Hi all, I am looking into buying a Honda Fit. I love the car and cant get enough of it, i actually test drove one today. Ok so my first question, i drive in the city alot, so instead of the 5 speed tranny i was thinkin bout getting the auto tranny with the paddle shifting that comes standard with a Sport. Now are the paddle shifters going to give me near the same performance as a 5spd
? ( i dont plan on doing and clutch drops or anything even if i had a manual) Also, i didnt really get a chance to "test" the fit with the dealer in the passenger seat, so, can someone please clarify the level of performance the sport model is going to give me such as stability into turns. Im not worried about speed, even at low speeds i could tell the fit is quicker than my current ride (but well get to that later). And lastly, i need some people to give me their top reasons on why i should buy a fit. And im assuming with the diffrent forum titles that aftermarket and jdm support is abundent for these cars. At the moment im driving an 89 Honda Accord SE-i auto tranny. Thank you for any clarity or answers you may provide for me.

 

Welcome to FitFreak.
The paddles are a blast, not as much control as the MT but more then just a regular AT. As far as handling, the fit is on a rail stock, lower it and put a RSB on and your set!

Tyler

 

Gears in the MT and the AT are significantly different, with the MT having much closer gears and in turn slightly better acceleration. On the other side, at highway speeds, 5th gear cruises at a pretty high RPM, doesn't really waste gas but it can get annoying hearing the engine buzzing after a while. The AT, while getting worse MPG, has a lower RPM at highway speeds and it's a little more quiet.

 

manuverability is amazing... the car really amazes me.. i have taken turns way faster than i thought possible.. and have no mods to speak of... i could not be happier with the car, it really is glued to the road and a blast to drive... i cant speak on the AT as I have not driven one, not do i know anyone personaly who owns one hope this helps and welcome to fitfreak

 

my only complaint on the manual is the high rpms on highway...im at 4000 rpms at 80mph.... but then again i can always choose not to drive at 80. on the plus size, acceleration at 70mph+ is fairly responsive for our underpowered cars. I just put new wheels/tires on mine, and it handles like a CHAMP. but what it REALLy comes down to is what your looking for in a car... gas mileage/convenience/performance/etc

...and in that case the fit meets all three i listed!!!

 

The paddle shifters will give you more control over what gear the transmission is in, but there will still be a performance hit compared to the manual. It is still an automatic transmission and has a torque converter, so the power loss will be noticeable. I've never driven a Fit with an automatic, but I've always hated the "draggy" feeling of other cars with small engines mated to torque converters. (2003 Sentra, 2004 New Beetle with the 2.slow. I have also driven a 2003 Jetta with the same 2.0 mill, but with a manual, and the difference in acceleration of those two cars felt like night and day.)

Personally, I think the new trend in "manumatic" transmissions is nothing more than a gimmick. I've been able to manually shift every automatic I've driven if I needed to. The paddle shifters do seem like a cool idea though, I have to give Honda props for that.

 

Welcome...and...

the Fit is a very versatile vehicle with a fun factor to boot! The difference in the manual and auto is mostly in the driver and not the car. Its not a totally different beast in either trim. It has great handling and proper pick up and go for a vehicle of this size and power. The manual feels like it has more OOOMF...but not enough to sway everyone on just that alone. Its more about the "when" of the power and not the "how much" in the MT.

If you are really concerned about gas mileage you can probably pick up on average a few more mpg in the manual... but...with carefull use of the paddles you can probably get really good mpg with the paddles of the auto. The car handles like its on rails in all trims (as everyone here will tell you).
Having said all that, I think you should just keep going and taking testdrives until you form a better personal opinion. Go drive both atleast twice each if need be.
With performance YES...the AT gives you nearly the same performance as the MT. The individual can lengthen or shorten that gap.

As far as what you said here-"i need some people to give me their top reasons on why i should buy a fit." -....we can only honestly give you top reasons on why we bought a fit, you already seem to know top reasons why you want one.
I say just get it, you already sound like a FitFreak doooo it...doooooo it
doooo it...
...why by chance are you moving on from your other Honda?

oh...and I test drove 2 autos in sport trim and 4 manuals in sport trim. Before I settled on an MT. Now I have driven one other auto in base and one MT base and another MT Sport.

