As everyone knows, I crashed my 4 day old 09 FitSport. At this time it is not totalled. But i am looking around for cars just in case they find more things wrong with it and finally decide it isn't worth the time/effort/money to repair.
I want to replace my Fit with another Fit. Can anyone explain why in the hell every dealer in my metropolitan area has NO manual transmission FitSports? There are lots of FitSports out there, but they are all stinkin' automatics. I hate them! I am perplexed by this reality and I don't like it. So as bad as it sounds and as bad as everyone thinks having a repaired wreck is, I secretly hope they can fix it so I can avoid the nightmare of finding a manual Fit. Even a city completely across my state has no manuals. WHY!!!!

 

MT Fits are just hard to come by - most people want a manual and the Fits MT is a great one. As one reviewer
wrote of the 2007 Honda Fit MT it was like butter! and
very forgiving if you were not keen on when to shift. The
dealerships will sell a MT first and then what is left over
is mostly AT. Will keep our fingers crossed that your ride is fixable and you'll be back on the road in no time.

Cat :x

 

I know what you mean with the no Manuals. Out of two dealerships in my area, there were only three MT, and only one was a Sport. And I was the lucky one who ended up with the MT Sport.

Hope things work out with your FIT getting repaired. After driving the MT FIT, I'd sure hate to go to an auto.

 

You need to come down to North Carolina and get one. The area dealerships typically have them come and go regularly.

 

Actually, that is probably not a valid statement. In the US, automatics outsell manuals by a large margin. On enthusiast sites, like this one, people are likely to be a poor indicator of the overall buyer base.

I suspect that the real issue is that dealers order a far larger number of automatics knowing that they will sell easier than manuals. That makes for a smaller group of available manuals to choose from.

Believe me, if the dealers thought they could sell more manuals than automatics you would see many more manuals on the lots. The dealer that I bought from, for example, had 6 automatics ordered and one manual when I got mine.

JMO.

 

TheSaint's comment is true, I read an article last week about the death of the stick shift in America. Check it out The End of Manual Labor? - MSN Autos

 

In my area, the automatics did come out first, but I had no problem finding a manual that was scheduled to come in to my dealer (I did have to wait for it though). Another dealer I talked with told me they had some manuals coming in but they were all spoken for... Even though there's a higher demand for automatics, there's still plenty of demand for manuals.

I read that MSN article, but it was just one guys opinion that the manual is a dying breed and the automatics with paddle shifters should replace the manual. But another article I read a few months ago was praising the manual and telling people they should consider this option when looking for a new car. Plus, Acura just announced a brand new manual transmission TL scheduled to come out soon (and this model has never come in a manual before). The dealer I bought my manual transmission Fit from said they also sell a LOT of manual Civics.

I personally think it will be quite a long time before the car manufacturers stop making manuals. I'm wondering if it's possible to make a manual transmission hybrid...? I thought someone said the Honda Insight came in an MT? If it ever reaches the point where I have to drive an automatic, I'm going to Europe to purchase my car :-)

 

Yeah, it sucks...

When I was looking to buy the 07 GD Sport Manual, they couldn't find a car, now that I bought the 09 Sport Navi the wait is already almost 2 months, and supposedly 2 more months wait.

Manual's I guess have always been hard to come by..

 

Maybe more Canadians buy sticks than Americans (I didn't think so), but when we bought our Fit in September we didn't have any problem getting one with a stick.

In fact, we had a progression of colours come into stock at our dealer and looked at a couple before choosing our sapphire blue one.

The vast majority of automobiles sold in North America are equipped with an automatic transmission - this is always going to be true.

The paddles don't do it for me - you get all the complexity and cost of an automatic transmission without the fun of using a clutch.

 

There may be hope for the manuals. I saw articles on Edmunds.com and also Consumer Reports that said the manuals are becoming more popular due to better MPG. I'd love to get a manual again, but the thought of driving one in heavy traffic leaves me real hesitant. I think the best thing is to have 2 Fits, one manual for fun driving and the other auto for blah traffic.

 

siguy, I agree, that would be the best. I sadly had to settle for an automatic because most members of my family can't drive a stick.

 

I bet they'd learn if you bought a stick and they had no choice except for walking.

 

Manufacturers have been offering this type of transmission for a few years now in North America and longer in Europe.

The best-known ones are BMW's SMG and Ferrari's F1 transmission which are essentially regular manual transmissions with no clutch pedal. The transmission still has a clutch but it's hydraulically (and electrically) controlled by the car. You can shift yourself with the paddles or gearshift, or you can choose an auto mode and let the car do the the work. Either way, it shifts faster and more consistently than a human can and even rev-matches for you. This what an automatic transmission would have been if the torque converter wasn't invented.

Recently, there have been dual-clutch transmissions introduced that shift even faster. It's got two clutches and two input shafts, one for odd-numbered gears 1, 3, 5 plus reverse and another for even-numbered gears 2, 4, 6. These cars also have no clutch pedal and can shift manually or automatically; the car looks after the clutch duties. Look up VW DSG, Audi S-tronic, BMW M DCT, Mitsubushi SSt and Porsche PDK for more info.

 

When I was looking for my Fit I found that around here there are several Silver '08 Fits w/ MT available. Seems the MT is not as popular as you might think. Wait till the new 2010 models come out, then you can have your pick of silver ones :-P
I do feel your pain. I had to settle on the AT, and I must say for driving in traffic I do prefer it. The paddle shifters help me get my aggressions out when I need to, just doesn't feel as empowering as a manual transmission does.

 

I think AT is more popular with the Fit due to all the 10 drinks we're downing, and it's very inconvenient trying to work a MT at the same time...

 

From what I was told on the dealership I work at is that Honda is pushing the sale of and orders of automatics. They really only want manuals to be ordered and not sitting on the lot for some odd reason. Out of the six or so Honda dealers in Central Florida there was only one Fit Sport manual at the time when I was looking to purchase one.

 

Probably due to short supply, not out of any wish to prevent people from buying a Fit with a manual transmission.