The 1996 Honda Civic HX CVT got 34 city/38 highway.
The 5 speed got 35 city/43 highway, AND THAT WAS 10 YEARS AGO!

Not to mention that the Honda Fit gets in US MPG about 35 city/ 50 highway over seas. If you calculate the weight differential between the us model and over seas the difference is only 300 pounds. Which would lessen the mpg to about 3 less. SO THE US MODEL SHOULD BE GETTING ABOUT 32 CITY/ 47 HIGHWAY, BUT WITH THE NEW ADVANCEMENT IN THE HONDA ENGINE THE MPG WOULD BE EVEN HIGHER!!!!! LIKE 33 -35 CITY / 47 - 50 HIGHWAY!!!!! SO it's no wonder people are pissed off that the US MODEL IS ONLY GETTING 33/38!!!! HONDA MUST BE WORRIED THAT THE HIGH MPG WILL TAKE AWAY SALES FROM ITS MONEY MAKING HIGHBRIDS AND CIVICS!!! SURE HONDA WILL ATTRACT SOME YOUNG BUYERS TO BE LOYAL TO HONDA, BUT THEY MADE THE MISTAKE OF DOWN GRADING THE AMERICAN MODEL. MANY PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN LOYAL TO HONDA ARE DEFECTING TO BE LOYAL TO OTHER BRANDS SINCE HONDA GAVE THE AMERICANS A GAS GUZZLER!!!!!!!

 

welcome to last week

 

Enough with the soap box rant. Car hasn't even hit the dealers yet and you bring up all this drama.

 

bsgump, your multiple postings of the same all caps shouting rant, however valid they may be, are nonetheless making you look like a juvenile idiot.

You would be more effective if you employed some eloquence, articulation, and didn't say stupid things like "MANY PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN LOYAL TO HONDA ARE DEFECTING TO BE LOYAL TO OTHER BRANDS SINCE HONDA GAVE THE AMERICANS A GAS GUZZLER!!!!!!!".

Honda had record sales last year. With Motor Trend magazine giving Honda both car of the year for the Civic, and truck of the year for the Ridgeline, I doubt that many people are defecting to other brands.

 

1) First of all, please stop yelling about everything in ALL CAPS, it's almost too annoying to read.

2) No loyal Honda owner is going to "abandon the brand" because of them putting out the Fit. You think just because someone isn't thrilled with the car, they're going to go out and buy a piece of crap Chevy? Yeah RIGHT. If I end up not liking the Fit enough (which I am not going to decide until I actually DRIVE one), I will buy a new or used Civic or a used Acura. But change brands? Haha! Never! I've gotten almost 180,000 trouble-free miles out of my 1999 Civic, why would I go out and buy another brand? I'd have to be nuts! Nothing else on this Earth lasts longer and is more reliable or fairly priced than a Honda.

3) Any car that gets in the 30's MPG is not a "gas guzzler." That statement is completely ridiculous.

4) Buy this car if it suits you, don't buy it if it doesn't. But don't come on here and whine, whine, whine. There is no such thing as a perfect car that is perfect for everyone and ideal for every kind of driving scenario.

5) If you want a Honda economy hatchback, this is it. You have no other choice, unless you want to go back about 10+ years when they made the Civic in a hatch. It's hard to find one of these without a gazillion miles on it, or that hasn't been tricked out and modified by some teenager. I know, because I've tried. (You could also consider a pre-2006 Civic Si, but this is not an "economy" car. The 2005 Si, for example, has a 160-horsepower engine and gets, at most, 30 mpg highway. And you will likely pay higher insurance rates too, many insurance companies consider this a sportscar and you will pay more to have it on the road.)

5) Most Importantly: It's just a CAR, people! We all need to CHILL OUT. It's JUST..... A...... CAR.

 

OK calling the fit a gas guzzler is just plain stupid. I can understand being disapointed that the IDSI/5 speed combination didn't make it to the US. But its no gas guzzler. I'm still hopeing we'll see other drive train combinations at a later date.

 

I did the math. 24 km / liter works out to 56 miles per gallon. That's what Honda's website says the Fit gets in Japan.

I'm very disappointed. That's 18 mpg more than the US model. I'd be interested in reading their reason for that difference; if anyone has come across it, please post.

 

24 km/liter... is that for the 1.5L or the 1.3L? I have a feeling its the 1.3L.

 

The Japanese market 1.3L Fit is rated at 24Km/L
the 1.5L Fit with CVT 7sp is rated at 20Km/L

Lots of reasons why the US Fit gets lower mileage.

