Well, I have not heard anything from a dealer. Three weeks ago I sent an e-mail to the same dealer I bought a '05 Ody from in Dec '05. No response. Then as soon as I could, last Sunday I built a Blue Fit Sport on Honda's website. No response.

It looks like the perfect storm I feared is materializing. Gas prices shooting up, people looking for econo cars and the Fit being ranked the highest by all the comparos.

I'll be back in the States soon, so I guess I'll be visiting a dealer. I was hoping just to stroll in, sign some papers, hand over a check and be a proud owner. Not looking forward to negotiating with a salesman who knows he's holding a winning hand.

 

Ain't happening any time soon....

 

Join the crowd - same here. Demand is too high, supply too low. I'm waiting six months to see how it plays out or I'll buy a new VW Rabbit instead.

 

Don't let the folks on the board scare you. Unless you are in SoCal or New England, I think you will be able to walk up and buy one. It might not be the right color or tranny, but they will be there.

For a comparo, the new Civic was being sold under MSRP only 2 months after the debut in US.

I think the Fit will be under MSRP in less than that. Why would an average joe pay MSRP on a Fit when they can deal on a Civic for little more.

 

I think if the Civic is outfitted the exact same as a Fit Sport there's a substantial price difference, yet the Fit has just about the exact same interior volume and with the hatch is smaller on the outside.

Plus, I have to have the hatch. If Honda made a Civic hatch like Mazda did when they made the Protege5 out of a Protege, that would take a lot of pressure off demand for the Fit.

I do not see the Fit going for under MSRP anytime this summer with gas prices already going up prior to peak driving season. Plus, as more Fits get on the road it's going to be "monkey see, monkey do", with people thinking "that's what I should be driving" as they fill up that big SUV.

 

I just put in a refundable deposit on a Milano Red LX. The dealer told me that I can expect to wait 6-8 weeks for it to arrive. They wouldn't budge on MSRP, but they are also not marking it up above MSRP.

 

The Fit is not a breakthrough vehicle to the AVERAGE JOE.

America is STILL the land of the SUV. Believe it or not.

We both know the Fit is a pretty good value, but the average American sees that they could get a Civic with a few less bells and whistles for close to the same amount.

Don't forget that the Civic's MPG on the window sticker is also superior to the Fit.

 

doubtful...

civic had a profit margin of 1300-1800 from invoice to msrp. fit have less then 700 dollars.

even if they do discount, you are only looking at a few hundreds bucks, and i doubt they will ever discount.

and supply will remain low, most dealerships will only get 5-10 fits each month.

 

A few hundred bucks discount is substantial on a car that only costs 13K-16K.

 

In Canada we are already able to get a few bucks off the MSRP price.

 

The Fit as a profit margain for about $900 to $1,000 on the Sport model.

Of course you doubt that they will ever discount, you're a Honda car salesman.

This depends on the location. In major cities, Honda dealers are getting 5 - 10 Fits per week. The majority of dealers in Miami/South FL are getting 10 per week and if they don't have one in stock, they will dealer trade for one.

The Fit will start selling for invoice by the end of May. Heres the reasons why...

- The marketing campaign for the Fit is just short of embarrassing so far. I doubt it will get better as Honda doesn't want to cut into its bread and butter - the Civic.

- Strong competition from Toyota and Nissan, which are cheaper, although not as well featured and equipped but some may not care. And don't forget the next generation Mini Cooper is just around the corner and that car sells itself.

- Even as gas prices approach and may exceed $4 per gallon this summer, it will not make the general car buying public suddenly sell their SUVs to buy a Fit.

- The profit margain is so low that most dealers will not hold a hard line on MSRP. I think most will whether put the consumer into the car and earn their future repeat business on future, more expensive Honda models.

- Dealers may try to upsell the consumer into a Civic instead. When we dropped by the dealer to see the Fit over the weekend, they tried to upsell us into a Civic, CRV and Accord.

- The Civic can be had for invoice now. It started going for invoice a few months after its introduction. Why would the Fit be any different? People got the Accord V6 6-speed when it was brand new in 2002 for invoice almost immediately. Again, why would the Fit be different?

- The supply on major cities is healthy. Its not limited whatsoever.

- Finally and most importantly, the Fit is just a b-segment car.

 

Well, I'm dealing with a major dealership which owns five or six Honda outlets including those in the big cities of Washington-Baltimore. I paid cash for a Honda Ody just over a year ago from them. So far, they will not contact me by e-mail.

