That perfectly sums up my Fit decision. That and the fit and finish of the interior was MUCH nicer than the other sub-compacts at the time.

the others I have to qualify as "up-market" in comparison. If you were sticking in the city and were just going to have the one kid, I'd try and sway you that the Fit would be your safe bet. I think I would struggle space wise with 2 kids (and strollers etc)

 

Believe it or not, we test drove all 3 of these cars when we were buying new last year. In the end, we bought a 2014 Impreza for the extra space, AWD and promise of 30+mpg. We live in VT and ski nearly every weekend. But, we loved the Fit so much, we replaced our second car with a used Fit. Right now in the summer, we use the Fit more often, whether we are driving into the city or hiking or MTB. It is great. We are really not happy at all with the Impreza. It is burning oil (about 1 qt per 1000 miles) and it getting terrible mileage (our fuelly.com average is 24mpg). Its my wife's main car and she doesn't drive fast, but she feels like its too slow. Both of us feel like the Fit is faster and more fun to drive. We didn't buy the TDI due to the forums posts that detail the many issues that owners have. We have both owned VW in the past and have seen terrible quality before.

BTW, my used Fit needed front brakes and rotors. It cost $280! Wow! I love it. In the past, I have had the exact same work done on a WRX and an Audi and in both cases, it was over $800 at an independent mechanic.

 

Lot have been mentioned already. Best to test them all out as what one person like another person might now. I have owned various Subaru before and being in Canada the AWD is a nice thing to have. I do find them not the most fuel efficient. We have a 13 Fit which now my wife drives most of the time. The seating position is high for me in relation to the window etc. I like the Fit very much. Fuel efficient, expect to be low maintenance, and agile. I also like the Subaru being AWD, may be more comfortable seats, and better acceleration.

I don't know much about the VW so no comment there.

 

Not exactly true. Any Subaru over 7 yr. and 100,000 mi. is a good candidate for head gasket problems. Subaru keeps saying they have fixed their h.g. problems, but still, after 6-7 yr. Consumer Reports has big black circles for Subaru engines. Fit engines are much better than average back to 2007, their 1st year here. Furthermore, h.g. is expensive in Subaru. There are 2 heads to do and a really good job cannot be done without removing the engine from the car. There is much written about why Subaru engines are subject to head gasket problems. A lot of it has to do with coolant remaining in contact with the h.g. as opposed to draining away from it in most other designs when the engine is not running. Subaru "fixed" the problem in the 2001 Outback by issuing a TSB requiring sealant to be added to the cooling system whenever the coolant is changed. This did not prevent the problem for many.

 

Don't base your decision on 1 or 2 Subaru reviews. I own a 2001 Outback and a 2009 Fit. I don't think there is a less costly better all wheel drive solution than Subaru even with the engine problems in older Subarus. If you gave me the choice of a 2014/2015 Subaru and 2015 Fit and asked me to choose based on long term probability of problems alone, I would take the Subaru. Too much risk in Fit--new model, new factory, made in Mexico, low paid, low tech. workers, new direct injection engine, cars already removed from dealers and brought back to factory, Honda silence about problems, all spell high risk to me. If you substituted 2013 Fit, I'd choose the Fit over any Subaru for long term reliability--no contest, but different cars.