Hey Fit Freaks!
I'm sure most of the people on this forum are fans of Honda products and interested in Honda Fit/Jazz model cars. Why not there's alot to like about the car. It handles well, looks pretty good (once its lowered, has rims, and a body kit), and its pretty quick with the 1.5L VTEC engine.

But, what about other quality cars out there? Especially the main competition the Fit will face in the US market Toyota's Scion Brand cars. Since I want to compare Apples to Apples as much as possible. Lets look at the Scion Xb (Toyota bB outside the US). Both are 4 doors, have lots of interior space and cost under $15K with lots of standard equipment.



Styling
Well I think that everyone will agree the Xb doesn't look like any other car on the road. Its square and its different. You either hate it or love it. Not to many people are in the middle on this feature. You have 6 colors to choose from, can get 15" alloys wheels from the dealer and a variety of dealer installed add on before your car leaves the lot.

Interior
Well just like the exterior, the interior is different. The gauges are offset to the center of the car, has power everything and A/C standard. Plus since its a square on the outside it has a lot of space inside. I have a friend that's 6'5 and 220. He just bought one of these and fits in this thing with no problems.


(sorry the US cars don't get the cool navigation system and our steering wheel is on the left side!)

Engine
Like a lot of newer Totyotas, the Xb uses Toyota's take on Vtec technology called VVT-I
It has a 1.5L 4 cylinder engine that produces 108hp @ 6,000 rpm and 105 ft/lbs of torque @ 4,200 rpm. Another feature of the Xb that more Americans are worried about these days is its 31 city/34 highway fuel economy rating.

So what do you guys think of the Scion Xb and how do you think it compares to the Honda Fit. I'll keep my final opinion until I drive the US spec Fit!

 

The xA is the more appropriate model to compare to the Fit/Jazz.

 

It looks like another car that I'd never consider for 1 reason - they offset the speedo (and other dials) towards the centre.

I may be old-fashioned, but I like my dials and details right in front of me.

Michael.

 

I agree. FIT / JAZZ would compete directly with the xA. It would be interesting to pull a side by side spec comparison between the 1.5 liter xA vs the iVTECH FIT / JAZZ

 

I agree that the Scion Xa is also a competitor to the Honda Fit but would also argue that the Xb has more sales than the Xa. I've seen like 3 Xa's since they were introduced and like 60 Xb's. I don't have any sales numbers yet but I'm interested to see which leads sales.





So I say lets include the Scion Xa in this comparison. A lot of what I mentioned about the Xb applies to the Xa. Different styling, very space efficient, handles well and is priced at $13K. It also uses the same 1.5L VVT-i engine that's used in the Xb.






I'll post some side by side specs of all three cars a bit later today. Have any of you guys & gals driven either of these cars?

 

i've been to both cars..

and to tell you the truth......just like corolla vs. civic, you can feel the difference between the interior of honda jazz and scion xA....

IMO, honda's interior feel more "pricey," more "luxury" feel compared to toyota's...

same thing happened between the scion tC and honda civic.....that's IMO though...

oh, another thing.....even though it's not completely on the perfect side...but another feature of honda's "luxury" feeling is the "thud" sound that you can hear while closing the door.....that's definitely missing from toyota's econobox...

 

Here's the xA all dressed up for SEMA

 

The MUGEN FIT

 

I agree. The Xa is more of a competitor to the Jazz. The fact that the Toyota has sold more Xbs is beside the point. It has also sold more Camry's but I don't see anyone comparing a Camry with a Jazz.
Thanks for starting the thread, though.

 

I have a feeling the Fit will have a much nicer interior. Its obviously pure opinion, but I just have not liked Toyota's interior in most of their cars.

The Xb is just weird looking to me. The lack of aerodynamics doesn't attract me.

The Xa is ok, but Honda has just so much more brand equity in my mind.

 

Thanks for these comparisons. Does anyone have the actual measurements (in inches) for the length, height, and width of the Fit? I heard that the new one for USA release in '06 will be a little bit bigger in it's redesign. I currently have a new Element, but I'm only getting 19 mpg, so I'm going to take a serious look at the Fit when it comes out. I used to have a '95 civic hatch, and it got 30 mpg.

