As far as I know, Honda is planning to bring it's diesel engines over to the U.S. in or around 2010. Being a U.S. resident, this had me thinking of the possibilities of a diesel Fit. Personally, I think the characteristics of a diesel engine would make one perfect for a car like the Fit.

Unbelievable amounts of torque down low (for the size of the engine) and GREAT fuel economy.

Take the 1.4TDI engine from Volkswagen, for example. It outputs between 70 and 90 horsepower, and anywhere from 114 to 170 (!) ft lbs of torque. And best of all, this torque is available from 1900 to 2300 RPM, which means there is plenty of oomph available for city driving.

I think a diesel Fit would be a great addition to the line of outstanding gas motors.

Pros:
Better fuel economy than gas engines
Higher torque available lower in the rev range

Cons:
Heavier due to the higher-strength internals needed
Diesels don't rev as high (Most small car diesels red line around 4500 RPM or so) This isn't necessarily a con in my opinion though.
Diesels tend to be an expensive option, especially over here in the States where they're not as common.

 

Diesels would be a great way to reduce this country's dependence on oil. I read one place that if (trying to recall correctly) about 50% of vehicles were diesel instead of gas, the reduction in the amount of fuel would be equal to what we import from the middle east.

Couple a small turbodiesel engine with a CVT, and maybe an idle stop feature, and the Fit could probably get 60+mpg.

I'd love the crap out of my Fit if it would get that economy!

 

iirc, honda said they believe diesel motors belong in trucks and they don't want to put it in a car.

 

I heard something along those line's to.Truck's/SUV's/even Accord were to get diesel,the smaller car's Civic's/Fit's get a hybrid system.I think I read that on Edmund's or Car And Driver.

 

That's a shame because that's really backwards thinking. Diesels work beautifully in small cars. Much better than hybrid systems which I believe are gimmicky when you take into account the fact that they're much more expensive than diesels, the batteries have to be replaced eventually ($$$$) and the production and disposal of the batteries means they're really not any more economically friendly.

 

Bring it on!

I do not know where you guys got the info on Honda thinking diesel engines are for trucks only. Our TSX and european Accord being the same car, have diesel version in Europe. Just introduced upcoming TSX is rumored to be available as a diesel variant in US in couple of years.
European diesel Civic is undergoing evaluation in Detroit and east coast. Currently Jalopnik is getting 72mpg with it!
Jalopnik Reviews: Hypermiling the 2007 Honda Civic 2.2 i-CTDi and 2007 Audi Q7 4.2 TDI
Do you think anybody is going to say no to it once they hear about it or even better get to see it for themselves!
Audi, VW, BMW and Mercedes will spearhead with SUV's and eventually make it available on every model in the line up. Thanks to Mercedes Bluetec technology these things run cleaner than gasoline engines. Actually diesel emissions were always chemically cleaner since they produced carbon while gasoline engines produce whole bunch of dangerous crap. We just ignored the facts. Europeans are experimenting with particulate filtration in exhaust systems. That alone makes it much cleaner even in previous form without Bluetec.
Fact is that we in USA are using the dirtiest form of diesel fuel. Same as "developing" nations! Here in California our dear governor is kissing oil companies ass by not signing a new law forcing oil companies to refine diesel more into cleaner formula. We are not the only ones. There are few other states. Most of you in other states enjoy an option of buying diesel VW and other cars. VW's 1.8L turbo diesel with chip mod can have as much torque as 3.5L V6 gasoline engines and 3 times the mpg!

Hybrid hype cracks me up! It costs $2-5K more than equivalent gasoline model and faces entire battery pack replacement after 7 years of use! That will cost about $5K+ for smallest battery configurations. Now take these $7K+ and figure how much gasoline you can buy for it! OK, I get the "green" state of mind but dollar for dollar it just does not make sense. Especially when equivalent Civic EX can get 35-40mpg on hwy. Mine '06 does!
And you "green" people would you like your hybrid's spent batteries buried in your back yard? Recycling can be only done up to a point!

Also what would you pick for a cross country trip? A hybrid or a diesel?
I'll take a diesel, thank you!
My friends Escape hybrid spent a month at the dealer when a water pump for an electric engine cooling failed. Escape is running a Prius drive train! That is Toyota for you JDM purists. He was given a Pontiac to drive!

