RSS
Home
Road Test: 2009 Honda Fit Sport w/Nav car review, a whole lot o' Shakin' goin' on
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
If the Shakers built an automobile, it would be the Honda Fit. Of course, the Shakers, an ascetic religious group of the 19th century, didn’t have the technology to manufacture a car. However they were extremely practical and innovative people, from their round barns to their plain but sturdy furniture and a lifestyle that eschewed waste and extravagance but didn’t prohibit fun or a cheery outlook. Just like the Honda Fit.
The Honda Fit is one of several practical tall-sedans on the market today, and it is imbued with the simple qualities of the Shakers. The interior—except perhaps the zoomy instrument panel with its beveled surrounds and bright blue numerals—doesn’t impress one with plush seating or radically contoured panels. Instead, the Fit has comfortable supportive front seating and a back seat that’s serviceably good for children.
There’s a feel of solidity to all the pieces, however, from the solid thunk of the doors when they’re closed to the substantial feel of the glovebox door. The seat fabric feels like it has years, and more importantly, miles of service ahead.The Honda Fit’s back seat has the kind of innovation for which the Shakers were famous. The Shakers, for example, had hooks on the wall where they’d hang their chairs to sweep the floors, important because they ate communally in large dining halls. The Fit’s back seat, by comparison, not only folds forward 60/40 to create an almost flat load floor, the seatback can remain upright and the seat cushion fold upwards for a large cargo area accessible via the rear doors. No more throwing stuff on the back seat unless you want to. One Fit trick is that when the seat is in its full upright and locked position, there’s room underneath it, big enough for a small cooler, perhaps jackets or whatever. The Shakers would like that.
View the photo gallery for more pictures of the Honda Fit Sport.
The Shakers would also like the Honda Fit’s cup holders. There are two in the usual location on the center console but Honda put another at each end of the dash and there are two more on the rear end of the center console for back seat occupants. A 12-volt outlet is at the front of the center console with an aux port of the audio conveniently beside it.
The rear seat occupants get an extra bit of knee room from concave front seat backs and there’s plenty of toe room under the seats as well. Other thumbs up from the Shakers, if they did that sort of thing.
The Honda Fit has an efficient shape. There’s little room wasted for hood, the windshield kicked way forward at the base for aerodynamics. It puts the windshield far from the driver and means that the Fit has to have little corner windows. Some drivers didn’t like the windowettes or having A-pillars so far forward the blocked the view somewhat. But overall, the outward view from the drivers seat was very good, thanks in part to the more than generous headroom.
The engine in the Honda Fit is a naturally-aspirated four-cylinder displacing meager 1.5-liters. Rated at 117 horsepower, the Fit isn’t exactly a stormin’ Norman on the road. It requires more planning on entrance ramps and overtaking—and even Shakers have to get around traffic sometimes—but planning is the Shaker way. Then small engine is smooth, however, and so quiet at idle that only the tachometer betrays it. And sure to delight our imaginary Shaker was our all-around real-word mostly-local ordinary-driving 33.7 mpg.
Our 2009 Honda Fit Sport was equipped with the five-speed manual transmission—a five-speed automatic is optional—the Shakers might have approved the latter. It’s simpler to use and even actually gets better combined fuel economy than the manual transmission cars. The Fit, however, had light controls, the shifter moving easily and the clutch having a soft and wide take-up. It would be a good car for teaching a neophyte driver the skill of operating a stick shift.
Handling of the Honda Fit is more getting around town than drifting around corners. It’s tall and the tires are relatively narrow, so while it’s competent it’s not a sporting set of wheels.
Pricing for the 2009 Honda Fit starts at $14,750 with the manual transmission. The Fit Sport adds trim items—Shakers would have none of that—and audio upgrades, which would make Shakers glad, at least if they could have simple hymns on CD. The Sport also has, well, sportier suspension, including a rear anti-roll bar. The Fit Sport has a base price of $16,260. Our test Fit Sport, equipped with navigation, raised the base price to $18,110. Typical of Honda, there are no options listed or needed. Trim levels come complete.
