Weak A/C?
 

25 years ago, Honda air conditioners were pretty weak. My 1984 Civic and 1987 Accord both had A/C that could barely keep up with Boston summers. Now, I live in Phoenix, and there's no way a Honda A/C unit comparable to those could handle a Phoenix summer. I'm wondering if there's a Fit owner out there with experience in such a climate with more recent Honda A/C. Your answers will help me decide whether to buy a Fit or not. Thanks. Ken S.

I did fairly well this past summer where we had a record number of days over 100 degrees, and saw quite a few over 105. The air conditioner is weaker than any other import car I've owned, and honestly, is not a strong point, but with tinted windows and cheating by recycling the air back into the cabin when it's been in the sun for a while, you can definitely be comfy. If I had to wear a suit to work every day, I might start to wish for something better.

This is so subjective, it's hard to answer for someone. In summary, it is completely adequate, but nothing more. The Fit is such a great car, I hope it doesn't turn you away based on that one criteria. If it were that bad, I'd hear more about it in reviews, which as far as I know, have not mentioned it. They are all in California though. :)

My dad had an 84 Civic that he bought new. I had an 85 Accord and now I have a 94 Accord so I know what you mean by weak AC.
I don't think the AC in the Fit is any better than the old Hondas, I am guessing because of the interior volume and the amount of glass on the car.

When I was car comparison shopping, I felt that the Fit had the weakest AC of all the cars that I test drove. I tried the Ford Fiesta, Ford Focus, Mazda3 and a Cobalt.

I figured that since I live in Columbus, OH, I can live with the Fit's weak AC.

Tinting the windows and putting a winshield sunshade (while parked) helps a lot in the summer time.

Some reviews have noted the weak A/C.

Agree it's adequate. Covered parking helps here in GA. Running it often on recirculate (but letting it dry out on the outside air setting too) makes it function just OK. It does seem to step up to the task the hotter it gets outside. I'm more comfortable on 95F days here than 85F days.

I think it has greater capacity but it's limited on how much it will cool to provide extra fuel economy, with no defeat switch.

There's a thread (polaski?) that managed to make the control thermistor variable and got added cooling, but it's not for the faint of heart.

If keeping your cool is important, and you lack covered parking, might want to consider something else.

Thanks to all who replied. Your observations and information aren't what I was hoping to read. However, it does make my choice of new car easier. I've been able to eliminate one car after another, and the Fit will have to join them, unfortunately, as I liked almost everything about it. Not to worry, though, as I've still got a handful more cars to check out. The problem could be that I'm currently driving the perfect car (for me). It's just that it's 10 years old and should be wearing out soon. Thanks, folks. What a great forum this is. Ken S.

This is a concern for me as well, living in SW Oklahoma, last summer we had a few days reaching 114 degrees here, pretty much the whole summer was over 100.

Is the A/C really much worse than the average car?
I expected it to be a little warm just considering the greenhouse effect these cars must experience because of all the glass and small size, but..:eek:

worse than average
 

I can say with certainty that the Hondas of the 1980's A/C was worse than the average car, at least in my Civic and Accord. The US "Big 3" all had great A/C during that time, by the way. I gave up on Hondas 2 decades ago when I moved from Boston to the desert, but found Toyota, Kia, and VW all performed just fine in 110 to 120F temps.Others on this site have said that Hondas still are lacking in A/C capacity. That's all I know at this time.
Ken S.

The Fit's A/C is "adequate." It has the capacity to cool itself at high outside temps. What it doesn't have is extra capacity to cool down quickly especially if the car was parked in the sun. I run it in recirculate mode more than other cars I've had and it does ok. I have to remember to switch to "fresh air" mode when parking it or the cooling coils get mildewy.

I think it utilizes an "economy" profile to run the compressor less. Others have modified the thermistor circuit that controls compressor cycling to get added cooling, but it's not simple.

If you have covered parking it's OK, but if you leave it in the sun, it takes too long to get comfortable. Even allowing the superheated air to escape by rolling down the windows when starting out.

Honda should have made it smart enough to increase cooling when needed and adjust to economy mode when not. Or include an "economy mode" switch.

Some of the coldest A/C i've seen in the shop and worked on were late 80s and early 90's Hondas (Las Vegas).

Having said that, the Fit's A/C is definitely inadequate for anything over 90F. I spent a weekend in Vegas in the summer in the Fit last year and it was better having the windows rolled down.

Perfect for where I live though, so no complaints :)

depends on the honda i guess. the Fit's a/c is on the weaker side but there are other honda's that had super cold a/c. :)

i suggest tinting the glass. :wavey:

I don't think the AC in the Fit is any better than the old Hondas, I am guessing because of the interior volume and the amount of glass on the car.

I'm in Fort Lauderdale. My 2009 Fit's A/C is very weak and can't keep up with the summer heat and humidity here. It's better when on the expressway but in stop and go city driving it's marginal at best. When sitting at a stop light it's practically blowing warm air. No more Hondas for me.

Problem solved: In spite of it being the ugliest car that I tested, I bought the Hyundai Accent. It's 107F here in Phoenix, and the A/C is very able to handle it. That was more important than how it looks. (Note: haven't had to test it in 122F yet. Other note: I'm liking the 6 speed automatic, too. 34/34/37 mpg so far, just for your info.) Thanks, Fit Forum, for all your great info and opinions. I'll check back in 2022 when it's time to start car shopping again.

Yeah, I'm looking at Hyundai too for a 2013 model.

Office mate bought a 2012 Accent. It's a good car. Back seat not as roomy as the Fit's. I haven't driven it but he averages about 35mpg in "sport" mode. Says he "hates" using eco mode. I think the switch on the Accent varies the A/C output as well as transmission shifting characteristics and throttle control. It would definitely be on my short list of cars to check if I were shopping today. In 2009 the Accent was a dog.

See you in 2022. I may have a used Fit to offer then...

I just replaced my cabin air filter with a piece of generic furnace filter media (not the pleated type) I found cheap at Home Depot. A/C airflow is noticeably improved, plus I can cut a lifetime's supply of filters out of the large piece at a cost of maybe 25 cents per filter. I'm sure it doesn't filter as well as the OEM, but I don't have allergies and I survived for decades before they even put filters in the system.

I have two vehicles that sit outside in the Florida sun...our 09 Fit and an 07 Toyota Corolla. The Fit's A/C is weak, but not too bad. But overall, I like the Corolla much better..both in terms of the A/C but also overall vehicle quality. JMO.

I've rented several small cars on business trips...both Toyota and Hyundai...and both are excellent.

I'm interested in the 2013 Hyundai Elantra GT. In addition to better A/C, I need a better interior. My 2009 Fit's carpet (if that's what you want to call it) is shredding in the passenger foot well as the Honda mat does not stay put. CHEAP!

Allergy prevention is not the main reason for these filters. The main reason is to keep dirt from clogging the more highly packed evaporators than they used to be. You might save money on filters at the expense of making your AC work harder.