2nd Generation Hond Fit

I am in the same boat. The new FIT is much more car with a much better fuel consumption than the current FIT. The current FIT has the same consumption as the CIVIC. It also costs almost the same as CIVIC. In fact here in Ontario some car salesmen are claiming that it is a bad buy. Also, it would appear that HONDA screwed up the gearing for the current FIT as some articles indicate. I have also read that the 2nd gen FIT has a 1.3L and a 1.5L engine. The 1.3L engine will not be destined for US or Canada, just the 1.5L. The consumption (Honda claims) for 1.3 is 1L of gas for 25Km, while the 1.5L FIT is 20Km per

1 liter of gas. This is still much better than the current generation FIT. It is worth waiting for as gas in 1 year's time will be $1.5 per liter.

So, the venerable 1300 is being produced once again. I would guess that my 2nd gen Civics are pretty close to a FIT comparatively...

JT

As an owner of the current Fit ('07 US Spec), I think the other posters here are on to something. The Fit is really what the Civic was 2 generations ago. The current Civic has been upsized to be what an Accord was a few years ago and the Accord is quite the mid-size now bordering on to what full size was a few years ago. I don't know if this trend is because consumers demanded more for their money or if US consumers have gotten too fat to fit in the cars. Only half kidding there....:-)

Anyway, either model isn't bad (the 08 or the 07) and if you go towards the Civic, you won't be disapointed either, really. I think it comes down to what you like, can afford, and feel comfortable in. Have fun!

You got it! Honda, like most auto manufacturers is a "growth" company. That is, their models grow in size, weight and features.

BTW, what is the weight of your FIT?

JT

Grumpy AuContraire wrote in news:LDX2j.55717 $ snipped-for-privacy@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net:

That's because models tend to move upmarket and be replaced by new ones as the years go by.

Toyota does this too. The last Tercel of 1999 was -- almost to the inch -- the same size as the 1975 Corolla. The Corolla has grown substantially since 1975.

I haven't checked, but I'd bet the new Civic is about the same size as the '76 Accord.

I'll betcha it's bigger.

Anyway, my yardstick as to "growth," was the '55 Thunderbird. A nimble (sort of) two seater that later bacame a four seater and eventually a full sized goliath. Remember the Falcon? It grew and grew eventually reing replaced by a smaller car with a "horse" name. No, not the Mustang!

Some of us just strive for a simple car to get us to where we need to go without breaking the bank. Others must have the latest 'n greatest which evidently is not always the best...

JT

Grumpy AuContraire wrote in news:eB13j.56573$ snipped-for-privacy@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net:

Probably.

That was very much on purpose. McNamara figured he had more sales in a

4-seater. He was right, actually.

Interesting that the Thunderbird eventually came to share the same chassis as those gargantuan Lincoln Mark cars. Like the one Detective Frank Cannon drove...

The Maverick! I saw one of those the other week. It was sitting by the road with a For Sale sign in the window. I always liked their styling. They were a bit small on the inside for their outside size, but you could get them with a 6 or a V8, which wasn't true for any of the Jap cars back then...

Mine is seventeen years old, has no options and power nothing but the steering. Just fine by me. I didn't even want the power steering, but the Integra came with one regardless.

I'm temporarily driving an 07 Accord sedan - it's a rental car being (mostly) paid for by insurance while my CRX is at the body shop after an SUV failed to pay attention while backing up. The Accord's a nice enough car, and it's quiet and comfortable, but it's bigger than I'd prefer. Our 99 Accord sedan doesn't feel nearly as large, and the blind spots in it aren't nearly as pronounced as in the 07 (I find the A-pillars in particular way too wide for optimum visibility, but I guess that's partially the result of having to house side-curtain airbags, which I'd just as soon not have).

Other nits to pick: I've always hated the radio/climate control console in the 03-07 Accords. I can't understand why Honda did away with the nice-looking, intuitive climate control in the 98-02 Accords, which had automatic temperature control, and replaced it with the current monstrosity.