 

I completely agree. I was quite disappointed with Toyota's interior quality (compared to Honda's)...as well as their engine design. Toyota motors are built well but look bland and generic, while Honda's are more appealing to the eyes. However, I do think that Toyota designs some pretty nice looking cars (typically). Having said that, I prefer the look of the xA over the current Fit/Jazz. The aggressive wheel arches are a major selling point. But when we go back to the interior, I prefer the Fit's. I'm not too crazy about the center mounted instrument cluster...nor the over-all design of the whole front dash. I'm quite curious (and anxious) to see what the new Fit/Jazz will look like. I hope it's a good one cause Nissan is also developing a sub-compact. The next year or so will be quite interesting for this segment....

 

I hate Scions. The xb is easily the ugliest car on the road.

I just hope the Fit isn't appealing to the ricer crowd like the xA is. I'd hate to see a perfectly good Fit ruined by a huge body kit and clear taillights.

 

Hate to break it to ya, but anything under $20k (especially with a Honda or Toyota name) is going to have a major aftermarket effect...which equals 'Ricers'!!! Heck, it's already being done where ever Fits/Jazzes are found. Just look at the upper left-hand corner of this web-site. All we can do is hope and pray that Fit owners out there have good taste in what they do...... :D

 

hehe. yes but that is Mugen Rice on the upper left-hand corner of this site!

 

I like what Mugen is serving. Even that wide bodykit looks like it could be OEM. I'm just glad the Fit/Jazz has been around long enough that we won't have to wait for aftermarket parts.

 

Well if they do change the size a little it may not be by much here are a few measurements converted to to inches from the JDM Spec model and just for comparison notes i will also include the xA relative sizes. This is not an easy task because well frankly even if i translate the web page then convert the measurments the hard part comes from how diferent measurements are measured all over the world like in japan it is not common practice to measure hip room, leg room, head room, ect. They usually measure the interior, floor to ceiling, front to back, and side to side. but these were some pretty easy conversions for exterior size and weight and take into account anticipated horsepower, and torque, revised gear ratios. and the Xa is a pretty fair competitor.
xA / Fit
Overall Height 60.2 / 61.0
Width 66.7 / 65.9

Length 154.0 / 151.5

Wheelbase 93.3 / 96.4

Track Front/Rear 57.3/56.3 / 57.2/57.2

Curb Weight 2340,2380 man,auto / 2244/2288man/cvt

On a side note add the K20Z3 engine from the 06 Si - 6 Speed manual tranny with Limited Slip and shoe horn a supercharger under the hood they will weigh roughly the same, but the xA will never keep up

 

i think you need to include both scions because for many people like myself they are both viable options... regardless the US is desperately waiting for the influx of sub-compacts that are about to arrive in '06... heck might as well throw the toyota yaris and nissan's new sub-compact in there too... i'm sure the magazines and websites are already planning the shootout issues between them all.

 

i lived in the state Virginia to be exact for a while and one of the cars i owned and driven was the scion xb. I love that car.. the 1.5 vvt-i is quite strong and trust me when i mean strong. i work delivery in Washington D.C and i drove it pretty hard and fast..
Spec of my scion when i took delivery:
TRD short shifter
TRD suspension kit
TRD exhaust
AEM intake
Scion 15inch alloys
----------------------------
the jazz in my opinion is not bad but need more tuning to compare both of these car is just out of the question. it all down to personal preference.. working on a turbo jazz project at the moment for my aussie spec jazz.. :/

 

It doesnt seem like anyone has mentioned this and I just realized this myself earlier today but the Xa/Xb motor is a 1.5 DOHC and the Fit 1.5L VTEC is a SOHC. HP and Torque wise they are pretty much identical but im wondering if the fact that the Honda 1.5L has only one cam to do two different jobs(Low speed fuel efficient driving/High speed above 5k RPM driving) as opposed to the Scion's DOHC that has 2 cams, each dedicated to one type of driving.

Does anyone think this factor contributes to either model as a benefit or disadvantage?