Yeah, I just had to replace an intake manifold because it was leaking coolant. Thank God for the maintenance agreement. But in all other respects it's been a good car.

 

I had high hopes for the Honda Fit, but the 31/38 just doesn't get it by a long shot. I wished they had gone with the 1.3L engine. With the price of gas these days, I am more than willing to trade performance for MPG. I need to be able to drive more cheaply.

 

The USDM Fit with the 1.5L VTEC will be slow enough already. Anyway, gas in America is cheap.

If you are so concerned about fuel economy, drive 55 mph on the freeway. Just dont drive like that in the fast lane! :-)

 

Camaro won't see the light of day untill 09 if ever. I don't think GM has the money to develop another low volume model. They have enough problems on their hands. The 08 Challenger will also have cyl deactivation in the 5.7 engine just like all the other RWD chryslers.

 

Good comment. Those bitching about $3 at the gas station, would have a heart attack if they went to Europe.

 

When you are in 7 speed mode the ratio of the CVT shifts so that the vehicle accelerates faster but the revs are higher increasing fuel consumption and reducing the potential top speed. If you are sitting on a constant 110km/hr on the highway you have no need to change gears hence the vehicle is just sitting in CVT mode D.

That consumption is only achieved highway not around the city.

The CVT manual mode is fun and useful when your driving somewhere that would require changing gears eg. winding roads not on the boring highway at a constant 110km/hr for 10 hours+ straight. The CVT in drive optimises speed to revs, minimising fuel consumption better than any human can do themselves.

Likewise SMG and DSG are superior to manuals in every way, lower emissions, better fuel economy, faster acceleration, faster gear changes. This is why this kind of technology is used in F1 and WRC. The days of the manual clutch gearbox are numbered.

 

Figures converted using US gallons.

Highway speed is 110km/hr in Australia. With CVT revs are not like conventional manuals or autos. Revs are very approx 2,300rpm at this speed.

Our fuel consumption in Australia will be worse than than a lot of NA because of our higher year round temperatures. This is the hottest dryest continent in the world. New years day in Sydney was 45C or 113F. Obviously it gets a lot warmer than this in from the coastline. Aircon and window tinting are no brainers

 

If they can't afford less than 50c a litre for fuel then they can't afford any car. Time to get on the push bike or walk. An electric mobility device might provide satisfactory fuel economy for these people and also the kind of speed/performance that goes with it. Plenty of storage space - check out those baskets.

 

Not to defend - but when did you last have to drive across a state that's bigger than most countries? Also when did you last pay U.S. health care costs? How about U.S. property and income tax? $3 might not seem like much but what portion of someone's income is going towards transportation?
And you're the folks that brought us back the Gas guzzeling Holden GTO...

 

Too bad we also didn't get the gas-guzzling Commodore and Falcon. Especially the 400hp twin-turbo I6 Falcon. Though I would settle for Marcus Ambrose's Pirtek instead.

 

Everyone is expecting big things from Casey Stoner. Could he pick up the mantle from Wayne and Mick? I think Valentino is going to have to move to cars before anyone beats him.

Health care costs in the U.S. are probably lower than most countries, but availability of acceptable care to everyone is also worse. As far as taxes, those in most other developed countries are probably much higher than the U.S., due to the more extensive social safety-nets. Germany, France, and the Nordic countries come to mind. Don't know much about the land of Oz except it has four time zones. The continental U.S. only has three. Also don't mess with their Rugby League or vegemite (vegimight?, vegi...hell with it!).

OOGIE, OOGIE, OOGIE...

When it comes right down to it, there is a whole big world out there that most Americans know little or nothing about. Most other countries think we are a bunch of self-centered, ignorant yokels that swill too much food, spend our time watching WWE and NASCAR (basically the same sporting soap opera), and know absolutely nothing about what is going on outside our little scrap of land. For the most part, they are right. What percentage of Americans have a passport? Why are the American football, baseball and basketball champions called "World Champions" when they only compete with teams from the U.S. (and Canada for basketball and baseball)? Why did we elect both Clinton and Bush to second terms, when they unequivocally proved themselves unfit for the job in their first terms?

The U.S.A. is a big, beautiful country, filled with all kinds of wonderful people and places, but it has its pros and cons, and is no more or less a citizen of this world than any other.

Sorry, I got a little of subject...end of rant

 

Yeah met with Casey at Phillip Island during the motoGP. One of the guys asked him what he rides on the road. The kids not old enough to have a license yet. He has a big future and a great family who supports him.

Valentino will be like Wayne when he moves to cars he will stack a few in the wall before he gets used to the width but he'll have the guts to stick a car places car drivers just wouldn't.

The only people silly enough to play rugby league seriously are the French and Australians. There is no padding or helmets and no mercy. Vegemite rocks but if you haven't grown up with it would be harder to stomach than snails.

