If it seems we've been skipping the maintenance details surrounding our Honda Fit Sport, we haven't. Truth is, our Fit has been one of the most reliable, trouble-free vehicles to grace our Four Seasons fleet.
"Our Fit quietly managed to crack the 20,000-mile mark over the past weekend," wrote road test coordinator Mike Ofiara. "It doesn't require the constant attention that some of our other long-term test cars do, it doesn't call for service but for every 10,000 miles or so. The car is as tight today as it was when Honda delivered it ten months ago; its tires are wearing great and the brakes are still strong. The Fit is what you want a car to be: a reliable mode of transportation that returns good gas mileage."
At the end of the day, the Fit is just that. "It's a great commuter," writes copy editor Rusty Blackwell, "thanks to its excellent outward visibility, easy ingress and egress, and comfortable seats. The slick five-speed gearbox is a joy to operate, but like some of my coworkers, I wish that it had a sixth gear."
Blackwell also wishes Honda's rear seat had a little more versatility, especially when installing a car seat for his young daughter.
"Yes, if you drop the rear "Magic" seats, they create a very useful, low, flat load floor. But with the child seat strapped in the middle of the rear 60/40 bench (the Fit has a handy headliner-mounted high tether for the middle position), that's not an option. We have to pack carefully."
2009 Honda Fit Sport
Base price (with dest.): $16,930
Price as tested: $18,780
Overview
Body Style: 4-door hatchback
Accommodation: 5-passenger
Construction: Steel unibody
Powertrain
Engine: i-VTEC 16-valve SOHC I-4
Displacement: 1.5 liters
Power: 117 hp @ 6600 rpm
Torque: 106 lb-ft @ 4800 rpm
Transmission: 5-speed manual
Drive: Front-wheel
Fuel economy: 27/33/29 mpg (city/hwy/combined)
Chassis
Steering: Electric power-assisted rack-and-pinion
Turns lock-to-lock: 2.5
Turning Circle: 34.4 ft
Suspension, Front: MacPherson strut
Suspension, Rear: Torsion beam
Brakes F/R: Power-assisted ventilated disc/drum; ABS
Wheels: 15-in aluminum alloy
Tires: Dunlop SP Sport (all-season)
Tire Size: 185/55 R16 83H
Measurements
Headroom F/R: 40.4 / 39.0 in
Legroom F/R: 41.3 / 34.5 in
Shoulder Room F/R: 52.7 / 51.3 in
Wheelbase: 98.4 in
Track F/R: 58.1 / 57.4 in
L x W x H: 161.6 x 66.7 x 60.0 in
Cargo Capacity: 20.6 / 57.3 cu ft (rear/with seats folded)
Weight: 2534 lb
Weight Dist. F/R: 62 / 38%
Fuel Capacity: 10.6 gal
Est. Range: 315 miles
Fuel Grade: 87 octane
Standard Equipment
ABS
Front, side and side curtain airbags
Tire pressure monitoring system
Air conditioning
Power windows, locks, and remote start
Tilt and telescopic steering wheel
Trip computer
MP3 jack, USB interface
Options
None
