Is it better to leave ECO on at all times, or is it better for your car when driving highway vs city?

I've looked through several forums where people have asked this, but the responses only state the MPG users get when they use it.

 

There's one side benefit of ECO mode which I love (and I'm sure others here will hate) - a somewhat muted throttle response.

Together with the CVT on my LX, I find the throttle tip-in much easier to modulate. This comes in especially handy in heavy traffic. In ECO, if I let off the throttle, the car just inches along. Now if you have the 6-sp manual, I'm not sure how that plays out; I'll leave that assessment to those here who have one.

I leave ECO on all the time. It might not provide the same level of A/C comfort while idling if you live in a really hot/humid climate, tho.

 

It's kind of just up to you. Hence the button.
It changes the throttle feel. But if you like it?
And as pointed out, I think it also changes slightly how the AC and climate control responds.

But if you can live with that? And you want the improvement if fuel efficiency? ECO away!

My purely speculative guess, is ECO is probably more fuel efficiency beneficial in City Driving, since that's much more stop and go, where a muted throttle response might be fuel efficient. No jack rabbit starts.

And I would think on long highway drives where you are primarily just reaching and maintaining speed, there might not be much difference if any between ECO and regular at that point.

But I'm not really sure.

 

i hate eco mode as it makes the throttle response sluggish. honestly between eco mode and non-eco mode, i could not see any difference in mpg in mixed driving. unless u drive like a super grandma ure not going to net a big difference. i say leave it off.

 

I doesn't play at all ... it's an automatic thang

 

I never use it, or ever consider using it. Now, in my other car, there is a button called "sport", which I finally decided to use it to see what happens. It stiffens the suspension, shorten the clutch release point, makes the steering and gas pedal more sensitive, increase turbo boost for 10 seconds if necessary, and puts everything in the "all hell" mode. The car comes alive instead of playing dead like the Honda Fit's eco button.

 

I have noticed the 2016 Fit CVT feels more sluggish with ECO on. I tend to activate it when doing long distance driving (not tested to see if it makes a difference) but in the city I switch it off. Now let's get this straight. I am a very patient driver. Yes, I did jackrabbit starts when I was 18 (in a 1973 VW camper bus if you can call those jackrabbit ). Up to 2016 I drove a 1981 Corolla so I am used to being the slowest thing on the road, and likely still infuriate people with how slowly I accelerate in the Fit. Since even I notice a difference with eco on and off, there is a difference. My main reason for leaving it on is there are times in city driving when you need a touch of extra response. No, not for running lights on red as everybody seems to do here now, but when trying to merge into a gap which people are trying to prevent you from doing even though you have had your signal light on for the past minute ("Minnesota nice" vanishes when people get behind the wheel here).

 

yep, post #4

 

In my opinion, ECO mode sucks. It kills the engine response around town, I was to the point of thinking about selling the car because it was so crappy in city driving. When I turned ECO off things got better, though I still don't care for the CVT or the car's incessant need to get in as high a "gear" as possible as soon as possible.

 

yah, plus the torque converter.. it's kinda sloppy to begin with. i like S mode though in traffic. good response and torque converter doesnt lose much pressure as the rpm is higher.

 

...But it's all just kind of a personal thing. IF you like it? Or it the driving feel with it doesn't bother you?
You can choose to leave it on all the time.
Is it better? Yes for fuel efficiency.
But obviously if you don't like the drive feel created? Then NO..not better.

 

I leave it on all the time. Sure the throttle doesn't do much unless you stomp on it. I drive very gently in general. I'm all about the fuel economy and am not in a hurry to reach causing speed. If I disengage eco mode, the throttle seems too touchy to me. I guess I'm used to eco mode. My wife drives a 2010 Fit Sport. When she drove mine, without me present, she was very frustrated trying to merge onto the highway. She didn't know how to turn eco mode off. Does it help with fuel economy? I dunno. It can't hurt. I know that if I'm driving along at about 30-40 mph in eco and I press the button to turn it off, the engine seems to rev.

 

I've found this to be true. There's no mpg improvement when you're up to speed on the hwy although it does tend to prevent rpm from ramping up as you encounter a not-too-steep hill (a steep hill will cause it ramp up regardless of ECO mode engagement).

 

I turn it off when driving around town. It's hotter than the hinges of hell in Georgia during the summer and I need all the AC I can get

 

I leave ECO on almost all the time...my first car was a 1940 Pontiac coupe flat 4. The slower response is fast enough for me. Now, if I had expected a 400 HP Corvette...........

 

Have you noticed there is a S mode, after D? Just say'n. I bought the Fit for economy, and that was the objective when Honda designed it.

 

huh, didn't think it would affect how the ac cycles. interesting.

 

It slightly "dampens" the response time of the a/c. If this dampening helps increase mpg, it's probably a minuscule amount.

Like ephodges says, if you need the a/c to run the coolest, turn the ECO button off.

 

huh, yah. that makes sense. the condenser is a considerable burden on the battery when it kicks in.

 

I posted a poll where 49 people said they leave the Econ button on all the time or almost all the time.
https://www.fitfreak.net/forums/3rd-...t-results.html

The econ button helps you accelerate more slowly, which helps you keep the eco coaching lights around the speedometer green. Keep those lights green for best mileage. On the highway it's easy enough to keep those lights green regardless of the econ button so it mainly helps in the city.

You know what's weird is you can have both Econ and Sport mode engaged at the same time while paddle shifting into 7th gear on a gearless transmission. Also the 7th gear can be in a hidden 8th gear according to the manual.