I really like what I've seen of the Fit (I have yet to drive one). Perhaps it has to do with your observation that it's the latter-day version of an earlier-generation Civic - I'm one of those people who tends to prefer older Hondas over the newer ones.

Dave

Yep...

Yes, I think GM's contender was the Vega which could have been a pretty good vehicle had they sleeved the engines instead of having simple aluminum bores. I know several people that sleeved 'em and after they were real good cars.

Then, there was the Chevette that got great mileage but rode like a lumber wagon and was a nightmare to work on...

Yep, and you can chuckle all the way to the bank regarding the money you got to spend on other things. And you have to be commended for keeping it up in the rust/snow belt. I would never dream of it.

Maybe if your body finally rusts beyond repair, you can import a Texas beater and revitalize it for another seventeen years...

JT

On 11/28/2007 10:35 AM Grumpy AuContraire spake these words of knowledge:

The Pinto (which does refer to a horse, whereas maverick refers to a cow) was Ford's response to Chevy's Vega, which they boldly thought was the worst POS they could make. Ford showed them otherwise. Chevy responded with the Chevette, correctly surmising that even Ford couldn't make a crappier car that anyone at all would buy.

RFT!!! Dave Kelsen

Dave Kelsen wrote in news:474e0735$0$4978$ snipped-for-privacy@roadrunner.com:

Damn.

For thirty-seven years now I thought the Maverick name had to do with horses (I'm a slow learner).

Suddenly the "horns" in the Maverick logo make perfect sense.

Boy do I feel stupid.

Grumpy AuContraire wrote in news:8Ng3j.166479$ snipped-for-privacy@bgtnsc04-news.ops.worldnet.att.net:

It's an uphill struggle. And ultimately a losing one. The 'Teg will have a finite life. I just don't know when will be "enough". Might be another ten years, maybe less.

There is no rust at all where you can easily see (including in all the usual Honda trouble spots), so the car still looks good.

The body's fine, but I'm now developing a tranny whine. I believe it to be the bearings. The noise is only between 45 and 50mph, on acceleration in any gear. It's only really noticeable once the tranny oil warms up, like when I come off the highway.

However, I think 296,000 miles is a pretty good lifespan for a transmission, don't you? It'll be over 300,000 when I replace it in the spring...

The three worst cars I've ever driven were a Vega, a Chevette, and a Pontiac Sunturd, er, Sunbird. The latter gem was the car I learned to drive in after an initial preference for motorcycles during my formative years. It featured Pontiac's infamous, asthmatic "Iron Duke" four coupled to a seriously agricultural 4-speed manual. After driving it halfway across Texas one particularly hot summer, without the benefit of a working air conditioner and with a cracked exhaust manifold that made any conversation quieter than a shout practically impossible, the AMC Gremlin that temporarily replaced it felt like a Bentley.

Dave

Don't feel so bad Tegger, I thought it was a horse also, and my 84 year old mom owns a '74 Maverick. I feel even more stupid ;)

Robert A. Cunningham

snip

Oh yeah....... The Pinto, Ford's infamous firebomb.

JT

No need to feel so... UNLESS you believe everything claimed in them thar' car ads..

JT

(Whose splel chekkah wants to turn "tegger" into "egger")

Sounds like pinion noise. I'd ignore it until the radio can no longer drown it out...

JT

In the mid 1980's, my '76 Honda Civic rusted out from under me and I wanted another winter beater. I found a '76 Gremlin with the 258 cid (2bbl) for $300 and drove it nearly trouble free for four years until I took an overseas job.

It was practical, dependable but not so economical as the best I could do was about 18 mpg. Even though it was an automatic, it didn't wait for anyone!

That was back when I lived in salty RI and drove my Studebakers during the summer. Now that I'm in TX, rust (thankfully) is no longer an issue but gas mileage is, hence the gen2 Honda Civics for most tasks.

JT

...and I always thought that it meant a "wayward" cowboy...

JT