I've been looking to get the 2009 Fit Sport in a month or two as my next car. Now I've always thought of only getting manual, but a recent article on edmunds insideline said to get the auto since the manual is hard to shift smoothly. I'm wondering if they just suck at driving manual which is probably the case, more than a couple of the cars have the complaint of not being able to drive smoothly.

I've always enjoyed driving manual and would rather not deal with the added cost of auto. I've test drove the auto and wasn't all too impressed, I have yet to test drive a manual fit sport though.

Lets hear your thoughts manual owners. People at edmunds can't drive worth shit?

 

This is such a preference decision >_<

But after reading your post, it seems like you are set on manual. I think you'll have buyers remorse if you bought auto.

 

I was hesitant on getting the new m/t Fit also when I saw that article.

I don't know what they were talking about, but it's very easy to drive.

Most people don't drive a stick anymore, so maybe they didn't know what they were doing?

Anyway, I drove the a/t first and was very disappointed with it. I prefer the m/t.

 

Sometimes I second guess my AT purchase since I know MT is so much more fun to drive (and you feel like you're much more in control of the car). Still, the convenience factor of the AT in traffic was worth it. Also, it's a lot easier to talk on the phone (even though I HATE talking on the phone in the car). The dealer didn't have any MT in stock anyway, so that made the decision easier as well.

 

I quite agree with Trogdor's comments. If your FiT is an everyday driver, having an automatic makes good sense. When trade-in time rolls along, you will likely see more demand and value for one with automatic transmission.

Check the inventory at your dealer; more than likely, he is sold out on automatics and has lots of manuals in stock.

But again, the choice is a personal one and it's your car....so buy what you really want, not what people say.

 

My previous car was a M/T and my first car was M/T. I honestly have no trouble driving in traffic and I prefer the driver involvement all the time keeps me from spacing out. Thanks for the input guys I just wanted to know if people at edmunds can't drive stick worth shit. I plan on driving this car forever.

 

I went to the dealer fully intending to get the AT based on all of the reports, but test drove both "for completeness" . I drove the manual first, then the auto. I really didn't like the way the auto performed. It seemed to hunt for gears more than I expected, possibly due to my driving style and/or our local terrain/traffic conditions. In any case, I got the manual and haven't regretted it. I came from an AT car, too, so it wasn't any inherent bias against ATs.

The only issue I have with the MT is that the clutch has a rather vague take-up, which can make the shift from first->second less than smooth on occasion. The clutch itself is very light; it almost feels like nothing is connected to it, which may lead to the vague engagement feel. The gear shifter and transmission is wonderfully precise.

 

I don't find any issues shifting the manual smoothly.

Go test drive one and decide for yourself.

 

Funny, I went to the dealer fully expecting to buy a stick regardless of what had been said, and ended up buying the auto, my first auto in fact.

Coming from a Miata, i just didn't car for the feel of the shifter or the clutch. The lightness, and indirectness of both seemed at odds with the tightly controlled ride and steering of provided by the rest of the car.

Is the auto better? Can't say, but I know when I took into account the relative responsiveness of the tranny when in manual mode, in seemed about a wash. The initial softness of the torque converter goes away and when it's locked it provides IMHO much of the directness provided by the stick. And once at the point, the directness seemed to be the perfect compliment to the chassis and steering, and at full throttle in manual, the shifts are are nice and positive as well. Altogether, providing a nice pairing.

Realizing that it was going to be my DD, the auto seemed the better choice.

Had the stick offered similar clutch feel and the rifle bolt precision/mechanicalness of the Miata, it would've been the perfect pairing with the chassis/steering feel the car provides, as it is, to me it didn't so i settled on the auto.

-EDIT- Wanted to emphasize that I had no problems driving the stick smoothly, in fact, it's one of the easiest manual transmission cars to drive I've ever sampled. I just didn't care for the feel.

 

I had a MT 07 Fit and now an 09 MT.
Honda makes an outstanding shifter and clutch.
What Edmunds was talking about is, revs hang a bit upon release of the accelerator. This is for emissions and just about every modern day MT car does this. Easy to get used to, I love it and would not consider an auto in a small displacement 4 cylinder. That is just me, if you are in bumper to bumper traffic for a long time everyday then rethink it a little.
My dealer rarely has a MT in stock, but right now has over 15 auto's in stock.
Resale appears to be a wash (as you pay so much less when you buy MT)

MT will be about a second faster in the 1/4 mile and you will get a little better MPG.

Cruise revs are higher (like 3850 @ 80 MPH) vs about 2900 for the auto.
Bottom line is, if you generally prefer MT the shifter/clutch on the Fit is especially sweet.

 

Thanks guys, I've read enough to know that I want to stick to M/T.

 

Lol, since I bought the car more for the wife, it's Auto, though, if I'd had gotten the SI that I wanted then manual was the only option.

I also have a GSR which is of course manual which I've owned for going-on 9 years. I have a C's Shortshifter and shifting is super smooth.

Though, I'd love the Fit to have a DSG similar to my R32, which blows away any modern "Auto" short of maybe the GT-R.

 

MT or BUST!!! On the real, the GE tranny is like butter...