Hi all,

I'm looking for general opinions and/or advice about my current dilemma....
I own a manual 2007 sport model that has 183,000 miles and the AC just busted ($700 bucks to fix the compressor). I have been planning on getting a 2017 manual EX and have a dealer working with me to ensure I get the color I want (Black) when they are released in late summer. Now that the AC is busted I will be looking at going the entire summer without air and I have a two year old....really life, c'mon!!!

So here's the thing, my guy has a black 2016 EX, CVT available now and has given me a price of $18,000 (which I negotiated down from 18,934). I will likely get 2,000 for my trade in and have a really good down payment....here's the thing...I really really really really can't stand the thought of driving an automatic since I love my manual and can't imagine not driving one for the life of my new car, BUT this other car is right there and I am really not looking forward to not having AC all summer (fixing it is not an option, too expensive and not worth it to me).

My question is should I go ahead with the CVT and live with it or hold out for the manual?????????? And is the price fair that I was quoted for the 2016 EX in stock? Pros? Cons? Of either scenario??? I can't decide what to do! Thanks

 

There are 6 manuals nearby (< 150 miles of Baltimore) on cars.com, but not a black EX manual at the moment. You could extend the search.

Based on what we've seen lately, there is little guarantee that Honda will bring in manual fits much anymore. I happen to have the CVT and am happy with it, but if it was the only car in the house, I would have the manual and figure out how to get one, even if used.

Good luck with your search and the hot summer.

 

So then it's possible that there will be no 2017 manuals produced at all? Just want to be sure I heard you correctly. I would hate to wait only to find out they didn't even make any! Dear lord! I love Fits and driving a stick...the CVT has better gas mileage from my understanding though...I'm not a gear head in the least but I would feel so super uncool in an automatic!!! Just appearances I know, but I can't help it!! Thanks for your feedback!

 

I'll be the outlier here. My last seven cars were all manual transmission. My 16 LX is a CVT, and contrary to popular opinion here, I love it.

Part of the reason is I drive a lot, so fuel economy is important. Because the GK5's manual transmission has a narrower range than the CVT, the CVT actually gets better mileage. Of course, you don't have the fun of rowing through the gears, but I get involved in traffic in a lot of major cities around here - Chicago notably - and MT in stop-and-go traffic is a major bummer.

The CVT has also made me cut back on throttle. With my GD3/5MT, I'd get up through the gears as quickly as possible. With the CVT, I'm much more gentle with the throttle.

As a result, the 36/37 average I got with my GD3/5MT is now more like 43 city/50+ highway on the '16 LX/CVT. I took a trip to Indianapolis this last weekend and averaged 53mpg on the way down and just over 50 on the way back, even with the stop and go traffic in Chicago.

Now if fuel economy doesn't mean that much to you, disregard everything I just said.

 

Honda has never said that they will stop offering a manual Fit. This is hearsay from this board. All their literature still says a manual Fit is available. This might change in the future, but as far as the official word from Honda, there is no change.

What we see available in lots is observational at best. Manuals are still very popular in South America, so these will still come from the Celaya plant. There are also manual Fits that could possibily come from Japan, though this has not happened, or maybe never will. Nevertheless, the Fit is an international car and there are plants that still produce manuals.

This board, with the exception of a very few people who work at Honda dealerships, has no additional information about Honda's Fit future intent than observational.

After renting all the compact cars I could find, all of them auto or CVT, I could not bring myself to buy one. The CVT would simply kill my driving experience. Would you be ok with killing your driving experience for 9 years or the life of your new car? And all because you could not wait a little while? I would rather buy a manual Mazda3 or manual Nissan Versa Note instead of a CVT Fit.

Either be patient and order a manual Fit in black, or get a different brand car, in manual. You would deeply regret, for a very long time, buying a CVT if you like your current manual so much.

 

2016 Civic with a 6MT.
Mazda3 with 6MT.

Then

2017 Fit 6MT

 

Thanks for all your input...

I will say fuel efficiency is a concern as I commute regularly from PA to Baltimore round trip, about 40 miles both ways. I've not minded by manual in traffic thus far, but admit it's not my favorite past time. Beyond commuting, I love to drive! I often drive my friends, packing up my small, but mighty car for day trips and vacations. "Rowing" through the gears is one of the biggest reasons I love driving, because I am actually telling my car car what to do! I like the sense of control. All this considered...I'm still totally torn. I wouldn't consider a different make as I love Honda and for the price overall, the Fit just works for all my needs and wants in a vehicle. Although not a porche, the Fit is sporty and deserves to be driven as such, with the control and fianess that can only come with a manual transmission. Maybe I've answered my own question....still would love to hear feedback! Thanks

 

I love the airbag loaner CVT Fit I have ,but just don't think the CVT will handle my aggressive driving like my regular 2009 Fit ATF pumper can. To rebuild my auto trans is $3,000, to buy a new CVT $5,000 to 6,000. That's why I am not buying a new Fit now.

 

FWIW, there are at least a couple of us autocrossing third-gen CVT Fits, and we feel the CVT is actually a bit faster than the manual in this use case. I've always had manuals for my DDs (nearly forty years now), and would have gotten one in my Fit if the gearing wasn't so bad. There are times I miss having a manual, but at the end of the day, the CVT has worked out just fine - it's not as engaging as a manual, but is a far better CVT experience than any others I've driven.

es

 

I hope you're right, but I'm not confident. What Honda advertises, versus what is actually available are two different things. I've yet to see a '16 Fit with a manual.


