Yes I have. I've taken mine up to Baguio City up north, which is basically all mountains. Went there via Marcos Highway, which is a mix of twisties and straight roads but with gentle elevation.

Didn't have a problem with the ascent, although it was a workout taken mostly in 2nd gear on the steeper final leg before reaching Baguio City. I had my girlfriend and our luggage aboard.

Do be aware that I'm using the smaller L13A 1.3L engine, not the larger L15As that are the sole engine in the US and Canada.

On a side note, I almost did the entire trip - Manila to Baguio, then driving around Baguio, then back down - on one tank of fuel. Just stopped for a fuel stop at Gerona, Tarlac City (a sort of midpoint of the trip) for peace of mind. At that point I had already covered 530 kilometers (~330 mi).

 

I've taken mine there. You'll be fine. The Fit has enough juice to get you up there and back. I've also taken my Fit in a long trip about 1000miles round trip. Me with two passengers plus 3 large suite cases and loose stuff. The Fit handled fine and the Fit actually felt that it got better mpg when fully loaded but maybe it was just me thinking about that it did.

 

smart car would lol

 

Having owned a Jeep Wrangler with the little 2.5L engine, that sucker would struggle. That's a vehicle with a 14 sec 0-60 and a flat out, balls to the wall top speed of 90 mph.

 

Wow, I'm sure you're serious about your question. Just makes me wonder what did you think you bought? I don't think it would be street/freeway legal if it couldn't hack the roads. Just drove my '08 up to Seattle and back to CA recently. The trip was around 2k miles. No problem.

Whatever lack of power you're looking for will give you a smile at the gas pump.

 

It'll be fine, I've driven numerous 4cyls around the country in NC/TN, NH the Rockies, Sierra Nevada's, AZ no problems.. even my previous civic's and have never had a problem.

I rented a cobalt or something in Colorado one time and the rental clerk was trying to convince me that it didn't have enough power to get around in the Rockies. lol.. i laughed and said it'll be fine, he of course just wanted me to upgrade.

 

Yes, I live at over 6000ft in the San Bernardino mountains of California. SR 330 is a very steep and twisty highway that gains over 5000ft elevation in 13 miles. The Fit goes right up in fourth gear at any speed traffic allows, even on a 90F hot day. The high compression long stroke 1.5L engine is well suited for the job. The V-8 F-150 barely makes it in second gear. I dont understand some of the comments in this thread.

As for driving a rented Cobalt in steep terrain, it was dangerous. I had one on the big island of Hawaii and it was the downgrades that heated up the brakes to the point where I had to stop and let them cool. Stupid automatic transmission! It did not have full manual gear selections for compression braking. The car did have plenty of power to go uphill.

 

Fourth gear? Good to know the L15A has a better time of steep gradients. I kind of understand why American Honda opted not to bring in the smaller twin-spark L13A3 engine that I drive.

For reference, Baguio City here is on average 5000 ft above sea level. My 1.3L lump can handle the climb (short overall gearing helps a lot), but every bit of gained momentum helps, and third gear is just too long for the engine to pull on the final leg of the Marcos Highway ascent.

 

ive been on this road many times also, on a nissan frontier and a pajero. kinda scary when you arent using something large... worse when you hire an 'expert' - i actually got car sick from the zig zag lol

 

It's because of people like the OP that turbo diesel engines are so popular in Europe...

The automatic tranny ruined the smart, but still, the smart is pretty light and not underpowered, it wouldn't have big issues.

A car that would have issues is my 1987 civic wagon 4wd. 0,40 of cx drag coefficient, 75hp and more drivetrain loss than on a 2wd. I can barely hold 65mph in 4th gear (and it's short) on mild hills.
I measured 17 secondes for the 0-100kmh (remove about a sec for the 0-60 time), my geo metro 1.0 was more peppy than that. I think that I could make 1 seconde better if I put in 2wd mode, even if I lose .1 sec on the start
However, this thing still have decent low end torque for daily drive and carburetor + cable throttle makes it a million time more responsive than the fit.

The peak power is at higher rpm on the 1.5 GE8 than on the 1.35 100hp sold elsewhere. But the 1.5 is geared as short as the 100hp engine, so it still has at least has much torque/power for a given gear/speed.

 

Hahaha! Yeah I know what you mean by "experts"

We used to climb up Marcos Highway in a fully laden Kia Pregio A/T minivan. That vehicle has roughly the same HP as my GD Jazz 1.3 but with more torque since it's a diesel. It almost overheated halfway up due to being underpowered!

We had to peel off and rest for five minutes to cool the radiator - no more incidents afterward.

 

I recently went in Equator, so many mountain roads, and most of their cars had old, but not so small engines (like 1.6l logan while most logan sold in Europe get the 1.4), 1.8 gol, 2.0 golf, so it's a good thing since they have many hills. And also because people there all drive manual but don't know how to downshift apparently, they take corners in 3rd gear at 20-25kmh...

 

Just got back from a 4500 mile trip across country. Colorado to Maryland to NY & DE & back.
I drive the Fit in the Rockies on 8-10,000 foot roads. Car does great. It also did fine in the Catskills & mountains in WV & PA. I also had a 30 lb bike rack & heavy old mountain bike on the back. I don't understand how anyone could have problems with this car in the mountains.
I have an AT and used the paddle shifters on steep inclines.

 

Just bought the 2010 Fit. Still driving through the break-in period. A little disappointed in the power and was wondering if this car will make it up the Blue Ridge Mts. for my trip down south?
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You did not mention whether you have the auto or manual. It does make a diff, but either way you will do fine.

We live up at 7500 ft of elevation in NM, so we are constantly climbing some of the tallest mountains. We have the manual, which we prefer. But most of the time we have 3 people and 3 kayaks on board...no problem.

Despite these mountains......over 2.5 yrs we are still averaging 41 mpg.

Drive it hard.

 

At highway speeds a manual transmission car should have zero problems climbing any mountain highway.. might have to drop it into 4th but it'll do it just fine.

Country roads.. might have to use 3rd, but never 2nd unless it's a really sharp corner you have to slow for.

 

I've been on 9 and 11% grade roads in mountains here in Japan and have had no issue. Highest elevation it has been is about 7200' give or take and as stated in another post people were and always pull to the side because they are in my way.