But I Digress…

2010 Honda Fit Sport

My wife keeps egging me to put some pictures up of our new car as she is still stuck in Ottawa because the beaurocracy at the Montreal consulate can’t seem to process immigrants one tenth as fast as the Philippines. You know, the unending flood of illegal Canadian immigrants is such a problem these days. So much for the “friendly border”. Yes I’m just a tad bitter about the unreasonable wait and the even more unreasonable visiting restrictions at the border but that’s a digression I’ll save for another day and another topic. Today I thought I’d roll some pictures of the car together with a short review blog.

Given that there is no difference whatsoever between the 2009 and 2010 Honda Fit, I’m kicking myself for not investigating purchasing a Fit almost a year ago. If you haven’t read my last blog or two, I had an accident with the Yaris that seemed reasonably minor but I guess for such an inexpensive car and the fact that Toyotas are notoriously outrageously expensive to repair (in terms of auto body work), the insurance company decided to total it, leaving me car-less in a city impossible to get around in without one. So after a bit of research I narrowed the choices down to a used CR-V or similar other smaller SUV, or a new Honda Fit Sport. I test drove several cars before finally deciding but given that right now I don’t have a need for an SUV and you can’t beat the fuel economy of the Yaris, Fit, SX4 and others without going hybrid (and spending another twenty grand) so I went with the Fit. It had the best reviews, it had the best feel by far in the test drive, and was still big enough to haul a few things around. The Yaris could carry luggage and groceries but that’s about it.

Some Notes About the 2009 Toyota Yaris

Having the unfortunate experience of totaling a car within a year of purchasing it new, I’m also in the unique position of having experience with two very very recent model economy cars. I’m also in the enviable position as a reviewer of someone who really preferred SUVs up until a year ago. That said, throughout this short review (or long review depending on how “in the zone” I get) I’ll be making several comparisons of the Honda Fit to the Toyota Yaris. Let me say up front that the Yaris Hatchback is a great little car. It’s inexpensive (relatively speaking; I think it’s a bit overpriced for what you get), incredibly fuel efficient, and very reliable. I didn’t own the car long enough to know how truly reliable but I never once had a mechanical issue with it. I don’t like sedans and never have so the Yaris sedan was not an option for me. I didn’t have the decked out Yaris with all the options but it had power everything and cruise control, as well as four dours, five including the back hatch. I couldn’t imagine using the Yaris for anything but a back-and-forth-to-work car without four doors. The two door model is extremely difficult to get into the back of. One of the most notable things about the Yaris is it’s turning radius. That thing turns on a freaking time. It had better though it’s so small. Okay enough about the Yaris. On to the Honda Fit Sport.

Manual vs Automatic

2010 Honda Fit Sport gear shift (manual)

From lessons learned from the Yaris with its tiny little four-banger, I did not want another ultra-compact car with an automatic transmission. The Yaris had a five-speed automatic and was absolutely gutless from a standstill and revved extremely loudly if you weren’t careful to ease on the gas when starting out. Once you got used to babying it somewhat it was okay but a definite compromise. The dealership I bought the Honda Fit Sport at had one Fit left with a manual transmission in the exact color I wanted, and they also had the best price which was the biggest sway of all. I am so so glad I got the manual. The reviews mentioned the same lackluster sluggish performance of the Honda Fit automatic transmission that I experienced with the Toyota Yaris. The 2010 Honda Fit Sport that I purchased with a manual transmission has a very sporty feel to it for such a small economy car and does not necessarily suffer from the same sluggish shifting issues (unless you suck at shifting a manual yourself). Don’t expect miracles though. This is not a sports car nor could it have possibly ever meant to have been, but for such a tiny fuel-sipping powerplant it performs surprisingly well, and the manual transmission makes a huge difference. One of the Honda dealers I talked to said that Honda would only supply a limited number of manual transmission model Fits. That may have just been pseudo-truthful sales pressure but judging from the stock available at the several dealers I visited he could have very well been telling the truth. There were very few manual transmission models available at the dealerships I visited (four altogether).

