Over the weekend, took my wife, dog and 2015 EX-L out of town. The drive was 187 miles one-way, climbing from about 2,000 ft. elevation to 7,500 feet before coming back down to 6,300 feet at our destination. Lots of ups and downs and curves at high speed on this drive, and happy to say that the Fit performed like a champ.

Climbing power: at a steep grade, and even using paddle shifters, the CVT has no other option but to make a fair amount of noise to increase speed, but once cruising or holding speed the engine noise is perfectly acceptable. In spite of the cargo trucks, RVs, and big pickups loaded with gear and trailers with ATVs and boats, I never felt like the Fit couldn't give me what I needed to keep moving and navigate through them. (Although at times I backed off the high revs when I normally wouldn't have.)

MPG: I started a new "Trip A" at the beginning of the drive so that I could see fluctuations. Things started at 39 mpg. During the significant climbing portions of the trip that dropped down as low as 36.5 mpg. But in the latter half of the trip there, the mileage came back up to 39 mpg. Then over the course of the weekend with gradual climbs and 45 mph roads it went up to 41 mpg. On the way home, that number stuck. Over the course of city driving these last two days it has settled in at 40.5 mpg.

Cargo/versatility:
(1) My dog is in love. Thanks to the magic seats she was able to lie down right behind us and get love and attention. We put the 1/3 seat in tall mode for our luggage. Perfection! Luggage was secure in the well and not shifting on the dog. Plus, She has a much shorter vertical jump up into the car than she did with our Acura MDX (at age 11 she was having trouble making that leap).
(2) When we got to our destination, I had to clean out our cabin garage. With all magic seats flat and using both the hatch and the side doors, I was able to fit one adult mountain bike and two kid bikes easily, and take all three to a donation site (kids outgrew the bikes).
(3) Next stop: two full size outdoor wicker porch chairs. The Fit swallowed them whole and I could still see out the top 20% of the rear window!

...In case you can't tell, this is my first Fit and I'm loving it...

Cabin comfort/tech
(1) Driver's seat and comfort get an A. I did play a little to dial in seat heat and position, but then all was very good for the 3 hour drive. My wife reported that she was comfortable too.
(2) All tech performed really well. A couple of notes: (a) Pandora sound quality is simply inferior to Spotify, so I ended up going with Spotify. You can still skip songs on the touchscreen, but you can't do some of the other things that Pandora has integrated (liking/disliking for example). (b) Bluetooth is a dream. Never had that before either, and I love how it picks up right where you left off when you re-enter the car. (c) Speaker sound quality is excellent, although I'm still thinking subwoofer. I drove a loaner 2014 base model Civic for five days while waiting for the Fit, and that stereo was way worse.
(3) I really dig the driver side cup holder on the left, which I initially blew off as gimicky. A big ergonomic bonus is when lots of things are in your hands you can put the drink in the cup holder before getting in the car (instead of having to lean low for a door holder or sit all the way down and get to the center console holders).

I'm definitely a fan. The CVT just revs loud when you're working up speed. That's it. All else is excellent.

 

That is such a great point that I hadn't considered before.

Thanks for the detailed impressions.

 

Thanks for the great review

 

Thanks for the review! We are planning a road trip in my new EX-L soon!

 

Awesome Review Jon, when you refill let us know your actual calculated mileage. I love my CVT!

 

Thanks for the review!

I'm currently contemplating whether I should be getting the CVT instead the 6MT for the 2015 Fit. I currently own a Civic with manual and to this date I haven't owned any car with automatic transmission, let alone CVT (I once drove rental Suzuki SX4 & Nissan Sentra with CVTs and they pretty much sucked). This will be a tough decision, but so far many reviews on the new Honda CVT are more on the positive side.

 

Great review.
Thanks for taking the time to make such detailed notes. That really helps those of us that are still looking and considering options.

 

I would warn against the CVT if you really enjoy driving manuals. My Civic and Del Sol before the fit were both manual, and I went with the automatic in the Fit, figuring the paddle shifters would be almost as nice. It's just not the same. The main reason I'm looking at a 2015 Fit is so I can go back to a manual.

 

Thank you for the review! How was the road noise and smoothness of the ride? Will be using a Fit for road trips as well!

 

Couldn't agree more. The CVT doesn't shift at all. Paddle shifters are a misnomer, they just have a mild effect on revs. There is no replacement for an actual MT, especially not a CVT. At least with a typical automatic you can feel the shift even if you can't control when it will happen.

 

Again, my comparison point is a 2006 Civic. Road noise is non-existent, ride is smoother than the Civic. I've said it before in other places, that this ain't no luxury vehicle, so let's not go expecting the world. But I found the ride and handling very enjoyable over a trip that varied in speed from 25mph - 80 mph with lots of curves and elevation changes.

 

Thanks for this excellent real world road trip review. When you filled up your gas tank after the trip, did you compute the average fuel economy? If so was it in agreement with the indicated fuel economy?

 

Thanks for that review. I'm especially excited by the excellent gas mileage numbers!

 

I did not do that. Apologies. Newbie mistake.

 

A newbie owning and driving a brand new '15 Fit????

You can make all the mistakes possible. Sleep one night and the next day, solve it. Lotsa of us here still can't do that cause we ain't driving one yet. You have the upper-hand my friend. Enjoy it to the fullest!!!!

 

Fantastic post. Thanks for taking the time to share.

 

I wouldn't want a CVT either. I have a bad experience with CVT transmissions in scooters where the belt wear gradually causes the engine to rev higher and higher to maintain the speed. If the same thing happens to Honda's CVT (and I assume it will because the basic design is the same), eventually the engine will be screaming to maintain the speed that the transmission used to maintain at a much lower engine rpm.

 

That seems to be a pretty assuming position. Honda has always be on the forefront of automotive technology using feedback and experimental information a lot from Formula 1 racing. CVT's are not new just have had limited use. To compare it to a scooter is a little off kilter I think . Thats like saying engines today are the same as the model T...same design. but they aren't are they? Technology has evolved the first gas powered engines. I am excited about owning the CVT myself, I think it is an excellent transmission in design and have no fear, should something go wrong, Honda gave me warranty
Your assumption appears to be they took the transmission off the scooter and adapted it right to the Fit. Pretty sure Honda put a little more thought into it than that. Might as well assume the tires wont last as well, same basic design...

 

Thanks for the great review, I almost feel like I've driven one already

Sas

 

Thanks for the great information. I have a nineteen year old that has been waiting for the cars to arrive in Canada to test. Still not sure about the preferred tranny or whether to back off and go with a 2014. Colours, blue, red or white is all I hear
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2007 Accord SE MT
2014 CRV AT