TAKEN FROM: http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=782264


Auto review: 2009 Honda Fit Sport

By FRANK A. AUKOFER
Special to the Journal Sentinel

Posted: Aug. 5, 2008

The automobile business is all about predicting the future.
With development time for a new model of four or five years, decisions are made on the best information available at the time. Still, it can be a crap shoot.

When Honda introduced its entry-level Fit in 2006, big pickup trucks and truck-based sport utility vehicles were riding high. The Fit was viewed as a mildly interesting vehicle for a small niche of buyers.


Despite that, in typical Honda fashion, the little car--it already had developed a reputation in foreign markets as the Honda Jazz--had practical appeal beyond its small size: outstanding fuel economy, good handling and an interior that could be configured in a variety of ways for people and cargo. More than one evaluator called it "the Swiss Army knife of automobiles."

With escalating fuel prices, the Fit's niche ballooned and Honda's decision to sell it in the United States looked prescient. Fits rolled off dealers' lots as soon as they rolled in.

Never one to rest on its laurels, Honda sends a new, slightly larger and more expensive, more powerful and refined Fit for 2009. Though marketed as an entry-level subcompact, the new Fit has the interior volume of a compact car, and is not far from mid-size in terms of its interior accommodations.

Newly styled, with a racier appearance and a more complicated rear end, the Fit is five inches longer than the original. It weighs about 120 pounds more, but does not gain much in interior space--just one cubic foot.

One feature--the ability to flop the passenger-side seats to make a bed--is gone because surveys showed owners weren't using it. Nevertheless, the Swiss Army knife analogy continues. The back seats can be easily flipped and flopped into a variety of configurations to carry tall objects as well as long ones.

The back seat gets a bit more knee and hip room, and the seatbacks recline to provide more comfortable seating. There's enough room in the outboard positions to keep adults from complaining unduly on longer trips, though the center-rear position is cramped and should be reserved for occasional use.

Up front, the bucket seats, covered in a sturdy cloth, are big and comfortable, with good thigh support. The steering wheel tilts and telescopes, which makes it easy for people of different sizes to find a comfortable driving position.

Safety equipment includes side air bags and side-curtain air bags, antilock brakes, electronic brake distribution and tire-pressure monitoring. But it does not include traction control, which Honda calls VSA, or vehicle stability assist.

VSA is available, but only if you order the satellite navigation system, an unusual option in this class of car. The combination, available only on the Fit Sport, costs an additional $1,850.

Air conditioning is standard, as are power windows, mirrors and door locks, and a stereo system with CD changer, MP3 capability and an audio device input jack. Unfortunately, XM satellite radio is not available. If you want it, you'll have to buy an aftermarket unit. One odd shortcoming is the sun visors. They're small and don't adequately block the sun from the side. Honda solves this problem on other models by simply enabling the visors to slide on their support rods, but not on the Fit's.
There are three Fit models: the base car, with a five-speed manual gearbox, starts at $15,220. It has steel wheels with wheel covers and does not have cruise control or map lights. The five-speed automatic transmission costs an additional $800, but does not have the steering-wheel mounted paddle shifters that come with the automatic on the Fit Sport model.

The Fit Sport, which Honda expects will account for about seven of 10 Fit sales, starts at $16,730 with the stick shift. The automatic transmission, with the manual-shift mode and the paddle shifters, is $850 extra.
If you want the VSA and the navigation system, the sticker price is $18,580. Check the box for the automatic transmission and the suggested delivered price comes to $19,430. You can't spend any more unless you order dealer-installed accessories.

On the road, the Fit exhibits a quiet, supple, compliant ride and precise handling. It's no sports sedan but it can carve corners with a lot of more expensive machinery. Acceleration is adequate, accompanied by some engine roar at high engine revolutions.

The five-speed manual, in typical Honda fashion, shifts effortlessly, and the Sport model's automatic transmission paddle shifters provide an extra driving dimension, especially to hold a gear on twisting mountain roads.
Honda expects to sell about 85,000 Fits annually. If the current trend toward small cars continues, it appears to have a solid future.

"At Honda, we always recognize times like this as an opportunity for growth," says Dan Bonawitz, the vice president for corporate planning and logistics. "We generally grow two to three percent in both up and down markets. Our business strategy is more like the tortoise than the hare."
So far at least, that tactic seems to work better than consulting futurists or soothsayers.