I've driven nothing but manual transmissions since I bought my first new car in 1979, and I've NEVER had to "order" one and wait months to get it, as is apparently the case now. I've either been able to pick one off the lot or the dealer traded with another dealer to get it. This doesn't seem to be the case any more.


I realize I sound like a cynical old man (and I am), but it's to Honda's advantage to continue to, at least, ADVERTISE a manual Fit, as it allows them to offer an attractive "teaser" base price for the car (the CVT is an $800 upcharge). This gets the customer in the door where the salesman can "upsell" the CVT.

 

As mentioned previous, the 6MT gearing is unique. I didn't fully realize this until I got the car home, and I wasn't really happy at first. But I did get used to it and now it doesn't bother me. After a year I'm realizing this is not the best car I ever owned but at the time it was the best car on the market so I'm not complaining. But if I totaled it tonight, would I get another one tomorrow? Hmmm ...

 

If you like driving your Fit Sport with a manual and want a manual in your new car DO NOT settle for the CVT. You will not be happy. Transmission preference is not something you should compromise on. I think black looks great on this car btw, and we are loving the 6sp manual. Makes me smile every time I drive it.

 

I'd say yes, you have quite conclusively answered your own question.

 

You are not cynical but realistic. A news documentary by W5 here in Canada researched this very subject of new cars and their advertised deals. Specifically the Honda Fit DX, its low price and lack of availability. They found what you expected, that the lowest advertised priced cars are not available for purchase, and this was a car industry-wide phenomenon.

And just to prove them wrong, I happen to luck into that lowest price Fit model, the one that no one can get.

 

Even though I own a 2nd gen., I'll chime in because this is more of a generic question.

There are people who will not drive an AT unless forced to capitulate by enemy agents using torture. Maybe not even then. Ask yourself, are you one of these people? If so, your problem is solved and you must wait or buy another MT—be it a Honda or otherwise. If not, just get a CVT and you'll convince yourself that it's superior to the MT in every way. Probably won't take more than a few weeks for it to happen.

Me, as long as cars are available with MTs that's what I'll be driving. It's not a snob thing or a being cool thing. It's not for performance or gas mileage or a cheaper repairs thing. I'd buy the MT even if it came up short on all those comparisons. I'd buy it because every time I drive an AT, I die just a little bit inside. So if Honda doesn't have a car to my liking with an MT next time I'm in the market, my decision will be to walk over to another car company and I wouldn't even think twice about it. But if you asked me to wait a few months? I'd do that standing on my head. No ac in the summer will help build character and help you enjoy the car even more when it comes (assuming it arrives ).

 

Did you get that kind of gas mileage when the car was still brand new? Or did the engine actually have to "break-in" before you started seeing higher gas mileage? Right now my '16 EX CVT is at aroud 1300 miles and I'm kind of disappointed with the 33-34 MPG with me hypermiling my ass off.

 

My mpg numbers have stayed consistent from the day I drove it off the lot in January. So there was no break-in period for me. I get 43-45 mpg on the highway at around 70mph. I think it's a great highway cruiser.

As far as city driving is concerned, I was in the Cocoa Beach area for a couple of weeks and could barely break 30 mpg during that time. Awful traffic and plenty of mistimed traffic lights caused the poor mpg.

It's the highway where this car (cvt) shines.

 

I'm with you on this last bit, but as to the first part I'm not sure the world is divided into those who wouldn't drive an AT if their life depended on it and those who would be better off with a CVT.

I have an 8 speed auto in my car (large-ish luxe-ish sedan) and it suits the vehicle and a stick isn't available anyway and I'm extremely happy with it. When it came to shopping for a Fit for my wife's primary vehicle however, like the OP my wife was pre-disposed to getting a manual because she had one in her '09 Fit Sport. On our first trip to the dealership when the cars first came out for the 2015 MY they didn't have a stick available but we drove the CVT. No way. No sale. A year later when we looked again at the 2016s, they had a couple MTs. One drive and there was no question we were getting the car.

It's not that we are "manual or die!" - it's that we both felt that THIS manual suits THIS car far better than the CVT. The stick multiplies the fun factor significantly. I'm betting heavily that someone who had the older car in a stick and loved driving it that way will not love the CVT.

 

Not sure I'm posting this so all who have replied can see...still trying to figure out how to post properly!

At any rate, I'm going to look at and test drive the CVT today. I am hoping that this experience will tip me in either direction, as even still, I am undecided.

I am seriously considering just getting the AC fixed and waiting, but $700 bucks to fix the compressor, ouch! I am a wondering if I could find one for a little less and hopefully recoup the cost by negotiating more for my trade-in....just thinking out loud.

I'll be sure to leave an update after the test drive! Thanks and I always appreciate additional feedback!

Thanks! Marianne

 

My GD3 was totaled in mid-January this year and I took delivery of the '16 LX in early February. I live in the middle of the frozen tundra area (Wisconsin) and it was a nasty winter, which always cuts back mileage. I started out in the high 30's mpg in winter. As soon as the weather warmed up appreciably - say at least 40 degrees F for a high temp - mileage started increasing dramatically. I'm now around 8K miles.

Does that answer your question? I think my mileage increase had less to do with break-in and more to do with overall ambient temp and driving conditions.