Aussie income tax is much higher than the US but incomes are lower for equivalent skilled jobs. We pay medicare and complusory private health insurance but the health system is still 3rd world. I'd go to Thailand for treatment of anything major.

Petrol is $1.30 a litre here and its takes over 3.7 litres to make 1 US gallon.

Australia is the same size as the US but only 7 major cities and 19 million people. A lot of cattle properties are bigger than US states including Texas. It can take days to drive one side of a property to another.

I used to drive Sydney - Melbourne every 2nd weekend (2,000km round trip) in my ute. I've ridden around Australia 26,000km in 26 days including 5 rest days. Tyres cost more than petrol for the trip.

GTO powered by the US build 5.7L LS1. We just build the body. Next version will get a 6L V8.

 

Greetings from Peru, I have a Honda Fit and my average in consuption is in km 80km/gl with CVT transmission.

 

I was hoping that the fit would be a great fuel effiecient car, what a let down for Americans that thought the same. At least we have the car, but I will not be buying one.

I just bought a 1999 CIVIC HX 5 speed with only 35k miles on it. It looks and drives like new. It is rated at 36 MPG City / 44 MPG Highway. I'll trade it for a future fit if one comes out with better MPG. Otherwise I will probably end up buying a Dodge Challenger when it comes out or some other car that is fun to drive.

 

You Should come to Venezuela where we pay 10 cents a gallon.....

 

The truth of the matter is...You don't like honda and you are just a selfish rock chuncker that is unsatisfied with the price of gas...Talk to Bush!Honda has the most consumer friendly cars on the market.Do you think that they are number 6 in the country in sales because they don't think of the consumer?The ratio of satisfied customers highly outwieghs the unsatisfied customer.I'm a Honda owner and the Honda product has never let me down,and the customer service is better than any dealership i've visited.....I've lived in 13 states and i've bought and visited several carcdealerships and Honda is a 5 star dealership in my book...

 

Judging by the other responses from this thread, I don't think I am alone in thinking that the MPG leaves a little to be desired. The truth is, the price of gas doesn't really effect me that much. My budget would probably allow for 10.00 per gallon.

With the recent pressure put on the domestics with rising gas prices, I expect in a matter of a couple of years the average MPG for average midsize cars will reach what this Honda sub-compact is getting.

So, looking down the road, buying this car does not look like a good buy for me. Now the domestics and foreigns can get out of bed with the oil companies because of the consumer pressure.

BTW..I wonder if the Fit can use ethanol.

 

The Jazz is E10 approved in Australia. E10 = 10% ethonol in unleaded petrol. Usually Brazilian models of vehicles can run on high levels if not pure ethanol. Someone in Brazil can probably confirm the Jazzes status. However the models in Brazil have modifications to allow this.

By the above logic we should put off the purchase of all vehicles because sometime in the future there will be a better vehicle released. Lets wait for the Mr Fussion powered vehicles with VTOL so we don't have to worry about roads either.

 

I am content with my current car that is already paid for. With car developments coming down the pipes in the next 2 years, why would I buy a car (Fit) that will be outdated so quickly?

I don't like to buy cars like most people buy computers. I usually buy for the long haul.

 

Blazer: I'm a resident of the state of Minnesota, and currently, we're the only state in the country to mandate a 10% ethanol blend in ALL gasoline grades in the state. Many surrounding states (notably IA, ND, and SD) have high adoption rates for ethanol. Granted, this is due largely to the powerful farm lobby in this part of the country. However, there is something to be said for the fact that any car around here has to run on this E-10 blend. What makes ethanol so sensible is that it's a renewable and relatively cheap alternative to unpredictable oil coming from geopolitical areas that are incredibly unstable. I don't know about you, but I'd take the stability of an Iowa corn-field over the chaos of the Middle-East, Nigeria, Russia, Venezuela and other unstable oil exporters any day.

What I'd really like to see would be one of these import car manufacturers apply their magic to the E-85 blend. E-85 blend gasoline is frequently seen around the area at the pump, and while I'm no expert, I'd estimate that the price of this grade runs 30-40% cheaper than standard 87-octane. The only problem is that vehicles billed as "flexible-fuel" (i.e. able to burn E-85) are few and far between. Only a handful of such models exist, and typically, they're gas-guzzling trucks and heavy sedans. Aside from a very select number of U.S. made offerings (the only one of note even to get "reasonable" mileage is a version of the 2006 Chevy Impala), there is nothing from Asian-manufacturers. Historically, the Japanese manufacturers have spurred a lot of innovation in the industry. Surely one of these companies could make an effort to incorporate flexible-fuel vehicles. If anyone is interested in this topic, I'd check out the National Ethanol Growers' website at:

http://www.e85fuel.com

It really is an intriguing approach to reducing emissions and decreasing dependence on oil until fuel-cell/electric alternatives become more available in the future....hopefully.