The Color Rule

2010 Honda Fit Sport rear view

I was informed of one of the unwritten rules of new car buying by a co-worker recently, that “thou shalt not buy a new car of the same color” which subconsciously makes some sense if somewhat irrational, but the Yaris blue is a bit of a boring grey-ish blue (I got a deal on it or I may have opted for bright yellow ). Why they can’t offer the same fantastic bright blue I’ve seen on some of their trucks on all their cars I don’t know but there you go. The 2010 Honda Fit blue is a nice deep blue. I would prefer a little lighter blue but I’m guessing my preferences might fall on deaf Honda ears. Besides beggars can’t be choosers. You don’t buy a cheap little four-banger like this because you’ve got tons of money to throw around to get exactly what you want. If that was the case I might have gotten a Ridgeline with all the bells and whistles or a monster gas guzzling SUV in bright blazing blue. The other colors available for the Fit I just didn’t like. My wife thought the lightest blue might be nice and judging from the Honda site I would have agreed with her but up close it’s a boring grey-ish light blue. Why the car manufacturers can’t key off of this more I don’t know. As soon as a really nice color comes out of some model car (not just blue) you seem to see them freaking everywhere. It’s obvious to me what people like. Why the car manufacturers don’t realize this and make it available on lots of models who knows. I don’t like red and neither does my wife, and black and white show the muck immediately (that’s more of an issue in Ottawa than here in northern Virginia). The “blackberry blue” is so dark it might as well be black but I could see the appeal of that color for some people in bright daylight.

Sport vs Basic

This is probably the biggest decision to make for anyone considering the Honda Fit. Oh and before I forget, let me just mention I did consider an older 2007 or 2008 Honda Fit but compared to the design change in 2009 they are truly ugly by comparison. At least the Toyota Yaris hatchback has the “cute factor” going for it. Back to the sport or not-to-sport issue, it simply wasn’t an option for me given the way Honda packages them. The basic model is just that – basic. No cruise control, cheap rims with hubcaps (which is what I had on my Yaris), a lesser stereo system, no uber cool USB interface in the glove box (more on that later), and not even an armrest for the driver’s side seat. I don’t really need the nicer rims, the spoiler, the chrome exhaust tip and other things, but the inside of the Sport model is noticeably nicer and less “plasticy” than the Basic model. Outside it does look nicer. I test-drove a basic model at one dealership that had a manual transmission model, and I can attest that besides the beautifully done guage layout (more on that later too) on both models, the Sport model just looks a lot nicer and the gear shifter is much nicer as well.

The Guages

2010 Honda Fit Sport Steering Wheel and Guages

Oh the guages. This is something I’ve seen Honda does right in a lot (maybe all?) of their cars. The guages are not just nicely colored without being gaudy, they are large, very easy to read, and well placed. Compare this to the Yaris. They use the same ugly yellow for everything everybody else uses. Putting the one big speedometer in the middle of the dash and a glove compartment where the guages goes is unique but in practical use it doesn’t work. The glove box is awkward to get at so I rarely if ever used it, and I just don’t like the guages in the middle of the dash. Right in front of the steering wheel is just the best place for them which is probably why almost every other car on the planet puts them there. The Toyota Yaris also has no tachometer. Maybe the manual transmission version does but none of the dealers in my area had one with the options I wanted at the time. I really don’t like not having a tachometer. Back to the Honda Fit, the guages are absolutely great. They are easy to read in daylight and even easier to read at night. The backlight level is adjustable from barely visible to truly blinding. It even beeps when you hit the maximum – just a nice little extra – and a little indicator on the dash shows the level from minimum to maximum. The mini-display between the speedo and tach toggles between milage, which also shows current and average mileage with a little progress bar indicator for current mileage, trip, odometer, and something else I think but I can’t remember The backlighting of the dash is also very well done in a soft bluish cyan and all of the controls are backlit not just the absolute essentials like the Toyota Yaris. I hated that about the Yaris. Because I drive a lot back and forth to Ottawa, often at night, not being able to find controls absolutely sucks. I got used to it but hurray for Honda for thinking of the little things that are highly annoying. The non-decked-out Yaris also had a horrible hard plastic steering wheel that necessitated one of those rubberized surrounds from WalMart. The steering wheel of the Honda Fit Sport model is leather wrapped. Note that the Basic model has the same horrible hard plastic steering wheel. You’ll note the cruise controls on the steering wheel, also something the Sport model has that the Basic doesn’t. The next step up “Sport with Navigation” also puts volume controls on the other side. I didn’t opt for navigation because 1) it’s too expensive for what you get, and 2) the navigation system offered by Honda is several years old. I already have a Garmin Nuvi I’m totally happy with that works just fine and also has bluetooth for my phone so I don’t need to shell out even more for that. I would absolutely not recommend getting the model with navigation for the reasons stated above and you can’t get a manual transmission version with navigation. Why who knows but that’s how Honda packages it.

