Looking to upgrade to a 2009 Honda Fit from my 2005 Mazda3, but there are two small but highly convenient features on the M3 that I think the Fit lacks. #1 is rain-sensing front wipers, and #2 is auto shutoff front lights. Does the new Fit have either of these?

 

Fit has neither... both seem like just minor luxuries that wouldn't keep my from buying a new Fit.

 

Auto on/off lights is a good feature, though not a deal breaker for me.

There are many times I drove in the city in darkness by following other car's tail lights w/o turning on my own, or forget to turn off the light after arival. The former is a safety hazzard, and the later will drain the battery. When I had a leased Camry I never had to worry about these, but now I have to retrain myself to get used to being "low-tech" again.

 

Pretty sure nothing is auto-off in the Fit...I was using cruise control and the next time I got in, noticed the light was still on, so if you don't turn it off, it's going to be there next time you start up.

By rain-sensing, you mean the wipers come on when it starts raining? Or do they speed up in reaction to the downpour's intensity? Why in the world would you need that? Can't you make the decision to turn on the wipers?

 

It does have auto up and down window on the driver side hehe.

 

and auto door locks when you drive..


wish the usd fits had sunroofs...i'm not sure but does the jdm fits have sunroofs?

 

Wasn't joking, most cars only have auto down no auto up.

 

yeah i wish it had auto up also. I know the nissan altima and nissan pathfinder both have front windows that go auto up and down. We have an 05 pathfinder and my friend has an 02 altima so i know this for a fact.

 

That's true the Mazda3 only has auto down drivers side window! As for rain sensing wipers, the M3 has no intermittent wipers mode, only regular, fast, and rain-sensing. Rain-sensing will turn on when the rain sensor (behind the rear-view mirror) gets wet and will increase in intensity when it senses greater downpour. It really is just a luxury feature and as one poster said, not a deal breaker. The auto on/off headlights is a reaaaaaal sweet convenience feature, I mean I never have to worry about "oh no did I turn my lights off?" or forget to turn them on. I'm so glad the '09 Fit has added steering wheel audio controls, cause seriously the lack of it in 07-08 models really was a deal breaker for me!

 

But you have to cough up $1850 for the Nav/VSA to get them!

 

Not to be too snarky or anything, but why don't you wait a while for a car that will just drive itself and you can listen to the iPod in peace? The car turns its own wipers on and you don't want to take one hand away from the wheel to turn the audio up or down? I don't think the Fit is an upgrade from anything except maybe a Yaris or a Corolla.