Go Fit! Go!

[draw2much]

Hello everyone! Been watching this forum for almost a year but just now finally decided to join. My husband is active duty Air Force for the US and we're currently stationed in Japan. (Misawa, north-east part of the island.)

Because I live in Japan, I see a lot of Fits. I think I've seen about every model year that's been released in Japan on the road here. It's a pretty popular car here. I got the privilage of seeing the 09 model before everyone else in the States did. (It was quite amusing to watch everyone here debate about it's looks in pictures while I got to see it driving down the road.) I really liked the 09 model. The 08 and earlier are really cute, but the 09 is "spicey". (As the Japanese would put it.)

I've never driven a Fit, or even sat in one. Since you see them pretty often here, I've stood next to one and looked inside but that's about it. I've been thinking about going to the local dealership and just seeing if they'll let me sit in one. I really just want to know if my body will fit in a Fit. (I'm 5'9" and my husband is 6'. We're both under 200 pounds. We're more long legged than wide.) It's difficult though since I only speak basic Japanese.

I'm not worried about how it'll drive. I'm positive that there is no new hatchback (even the Aveo!) on the market that can drive as horrible as my Escudo does. Ah... it's only saving grace is that 4WD thingy. (Great for the winters here!) Everything else about it stinks.

We're due to move later this year to Wichita Falls, Texas. I do NOT want to be car-less for more than a week there. They have almost no public transportation at all. That's why I'm trying to at least *sit* in a FIT before leaving. That way I can know whether I really want one. If it turns out a comfy fit, then I can get everything set up before we leave to actually purchase one. (We have USAA and we can go through them to buy a car without having to haggle.)

I'm really hoping that the Fit is right for us! I love the look of it, all the features it has... I hope to love everything about it!

[Firefly]

Welcome to the forums...
I'm 5'6" (and female) and I love how it 'fits' me. Even tho he's tall at 6' 2" my fiance fits comfortably as well, with plenty of leg room. I have an '08 gd3 version bought new last year. Def try and sit in one, to see if you like it, or better yet, test drive it.

[kenchan]

09 yes, 07-08 probably no.

Reason: the 07-08's do not have telescoping steering wheel and
the pedals are close to the seat like toyota's low-end cars ie:
corolla, yaris, etc. they were made more for smaller folks.

the 09's pedals are close to the seat too, but at least you can
pull back the steering wheel by 1.5" or so.

on my 08 Fit i use an aftermarket steering wheel with a spacer
to push the steering wheel back away from the cluster by
about 1.5". it's pretty good, but still not perfect.

i found dress slippers (shoes) that have thin soles so that helps
quite a bit too.

[draw2much]

Thanks for your replies! I went to the Honda dealership and sat in a (09) Fit they had. Japanese Fits are nice... I'm pretty sure the seats and steering wheel had leather (fake or real I don't know).

Anyway, the front seat seemed iffy. I didn't test it for long but I couldn't get the seat back very far. I'm not sure if I hit the seat limit or it was just a case of "user error". The back seat and cargo were very impressive though. You just wouldn't know it by looking, but this car has a lot of space!

I'm taking my husband back today to see how he fits in it. He's dragging his feet about the whole thing since he's more interested in a motorcycle than a car. But I'm being persistent and trying to get as much car fitting done prior to moving as possible. (It'll save us a lot of hassle later.)

I was thinking of asking the dealer about letting me drive the Fit they have but... I don't know think it'll be an accurate comparison. I'm pretty sure Japanese Fits have different engines. And we rarely go over 45mph here, unless you take a toll road. (And I'm not risking that!) Roads are different too. Hm.... but then... it might be fun to drive around a Japanese Fit...

Like I said, nothing could be worse than our '93 Escudo at highway speeds. And I bet it's nicer than our previous car, the '85 Plymouth Relient. (My husband's "true love". He almost cried when we sold it. It was his first car.) As you can see, all our cars have been oooooold.... so anything newer will be better. At least that's my theory.

[draw2much]

Ok, took my husband to the dealership to sit in it. I don't know why I had problems moving the front seats. This time it was fine and there was plenty of room. In fact, the front seat is comparible to the Escudo we have (a small SUV), so my husband had no problem at all.

I guess now all we gotta do is a test drive. That'll likely have to wait until after we move. I'm pretty sure it'll be fine.

The Fit is pretty amazing. Our Escudo looks pretty big on the outside but is cramped on the inside. The Fit looks pretty small on the outside and is big on the inside. It's actually got more back seat and cargo space than our Escudo does!

I'm really looking forward to owning one! I don't like over-seas moves, but getting a new car almost makes it worth it.

[Hootie]

If it has the L15A (The 1.5 liter engine) then its pretty much the same as the US model except for the car's front clip, having no CVT trans as an option, no power folding mirrors, and other small tid bits that you would not really notice.

I'm 6 foot even and weigh 170 lbs; in a GD3, the driver's seating is a little snug when I'm sitting and the peddles are just a hair too close for me. In a GE8, I can't say too much because I've only sat in one for about 20 secs but it felt more spacious in the driver's seat and my ankle was not in a slightly odd position as it was in my GD3.