the paint is fine as far as not easily bleaching out in the sun, but the thickness of it is ridiculously thin.

I for one, expect Honda of all car makers, to use more then 1 or 2 layers of paint. Considering their reputation of long-term reliability, you would think they would care a bit more about the only thing that keeps the car from rusting down to the wheels

 

So far, immediate mods for my 13 Sport will be a stereo with Bluetooth (the only thing about the F150 I miss is Sync) and I need two more 12v outlets. If anyone has pictures or suggestions for where they installed some OE style plugins, I'd love to see pics!

 

Maybe it's been mentioned, but I wish my Fit had a locking gas cap. Not that anyone would have any luck siphoning gas, but to keep a vandal from dumping crap in the gas tank.

 

Ha never thought about that! To me it just suggests cost cutting silliness.
But being in NJ I actually like that it is unlocked (we don't pump our own gas)

 

I've had locking gas caps on both my Fits for years. They are not that expensive.

 

When I get gas in my Fit I sometime reach for the floor-mounted gas cap release like on my other Hondas. I wish it had that.

 

honda element locking gas cap can be purchased. generic ones from parts stores are hit or miss for working properly on imports

 

Do they use their own unique key or will any Honda key work?

 

1) Stock speakers sound like tinny crap (even in the 2015 EX model, with the "better" sound system)
2) No AUX input on the EX model (It's available on the LX!!)
3) Seats could be a bit softer
4) Bluetooth voice dialing takes too many steps to make a call -- On my Sonata I pressed a button one time and said "call John Doe on mobile" and then said "yes" to confirm (without having to press the button a second time) and the call kicked off immediately. Here I have a few layers to go through to do the same.
5) Door handle proximity sensor on drivers side unlocks only the driver door -- I still have to dig for my key fob or reach in and press the door unlock for passengers. I realize this is a safety feature for the remote chance that I'm being pursued and trying to get in without allowing the pursuers easy entry, but I'd like to change this behavior as I find the convenience to far outweigh the very remote chance that I'll find myself trying to make a narrow escape.

That's it. None of those are a huge deal, but overall the car is great.

 

Paddle Shifters:

I don't understand why they are mounted to the steering wheel and not the steering column. It is something that has always bugged me; always causes issues for me when i am making sharp turns.

 

^I've heard that several times on here but part of what I never understood about this problem is why people are shifting in the middle of a sharp turn?

I never shift my MT in the middle of a sharp turn because my hands are on the wheel where they are supposed to be. Yeah i'd upshift in the middle of a long, lazy turn, but the wheel is barely off center, and for paddles it should be fine?

Maybe people can explain why this is an issue?

I could see I guess if you're stopped and the wheel is cocked but it should be straight by the time you shift to second right?

 

It is annoying as hell. Lets say your stopped at a stop sign and your about to turn right. By the time your through the middle of the turn, the (+) paddle is now where the downshift (-) paddle usually is at the opposite side of the wheel or even further around. By this time I'd like to shift out of 1st otherwise you have to take such a long low rev in 1st out of the turn then shift to 2nd, start in 2nd and complete the turn in 2nd, OR follow the paddle all the way around the damn wheel with your hand. Most of the time its not a big deal when your in 2nd and beyond and not going around sharp turns - 90 degrees or less most of the time.

I don't know why Honda couldn't put the shifting down on the center console like a lot of other manufacturers do or like the 5th Gen Auto Prelude had.

I prefer it down on the shifter console. It's so much easier to punch the shifter up or down that way and there's no need to look at anything.

Also, the mitsubishis have nice big paddles on the steering column and they feel so much better and more natural.

 

Oh, yeah, I could see how that would be annoying. At the same time couldn't you just shift to D and avoid that?

Personally, I would like the paddles on the wheel for spirited driving. I don't think i'd use them around town at all. I could see both sides of the coin on that issue though. I've had autos with the slapbox on the shifter as well as autos with 1-3-D and if I had the paddle option i'd prefer the paddles. You can keep your hands on the wheel all the time.