BTW, Honda is looking to use engine heat to power steam engine which turns electric generator beside regenerative braking power.
Alternative Energy: Honda Looks To Engine Heat For Hybrid Power

HONDA, please stop wasting time and money on experiments and throw a diesel engine from European Civic in US Civic and I can take these $7K+ and put it into ING Orange High Yield Savings account or my unborn kid's college fund! Then majority of voters can force government to really be there for the people.

 

Ehh to be honest i would hate to see a Diesel Fit. Lets just say this right now, I LIKE CARS THAT REV HIGH. Thats why i like Honda so much, they like to rev. I think the torque would be nice, but kinda going against what Honda is lol. Honda sports cars are not torque machines. S2000 for example, amazing car! The thing has really low torque but when you get it into VTEC range it fly's. Thats what i love! After playing years of driving sims ive figured out what i like and dislike on cars.
Plus i think the Fits redline is too low already. I mean i think it can rev to 8k easily, why Honda stopped it at 6500 beats me. I was shocked when i learned it only revs to 6500. I would be happy with 7500 maybe. But if they took it down to 4500 i would not even test drive the thing.
When i think deisel cars, i think Audi, VW things like that. In those i would not mind the engines revving to only 4500. Thats what i would expect. Alot of torque but low redline. When you do that in a Honda your killing the Honda racing heritage.

Tyler

 

I agree about current Fit redline.
We need Honda to give us K20 powered Fit for US market as well as a diesel Fit. The best of both worlds.
I would still stick with a diesel. It would have more torque and would be virtually silent at full throttle in comparison to K20 version. I have my 9500rpm CRX for kicks! LOL!
Just like Audi R10 while creaming competition in Le Mans!

 

You're right about the S2000. I drove a buddy's, and MAN, it feels as fast as my Boxster! The gearbox, clutch and brakes felt BETTER than my Boxster!

However, the Fit is not a racecar. It's not a track car. It's an economy people-mover. A diesel engine that would get it up to that 72mpg would be FREAKING AWESOME! Without changing anything else, that would take my ~300 mile range up to 700 miles. I wouldn't have to fill up for almost three weeks!

Diesel is an important step in this country's automotive future. It will quickly and easily reduce dependence on imported petroleum.

Combine Diesel with hybrid technologies, and we could eventually get even greater fuel economy!

Then the other side of the coin is purely electric powered vehicles with small diesel generators onboard to extend their range. Check out the Chevrolet Volt. (gm-volt.com) They're not really talking much now about a diesel generator, but I'm sure if diesel gains in popularity, the Volt will get one.

Battery technology is progressing very well. Cells now are much more capable than just a couple years ago. Recently a researcher at Stanford figured out a way to use silicone nanowires to increase battery storage up to TENFOLD their current capability. (however, other components need to mature to take advantage of this)

The next 5 to 10 years will bring some pretty cool changes. If you want a dinky gas engine that revs to umpteen thousand RPM but gets you half the torque and half the fuel economy than the same vehicle with a diesel, well, then... Uhh... you confuse me!

 

i understand that diesels will be a great option if they are able to be mass-produced and sold in the US.

however as far as honda goes, they're just now bringing back a small economy car into the states. i personally think it will be a long time before we see any sort of special fit being released. i think they would much rather put the bulk of their efforts into the civic or releasing a new car altogether.

the US market got so bloated with SUVs and minivans and whatnot, i think they'll aim to keep their econo-box staying just that- the lowest end honda they are able to produce. if diesel engines get thrown in, it will totally change the purpose of the fit.

 

Honda Fit TDI FTW!!!

 

Totally agree Diesel Fit would be awesome

 

I agree with the high revving engine love. I'm not saying that diesel should completely replace the gasoline engines, I believe it should be an option for those who prefer economy and low end pull to high RPM power.

A diesel S2000 would be a horribly hilarious idea, though.

Of course, the Fit is the first car I've owned that's revved over 6 grand, so I don't think it's that bad.

 

i'm ready for a diesel fit. or a motor built to take advantage of E85 with massive static compression and a turbo, could be a 1.0L making 120hp and 40mpg highway.

and there is nothing wrong with adding an electric assist/ hybridize either of those.