Navigation

2010 Honda Fit Sport with Garmin Nuvi installed

As I mentioned I opted not to get the model with Navigation built into the dash. I have to admit it would be nice to have it all nicely integrated into the dash but for an extra grand and change it’s just not worth it and the way Honda packages it you can’t get a manual transmission model with navigation anyway which in my mind is more of a necessity with a car with such a tiny powerplant. Here is where the Toyota Yaris and Honda Fit are pretty much in the same boat, except for the fact that the Yaris is not available with navigation at all. Both cars have a large cab forward windshield that leaves plenty of room to tuck your little Garmin or TomTom or whatever you use in the corner out of the way of your visibility. Both cars having such a deep dash does mean it’s a bit of a stretch to reach, but you shouldn’t really be messing with it while driving anyway. The same thing happened with the Fit as with the Yaris as well with my particular Garmin Nuvi. The power transformer that plugs into the 12V power outlet, that is in virtually the same place in both cars, has a loose claw (the part that makes contact with the barrel) and it’s pretty easy to short the contacts of the power outlet if you’re not careful plugging it in. The very first time I tried, in both cars, I did just that and had to replace the fuse to get it working again. The fusebox in the Yaris is easier to get at as it’s under the hood whereas all the internal fuses are under the steering wheel in the Honda Fit. At first glance I couldn’t figure out how to open the dash to get at it as the manual is a bit vague but once I got it open it was fairly obvious. In a way I guess it’s a good thing that the large lid than swivels down isn’t obviously a lid allowing access to a lot of the electrical guts behind the nicely sculpted dash. All of the fuses in the Fit are also of the stubby variety the same as the Yaris which is a bit of a pain as most of the fuses generally available are of the longer contact variety. Both will fit but you need to trim the contacts if you get the wrong kind. I basically did the same thing with the Honda Fit as the Toyota Yaris, running the power cable up, around and over the steering wheel and up across the far left of the dash to the navigation unit, stuffing the excess into the cavity between the steering wheel and the dash out of sight. Yes there is a small cable running along the top of the dash but they’re both the same color so it’s not that big of a deal aesthetically and it’s not in the way at all. It was pretty much the same deal with the Toyota Yaris. Not a big deal. With the Garmin Nuvi (others may work similarly) there is an added bonus of the unit turning itself on and off with the when the power from the outlet turns on and off so it comes on when you start the car and shuts itself off when you turn the car off. When we used the unit in our Ford Freestar van that leaves power live to all the power outlets regardless, we always had to use the power button on the top of the unit.

USB Interface

2010 Honda Fit Sport USB Interface

The 2010 Honda Fit Sport (not the Basic model) and Sport model with navigation, have a small USB interface cable in the top glove box that is a really nice little extra. I like to listen to podcasts on long drives and it’s a fantastic option to just load up my thumb drive and plug it in and I have hours of podcasts or music or whatever available. The controls on the dash are easy to use to access the folders and files on the drive. It’s also iPod compatible so the dash controls can operate your iPod if you have one, which is good news for my wife who has one. It wouldn’t work with my Creative Zen, but there is also an “Aux” port that can be used in that case that will work with anything with a headphone or line output. The dash controls work really well with my little 8GB thumb drive which is perfect for me. I haven’t tested it with an iPod yet as my wife is still in Ottawa right now. You use the up/down controls to move through the various folders the Fit’s computer found on your thumbdrive and the left/right (seek) controls to move through the files in each folder. Pressing the title button on the dash toggles through display of folder, file, artist, track title, album title and maybe one or two others I don’t remember. My Toyota Yaris had an Aux port in the center console I used a lot with my Creative Zen MP3 player but I imagine the convenience of having access to the thumb drive I carry around with me anyway will get used almost exclusively now.

