I will once these are worn out the noise doesn't bother me. I came from a full size truck with a/t tires so these are still quieter

 

At freeway speeds of around 70, my 2012 Honda Fit Sport AT revs at 2500 rpm and is very pleasant sound wise. When I test drove in the manual at freeway speeds it was at 3500 rpm and the interior noise was much more noticeable. I personally found the AT got the car along quite nicely.

As a aside, how many have purchased the rear cargo cover? What was the cost and the joy of installation?

 

I'm probably going to buy a 2012 AT. What is your mpg? How much of your driving is highway?

 

here are pics of the cargo cover. Installation isn't so much installation as it is placement, haha. You clip on some hangers for the tailgate anchors and then place the cover onto tabs that are already there. I paid 120 from HandA Accessories.

 

At present we are getting around 28 mpg. So far freeway mileage has been minimal, around 10 percent. Yesterday was the first time the car had some prolonged freeway miles and learned about the effects of wind. Found the vehicle had plenty of power to get up to the freeway speeds. We hope to soon take a longer trip which will have around 300 plus freeway miles. We have kept the freeway miles down till the 600 miles break-in period is over.

 

I like the high revs . Got Jet Performance tuner on my 2011 Mugen Sport M/T Fit and bumped up my rpm range to 7500 with Royal Purple oil . Sounds awesome hitting revs that high once and while .

 

IT depends of which Honda, many Honda were tuned for fuel economy; CRX HF, Civic VX, CX, Insight mk1, etc.
My Civic hatchback 1999 has the exact same engine speed as my dad's Camry 99 on the highway (both 5 speed manual), and it's great. And not only my civic revs lower than the fit on the highway, but the redline remains higher (7200 vs 7000).

If my 105hp non vtec civic (almost as heavy as a fit) can handle low revs on the highway (and the fit A/T too), why not a vtec 117hp fit m/t? The only reason why they put such a low final gear is so that lazy people don't complain about the lack of power when going uphill, but these people should buy the automatic tranny and leave the manual one for those who know how to downshift.

The result is that my mom's fit is less fuel efficient than my Toyota MR2 turbo 240hp on the highway...

 

I had the very same conerns as you. My previous car was a Nissan Altima with a 5 speed. To turn 3500 rpms in 5th I would have to be doing 90mph in that car. The FIT certainly wouldn't suffer from the addition of a 6th gear, but it is perfectly fine as is.

I have always driven manual transmission cars so I was concerned at first when I drove the FIT and saw the revs. I asked myself, "this car is rated #1 of 40 subcompacts so this rev issue must not be as big a deal as I think it is." Like you I searched for an answer and here it is.

Honda has a racing heritage and if you look at their product line past and present, you will see that they generally put smaller displacement engines in their cars than their competitors, yet they are able to get the same horsepower or more ( but less torque) out of them using technology like VTEC, etc. Honda engines are designed to rev freely and HIGH. You will note that the FIT has an almost 7000 rpm redline.

Back in the 90's I bought a used BMW 325I, but prior to my finding that car which I picked up at a great price, I had test drove a brand new 93 Acura Integra GS-R ( Honda product ) which was a rocket. When I first took it out with the salesman I was unimpressed, thought the car was slow, and told him so. He explained that this was not a high torque American car that you shift at 2500 or 3000 rpms. He told me to wind it out. Well the car came alive! Per his instructions I wound it to 6500 rpms in 1st and popped it into to second, The rpms dropped down but stayed high like around 3500 -4000. That's where there engine began to shine. Due to their lower torque levels, Honda relies on making full use of their wide rpm bands. If you do this their cars go! That's why although the car is a 5 speed, the 5th gear is not a true overdrive gear. This is done deliberately for performance. Note that auto, due to a different gear ratio revs around 600 rpms lower, but doesn't get much better mileage because it is working a little harder at the lower rpm range due to lack of torque. I myself have been avg 36 mpg city and highway combined which is great. I believe driven correctly, the manual transmission FIT will do 40 MPG highway easily despite it's higher rev rate versus other brands.

In short, 3500 rpms at 75 might be a concern for other car manufacturers, but not Honda. And really, with only 106 ft-lbs of torque, you really need that high RPM level to cruise efficiently as the engine doesn't have much torque at the low end of the rpm range. Letting the engine rev freely by using cloesly spaced gear ratios among the 5 speeds, Honda puts less stress / load on the drive train. You may find a reason not to buy a FIT, but the engine rpms needn't be one of them.

CopperFit1

 

I have found that intake and exhaust drone is rather pleasurable when cruising at over 4000 RPM when driving on the highway... 90 to 95 MPH just feels right and the engine still has good throttle response if you haven't overburdened the little engine with heavy over sized wheels and tires..

 

Just returned from a few days in Arkansas, and have gotten the hang of shifting at higher revs. especially when traversing the windy roads through Quachita and Ozark mountains What a blast

On interstate and US highway roads settled the car at 75 mph and 3600 rpm's. The motor was barely audible, stock tires for the most part too.

 

Crank up the tunes, for real.

I did a 950 mile weekend commute twice a month for 10 months, usually at 75-85 mph. Fit is definitely not the ideal high speed highway cruiser. I did not know I'd be doing that commute when I bought the Fit, but it handled it well... and still got 32 mpg during those 8-9 hour thrashings.

Seriously, it's a lightweight car with a short wheelbase and a pee-wee engine, plus a 5-speed. You will not fix it's high-speed characteristics. If it bugs you, don't buy it. I would've bought a Golf TDI if I'd known I was going to do that commute--way better highway mpg, heavier weight, German solidity.

Good luck!

 

Coming from european cars i can see your point and understand your perspective, but i forgot about it after a week.