is made to take the higher revs, I'm getting in the high 40s MPG for hwy and in 6th the motor still has some "umph" to move, I'm OK with it.

I do like the gear throw very much. It is so easy it is like a paddle shifter just about. Short throws with little effort.

Also like the 4th and 5th gears. Guess I see their need and I just enjoy shifting. It must be doing something right for the great fuel mileage it gets and it moves pretty good too.

I could be the one that is wrong about the gear issue but I'm a "happy-wrong". The 2015 Fit has the best shifting I've ever had in my 35 years or so of M/T cars.

 

Same here, "happy wrong" I definitely will be. Different owner different views. Nothing wrong with that!!! We all enjoy the same material things in varying degrees.

Will be making my conclusions within the next month. Even then it could come out different from both you and TShop. Only time will tell once delivery finally happens!!!

 

You haven't driven any other Hondas then, have you?

 

Do B series cars with blown 3rd gear synchros count? I've driven a few of those

I kid, I kid.

AP2 S2000 was amazing, i've never driven an AP1.

Nobody should be surprised about the highish revs in 6th. We all said that from the get go on here before the car even came out just looking at the ratios. The fact that people are getting 40+ mpg shows that Honda didn't do it for no reason. Everyone complained about that on the GE too, and they did it again, so i'm sure it's not just because they made a mistake, it's because it keeps the motor in the sweet spot at X speed.

Also not very fair to compare NVH between a 15k economy car and an Audi. Any Audi. But since you are coming out of that car, I can see where the comparison is made and why, so it's not wrong, just a different perspective. I'm sure if I got out of my GE and drove the GK it'd sound like I was driving a Lexus.

I am not surprised about the driving position issue. It's really something you have to get used to and kind of go outside your comfort zone to get something that works. The GE8 is like this as well. I also had to reach for 5th (and i'm 6'). It was either my feet were too close to the pedals, the steering wheel was too far, or the shifter was too far. So I had to adjust the shifter height so I didn't have to reach down for the shifter. I will never go back to stock.

To this day, if anyone drives the car other than me and adjusts the seat, I spend literally three days trying to get it right again. I even contemplated putting white out marks where the rails should be and where the seatback should be so I can reference it easily lol

 

One thing is for sure about the high revving 6th gear: there's almost no need to ever shift down at cruising speed (70-75 MPH). I went up some very steep hills on my way home yesterday and with the cruise set on 75, it didn't drop even on MPH going up those hills. In my 09 Fit AT, it would have unlocked the torque converter, then shifted to 4th because of it dropping down 4-5 MPH.

 

Thanks for the thorough review, TofuShop, and thanks also to the other posters for weighing in with their opinions. I admit, I don't really understand the point of adding a sixth gear if all it does it force you to shift more often. Seems like an area where the Honda engineers really fell short, and there doesn't seem to be a good reason for it. (I don't buy the notion that Honda didn't include a true overdrive gear because it was worried car reviewers would criticize the car for being underpowered at higher speeds...or if that IS the case, it's a pretty big indictment of Honda's design mentality.) I'd rather have a well-designed 5-speed (for example, the transmission on the Ford Focus) than a poorly-designed 6-speed.

 

Please take my reviews and comments with a grain of salt. I may be a bit harsh, but i'm not sugar-coating it and telling it how it is. Again, this is merely my subjective opinion.

I've driven many manual cars including Hondas (ep3, ap2, every gen STi, celica GTS, z33, B8 S4, EG6, B15, etc etc) so I have exposure driving many manual cars. I would list the GK5 fit at the bottom in terms of feel. Again, not fair to compare these cars, but this is my own opinion.

I agree, passing power in 6th is great. but that's because revs are already so high, haha.

 

That's why the review counts as well as from all the others who actually OWN and DRIVE a GK.

Those like me who have not driven an M/T GK, can at least gain from these factual experiences. We know what to look for and will agree or disagree.

You guys keep up the effort to post your ongoing impressions. They are to be valued and respected.

 

I really appreciate your review. It is great to hear the opinion of a fellow enthusiast; most of the other GK folks seem like non-car dorks, which is great for them, but meaningless to me. You get it.

 

I can't agree with much of your review at all. Transmission works great for what this car ultimately is.. an economy car. I agree the throw to 5th is too long, however, the shifter doesn't feel vague to me. And how hard must you be gripping your shifter knob if you're feeling the metal underneath it?!
I typically skip 5th and go from 4th to 6th when putting around town. For better freeway passing, use 5th or 4th.

 

I expect this to be a problem for us also, since it is in our current Accord. My wife is about 4 ft. 8 in, and I'm right at 6 ft. So if I'm going to drive the Accord I have to move the seat back before I can even get in, plus adjust the seat back and all mirrors. Since the Fit will primarily be her car, I'm sure we'll go through the same routine anytime I drive it. Oh well!

 

That's where those cars that have those auto-positions you set with the push of a button that put the seat and such back to the driver's setup for those that share a car.

I chose the more expensive route, buying his and hers cars.

 

Thanks guys.

Another thing i've noticed, is that the FM antenna is a bit weak. I get staticy reception sometimes. Anyone else notice this?

I also suggest increasing the treble/base settings from default baseline 0 setting. Sound quality increases a bit. While it doesn't sound great, it sounds decent/okay after adjusting the EQ table a little.