Hi,
I couldn't find the answers to my questions so I thought I would post.
How safe does everyone think this car is in general? I know it has the side air bags and side reinforcements but how would it do in a crash test? I know most small Toyotas, Hyndai's do poorly in crash tests.
Who is the target customer? From looking at this web site I would think it is a teenage boy who likes to race cars. This worries me that this car is likely to get stolen.

Thanks-
Christy

 

It has class leading safety meaning of all sub-compacts in the US, it is in the top of that list. Honda always has class leading safety in all there cars and safety is always one of there biggest priorities in there cars so trust me you dont have anything to worry about on this car safety related.

 

Well in terms of safety, the FIT is great but it could be better. See, the FIT isnt built with the ACE (Advanced Compatability Engineering) structure like other Hondas (Civic, Acura RL, Honda Oddyssey). Therefore, it isnt engineered as well to handle impacts with different (bigger) cars.

The Yaris will actually have a newer, safer frame design and should do better in collisions assuming you buy the car with the extra side/side curtain airbags. So I wouldnt necessarily say that all small Toyotas do bad in crash tests..

Here are the Euro NCAP crash scores for the Fit and Yaris. Keep in mind that the Yaris had 6 airbags and the Fit has 2 airbags in these tests.

Fit
http://www.euroncap.com/content/safe...?id1=1&id2=188

Yaris
http://www.euroncap.com/images/resul...asheet%202.pdf

 

When looking at that crash test data remember the Honda comes standard with far more safety features in the US than from that test and you have to tick a lot of bundled option boxes to get those features on the Toyota. It is believed that with the additional safety features the Fit would earn a 6 star rating.

 

Well, when looking at the Euro NCAP results, additional side/side curtain airbags wouldn't have helped the frontal crash impact results. The next gen Fit will fare much better since it will be designed with the ACE structure.

Active front headrests would be a nice safety feature as well.

 

US Fit has a redesigned front nose so would fair differently to the model sold in the rest of the world.

The Fit does have head restraints NOT head rests. They work exceedingly well against wiplash. Noteable is also their inclusion for rear passengers, a very common oversight by manufacturers. Does any manufacturer do active rear headrests yet?

 

It's a Honda, so I feel pretty good about the safety of the car. Honda's always been a leader in car safety. The Fit will be my third Honda and I wouldn't consider anything else. I love my Hondas!

 

Hi,
Thanks everyone for the responses. Yes, I guess the Yaris is supposed to be competiting with the Fit and it is cheaper. But, then I noticed that it is only a 2 door so that takes it out of the running for me.
I will have to test drive one when they come out. Maybe it will convince me to part with my dilapidated Neon.
-Christy

 

The front was redesigned so that the bumper would meet the 5mph requirement. I really doubt it would affect the frontal crash score, but we will have to wait for crash test results to make a conclusion.

BTW, the new 06 USDM civic has active front head restraints that move forward when you are rear ended.