Now that below zero temps have spread across western Canada I was wondering how the Fit starts in these conditions.

These will be the first real-world NA reports for the car. Please include the
conditions; like outdoor, plugged in for __ hrs., wait time b4 driving, trans. , frost on windows,
heater temps., air temp., mileage, etc.

 

outdoor, not plugged in, sat 8 hours at work, no frost until i got in and started driving, heat takes quite a while to get hot, felt a little weak when i started the car but it started fine.

 

I'm in edmonton.
the last few days here have been pretty cold.
I think today it reached -40 with the wind in some areas.
I leave my car in the open at work, not plugged in.
I'm at work 9-10 hours.
starts fine, but feels sluggish, shifter feels sticky.
I agree, it takes a long long time to heat up the inside.
other than that, I'm gonna slap some winter tires on and it should be good.

 

Medicine Hat AB, was -35 yesterday. left sitting 13 hours at work, on the bald-ass prarie, not plugged in. She still started.

tonight is a bit colder, will see how it starts in the morning!?!!?

 

Lethbridge, AB: at -30 the car actually tries a little harder to start but doesn't take much more effort than usual. Takes a while to warm up inside but feels pretty good after a few minutes with the heat cranked right up to high.

Have left overnight in an uninsulated garage for over 15 hours and had no problems starting it up. I would prefer not to allow my nice car to get that cold but what can you do? Poor little thing, maybe I will bring it inside the house next time...

 

Good reports, looks like the Fit is doing o.k. in cold country.

Because I don't have to drive mine every day I wanted input on how it starts after sitting a long time.

Also coming from an 85 Olds with a huge rad, I was wondering how many cover the rad to increase temps on newer engines with small front openings.

My mechanic friend told me to not force a cold tran to shift b4 warming up so I am glad my Fit AT has a 1st, 2nd, and D3.

 

I have; much of my driving is a short (5km) trip to work, so anything that helps the car warm up faster is good. I have blocks for the lower openings made of styrofoam (holding them in place by friction) covered with coroplast; they're not fancy since they're not particularly visible.


The blocking definitely has an effect. Temperatures here are well above zero right now, and I found the engine getting too hot on highway driving -- not enough to trigger the warning light, but above 100° -- so I've removed one of them until the weather turns consistently cold.

 

Holy crap you Canadians are cold.

 

The fit is pretty new though. Just cuz it works doesn't necessarily prove fit is good at starting in the cold.

 

Not sure what you mean by "pretty new" as the Jazz has been selling worldwide for 4 or 5 years, maybe even cold northern countries like Finland, Russia, etc. The Fit is only "new" to NA.

-23C(-10F) this morning, Fit has been sitting for few days, plugged in for 90 minutes, started on first click. Took around 5 minutes for cold light to go out. (I used the CD timer for a clock.) Had heat by the time I got on the highway. I did notice the windshield frosting up later on when what I assume is the cold outside air cooling it down. (Windchill was -29C)
Easily cleared by using the defroster setting and when it got too hot I turned down the heat but turned up the fan to keep more air circulating.

I did throw the car cover in the back and prob. had the frost come out of it and pump up the moisture level but no more than would adding more passengers.

 

[quote=willmax11]Not sure what you mean by "pretty new" as the Jazz has been selling worldwide for 4 or 5 years, maybe even cold northern countries like Finland, Russia, etc. The Fit is only "new" to NA.

I Think what GORDIO ment was that it's new to us. The real test will be how it will start 3 or 4 years down the line. After you kill the battery a few times ect. I would asume that any new car whould start fine in it's first few years.

Wednesday was -39 here, wish I was back in Ontaro

 

It gets rather cold in northern Japan, like in Hokkaido. In some places there you see a temp as low as -30 C. And as you know, the Fit has been one of the top-selling cars in Japan. I have not personally polled residents of Hokkaido about this car, but properly-equipped Fits must be doing fine, since I don't hear complaints, either.

P.S. "Properly-equipped" is key. An Okinawa-bought Fit would literally freeze to death in the Hokkaido winter because cars sold in Hokkaido are "winterized" whereas Okinawa cars are not.