 

Some days I wish I had the MT, most days the AT is welcome, but always this car is...

FUN TO DRIVE!!

 

I think that since I am going to be driving around in the city alot, i would benefit from the automatic tranny, and with the paddle shifters it always gives me a chance to have fun driving on any kind of road or with any traffic condition. Im not buying the car to be a race car, so i dont know why im stressing so much, prolly because this is my first new car (3rd honda tho )
But im gonna sleep on it tonight and for a lil bit, im still no pro at driving a MT yet. So who knows in a couple weeks, maybe youll see me around. The fit just seems to fit me and i hope i fit in here. So wish me luck, and any advice on purchasing a new car or modifications for honda fits would be most appreciated. Cheers

 

nice and fit!

 

i drove both auto and manual sports when i went to the dealer and i was really impressed with the feel of the manual so i got it. i am somewhat familiar with manuals so it wasnt hard to relearn and the fit is very easy to learn on anyway. at a dead stop you can let the clutch out all the way and it will start going without touching the gas. of course you have to be slow with it but you can still do it. either way the fit is a great car. when you go to the dealer be sure to work a deal and get free floormats or atleast a deal on them. they are a little over a $100 a piece otherwise. vent visors are a good idea aswell but who knows if you can work that into the deal too. dont forget your fitfreak liscense plate cover too. haha. good luck on the new ride and welcome to fitfreak.net.

 

Thats funny...I dont think mine can do that, unless its still cold and the choke/cold idle is up. But I have noticed on other cars I could regardless of temp. Maybe when I tried it last I was not on smooth level ground....
...hmmmm... I will have to try this again just for kicks

 

The MT isn't so bad in the city; others can tell you so, including me. MPG in mostly city driving is fine, I'm getting an average of 32mpg over 10+ tanks with 85%+ city driving, opening her up now and then (hehe)

Also, from my reading different reviews of the Fit, the MT is significantly faster (0-60mph for AT is around 12s, for MT around 9-10s, at least from what I've read.)

 

The AT gets worse MPG in the city.
The AT gets BETTER MPG on the highway.

Either one that suits you, Man.
Your mileage will be good, regardless. The higher gas goes, the more I love my Fit. I said exactly this to a guy at the liquor store on Friday who asked me what the car was.

The Fit is an econobox, so don't expect it to be fast. It's not.

HOWEVER!

The handling is unbelievable; it's one of the best in the world for stable, fast lane-changes. Read the car magazines' take. Also read Consumer Reports.

Just buy one.

 

With the Fit there can't be any sort of incline what-so-ever otherwise you'll stall it out. If you're on flat ground you can get it but you really have to feather out that clutch. If you're going down at all then it's pretty easy. Mostly has to do with the fact that the car prevents itself from stalling if you leave it in 1st or 2nd while going slow.


Ahhh so it is, my bad. I was 100% positive that the MT had superior mileage on the highway, maybe it was with the old 2007 ratings. Either way a lot of AT owners are not getting claimed mileage while MT owners are surpasing it.

 

what ever you do don't sell that accord. Looks like its in really good shape and the dealer would give you $75 for it.

 

don't be afraid of the dealer, dude. your gonna buy a car, drive how you normally would, you wanna get the best feel for it. what would the salesman do anyway? nothing, except for maybe shit his pants. when i went to the dealership i drove an si, hybrid, and fit. i cranked all of them to the limit. i went 110mph on the freeway, peeled out in corners, and braked hard at the last minute. if he wants your buisness, he should make sure your more than happy with the purchase. if he's trying to pressure you, walk.

 

k...so I cant say I did that^^^^ but the sales man said "step on it, get a feel for it" and I was like ummm...dont need to tell me twice...hahaaa.
In many cases you have to show that you are interested or serious without sounding desperate and or uber green.

 

i think im actually going to go with the MT