2009 Honda Fit Sport



Model: 2009 Honda Fit Sport four-door hatchback.
Engine: 1.5-liter four-cylinder, 117 horsepower.
Transmission: Five-speed automatic with manual-shift mode.
Overall length: 13 feet 6 inches.
EPA passenger/cargo volume: 91/21 cubic feet.
Weight: 2,604 pounds.
EPA city/highway fuel consumption: 27/33 miles per gallon.
Base price, including destination charge: $17,580.
Base dealer cost: $16,983.
Price as tested: $17,580.

 

I put my name on a waiting list for a Sport AT (SSM) w/VSA & NAV but after seeing this $19,430 price, I think I may reconsider.

I just think of what else I can get for that much $$

 

You have to pay for impeccable dependability and incredible resale value. Both good and bad aspects of the "Honda buzz".

 

There is some bad information in there and it is hard to believe this guy actually had an 09 to test before anyone else did. Would be interesting to know where exactly he got his information, especially the "price as tested" part since I doubt he actually had one to test.

There is no mention of the new i-vtec engine, he quotes some of the older weight and dimension predictions that were proven wrong such as, "the Fit is five inches longer than the original." when it is actually 2.2 inches longer.

 

Yeah, and isn't the new fit only 22 pounds more than the 08 fit? And how did this guy get this fit? wouldn't car magazines, the leading source of car info be able to test this car first? i question this article.

 

this review is shady. so a 5at fit sport is now weighs as much as an ep3 si?

hmmm... and where did he get the mileage figures from? (which just so happen to be the same?

i dunno about this.

 

i agree. the first reviews would be from edmunds and stuff.

 

The base price he is reporting would also be a 1k premium over what autoblog & egmcartech are reporting for the 09.

 

Yes this review looks wrong to me

 

1850$ is a typical price for an OEM nav option.
Thanks for posting the review!

 

I'm glad I pasted the article in its entirety...it's seems that it's no longer on the JS website...hmmm...very suspicious

 

^^ Lol. We all knew that article was bs anyways.

 

I would put more money on the article being taken down because it was put up on accident, not because it was fake. Why would they bother to take a fake article down so fast?

 

I wouldn't say they took it down "so fast"....It was published on August 5th..

 

I figured it was simply written on the 5th, why wouldn't anyone have seen this article before today if it was put up over a week ago?

 

true, but its still not like it was up for a month.

i dunno....it still seems fishy to me.

as far as the pricing goes, the price of the nav seems right. and while it initially sounds steep a decked out 18k model sounds right, given that the current fit with mats and wheel locks and a factory tint can exceed 17k.

is anyone else in the class offering nav and traction control? i know the price is almost civicesque, but you have got to pony up over 20k to get a nav, and your out of luck if you want any type of traction control.

i still think the mileage will be better than what was posted in that review.

 

the part that seems odd to me is that the reviewer says the Fit is 5inches longer than the previous version, but honda definitely said it will only be 2.2inches longer.

Who knows, hopefully some real info will come out very very soon.

 

122# heavier??? ...and no relax mode !?!

I really liked the idea of that, for road trips and stuff.

Hopefully we can get some better info, before all the 08's are gone.

 

Hi, I just registered today but have been following this site since I bought a VBP manual Sport in January as my daily driver (JDM leather shift knob, 33 mpg daily commute in NoVa/DC, Griot's Garage convex outside mirrors for the ultimate rush hour three lane swoop on I-395). I love the Fit. My other cars are a CLK 55 Cabrio and Cayenne, and I don't feel at all deprived driving the Fit.

I suspect my demographics may be a litle bit older than most Fit Freaks. Frank Aukofer, the MSJ writer, is the grandfather of my son's friend. Not many guys who write about cars are the former president of the National Press Club; the Washington, DC, Bureau Chief for a major newspaper for over 20 years, or have interviewed US Presidents. Google him if you want. He may actually know what he's talking about.

 

I hope Honda would not hike the price that high, it puts it too near to Civic pricing. Also edmunds.com did a first drive preview/review.

See Link Below:

First Drive: 2009 Honda Fit