Long-Term Test: 2007 Honda Fit Sport

 

$607 for front pads and turned rotors!!!!!

 

Whatever dealer they went to really screwed them over.

From majestic honda its $131.34 + shipping for new rotors and pads. That's cheaper than my EK was by $50 when I did them last. Heck MSRP for those parts is $187.63. Why then did they charge $400 in labor? It doesn't take 6-8 hours to do front brakes. I can do them in less than 2 EASY.

Transmission grenaded itself? Weird.

Yay for the SP31s lasting 27000 miles, thats good for dunlops

 

Hell I can do fronts in almost half an hour!!! $607 I don't believe it for a second

 

My first test drive of a 2008 Sport Fit A/T Blackberry Pearl was not convincing for me to purchase. It was super cute and had a real sporty personality - but the A/T was frequently down shifting to maintain speed and felt cramped in the drivers seat. I am 5' 9" and couldn't quite find a good seat position to comfortably reach the steering wheel and pedals. I left the dealership empty handed...

A week later I decided to test drive a M/T for comparison - and because I really liked the car and wanted it to work for me. Much to my surprise - the 2008 Sport Milano Red M/T "FIT" perfectly! I am not sure why my comfort level was so much improved, but I didn't experience the "cramped" driving position I had with the A/T. The M/T also seemed to be a better match for the engine and I left with my new little buddy 3 hours later.

No regrets not waiting for an '09. I prefer the "boxy" look of the '08 and purposely shopped for that model year - and I think it's cute/sporty look is more to my liking. Who would have thought I would end up with a M/T though?

Motor on!

 

Good choice with the MT!!!

 

I thought this was funny:

"When comparing the 2007 Nissan Versa to the 2007 Honda Fit, our preference was obvious. We struggled to reach 16,000 miles in our Versa, while the sportier Fit eclipsed 20,000 miles in the same time frame. The Versa didn't get much love."

2007 Nissan Versa SL Long-Term Wrap-Up

 

The MT is a much better car. Good choice.

Sorry to say in my area the dealerships get only 1 MT for every 9 AT so the Fits on the roads will reflect that limitation in supply.

Sometimes buyers will have to wait months for an MT and sometimes dealerships will sell out of ATs and have only one or two MTs left.

Since the demand from the general public is for ATs this trend is likely never to be changed. Dealerships claim they have no or little control about getting AT vs MT for the Fit.

I tried to get an MT for my Civic recently but was told that the dealership almost NEVER sees the Civic DX and manual transmission is only seen in the Civic Si since it only comes in MT. Same with Accords- all are AT.

 

[quote=MINI-Fit;441635]The MT is a much better car. Good choice.

quote]

I really am happy with the M/T. Easiest manual I have ever driven. Love the short shifts and clutch feel. Combined with the Fit handling - I feel it will be a true sports car when it grows up!

 

$607?? What a nightmare - I would probably take to using my feet to brake and change my name to Fred........Flintstone that is!

 

This somewhat parallels my experience. I'm about your size. I, too, have a MR '08 Sport manual. It's a great car. I also preferentially bought an '08 instead of an '09 because of the first gen's sportier/funkier look. I would never have considered an auto transmission, though -- 5-speed all the way, to get the full driving experience and achieve the best MPG (I'm averaging over 40 so far).

Aye, motor on and enjoy your Fit.

 

I am averaging 36 mpg combined and planning my first trip to Richmond, VA this December. A 10 hour drive and hoping the FIT will prove to be comfy enough for the trip. Looking forward to seeing highway mpg achieved.

 

not sure why edmunds complains about the MT pedal location.
it's actually pretty good. the only thing lacking is the telescoping
steering wheel as noted in that article.

if you extend the steering column like me and get some real steering
wheels, it feels very much like a sports coupe in the cockpit.

if there was one thing i would complain about the MT, it is the rubber
pedal covers. the clutch pedal cover wears out so damn fast...
my 2nd one is already wearing out and im only 8.5k miles. the rubber
is too soft.



you can check out the DIY over in my Fit blog in the newbs section.

 

I know!!! When I went to buy my MT, the dealership told me they couldn't find one in the state of Michigan haha. Then a week later they found 3 of them.

 

yep, my dealer had like 5 MT's in-stock when i got my silver.
but they were out of AT's. im like 'so?'

 

I can't believe they spent $886.62 on maintenance in 18 months. I've had mine for 13 months and put close to 18,000 miles on it and I've only spent $59.85. That's three visits to the dealer at $19.95 a pop. Granted I get free oil changes but...

The 10,000-mile service also included a full inspection and air filter replacement, bringing the grand total (including oil change) to $165.37.

...What dealer charges that much!? They got screwed.

 

Also note something like $67 dollars for an air filter. I paid something like nine bucks for mine yesterday.

 

Never under-estimate the stealership.