I have to say I think the Fit's tires suck more than others in snow in my experience. Yes, no all-season is perfect, but compared to others I've owned or own, the Dunlops are particularly lame.

One night after a moderate snow had just fallen and the roads hadn't been cleared yet, I was going home from work in the Fit and stopped at the grocery store to pick some stuff up. Coming out of the parking lot, I went to slow down for the turn out, and the wheels just locked up, ABS chirping away, and I slide right out the exit and across the road, where it finally caught and stopped right before going over a small embankment. Not very fun. I wasn't going fast, and didn't slam the brakes at all, and I've lived and driven in snow for over 20 years, so I've got experience. To compare, I drove my wife's Corolla with Bridgestone Turanza's on it (apx. same weight, power) the next day in the same conditions and it was like night and day. Even my old xB with traction control off w/ the stock Goodyears stuck better than the Dunlops on the Fit. That's why I plan on killing them at autox's over the summer and then getting some better tires come fall.

 

Thats why when I get my fit the stockers are getting some blizzaks, and then summer tires on another set of wheels.

On my g35 I have the blizzaks and I couldn't imagine trying to get through a winter with a allseason tire. Granted I DID do that when I had my wrx, BUT that was awd and had pilot sport AS's so they were pretty good, and my second winter the car had a sti tranny and a LSD in teh front and center.

All season tires suck.

 

This is what I am saying. "One night after a moderate snow had just fallen and the roads hadn't been cleared yet, I was going home from work in the Fit and stopped at the grocery store to pick some stuff up. Coming out of the parking lot, I went to slow down for the turn out, and the wheels just locked up, ABS chirping away, and I slide right out the exit and across the road, where it finally caught and stopped right before going over a small embankment. Not very fun. I wasn't going fast, and didn't slam the brakes at all, and I've lived and driven in snow for over 20 years, so I've got experience."

So The tires do suck, Now, I dont have the means to have both a winter set and a summer set. What all season tires do you like. I have some Bridgestones on my Mazda and they work well. ( through rain and snow, no problems when they were less than 50 K old, now they are old, they slip in the snow, I am replacing these in the summer).

 

You have two things working against you. You have a low profile wider tire and an all season tire that is not great in the snow. I always go with the winter tire and summer tires. Even in the dry at 45 degrees the all season tires loose 30% of their traction.
I would say the Yokohama Avid T4 would be the best in the winter in the size that is needed if you go with an all season tire but they are only a T speed rated.. Other wise take a look at the BF Goodrich Traction TA VR.
If I can help let me know.

 

Hi all! I'm new to the Fit Forum, but very excited to be here! For years (since Honda got rid of the Civic 5 door), I've thought "oh, if only they'd make another.... finally got my wish!

I'm curious about two things... first, how is the Fit on long commutes? I have an hour+ drive to work each way, and I'm curious how comfortable it is for that long... do any body parts fall asleep or go all numb?

Second, we live in CT, get a good bit of snow each year, and have one heck of a driveway (steep & curvy uphill). The Subaru can get up and down it no problem, but an Altima and Saturn have tried it (without snow tires) and slid back down. Has anyone had experience with the Fit in snow? Better yet, in the snow on hills?

Thanks very much for any advice or thoughts on these!!

 

1. While not a long daily commute, I cover much of TN for work in my car, so a long road trip once to twice a week is the norm. I did take a while to "get used" to the car (plus, in the first week of ownership I drove it to Ohio). Now I find it very comfortable.

If you like cruise and put up with all the "kit" of the Sport, that would be your best option. My car is a base five speed. Would love to figure out how to put cruise on it.

2. Snow, a little (and ice) in TN this year, worst was on a trip to Knoxville, but it was OK, so I may not be the best for this. Check the archives, several posters say they are great, some say get a set of steel wheels and some snow tires.

A set of snow tires is less than my insurace deductable.....

 

dayyyym an hour plus, thats a commute. the fit should hang...just be cautios in the snow.

 

My son had my FIT in Denver from Thanksgiving until Christmas. I drove it the rest of the winter here in Montana. The tires are absolutely the worst thing he or I have ever seen for snow. Zero traction in snow, they just float. No grip on ice - you feel like the roads are covered with motor oil when there is any ice.
My son and I have spent our entire lives in snow country. I would not recommend the FIT. It is more than just the tires. I think the front end is so light it that the drive wheels float on anything soft. I have had plenty of front drive cars and none has come close to being as bad in the winter as the FIT. Get a Civic. It drives better and gets much better gas mileage, plus is quieter. My son's '04 Civic makes my FIT feel like a toy in the winter and on the highway. The FIT does drive nice in non-freeway driving around town on dry or wet pavement.

 

I drove last week 840 miles from IL/WI border to VA. Fine on long trips even. Gets tossed around a bit more in crosswinds than some cars, but not bad, better than a minivan for example.
Some stretches of grooved pavement are very noisy, but most surfaces are fine. The car is comfortable and fun and I got 39-41 MPG going 75-85 with some big crosswinds and headwinds

For snow dont know yet, but as usual for me, I will have a second set of wheels and dedicated snow tires, this is so key to any car really. I know it will be great with the snow treads

 

Err, no. According to the Internet, weight distribution is 62/38. Rather front-heavy, though about the same as many other cars. Going uphill in the snow is one of the few situations in which that would be clearly advantageous.

