Hello. Very likely about to purchase a 2015 Fit and have been avidly reading these forums for weeks now, very helpful stuff.

I've been going back and forth about the entertainment technology between the LX and EX. If that was the only difference between the two and I had to make the choice based on the stereo alone, I'm having trouble deciding.

My first instinct was the EX of course with the larger screen, but the reviews of the touchscreen have been pretty bad, and I don't love the idea of fiddling around while driving. I understand most if not all of it can be controlled from the steering wheel anyway. If I understand correctly, it looks like you can't move through the options with the steering wheel control on the LX, just volume and forward/back.

However, The LX's smaller screen has two hardware knobs that will be easier to operate from the passenger side. I'd spend less money, get better mileage and have the simpler screen. I also prefer the non-chrome LX. Still be able to access music from the phone.

I really don't think I'd use a lot of the hondalink features. The reviews have been pretty bad. I do wonder, like many other people, if full Carplay is going to get rolled out and if it's something that the current EX would be able to take advantage of. I assume the LX wouldn't. That alone would be reason for me to get the EX, but nobody seems to have much information about that.

Wondering if anybody has any general experience or thoughts regarding the pros and cons of the EX screen/interface over the LX?

 

LX differently will not get it, and the EX is iffy at best. Each time someone asks the same question, Honda says "No information yet" so my believe will be, it won't be offered on the 2015, but maybe the 2016. Not 100%, but this wait and see has been going on now since February.

I really don't care much about my HondaLink display but other may. I don't use the radio hardly at all, no need for bluetooth since no one likes me to call on the very limited time I drive.... I can almost guess that in 3 year mid cycle change, Honda will make some changes to this. Again, only a guess.

 

I'm a proponent of the LX. I like simple though. I sat inside a EX-L with fiddled with the big touch screen, and I wasn't a fan. To me, just a simple knob for volume and whatnot is better. It's a "if it ain't broke...don't fix it" type deal. However, if you are a very "techy" person the EX models probably provides a great value for the small extra you would be spending a month. I personally see all those bells and whistles as things that eventually may break years down the line (I plan on keeping this car for a long long while). However, if you are someone who only tends to keep a car for five years or less this would probably be less of an issue for you.

Just put a deposit down on a Blue LX that dealer said will be in sometime this week more than likely

 

You mentioned if the stereo was the only difference, you are having trouble deciding. But it's not the only difference, so I would decide based on other differences you may or may not care about enough to pay extra for.

Ex has alloy wheels instead of hubcaps, dynamic guidelines on the backup camera, side view camera, push button start and keyless entry, floor mats included, 6 speakers instead of 4, screen is 7 inches instead of 5, compatible with pandora, 2 usb ports instead of 1, power moonroof, fog lights, different fabric on the seats in addition to the honda link, no volume knob, and chrome strips on front and back like you already mentioned. Lots of other added features though aside from what you brought up, so question is, are the features worth $2000 to you or not?

Hopefully this helps your decision! And assuming you add on floor mats, then the other features would still have to be worth 2k-cost of floor mats to you.

 

About the speakers: how does the 4-speaker setup sound? (I would ask for a comparison between the two setups, but that would probably require someone who owned both versions or who had extensively tested them at the dealership!) I'm in widmark's boat--I don't really need the other stuff on the EX, but I don't want to end up with a crappy stereo. Is it possible to add tweeters to the LX (I assume that's what's missing)?

 

From the steering wheel you can scroll thru, AM, FM, USB, Bluetooth along with channel changing and volume, pause, random play. There really is no need to mess with the screen unless changing settings like clock or such.

The volume control is crappy on the screen but there are ways around it, I guess if you aren't tech savvy then it may not be for you. Thus the whole purpose of steering wheel mounted control. If you really want to make your decision off the radio at least get a qualified demonstration from a salesman. Reading others personal reviews isnt the best way to make important decisions without first hand knowledge. Just sayin

 

I said it was the only difference I was considering because I don't think any of those other differences matter much to me, but also to just hypothetically compare those features specifically.

I am extremely tech-savvy which is one reason this is so hard. If I didn't care and wasn't, I'd go for an LX in a heartbeat.