The Honda Fit’s nav system was easy to use, gave accurate directions and would save time and money wandering around. The Shakers didn’t like to waste time, though they were also parsimonious so the nav and several audio system improvements for the added cost might have sent Brother Shaker shopping for a portable GPS. Ditto for the automatic which adds about $800 to the price of the Fit.
Finally, what would the Shakers think about the Orange Revolution Metallic paint of our test Honda Fit? We think they’d like it. Shakers were fond of bright colors, often painting the interior walls of their buildings in bright yellows and blues. A pumpkin orange probably wouldn’t have come to them but doubtless they could have gone with it.Alas, we’ll never know, because there are no more Shakers. The sect didn’t believe in sex, and importing orphans only did so much to quell the inevitable. We like to think, however, that the Shakers would have liked the Honda Fit, even if they couldn’t hang it on the wall to sweep under.
Illustrations: 2009 Honda Fit Sport. Photos by John Matras.
| Layout | Front transverse engine, front drive |
Engine | 1.5L/117-hp 16-v SOHC I-4 |
| Displacement, cc | 1497 |
| Compression ratio | 10.4:1 |
| Material, block/head | aluminum/aluminum |
| Valve train | 16-valve SOHC variable valve timing |
| Horespower @ rpm | 117 @ 6600 |
| Torque, lb-ft @ rpm | 106 @ 4800 |
| Maximum revs, rpm | 6800 |
| Fuel type | regular unleaded |
| Transmission | five-speed manual |
| Body/Suspension | Unit-body/full independent |
| Suspension, front | MacPherson strut, anti-roll bar |
| Suspension, rear | Torsion-beam, anti-roll bar |
| Steering, type | rack & pinion, electric power assist |
| Turning circle, ft | 34.4 |
| Wheels | 16 s 8-inch alloy |
| Tires | 185/55R16 all-season |
| Dimensions & capacities | |
| Length, in. | 161.6 |
| Width, in. | 66.7 |
| Height, in. | 60.0 |
| Wheelbase, in. | 98.4 |
| Cargo volume, cu ft, seat up/down | 20.6 / 57.3 |
| Fuel tank, U.S. gal. | 10.6 |
| Performance | |
| Fuel econ., EPA, mpg, city / hwy | 27/33 |
| Fuel econ., observed | 33.7 |
| Base price | $18,100 |
| Safety features: Front, front-side and front/rear side curtain airbags, anti-lock brakes, vehicle stability | std |
| Interior features: navigation with voice recognition, 160-watt AM/FM/CD w/ 6 speakers incl. MP3/WMA playback, USB audio interface, air conditioning, power windows w/ driver auto down/up, power door locks, remote locking, tilt/telescoping steering wheel, rear underseat hiddn storage, cruise control | std |
| Exterior features: underbody kit, rear roofline spoiler, rear wiper with washer, halogen headlamps, fog lights | std |
| Destination chg | 670 |
| Total | $18,780 |
Subscribe to this examiner's articles below--it's free--or follow on twitter @autoreview.
