This is the car I wanted, but I couldn't wait a few months to buy one... Therefore, I settled on the Fit. I like the Fit, but I definitely would of preferred the Rio. It looks much sportier, more hp/tq, gets better mileage, has 4 wheel disc brakes, 17" wheels, leather interior, heated seats, and a slew of other great features..

 

The Elantra isn't getting anywhere its rated fuel economy, so there's no reason to believe the Rio will get anywhere near its rated fuel economy either. Same as an Accent but different sheet metal and suspension tuning. I'd be mighty bummed to get a car advertised as 40 mpg capable only to find out it can only do 35 mpg while throwing the hypermiling book at it.

Fortunately the Fit doesn't have that problem, so people are pleasantly surprised instead of disappointed.

 

I agree the Rio 5 sounds terrific & if I were in the market would surely give it a hard look. I had an 02 Elantra GT that was a good car, but gave to my son as a wedding present - he sold it a year letter - not his brightest move as that model seemed to have good long term reports & I believe that Hyndai/Kia have really gotten their act together although I suspect 5-10 yrs out most Hondas will feel a lot closer to new than the Koreans .
That said the Kia exterior does nothing for me & I really like the Fit's cargo capacity, utilizing it frequently. The competition is the econcar is really heating up & Honda has real fight on its hands to keep market share. The vast majority of test drives I have read for the 2012 Civic are not at all favorable when compared to increasing excellent competition. Honda could be on the ropes if they aren't careful.

 

It is still a Kia at the end of the day. What do they stand for?

 

killed in accident..

but really
sounds gay to me though

 

All I can say to that is I hope for your sake that their quality has greatly improved since the Sephia I had before my Fit. I was nothing but unhappy with that car from the moment I got it, and I probably should have been a little paranoid going in, given it was a lien sale from a dealership that had only about $1,200 of work done on it and the owner felt that wasn't worth paying for to get the car back.

She was only a seven year old car when I got her. I had endless problems with her belts. No matter who installed them, they always slipped and squeaked. They broke on me on two different occasions, and left me paranoid enough that I left an extra set in my trunk, just in case. She had an intermittent electrical problem where sometimes her cooling fans just would not come on. There wasn't anything wrong with the fuses, you could replace them and it wouldn't fix the problem... I even had one time where she overheated on me, I didn't have a replacement fuse, and by the time I got my hands on another one, her fans were working again.

And then the check engine light came on maybe six months before I was finally able to be rid of her. My dad works in a dealership (the same one that sold me the car in the first place) and they couldn't give me a reasonable answer as to what was wrong. They were trying to get me to replace a part (I don't remember which one at this point), and tack on a dozen other things at the same time because "we'd already have the car apart in the area, so it'll save you labor!" but when my mom's boyfriend (a retired mechanic) took a look, he couldn't find anything to support the wild guess they were making based upon the codes the scanner was spitting back at them. I'd even been given a copy of the scanner results to bring home to him when they'd hooked the car up, and he had no idea what they were basing their assumptions on.

So yeah, I hope the quality has drastically improved since my Kia. They left such a bad taste in my mouth I went running back to Honda as soon as I could figure out how to finance it. I'd had an older Honda Accord before the Kia and I'd loved her to pieces. Sadly I got into a front end collision and the insurance totalled her, absolutely low balling me on her value... but that has nothing to do with this conversation, so I'll leave it at that.

 

Anything that makes the subcompact market more appealing to American car buyers is a good thing; and anything that keeps the dominant market leaders from becoming complacent is good for everyone.

 

2nd that.

It'll raise expectations about luxury while keeping prices down in this size car too.

On the 7 year old Kia, no way would I buy my daughter a 7 year old Kia. 7 year old Honda sure (and I did!).

 

32 posts and all i have to say is you want to buy a kia or a fiesta, vw, or any other car "in the fit segment" go ahead - i work at a Honda dealer and am sick of people beating the shit out of their fits and complaining they want more power, or a leather option, or even a sunroof. boo hoo - Honda makes cars for people that appreciate value and longevity <---you'll never hear that word spoken about any other manufacturer PERIOD! not even Toyota these days.
go ahead jump ship, leave the good cars to people like myself, i used to tell everyone i knew they should buy a fit 5 years ago when i got my first one, but then i was seeing how people don't take care of the car and expect it to take care of them, then bring the value of my car down because of bogus reports by people that couldn't change a flat tire if they needed to - but these people can sit in a waiting room at the dealership bad mouthing Honda "because their MAZDA never got a flat in the three years they owned it"
i say SEE YA! wouldn't wanna be ya!!

 

Very interested to know how to get 40+mpg. My best is now 34 mpg

 

That's quite a sad statement - Honda used to make cars that were fun for the driving enthusiast with a good value/longevity thrown in. They used to do things like double wishbones on every model sold... but that is not the Honda that exists today.

They've become a bit much of a green monster but their hybrid technology can't compete with Toyota, they refuse to embrace turbos in the way other manufacturers are to get more performance and good gas mileage at the same time, and they're lagging in technology. Many Honda models lack a manumatic, a 6-speed auto, or other things that are becoming very commonplace in the industry.

The competition might finally force them to make the changes they need to remain competitive, or they'll die a slow death. I think they've totally mismanaged and blown the Acura brand as it stands today. Honda is losing its DNA, slowly but surely.

 

My average is about 33mpg. That was downhill one day on the freeway to work (23miles). There's no secret.

 

Beware!!!!!Kia is notorious for refusal to honor their warranty, and lying about repair records

 

I hate to say it, but you are right. They make a great car, but nothing that could be called "sporty" anymore.

 

I agree Honda is not as tuner friendly, its still has lots to offer. http://www.hondacarindia.com/images/...CH_BOOKLET.pdf

 

Turbos are not new technology. Not in any way.

The high revving NA powerplants of the 90's and even the 8th gen Civic Si > any FI powerplant on the market.

 

Care to elaborate how they're better than any FI on the market?

 

Consider this first: My daughter had a Rio..Clutch went out at 6 mos..not covered..$900. The next day, the half shaft fell out of the tranny. Then the shifter handle BROKE OFF! Then the panel switches failed, Dealer said defective design, but Kia ordered replacing switches with the same defective design. Clutch out again, no coverage.....6 months later...clutch again. Admited it was a defective throw-out bearing that caused it, but...no coverage. Dealer said never a previous RIO with clutch problems. I SAW 5 dragged in on the hook, owners in the truck..All bad clutches. Kia Corporate said NEVER had a record of a bad Rio clutch. A fellow teacher had 3 clutches go out in 18 months. None ever covered. Still want a Kia?

 

And my uncle's '73 Civic had parts rust off and fall off of it all the time.

And Honda would not cover it...

Until they were forced to issue a massive recall...

 

One door less the new Veloster looks interesting.

Hyundai Veloster | Hyundai