One of the issues with the steering wheel control is the ability to switch playlists/folders. On the EX, there are buttons for that, while on the LX I'd have to reach over to the knob on the console, which is not the end of the world, but I'd feel better not having to. My current car stereo has me leaning into the center console to scroll through playlists and I'd much rather do that from the steering wheel.

Obviously I'm hoping to get first-hand reviews. If anybody actually had an LX in stock! Asking for other people's feelings is just more grist for the mill.

I'd probably buy floor mats but really don't care about any of the other stuff.I just worry that the 4 speakers vs 6 may make a big difference, and that somewhere down the line I may be bummed not to have the hondalink type features. But from the reviews I've read, I may be happier just using a mount for my phone and sticking with Google Maps for GPS.

 

Sounds like all reasonable concerns, just wanted to be sure you werent basing decisions on what we tell you
Ps: my apologies, i missed the part about your concern specifically on the lx steering wheel selections. :-/

 

Go with the advanced Ex. For anything new and improved down the line, you want the more capable system. If you weren't techy I'd say don't concern yourself. But you don't want to get a new car without the best navi it offers. A loaded fit is the only way to go and for the price, it's a no brainer. Get a loaded Ex-L and enjoy man. Pinch pennies over a 35k car. The Fit? Rock it loaded and be in the game when firmware updates hit down the line.

 

Btw, for navigation I have wayz, I have cortana in my phone to get me anywhere. I can dick around with my Garmin. But the easiest and quickest to recalculate is the fit navigation. It hasn't failed me yet. Personally I'll be going for Ex-L with navi, all the way!

 

I'm all about the LX as being more than enough.

the speaker setup might sound different with 2 extra tweeters but I would imagine both systems would have similar quality to the sound. since the other 4 speakers would be identical.

as for having to manually touch the lx buttons to change playlist and that type of stuff I can hit buttons without looking at them. plus in the winter I'd rather use buttons so i can leave my gloves on.

ex comes with floor mats but you have to remove the carpet ones if you want to put in the all season ones anyways if you live anywhere it snows or have to step in anything you don't want to spend time cleaning out of the carpet.

LX has keyless entry you just push the unlock button on the fob.

as for the start button... being in the middle of the car... i wait for the day your passenger presses it and shows of their best troll face.

also fog lights. let me just say that 99% of the time people have their fog lights on it's not foggy outside. all they do is glare into the eyes of oncoming drivers.

as for the steelies i'd paint them and throw those hubcaps in the trash. eventually they'll end up with snow tires on them once i get new wheels.

 

I really do miss the volume knob but the touchscreen is actually not bad. It is capacitive like an iPad instead of pressure sensitive like older ones. I am working on getting used to using the steering wheel controls.

 

Once they have your money what incentive do they have to make cars already sold compatable with new technologies? They'd rather have you buy next year's model to hook up your latest pocket widget.

This business of hoping for future compatibility updates is a fool's game. If it doesn't work out of the box don't count on them to make it work later on.

Anyway, how bright is it to put a lot of effort into adapting a smartphone with a 2-year life before obsolesence to a vehicle that has a 10 year life? For less than $200 I have a more capable Garman GPS unit whose navigation logic is much better than Google's and that doesn't rely on a data connection to work. It even connects via bluetooth to my phone to allow hands-free calling.

 

That's a good point...but it hasn't worked out like that for me. I had a Garmin for a few years, updated the maps (a painful process at times), had to pay extra to get the lifetime updates, then when I spent all night trying to update had to do tons of research before discovering that it was freezing because the new maps were too big for that unit. I had to then downgrade from "Americas" to just "North America", or maybe even just US, to wipe Mexico and Canada out of the unit so US could fit. It was an older model with no traffic, and I was about to buy a new model before I started just relying on Google Maps.

Google Maps (and occasionally Wayze or MotionX) have been great. There are problems like eating up data and the phone shutting down due to overheating while sitting in the window on a hot day (quite a major problem!), but using the phone I already have was a cheaper alternative than buying a newer GPS. I would trust buying a new Garmin more than relying on Honda's GPS, though people seem to be satisfied with it. As it is, I'll likely stick with Google Maps.

