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The teeny Honda that dared to be big is back with a redefined package for 2008.
What's this? A brand-new Honda Fit? Didn't it just arrive in America last year?
Well, yes, but Japan and Europe have known about the superb Honda Fit since 2001,
when it first landed in their respective showrooms and quickly set sales records.
It simply took a further five years to reach us here in the U.S. as Honda struggled
with the "ifs" and "buts" of introducing such a small car in America. In the end,
the combination of Scion's marketing success and skyrocketing gasoline prices finally
forced American Honda to bring the Honda Fit to the U.S.
Now it's time for a major model change, and the new Honda Fit will be introduced
at the 2007 Tokyo Auto Show. About a year from now, it will reach America as the
2009 Honda Fit.
Bigger in Almost Every Way
Not surprisingly, the all-new 2009 Honda Fit follows the same recipe as its predecessor.
Centered as before around its centrally located fuel tank — the key ingredient in
the packaging formula — the Fit gets a tweaked design look, more interior space
and, wait for it, improved ride and handling, an issue of some controversy with
its predecessor.
As Project Chief Engineer Kohei Hitomi says, "When you're on a good thing, don't
just stick to it. Make it better." At our drive of a production prototype of the
new Fit at Honda's test track in Northern Japan, Hitomi and his design team were
beaming with confidence as they pulled the covers from the new subcompact.
Artfully maintaining that same sharp-nosed, high-roofed look, the Honda designers
have added a sportier flavor to the car. There's also an optional panoramic skyroof.
By moving the windshield forward by 4.7 inches, the stylists have created a cabin
that feels as roomy as that of a Civic. Clever triangular windows have been sculptured
into the side front doors to improve visibility, as the A-pillars of the previous
design were thought by many owners to be obstructive.
The wheelbase has been increased 2 inches to 98.4 inches, while the overall length
goes up 2.2 inches to 153.5 inches. The Fit is also 0.8 inch wider, while the front
track is 1.4 inches wider and the rear track is 1.2 inches wider. It's surprising
that the overall weight gain is a meager 22 pounds.
An Interior Where Brave Meets Bold
Inside the Fit's cabin, it's apparent that quality levels are up, with improved
plastics, more supportive seats and a tilt-and-telescoping steering wheel. Meanwhile,
a new dashboard layout looks softer, reflecting a special effort by stylists to
appeal to women.
Just as with the recently introduced Mini Clubman, the stretched wheelbase of the
new Fit primarily improves rear-seat legroom, which has increased 1.6 inches. Honda
has also decided to do away with the spare tire, and this brave move increases cargo
capacity by 1.5 cubic feet to a total of 14.2 cubic feet.
Answering the customary call for even more cupholders, the Fit now offers a staggering
total of 10!
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Honda at Its Best
In Europe and Japan, the Fit is available with either a 1.3-liter or 1.5-liter inline-4
engine, but the U.S. market will get only the all-new 1.5-liter. The incorporation
of i-VTEC variable valve timing helps the 1.5-liter engine produce 118 horsepower
at 6,000 rpm (an improvement of 9 hp) and 107 pound-feet of torque at 4,800 rpm
(a very useful increase of 21 lb-ft).
We spent much of our time in the 1.5-liter model with the five-speed manual transmission
that will come to the U.S. in about a year. With a handheld stopwatch, we clocked
this car to 60 mph in 8.9 seconds. We also drove the car with the Japan-spec continuously
variable transmission (CVT), which features shift paddles on the steering wheel
that can choose among seven gear ratios.
The combination of the 1.5-liter engine with i-VTEC and drive-by-wire throttle represents
Honda's engine technology at its best. We had such an early look at this engine
that Honda hadn't yet built the proper i-VTEC engine cover for it and the engineers
wouldn't let us take any pictures as a result. But we can tell you that it gives
the Fit a whole new personality.
Gently squeeze the throttle in light traffic or plant your boot for a quick getaway
and the Fit responds briskly and effortlessly. Ample torque is on tap from as low
as 2,000 rpm and the engine is always willing. While we sampled the silky-smooth
CVT, it is the deliciously mechanical five-speed manual transmission that rewards
you with short-throw action and precise gear engagement.
Supple, Yet in Control
Beneath the new look lies a thoroughly reengineered chassis, and improvements (especially
in the front bulkhead) have improved structural rigidity by a stunning 164 percent.
While this means the doors now close with a deeper, heavier thud of quality, the
Fit's ride and handling are the prime beneficiaries.
This will please a lot of drivers of the first-generation Fit that found the ride
quality too harsh. Chief engineer Hitomi tells us, "We are very aware that the predecessor
was a little firm, so we spent a lot of time fixing that. But we believe we've got
it just right now." While the ride is still firm, the Fit now soaks up the bumps
far better than before.
Apart from making the front and rear tracks wider, the size of the front bushings
has been increased and the steering geometry has been rehashed. At the rear, the
torsion-beam setup has gained another 0.8 inch in travel, and Hitomi explains, "Two
vertically mounted stiffeners positioned inside the D-pillar above the rear springs
work in conjunction with the other rear modifications to bring the rear end around
quicker and flatter."
Minicar, Not Minivan
It all works, as the new Fit now turns in superbly, gobbling up corners without
rolling onto its door handles. More important, once you turn into a corner, you
feel the rear end come around obediently, as if it actually wants to follow the
line scribed by the front tires, so there's less understeer than before. The Fit
now feels more like a small sedan than a small minivan.
The new suspension calibration also improves straight-line stability. On Honda's
high-speed proving ground, the Fit felt as stable at 110 mph as it did at 50 mph.
And the brakes also offer loads of stopping power, while the pedal feels firm and
uncompromised by brake fade.
The Fit employs a new power-assisted rack-and-pinion steering with a revised rack
to reduce steering effort a low speed. This is a fine thing in parking lots, but
we found the steering lacked any feel up to about 20 mph. As speed rises, the power-assist
gradually increases steering effort to a more reassuring level.
On the Way to the USA
The Fit has been a huge success in America. When the car was introduced in April
2006, Honda expected to sell 33,000 examples in the first year. Sales unexpectedly
surged, and some 40,000 Fits reached the street. For 2008, Honda plans to put 70,000
Fits on the American road.
The Fit that will come to the U.S. will be the Japanese-market 1.5-liter RS in most
of its basic specifications. The Fit Sport will feature the RS model's body kit
of aerodynamic devices as well as taller wheels and tires, much as it does now.
The new Fit addresses all the criticisms leveled at the current car, with improved
ride and handling plus a more spacious and more stylish interior. No longer does
it seem like a downmarket Honda built to a price point. There might be some concerns
in the U.S. that the 2009 Honda Fit will cannibalize Civic sales as the little car
continues to surge in popularity, yet it is the Honda way to relentlessly improve
its products, no matter what the consequences might be.
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