Related Articles:
Comments
Take that, reputation of cheap and chintzy. We almost tried to start the engine but realized the it was running--thanks, Mr. Tachometer--just before …
We told you about the 2011 Porsche Boxster Spyder, a special stripped-down and hotted-up version of the Porsche Boxster S in an article yesterday. The …
- 2010 Reviews
- 2010 Audi R8 5.2 FSI V10
- 2010 Chevrolet Camaro 2LT RS
- 2010 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor
- 2010 Ford Taurus Limited AWD
- 2010 Ford Taurus SHO
- 2010 Hyundai Elantra SE
- 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe 3.8 Track
- 2010 Kia Forte
- 2010 Lexus HS 250h
- 2010 Lexus IS 350 C
- 2010 Lexus RX350
- 2010 Lexus RX 450h
- 2010 Mazda CX-7 i Sport
- 2010 Mazda Mazdaspeed3
- 2010 Mazda MX-5 Miata
- 2010 Mercedes-Benz GLK350 4Matic
- 2010 Nissan 370Z Roadster
- 2010 Porsche Panamera 4S
- 2010 Toyota Prius
- 2010 Toyota Prius II
- 2009 Reviews
- 2009 Acura TSX
- 2009 Audi A4 Avant 2.0T quattro
- 2009 Audi A6 3.0 TSFI
- 2009 BMW 135i Coupe
- 2009 BMW Z4 sDrive 3.5i
- 2009 Cadillac Escalade Hybrid 4WD
- 2009 Chevrolet Aveo5 1LT
- 2009 Chevrolet Kodiak pickup truck
- 2009 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible
- 2009 Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid
- 2009 Chevrolet Traverse FWD LTZ
- 2009 Dodge Journey SXT AWD
- 2009 Dodge Ram 1500 Laramie Quad 4x4
- 2009 Ford Fiesta
- 2009 Ford Flex Limited AWD
- 2009 Ford Fusion SEL I-4
- 2009 GMC Acadia SLT-2
- 2009 Honda Civic Hybrid
- 2009 Honda Fit Sport w/Nav
- 2009 Honda Ridgeline RTL
- 2009 Hyundai Genesis 3.8
- 2009 Infiniti G37 Convertible
- 2009 Infiniti M45x
- 2009 Jaguar XF Premium Luxury
- 2009 Jaguar XKR Porfolio Coupe
- 2009 Jeep Patriot Limited 4x4
- 2009 Kia Borrego
- 2009 Kia Borrego EX 4x4
- 2009 Land Rover LR3
- 2009 Lincoln MKZ
- 2009 Lotus Exige S 260 Sport
- 2009 Lotus Exige S
- 2009 Maserati Quattroporte S
- 2009 Mazda Mazda6 s Grand Touring
- 2009 Mercedes-Benz CL550 4Matic
- 2009 Mercedes-Benz SLK300
- 2009 Mitsubishi Outlander XLS 4WD
- 2009 Nissan 350Z Roadster Touring
- 2009 Nissan 370Z Sport
- 2009 Nissan Murano SL AWD
- 2009 Nissan NISMO 370Z
- 2009 Pontiac G6 4-cyl
- 2009 Pontiac G8
- 2009 Pontiac G8 GXP
- 2009 Pontiac Vibe AWD
- 2009 Porsche Boxster RS60
- 2009 Saturn Aura XR 4-cyl
- 2009 Saturn Vue 2 Mode Hybrid
- 2009 Scion xB
- 2009 Subaru Legacy 3.0R Limited
- 2009 Suzuki SX4 Crossover AWD Technology
- 2009 Toyota 4Runner Sport Urban Runner
- 2009 Toyota Camry Hybrid
- 2009 Toyota Highlander/Hybrid
- 2009 Toyota Matrix XRS
- 2009 Toyota RAV4 Limited 4-cyl. 4WD
- 2009 Toyota Sequoia Platinum
- 2009 Toyota Sienna XLE AWD
- 2009 Toyota Venza 4-cyl. AWD
- 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI
- 2009 Volkswagen Tiguan
- 2009 Volkswagen CC VR6 4Matic
- 2009 Volkswagen Touareg 3.0 TDI
- 2008 Reviews
- 2008 Chevrolet Equinox Fuel Cell
- 2008 Bentley Continental GT
- 2008 BMW X6 xDrive 5.0i
- 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid
- 2008 Kia Amanti
- 2008 Lexus IS-F
- 2008 Mazda MX-5 Miata Grand Touring PRHT
- 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X MR
- 2008 Nissan Cube JDM
- 2008 Saturn Vue Green Line
- 2008 Scion xD
- 2008 Volkswagen Passat Turbo
- 2008 Volkswagen Toureg V8
- 2008 Volvo XC70 3.2
- 2008 Volvo XC70 D5
- 1971 Honda N600