D

 

Lets not forget that every (Major) country has its own independent testing procedures (USA = EPA). So our test controls that determine what our gas mileage here for US cars are different than that of another nation. There are other variables involved such as they quality of gas and the main purpose of the vehicle (sporty or economy based).

 

I'm getting about 12 km/liter or about 29 mpg average on my 1.5L i-DSI CVT Jazz in Thailand. The car is about 3 months old, and has about 4,000 km. I also have 17" rims on the vehicle, the stock 15" will get about 1 km/liter more. The mileage will most likely improve as time goes on. That is driving in Bangkok city traffic 75%, and 25% on the expressway (cruising avg. 110 km/hr or about 70 mph). Keep in mind that I'm heavy footed on the Jazz, as I drive a 3.6L CTS here in the U.S. I'm running 91 on the Jazz, as 91 is as low as it goes for gas there. Honda recently had a gas miser rally from Bangkok to the province (3 hours out), they kept it steady at 90 km/hr, no stop, and most Jazz were getting about 21-22 km/liter or about 51 mpg.

 

1. Imperial gallons does not equal US gallons. Try adjusting your numbers by minus 20%.

2. Consideration must be placed on country-by-country variances due to different testing methods. Japan and Europe does not use the US EPA to determine their ratings.

3. I might be wrong, but I believe these very high MPG numbers are based from the European Fit (Jazz) that uses the L12A and L13A i-DSI engines. The US version has L15A VTEC engine.

4. The USDM Fit weighs about 100 to 200 lbs more than the JDM and Euro Fit/Jazz due to different bumpers, additional safety features and drive-by-wire systems.

5. The USDM Fit is geared differently and optimized for low end acceleration. American Honda Motors (AHM) knows that low end acceleration is important to the majority of US drivers. A Fit with the L13A engine producing 80HP and turning in a 12-second 0-60 time will not sell well in the US, despite its hybrid-like fuel economy.

The Fit is designed as a city car. 33 MPG city is not bad, in fact, it is the highest among current available non-hybrid/non-diesel cars.

 

No, the Toyota Yaris which is rated at 34/40 is the highest among current available non-hybrid/non-diesel cars.

 

and the toyota yaris is also a cheap looking little rolling marshmallow with a center mounted speedo and NO TACH. 'nuff said.

 

Hi Mav,

Yes, I did use US gallons, not imperial gallons. 24 Km / L = 56.45 mpg

And yes, all the reasons you listed above are why the US fit gets less mileage. I would have been a buyer if Honda had provided a 1.3 liter high-mileage model. With gas having spiked over $3 / gallon, there would certainly be a market for such a car.

I've owned 2 Honda cars, lawn mower, generator and pressure washer, but that hasn't made me blindly brand-loyal or an apologist. The truth is the truth.

 

Who freaking cares! That wasn't the point oh worshipper of all things Honda. Some of you people are so blinded by your convictions, you're incapable of seeing anything new that comes along that might be better in some or all ways, because of your tunnel vision.

There was a day when Honda built crap, and other manufacturers who are building crap now, or built crap in recent history, may build cars, or be building cars as good or better than Honda. I've owned two Honda's, one of which I still drive daily, so I speak from experience.

I don't care how damn ugly the Yaris is (and I agree it is goofy looking), the point was that the Fit at 33/38 is not the highest mileage car amongst non-deisel/non-hybrids. At 34/40 the Yaris is.

 

The Yaris is NOT available as of yet. I'm comparing the Fit against current available cars. Of course, next year, in five years, in a decade, things will be different.

 

And the Fit is? No, the Fit will show up in Showrooms at about the same time as the Yaris.

If your referring to worldwide availabilty, yes the Fit is currently available in some countries, and also sold as the Jazz. The Yaris is currently sold in Japan as the Vitz.

 

A market yes, but a very small market. Honda wants to sell 40K plus Fits per year, not 10K.

As for brand loyalty, I'm not blinded by Honda. I'm one of biggest critics of Honda in regards to not bringing their Type-R models here to the US, not making the S2000 Type V available in the US, giving the US the F22C engine for the S2000 in MY2004+ while the rest of the world was getting the F20C, the TL's FWD and the NSX's 14 year lifecycle. I currently own one Honda product, my S2000, one of three Honda cars that I've owned in my lifetime. I also owned BMW's, Toyota and Mitsubishi.

Like you said the truth is the truth, and as such stating that the Fit is a gas guzzler is far from away truth.

 

I agree, the Fit is anything but a gas guzzler, but considering the source of that statement, discussing the issue is not worthy of merit. In other words, it was a stupid statement, therefore we are wasting our time talking about it.