Just curious if anyone has any info on manual transmission EX Fits in the USA. The dealers I've inquired with don't have any knowledge of arrival. Only seeing automatic transmissions now.

 

I too would like to know. I checked out a CVT EX, but didn't drive it because I'm waiting on the manual to take a test drive. I only had one dealer listed on cars.com that had a manual EX within 100 miles, and that was a typo on their part (it was a CVT).

 

Of the more than 14,000 fits that have been built so far, less than 2.5% have been manual transmission cars. So it is going to be hard to find a manual sitting on a lot.

In past years Honda has made about 15% of the Fits in manual transmission for the US. But I see that they are only making about 2% of Civics (excluding Cinic Si) in manual transmission, so they may be planning to keep with this low percentage. I really don't know.

 

Thanks for the info. Curious. Where did you get those numbers for the new Fits being built? I'm a bit perplexed that a dealer would have no idea as to what type of fit they are receiving. It's like they just have to take any factory Honda cars that are delivered without knowing any of the details. You'd think you could go to a dealer and request a certain model type and they would get it for you.

 

The numbers that I often quote here, I Get from the listings on cars.com and the serial numbers of the newest cars listed. Because only 80% of the Honda dealers list their cars on cars.com, I cannot tell you any exact numbers, but they are pretty reasonable estimates based on a pretty big sample size.

In Honda world, there is a hierarchy of dealers. The biggest and best rated dealers get the highest allocation of cars. The smaller and or lower rated dealers get a lower allocation and sometime don't really get to pick what they get. So some dealers truly may not know what configuration of cars that they are getting and may not have enough of an allocation to grant you a special order.

But the bigger issue is that every car salesman will lie and lie and lie to you in an effort to sell you what he has, rather than have you decide to wait for something he may get in the future.

Just as a latest update, 17 more manual transmission Fits got listed today on cars.com. That changes the percentage to 3.4% (87 of 2570) manual transmission fits. So while that is still a small percentage, the 17 new manuals listed today is the most ever listed in a single day. Unfortunately for me, the manual EX that I ordered 3 months ago, still hasn't been built.

 

They will be coming you just have to hang in there, the first ones just landed around the 11 or 12 of the month so like 12 days ago, back then when I would ask sales manager knew nothing.

Now they say things like some are 2 states away waiting to be dropped, then they would say I have 2 coming now most say that have 12 or more coming, every day more and more will be on the move I already have some dealers that have some sitting not sold this one happens to be a red cvt not sure what level.

Personal I am waiting for one with a vin number over 20,000 or so maybe 30..........just look at this way every day that goes by more and more are coming it was a new factory and all and a new model update.

With your avg car costing 20,000 dollars or more my house I live in was 21,000 but that was a long time ago, in time they will be siting around like every other car in the world at dealers with salesmen waging their tongues waiting for some body will good credit or big bucks............ chill life is short..........

Once the car arrives you with have the rest of your like to drive it.

 

My dealership is allocated cars somewhat based on what they ask for. I sifted through the list, it was pretty neat. They has vins and estimates delivery dates.

Dealer explained how ordering process goes. There is no custom ordering and having a car made. You can find one in the pipeline and have it transported or shifted but no custom build.

They get a percentage allocation of different configurations and trim levels based on what honda tells them they can order. So they may get 20% lx, 40% ex and 40 exl of a specific model and honda basically decides everything. They don't like it, but honda is the big boss

 

Two weeks ago when I had set out to buy a car, I noticed that not a single one of the cars on any of the lots in the Atlanta metro area were manual transmissions. I'd guess that about 75% of them were the EX CVT models, with the second most common being EX-L, and only a couple of the LX models. The dealership where I ended up making my purchase had three identical (except for color) EX CVT models, and said that they planned on stocking only this and the occasional EX-L because "the EX CVT is expected to be the most popular model by a wide margin".

Now, the manual transmission model is certainly quite a bit less expensive than the CVT (automatic). Traditionally you also got a few MPG better on manual. This has to be the first car I've ever seen (though I won't say that it is the first, period...) where the automatic actually gets BETTER fuel economy than the manual, by something like 2-3 MPG. So unless you're either looking to save some money up front or you enjoy the overall experience of a manual transmission (or performance, if that's your enjoyment), the CVT probably will be good choice. All of those things I've mentioned are legitimate reasons for wanting a manual, but this is the odd car where MPG isn't one of them.

 

I got a chance to drive the CVT transmission a few weeks back. Really nice feel to it. You can equate it to how most scooter transmissions work. Easy to read up on how CVT works, but essentially it's a more efficient transmission than the standard automatic ones. That is a bonus that it gets better gas mileage. I'm just going with the manual because of the standard love of manual transmissions, i.e. feel for the car and a simpler mechanism. I'm getting off point here, but if anyone has more info on delivery on EX manual models, please post up. Hope to be seeing them soon.

 

The 2015 Fit is not the first car where EPA estimates for the automatic exceed that of the manual version. The 2009-2013 version was rated 2 mpg better for the auto than the manual. But so far, in the real world EPA estimates are typically exceeded by drivers of manual transmissions and are typically not exceeded by drivers of automatics. So it still remains to be seen what the real world fuel economy of the new Fit will be for both the manuals and CVTs.

At 35 MPG, I have averaged 6 MPG better than the EPA combined fuel economy rating of my 2009 manual transmission Fit. And I am not someone who drives for optimum fuel economy, but I still do use the flexibility of a manual transmission to make the most of my momentum.

 

I took possession of a steel gray EX MT yesterday. The dealer had received one MT and I bought it a few hours after it rolled off the truck.

 

Hey that's my car that I ordered 3 months ago! I guess they sent it to Maryland instead of Hawaii by mistake

Please tell me all about it? And particularly the manual transmission operation.

 

How about an even bigger typo: The new engine is DOHC, but look closely and see how many list it as SOHC!

 

I was on the list for a manual EX or LX. After waiting and waiting and test driving other cars such as the mazda3 and fiesta, I ended up buying a Fiesta ST and so far, wow it's fun! But back on topic, Hardin County Honda in Elizabethtown, Kentucky just called me and said a black EX manual had just came in. If you're around the Kentucky area i'd email her and see what she can do. She told me she could sell it at invoice plus tax, tag, etc. Hopefully someone can work out the deal I skipped. Good luck!
Here's her email:
Madelyn Owen at Hardin County Honda <m.owen.hardincountyhonda@contactdealer.com>;

 

Damn, if it wasn't black, I would jump all over that! It's a bit too far for me to go for a test drive too. Etown is about 2 hours away.

 

I'm not surprised by this in the least. Typically, manufacturers ship the "loaded" cars first, hoping to "upsell" the customers who can't wait, and have to have the new model first.


Fortunately, I still have my '09, so I'm in no need of a new one yet. I WOULD like to get a test drive in one. You never know.

 

Bumping this up in the hopes someone else has more news on the arrival of MT EX models. Noticed someone picked one up, but I have not heard a squeak from any dealers in Austin, TX - USA.