A lot fits in the Fit

2010 Honda Fit Sport Back Hatch Open

Bar none hands down the Honda Fit is much more practical than the Toyota Yaris. One of the things everyone raves about the Fit is the fold-up back seats. There is a slight depression in the floor where the handle/footing for the back seats fits into. Since the back seat bottoms sit slightly lower, the seat backs fold down perfectly flat making for much more room than the Yaris. Maybe not tons more actual room but a lot more practical room. You never buy an ultra compact for its hauling ability, but the the Fit is much more practical for packing around the little stuff or that big box of whatever you just picked up at Home Depot. While I’m waiting for my wife’s immigration to be finalized, I just keep the back seats folded up since it’s handy to just open the back door and swing my backpack in there and go. The rear hatch of the Honda Fit is also much bigger than the hatch on the Toyota Yaris. Granted the Fit is longer and wider than the Yaris, but not much, and the practicality makes a huge difference. The storage area with the back seats up in the Yaris is truly tiny whereas the storage area in the Fit is about twice as big. It should be big enough for even a large haul at the grocery store whereas the Yaris I always needed to throw a few things in the back seat.

More inside Pictures:

2010 Honda Fit Sport One Rear Seat Folded Down Flat

2010 Honda Fit Sport Rear Seat Bottoms Folded Up

Driving the 2010 Honda Fit Sport

I test drove the basic model but the traffic was so crowded at the time I couldn’t say with any certainty how much difference in suspension stiffness, etc. there really is between the Basic and Fit models. There is a noticeably tighter feel with everything in the Honda Fit Sport compared to the Toyota Yaris. The suspension is much stiffer and the steering is much tighter. The Yaris had a tighter turning radius but it was also smaller. That was actually one of the fun things about the Yaris was that it could turn so incredibly tight. The steering in the Fit Sport is almost too responsive. Slight steering movements result in immediate steering movements that takes some getting used to (if you’re not used to a car with such tight steering). The transmission is geared a tad on the low side but that’s to be expected in such a small car. The sluggishness of the automatic transmission complained about in several of the reviews I read is obviously not an issue with the manual transmission model I purchased. Shifting at about 3000 RPM from first to second gives the Fit plenty of umph from a standstill that was always a problem with the Yaris and its even tinier engine and automatic transmission. The engine in the Fit is a slightly more powerful 117hp compared to the 106hp of the Yaris and the 16-valve i-VTEC technology actually does appear to make a slight difference on the low end.

The one complaint I have about driving the Fit, and it’s the same complaint that other reviewers had, is engine noise. If the Fit was a sports car you’d probably want to hear the engine but Honda needs to work more on isolating the engine and road noise from the cabin of the vehicle. I haven’t driven the Fit enough at freeway/highway speeds to know if it will be an annoyance on long trips but if city driving is any indication it will likely be a bit louder than the Yaris, and the Yaris had the same engine and road noise problem too. After I’ve driven the Fit more and taken it on at least one long jaunt, I’ll try to update this blog with my experiences.

More Pictures:

2010 Honda Fit Sport Driver Side

2010 Honda Fit Sport Dash Center Area

2010 Honda Fit Sport Rear View

One other thing I wanted to mention quickly, not to harp on, is the mug/cup holder placement. While the cup holder placement in the Yaris was indeed clever given the limited space, the cup holders in the Fit are far more numerous (10 in total I think) and more conveniently placed. I splashed many a drink and coffee and other sticky crap all over the side of the dash in the Yaris because the only convenient cup holder was a holder that flipped out of the front of the dash which while clever was awkward especially while driving. The Honda Fit places two of them much more conveniently in the center in front of the gear shift. While still not perfect and tall mugs might fight for room below the overhanging dash, I think they may be more convenient. Time will tell on this one though. The Toyota Yaris may have made a good compromise given the limited space in these teeny little cars.

Final Thoughts

If I had it all to do again, I would prefer not to have had the financial impact of totalling a less-than-one-year-old car and having to purchase another, but that issue aside, the 2010 Honda Fit is a superior choice in my mind to the Toyota Yaris. If the Yaris was priced several thousand less, it would be a much more worthy competitor to the Honda Fit. The difference in price between a similarly equipped Toyota Yaris and Honda Fit just leaves the Honda Fit as the better choice in everything except absolute mileage where the Yaris is slightly more efficient, but given the greater utility and much more nicely equipped Honda Fit, especially the Sport model, the Fit wins hands down, which is why I decided on the Fit instead of replacing the Yaris with another Yaris. Besides the Fit looks cooler too

EarnieShoes Reviews, Opinions and Experiences