I know exactly what they want, walk in and get talked into a Civic, which will not work, because I'll get a Mazda3 hatch before that happens even if it is a lot more than a Fit similarly equipped. Why Honda did not give the U.S. a Civic hatch the same time as they brought in the Fit is beyond me. Last Civic hatch I had was just awesome, then again, so is the P5 I bought in 2002 for $15,750 with a sunroof, alloys and four wheel disks.

Right now the sales people are sitting on a winning hand with the Fit and they know it. Still not being sold by CarsDirect. Grrrr...

BTW - People are bailing out of their gas guzzlers, check out TitanTalk, some of them despite big hits on depreciation, something a Fit buyer won't see on the same scale. You can buy new Titans for what people owe on 2-3 year old ones.

 

I think we will just have to wait and see on the great supply vs. demand debate. On thing that leads me to believe Mav might be correct is a news story I saw yesterday. ABC went to the NASCAR race in Phoenix and interviewed some fans who had driven motorhomes to the track. One guy said he got 7 mpg, and might have to limit his driving. Another said he would continue going to every race he could, regardless the gas prices. Counter that though with an OPEC official stating he didn't think $75.00 a barrel for crude was sustainable, but who knows what the oil companies will do. Apparently several big companies profit reports will be released today. That will be interesting.

I tend to think no matter what happens to the price of gas, there will be a significant portion of the American population that continues to drive their guzzlers on their merry way. There will always be only an enlightened few who see the value in a car like the Fit.

 

It will take $5 a gallon prices before any real changes in consumer behavior takes place. Even at $3 per gallon when indexed for inflation -- it is not terribly expensive. Americans have got fat and lazy about their consumption -- and (relatively) low priced crude has helped.

 

696 dollar from invoice to msrp. if you want to count holdback, thats another 500 dollars.

hence my expertise and experience. what qualify you for making any prediction.

there are only 40,000 for the entire model year. there are more then 1,200 dealerships across america, on average, they get 30-40 per year. roughly 3-4 per month. dealer trade doesnt mean you can get whatever you want, you have to have a car in equal value in return.

civic is not the bread and butter, odyssey and pilots are.

yet yaris, xa, xb, etc are all selling right around msrp.

fit is not meant to replace suvs/trucks. hence why there are only 40,000 made for the entire year.

because the profit margain is so low, that most deal will hold a hard line on msrp. sell a odyssey touring at 3,000 back of msrp still means 1500-2000 profit. sell a fit at 1000 back off msrp means a profit margain of 200-400.

if it means a mini deal either way, car sales people wont care what they sell you.

civic = mass produced, more supply then demand. fit = not enough supply to meet the demand.

majority of the dealership is marking up the car. what healthy supply??

thus the 15k price tag. scions are b-segment, why majority of them still sells for msrp??

 

I was thinking the same thing, but in reverse. Why would the average joe buy a 4 door civic when for a little less he can get the Fit which does so much more and is certainly more fun. I think there may be as much cargo room in the Fit as there is in many SUVs. The Civic can't begin to touch that. Why buy just a people mover, when you can have so much more with the Fit

 

Revenge is sweet. Can't wait to get the Fit and add on a hood scoop and wing and park it out front of the Parts Department.

Been looking at this for other ideas as well:

http://videos.streetfire.net/hottest...5029858254.htm

 

There are some dealerships (like mine) where you can do just that --- I have three sports in stock and we arent charging 3K over sticker like some dealerships in California.

Fits will take some time to meet demand but resale should remain strong for buyers

I read some comments about fits selling for invoice soon ---- maybe in Iowa or something but I can guarantee in SoCal and California in general they will not sell for invoice when buyers are paying 2-3K over sticker for one --- I hooked up a Honda-Tech member for MSRP and he drove 2 hours and walked out in 40 minutes with his car for the exact OTD price I quoted him

Markets will vary and in my market I dont see why we would discount a car like the Fit, Si or even the new 4 door Si --- with limited availability and max demand these cars will not be discounted and the price is more than fair --- I hate seeing markup but until Honda tells them something those dealerships will continue to charge it

I love Hondas and own several --- I am looking at a Black Fit or 4 door Si --- and then sometimes a TSX lol --- but either way demand will remain high in Cali and I doubt the Fit will sell for invoice here anytime soon

 

HA HA HA HA, that is GREAT! I love the 12" exhaust pipe and 5' wing!

 

Cali, wrong coast.

I thought the 12" exhaust was slightly over the edge, but hey, to each his own