2007 Silver Fit Sport + dealing with fallout of accident that wreaked my Honda Civic (guy ran a light and complication w/ settling) + Dad's death + 5 offspring, 16 yr old totalled in snow in Ky last Saturday + me scared of snow, haven't read instructions, overwhelmed by holidays and being computer somewhat illiterate (haven't figured forum out yet) EQUALS

Questions:

Why am I getting only 30 mpg? The seller said HE was getting 38-40. Remedies? Suggestions? I've named my little Fit: Silver, after the Lone Rangers horse--I WANT to love it unconditionally, but I'm worried. I didn't replace it with a Civic (mine was a 98 that got hit when a kid ran a red light) because I fell in love with the Fit, and was tickled it could hold so much AND I wanted to get even BETTER gas mileage than my 98 got (I usually got between 30-32) I'm barely making 30 in the couple weeks I've been driving, and it's NOT okay.

Post accident--I WASN'T on my cell, but I often am. Want both hands free forevermore. Techno impaired--best answer? Now have car payments, 5 kids, 1 grandbaby, and I'm looking for the most cost effective solutions for all my challanges.

I loved my last car. I want to have a great relationship with this one. I'm overwhelmed with my life, and the first snowstorm scared me ALOT--and I haven't had time to read the manual, and probably won't.

Hope you can help me be positive and excited and thrilled to be a Fit person, and I don't want to feel 'fit to be tied'. I'm pretty small/short, so I simply fit well in my Fit, and I only want to FREAK in positive ways.

Here I am. Looking for advice and being part of this place. It is what it is: I wish things could be different, that I had more time, wasn't 'technologically challenged, etcetc......all advice, suggestions, help and camaraderie welcome. Heigh ho Silver--away!!!!!
this is too long, right? opps.

 

Pjlita

- first, welcome to FF Forums! Hope that helps you feel a little better.

I'm terribly sorry to hear about your losses, and the complications that have landed on your shoulder. If your a Christian, Leave your problems at His door and I guarantee he will be able to help with the crisis that we may not be able to help with. Times are tough for everyone, but be strong, and the Lord will be with you!!!

As far as you mileage issue goes, Most 4 cylinder cars all drop mileage when the weather is this cold. The newer cars lose more than the older cars did. Being a 98 Civic you used to have; the engine tolerances and sensor ranges weren't as precise as they are now. That makes for a BIG difference in the mileage on vehicles now. My 08 Fit Sport 5 speed gets around 38 in the city during the Summer, and only around 31-33 in the city during the winter. 7 mpg drop is pertty ridiculous, but there are a few things you can do to help it.

1 - Run quality fuel ALWAYS, and try to maintain one brand consistently.
2 - Keep defrost of as much as possible, and keep it set to fresh air coming in (flip the little door under the radio to the right, and keep it off of the defrost+floor or just defrost settings.
3 - don't idle the car in the mornings for extended amounts of time.
4 - keep tire pressure around 34-36 psi at all times. Check it weekly
5 - if it's a 5 speed don't shift above 3000 rpms and if it seems to be too low, don't floor the pedal to compensate, you can feel with the Fits when the engine starts to get louder but it doesn't accelerate any faster... that's the breaking point to where you need to back off the pedal. If automatic - Just don't floor it everywhere to make it shift all the time.

There are TONS of information on the forums out there that can help if you just look through. I hope these help you get the most out of your "new" Fit!

God bless you always and I sincerely hope things get better for you! I lost my mother last September to lung cancer and my wedding was 3 days before the 1 year anniversary of her passing. I am still trying to bounce back from not having her there for it. Being a middle child it certainly was rough! Watching her help so much with my older bro's wedding and I had to fend for myself it was rough. We all go through hard times but it makes you stronger when you persevere!

 

And if someone replies, how do I find out? Don't "see" anything on this screen yet. Who knows, maybe I didn't register correctly. Maybe I'm not fit to own a Fit. I'm smart in lots of other ways.....I picked the right kind of car.....

 

Dear Rubi,
thank you! I feel better, and your message appeared when I hit return.....guess I just needed to refresh the screen. Oh my. It's the season to be jolly, but as you probably know, that grief and missing pops up, there is so much to deal with IN THE moment. Your kindness is so appreciated. Mine is a sport, so it's not a 5 speed; I haven't checked the tire pressure.