 

That's my major beef with google maps. I can start with a full charge and after navigating for an hour with the phone plugged in my battery will be down to 75% and the phone will be toasty warm, even in the shade with the AC on. Warm enough that it will sometimes lock up or spontaneously restart which means the destination has to be reentered. Not fun at all and dangerous if I'm the one driving. On top of that, Google maps often sends me down nonsensical routes like miles of residential street with stop signs every four blocks when there is a arterial street paralleling it a few blocks away. Garmin never does that.

Sometimes a purpose-built device is the way to go. Phones have many compromises to make them the versatile devices they are and those compromises can have deadly consequences,

 

One thing to note the lx will ride a little softer over bumps and maybe little less road noise and the ex might handle a notch better and maybe little more road noise with the stiffer sidewall tires.


Unless the ex has a tread design for smoothness opposed to performance

 

Yikes. I wouldn't want to use it either were I to have that kind of experience. I'd guess that the charging thing might either be something screwy with the handset or the need for a better charger. I bought this awesome charger for a bit under $10:


I purchased this one as a result of recommendations of it as a quality, dependable charger. It is a bit more expensive than the cheapest ones but not ridiculous. It will actually increase the charge on my phone (currently a Nexus 5) while listening to a podcast and using navigation. The handset doesn't attain an abnormal temperature nor become unstable. Your heat problem is probably the handset itself, but the fact that it loses charge while plugged in sounds like your charger might not be supplying quite enough power. An inadequate charger doesn't provide enough power and actually risks damaging your phone in the case of uneven power input.

Even if your phone was charging well and stable, it sounds like you're probably more satisfied with Garmin's navigation in your area overall and probably will be happiest to stick with that -- but if you do decide to give it another go, maybe wait until your next phone upgrade. If you use your phone in your car (even absent navigation) and charge it at all, consider trying something such as the Motorola charger I've linked.

 

Having read through the whole thread, I'd suggest that you might just be better off saving the money and going with the LX. I don't think you care enough about the added EX features to make it worth buying. I wouldn't say that the technology alone is enough to make that price leap worthwhile -- the whole package needs to be valuable to you.

The EX was worthwhile to me -- I do enjoy the system, but I also find the wheels, moonroof, cameras with guidance, etc. to be of value for my own use and enjoyment. Not everyone has the same preferences.

I can totally get why the reviews of the EX's system to be fairly poor, but having come over from a 2011 Sonata which was much more rudimentary, this was a huge step-up for me and I'm blissfully ignorant of what it could have been that it isn't. I see opportunities where it would have been better if it did "this", or if it did "that" differently, but nothing that really kills my enjoyment of it. I would have liked a volume control knob -- but I've gotten used to just using the control on the steering wheel as I did on the Sonata (which did have a knob). I can't say whether *everything* can be controlled from the steering wheel -- a lot of things seem to be able to be -- but some things that ARE controllable from the steering wheel are pretty awkward that way. I tend not to fiddle much with the screen while I'm driving, but that rare time when I find it quicker to just reach over and tap the screen a time or two it hasn't been really that big of a deal nor did I allow myself to get too absorbed in it. Quick glance at where the on-screen control is, another quick glance to actually tap it, and I'm done.

So I don't think you'd find the experience really that bad unless you've used another well designed system and would find this one poor by comparison, but again, considering the preferences you've mentioned, I don't think this would be enough to push you from LX to EX. Chances are, you'd spend the next several years questioning whether you should have spent that money.

I don't ask myself that, but my needs/desires are very different from yours.

 

Thanks for all the feedback everyone. Lots of good points in both directions and I'm only a little closer to deciding, but it was still helpful!

 

Another data point: My wife's car has physical pushbuttons for volume and I dislike them. I've tolerated them for a decade, but when I want the volume turned down I want it turned down now, not in 10 seconds as I hold the button and wait for it to count down. I consider controls that needlessly requre either multiple attentions or prolonged attention from the driver to be dangerous.

Models of my wife's car built a couple of years after hers had the volume knob restored. This seems to be what happened on several makes and models and I doubt that Honda will be any different. They'll hear the complaints, note the people opting for the cheaper LX over the more profitable EX, and make the change back.