 

.Same here I nearly had a bad crash the first week out due to the blind spot at the A pillar. I also don't like when the sun gets me through the top of the windscreen(I am 1.65m ) and the visors don't help even when the seat is at max height , the accelerator pedal angle also is a pain when travelling long journeys .for me the 88kw 1.5 has enough power (which even rivals some bigger engine cars in terms of performance) it zips along quickly. Its a great little car

 

I would think if I wanted to be shifting first to second all the time then would have bought a manual. I have no problem here as we did not get paddles. Around town I just leave it in 3rd. Should I then go on freeway just upshift the auto stick around 5 grand -).

 

I really think Honda could have added the XM option at least to the EXL…they did not, so I added a Roadie2 which works fantastic.
So I don't like that XM did not come with the EXL and the upgrade to the NAVI/XM just did not make sense. Given the few extras you get on the EXL - sunroof, leather heated seats, heated mirrors, looking back I am glad I scooped up the EXL and not the EX or LX...just the "therapeutic" heated seats alone are worth the upgrade love'em. FWIW..

 

When in sport mode, the transmission automatically downshifts to 1st gear when slowing down to a stop, unless you blow the stop sign then you can stay in 2nd maybe.

I usually leave it in 3rd as well in city driving conditions, seems to be the best combination of keeping momentum and acceleration when you need it.

 

After owning my GE8 base for about 2 weeks, here is my list of things I think could have been better thought out or could use some improvement:
• NO DANG COIN POCKET!!!
• Seats: they're hard and not very form fitting and they sit far too high. (Id modify them to sit lower, but I looked and the inside/front mount is on the stepped up floorboard, so no go). also no lumbar support or adjustment or seat bottom tip/tilt/raise/lower adj.
• rear cupholders in real-world usages with kids are not practical. they only fit slimmer bottles and don't take a cup well, nor are they easy for the kids to grab stuff out of them. they have to lean way down/forward/over to get to them.
• cupholders in general on this car are in awkward places. anything with a straw really doesn't fit in the middle. anything small enough to work down there flops around in the huge holes. the upper dash ones only fit small things, and things with straws are normally too big. also vents blow on drinks up above, which could cool off a hot drink or visa versa. and the 12v outlet gets in the way of one cupholder.
• no armrest; installed aftermarket unit already but the center console is pretty flimsy in general.
• bluetooth connectivity; added a Scosche MotorMOUTH II Stereo and streaming thru aux port works, just no control of device that way.
• cargo space cover is an 'OPTION' should be standard.

This I can't fix, and wish Honda would have addressed, but know their bottom line is the biggest factor in these.
• low on power; with A/C on or off, to make it up grades on the freeway I have to have it floored or downshift. small displacement eco engines are all the same though....just missing my WRX for this.
• beam rear axle...have always hated these. wish Honda would have just stuck with unequal double-A-Arms...but that's how they keep costs down.


overall very satisfied with my purchase. it's zippy little commuter that we're taking all over the place (already racked up nearly 2k miles in the past two weeks) just wish the seats were more comfy/fitting, lower, and it had a RIGGIN' FRAGGIN' Coin Pocket!

 

i agree with the middle ones but the dash cup holders fit all 32 oz and 44 oz cups i've tried (often stop at sonic for happy hour slushes ) - you're not the first person to mention them not fitting things, so i'm curious what you guys are trying to fit in them?

 

+1. The drink holders in the Fit may not be ideal, but they have fit almost every drink I've needed them to and having so many is great when you have a car load of people or when you're picking up drinks for the family through a drive through. I haven't had experience with many other cars, but the Fit beats out any other car I've had experience with in the area of cup holders. Every time we go somewhere in my wife's Murano I find myself wishing it had more than just the 2 cupholders in the front.

-Dustin