I want to keep the defrost on and set to FRESH air? I thought that would make the car cooler, and I tend to be cold easily. Explain?
I have no idea how the S gear works...but I'll try watching the rpms.
thanks again.

 

With defrost on, the A/C is engaged to help dehumidify the air. Whenever the A/C is engaged, the A/C's compressor will require the engine to perform more work (reducing engine power output in the process) in order for it to move the car and dehumidify the air inside of it.

As for the S gear for your transmission, it basically does two functions...

First, in S (without paddle usage), the transmission shift points are higher for more spirited (performance) driving. Typically, the gear shifts are around 3500-4000 RPMs depending on throttle position for the 1st-to-2nd shift and 2nd-to-3rd shift, 3rd-to-4th happens around 70-75 MPH (forgot RPM).

With the gear selector in S with paddle usage (the letter "M" and a gear number will pop up in tachometer cluster) the transmission is similar to that of a Sequential Manual Gearbox, you have control of the upshift points and if you do not upshift before the fuel cut the transmission will not upshift and will bounce off of the limiter. Fortunately, the transmission will downshift for you when slowing to a stop.

An added benefit with using the paddles in S is that you have additional control of how/when the torque converter in the transmission opens or closes by throttle manipulation and careful gear selection as well as don't have to experience nearly as many shifts like when in D. The more often its closed the better since the engine will be at lower RPMs, giving the torque converter less work to perform (reducing transmission temps), and helps increase fuel mileage.

 

All air has SOME moisture in it! if you set it to recirculate it will get just a small amount warmer (not enough to matter. I turn mine to full head when the car is ice cold (especially since it is in the single digits this tme of year) and when the cabin starts to warm up I usually have to turn the fan speed down and bring the temp dial closer to the middle between hot/cold.

If you run the defrost with the switch set to recirculate, it will not be able to remove all moisture from the air due to things like carpet, dash padding, insulation and seat cushions contain a small amount of trapped moisture. It will eventually start doing the opposite of defrost and start fogging the window up anyway. Fresh air mode bypasses the interior air to a certain extent and provides a shorter path from the air to travel from outside, through the evaporator, and into the windows to defog/defrost them. Recirculate normally is a selection designed for air conditioning in the summer time. Most people probably don't know (not talking about people on the forums, they actually read and study about their vehicles), but you are supposed to run fresh air on a hot summer day when you leave the windows up with the a/c on to push the hot air out of the rear vents and allow cooler air to fill the cabin, when you feel the overall temp in the car start to drop, THEN set it to recirculator and that will pull the cooler air through the evaporator and cycle it down colder. If you start the car off in the summer with it set to recirculate (max a/c) and set it to high, you're only moving extremely hot air across the evaporator at a high speed and the vehicle cannot cool it enough to even feel for a longer time. But everybody wants to be cold instantly... it's not gonna happen. Heat it the same way. Start the car, idle it a little bit, drive it down the road when the windshield is clean and the blue "cold" light goes away, turn the fan up to 2 or 3 and feel it with your hand, if it's warm turn it up and set it to the floor setting (best IMHO) so the head will first warm the lower end of the car and circulate through the rear vents to the back seat and let the heat rise. It will warm the car a couple of minutes faster and you will soon be wanting to take coats off while driving! Personally, I cannot stand hot air blowing directly on my face. I have to set mine to low floor/panel, or medium-high floor to warm my car up. That direct heat in your face when your cold contributes to getting sick anyway. If it's gradual it's safer

I know this was long but I sincerely hope this helps you out! Enjoy your Fit and Silver will take care of you!!!!

 

I'm printing these replies of and reading them carefully. I can tell I have a LOT to learn. Some of us drive cars without understanding what we are doing, actually. Better late than never--I try to learn something new each day, do something new each day, and get through each day. I'll put learning something new about my car each day on the list for a while.


Thank you I"ll probably have questions about your answers. Hope you are a patient group.

And I got my first laugh of the day from the quote "never argue with an idiot...." that's going to pop into my mind and be quite helpful ....
my first smilie too. someone has REALLY done a good job on this site if I can learn to navigate it.

Thanks again!
pj