And yet I did find out not long ago that the Fit can't really go uphill in the snow very well. Not compared to the 4x4 I used to drive, that is. I think it's mostly just the tires. Not counting things like all-wheel drive and limited-slip differential like the Subaru referred to probably has, I'd guess tires account for a good 90% of the other of things that affect performance in the snow.

The Fit does have its good points for handling in the snow, notably the fancy ABS. Unfortunately they're not relevant when you're crawling up a steep driveway. That's going to require some serious winter tires.

 

The comfort factor largely depends on a person's physical attributes (mainly height) & personal preference. Everyone will find it different, but for long duration, I really wish the car came with telescoping steering wheel. The seating is higher than a normal car, and the firewall seems closer, which makes the leg positions awkward, when sitting close to maintain a comfortable reach. Sliding the chair all the way back provides good leg-room, but sacrifices arm support on the steering wheel. There is no way to tell until you test drive....unfortunately, in my case, there were no examples to drive..had to order then drove on the lot. It was only after driving off the lot that I discovered these slight nuisances. However, I've adjusted over time.

We have had a few good snow storms over the winter and for the mostly flat terrain here, it handled great. There are a few steep hills and as long as the streets were relatively cleared, or if the snow was packed, it wasn't a problem.

 

I'm 135lbs/5'9.5" and my b/f is ~170lbs/6' and neither of us have any complaints on long drives. Being self-employed it's nothing odd for me to drive hours a day and nothing bothers me after that long. Even getting caught in frequent stop-and-go traffic on Toronto highways with our 5sp isn't that big of an issue.

As for winter driving; we originally planned on getting snow tires. After a few snows though, it wasn't an issue so we never bothered. I never had any trouble all winter, though I did learn to drive in the maritimes which gets a LOT more snow than here so it always feels tame. Regardless, no issues.

For the loud bit on rough roads... when we test drove the Fit we took out a sport model with the alloys. It was a lot rougher/louder than the LX/DX one (still not too bad though). We got the base tires on our sport and I've never had a reason to complain about road noise. Could be that I like my music loud, but that's another topic. It is certainly as good as my old Lumina Van, though I think it's better.

My $0.02.

Digi

 

Found you all from Yahoo. Thanks much for these forums. It's been a wealth of info so far. I'm about to go read more posts using the search engine. But while I do:

I test drove a Yaris yesterday and I couldn't believe someone would design the main instruments into the middle of the dashboard . So! I'm off to roadtest the Fit in a day or so.

After driving the Yaris, one thing that gravely concerns me is the winters in Ohio. They can get downright nasty.

Are there any Fit owners in my area of the US that can chime in about winter experiences? How bad was it? What kind of tires did you use? Any helpful hints and tips? Or should I stay away form the Fit altogether?

Thanks,

Brian

 

throw on snows in the winter and you will be just fine i live in barrie ontario canada, we get a hell of a lot of snow in the winter

 

Hi everyone!

I am strongly considering trading in my 2004 Honda CR-V AWD for a Honda Fit - mostly for the better gas mileage.

I live in Central Jersey and will be spending a lot of time on the road traveling out to PA (50 minutes one-way).

My question is: is this a smart choice given the possibility of weather conditions such as snow, heavy rain, and high winds?

Would I be better have to have *both* vehicles for different purposes? Or from owners' experiences, does your car handle well enough in these types of conditions for me just to buy the Fit outright and trade in the CRV?

Any insight you could provide would be greatly appreciated!

Jeannie

 

i wouldn't want to drive my fit in snow....Hummer ftw...

 

Driven the Fit in the snow, not bad considering it's a lightweight car...snow tires definitely help...really depends on how confident you are driving in snow...I've gotten used to it...although I do like taking out the G35x on bad days...AWD FTW!

 

I gre up in NE Ohio, so am very used to our lake-effect snow. I got my Fit in November, and immediately put snow tires on it - Dunlop Winter Sports - using the 14" rims from my old Civic, which gave me a slightly thinner tire to cut through the snow better. I think that's important given the relatively light weight of the car.
If you're experienced handling a car in snow, the Fit will do just fine. During one of our heaviest snowfalls this past winter, I was passing most other cars with confidence. The fact that the car feels lighter than my Civic, and is taller (more wind buffeting) forced me to concentrate a little more, but it was easy to adjust my style and not have any problems.

Come out to Jay Honda in Bedford this Saturday - you can check out my car and hopefully a couple more Fits at the Honda Fest they are hosting.

JonasM

 

I live in Park City Utah and interested in a Honda Fit for my 100 mile daily commute but would like some input on snow performance. I do fit winter tires on my cars for the season.

Thanks in advance for the feed back.

 

I had snow tires on my FIT during the previous winter and had no issues at all including going up and down hills in stop and go traffic (ppl here can't drive in snow).