alright i have come into an interesting dillema. my gf is looking for a new car for her and her 10 month year old daughter. i really want to try to get her into an auto sport but im not sure if thats the best car for her. i did get a chance to throw the car seat in and take both of them for a spin and i even took her mom with us to get the full idea of room and space. it seemed to work alright but with the stiff springs i was really nervous about going too far away from home so i only took short trips (didnt want to shake her too much with all the bumps). i guess what im asking is for a real world opinon from family types with real world experiences and what they think. the price range and safety is spot on im just not sure. help me out guys and let me know what you think. thanks in advance.

Joshua

 

im no doc but im a parent. at 10months your gf's daughter's neck and
back should be strong to support her head so should be fine with
a slightly stiffer ride given that you're using the correct infant carrier/
child seat. check your tire pressure too cause at 32psi it shouldn't feel
harsh at all. my car was very smooth in stock form.

but lowering springs will probably be too stiff for her. i take my 3yr old
often in my lowered FitSport, but my younger son i usually take in
our LegacyWgn which is a much softer ride if we're going to do any
highway driving.

 

she has one of those really crazy expensive car seats. im not sure what brand or model but it has some really thick padding on it. my car really isnt all that bouncy or harsh but with the terrible roads in south georgia it does get a bit wild. i just wanted to try my car and see for the space and room inside for the car seat. if my gf is gonna get one she isnt gonna do all the crazy mods like i have. maybe navi and an arm rest but thats about it.

 

it really is a great family car. i mean i tote my neice around. granite she is 2 but she is quit comfy in her little car seat. it holds my girlfriend with her full grown German shepherd as well. i mean...the headroom is enough for lots of things, and it make look small but the cabin space is huge!

 

It would be great for a cheap family car but, If you already have a fit..why not get something else so you can have a fit for you to drive and her car to drive to have something different....like a pilot or an element.

 

she is in nursing school right now so money is the biggest problem. i would love to get her into a crv but thats too big of a payment right now until she can work more hours.

 

if she's going to keep her suspension stock i dont see any issues.
plus, if she's sporting some nice supportive child seats should be fine.

 

Have you looked into an 01-05 Civic its priced very reasonably and I have found the ride is more comfy than the new Civics and Fits. That generation of Civic was built more around comfort and economy, and its a nice car. Pretty reliable too....

I dont have a fam with lil kids so can't comment on that personally but the care does not pitch as much as other cars when tooling around. Honestly I think the fit would be a great idea for you...I mean her auto would be more comfy too, and then there would be two versatile vehicles around and should anything happen the learning curve would be low and problems would maybe easier to identify earlier on. What do you think on that one?

 

thats kind of the idea i was going for when i thought of getting her a fit. she loves mine but she cant drive a stick and im worried my tranny wont last through her learning period so i gave up on trying for now. haha. thats the whole idea of the auto. the fact that i have the car figured out will help too in case she has a problem since as of right now she is out of state thats anouther concern that i had. thanks everyone for your input thus far

 

the fit is a great family car. Theres a ton of space in the cabin and with those magic seats in the back. it just helps the versatility of the car and what you want to do. As far as long trips go, gas mileage wise its great and regarding the ride quality. The seats do get a bit uncomfortable after a couple of hours but what car doesnt. I say stock the ride quality is nice. not to soft and not to stiff

 

The fit is def a family car. I have a 6month old and the ride is not bad for her at all, it puts her to sleep everytime we go for a drive.

 

i donno... i had a gen7 civic (04) and the suspension was terrible. too
bouncy. then my gen8 civic (06) felt pretty good, nice and comfy..but
i still like my FitSport better.

 

There should be no problem at all for child developement with the Fit's suspension. When my oldest was born I had a 94 Mazda MX-6 that was rolling on rubber bands for tires and had a extremely lowered race suspension on it and the wife had a slightly modified 91 Integra GSR. There was no problem for the first or our second kds in either car. Well there was space wise, but that's a different story when you have 2 two-door sport car and two large child seats.

 

You should be just fine with a stock automatic Fit. I was forced to buy an automatic in September because my wife refuses to learn to drive a manual. We have three kids ages 8, 6. and 4 and they fit in the car with all their junk just fine and are completly comfortable for the ride ahead. If the trip were long enough though, 2+ hours, we would take my wife's '06 Odyssey EX-L but for the trips around town the Fit works out great!

 

Wonderful family car.

It has a hatchback and four doors. What more could you want?

It's funny, my fiancee used to think that the Jazz/Fit was a large-ish vehicle, but after being in the US for the past few years, her view of car size has slowly changed to American standards.

 

I don't think it would be a problem... Granted, my daughter is 4, but we love the fact that it's a 4-door. We traded in a a 2-door Tercel and that was just a challenge to do any type of traveling in. However, we still use my wife's Civic for travel since she's learning to drive the Fit (stick) and I don't want to have to drive the entire way...

 

Well thats good...I was getting worried at a current trend towards
digression... (comfort wise) the new suss is way...WAY better performance wise...but again the gen7 was built more for comfort...

I actually couldn't stand the 08 Civic coupe comfort wise...neither could by GF and buddy... (with regards to seat stiffness/ tightness smaller/cramped/cluttered feeling interior and the ride was too harsh over even slight road blemishes...jolt like...
But we all dug the 01 Civic coupe...
Maybe the sedans have a slightly diff suss.. set up?

maybe my buddy, girlfriend, and I are defective I know I probably am

 

No unless they will never grow?

 

See, I just don't see that being the issue. There are plenty of people in other countries that use these vehicles to transport their families in.

It's only the US where we need a vehicle capable of towing 10,000lbs or more to transport a family of four.

 

I thought it had more to do with it/if being less comfy than other vehicles
(like is it a poor enough choice to move on to another vehicle perhaps?)

I see what you mean but as much as I obsess about classic minis I never would have nor ever will recomend it to someone with family priority in mind...and it is and was and awsome car! (I know big exaggeration but you get the gist )