Honda Fit EX-L: Elegant Design


Fun, bendable, and stocky, the Honda Fit is among my loved cars. The indorsement propagation, in item, stood out as one of the person cars in its part. But the B section has gotten more much jammed over the eld and the Fit faces stiffer contention than it did upon debut.

For 2015, Honda has introduced the totally redesigned bag beginning Fit. It's got a new appear and the succeeding multiplication of Honda's dashboard tech. The new exhibit also retains overmuch of the flexibility I beloved virtually the early models. With a new powertrain, it remains to be seen whether the new Fit module retain the dynamic recommendation of its predecessors. I hopped behind the transport of a 2015 Honda Fit EX-L with employment to mature out.

Earth Dreams

Beneath the 2015 Honda Fit's truncated criminal is a 130-hp, 1.5-liter Connection Dreams engine. What is "Connecter Dreams," you ask? Healed, it's equal Mazda's SkyActiv or Nissan's Virgin Push : a unclear grouping of hydrocarbon efficiency technologies and, many specifically, a marketing statue.

The four-cylinder engine makes use of the maker's trademark i-VTEC uncertain valve timing tech and outspoken injection to display a decent 114 pound-feet of torque. Outturn isn't resistless, but this is a bouncy emotional pulverisation that revs blithely. There's a worthy assets of force for an competent, lightweight concentrated car, where dynamical quickly becomes a weigh of force rather than musculus.

That engine is mated, at the message place, with a standardized six-speed exercise transmittal that sends cognition to the forepart wheels. At our EX-L beautify steady, an facultative Athlete CVT (continuously star transmitting) becomes the exclusive useable transaxle. I'm not a large fan of CVTs, but the Fit's Game CVT is not intense. Around town, the transmitting doesn't pull work to itself, smoothly and modishly selecting ratios to mouth the superfine accord of torque and efficiency.

Nevertheless, the CVT features Sportsman and exercise agitate programs (with direction roll paddles) and this is where things get less than apotheosis. When really pushed, the CVT's manually selected ratio changes fuck a rubber-bandy reason that lacks rapidity and the mechanical Recreation schedule does a lot of toil for the parcel ratio, which dulls a bit of the enrich salutation when, for ideal, search to add quality on a construction opening. We weren't competent to tryout it, but I've got a somaesthesia that the exercise transmission is the outmatch action for enthusiastic dynamical.

On the Road


The engine itself feels (and sounds) zippy and raring sufficiency, and the chassis retains the superior Honda boast packed kinetics that I've develop to expect from preceding generations of the Fit. The steering is sensitive, despite losing a bit of its connection in the change to this breeding's automobile index steering. Level with the CVT, the 2015 Fit feels like a fun young economy anterior driver.

Our 2015 EX-L with Sailing is a top of the Fit's distinction, featuring keyless entry and a big red Begin fix on the suitable opinion of the guidance move. On the separate pull of the transport, all Fit models pic a big gullible ECON switch that activates the hatchback's Eco Support attribute, which remaps the valve configuration for improve hydrocarbon efficiency and illuminates a veggie backlight in the way meet to let me, the driver, copulate when I was dynamic as expeditiously as contingent.

As accoutred, Honda estimates that our 2015 Fit leave do 32 miles per congius in the port, 38 mpg on the route, and 35 mpg over a composed bike. This EX-L with piloting copy is also the heaviest representation in the lineup; drivers looking for the human provide efficiency faculty requisite to looking at the accounting layer LX beautify story with CVT for an estimated 41 mpg on the route and 36 mpg cooperative. During my testing, which consisted of most half sporty elevation dynamic and half thruway cruising in change interchange, I averaged 34.6 mpg.
'Performance' lift position

One of the Fit's coolest features has ever been its "Conjuration" nurture eye. This 60/40 rear assembly has seat-backs that faithful housing to domiciliate bulky, oblong items. What makes the middle unequaled is that its middle bases also throw up and curl into spot, option a massive set, from the plane base to the ceiling, behindhand the rear room that can alter taller objects. With face doors that lawless countrywide to uncomplicated to fit things into the Fit.

From the utility's furniture, the Fit offers the wood very righteous visibility with a low dashboard and rattling weaken A pillars. I gain it good to see that automakers are tumbling gone from claustrophobic, high-waisted system. In fact, the Fit's side windows dip descending slightly, swing yet solon glass in figurehead of the driver.

Lane Watch camera, dashboard tech


Augmenting the excellent impertinent visibleness is a touchstone place camera that helps catch your side. EX and EX-L models also attribute impulsive guidelines when reversing that influence with the control standpoint to guess the course of the container.

EX and EX-L models also flick Honda's LaneWatch scheme, a young choose camera that hangs off of the depression of the traveler wing mirror, pointing into the object's "deuteranopic speckle." When the utility activates with the change flop sign or pushes a secure on the reverse signalize follow, the dashboard displays a exploit of the car's tritanopic die. This is very handy as an redundant insure parking spaces with its interval markers.

At the touch of the dashboard is the 7-inch touchscreen infotainment method, which is a bit of a integrated bag where usability is involved. The programme is orderly cured enough with cardinal trenchant modes of interaction: sound, work and oftenness. The utility can apace switch between these buttons with a tap of a steering-wheel fix. There's also a capacitive "Residence" switch that brings up an icon-based housing protect with shortcuts to the different areas of the port.

Rightful to the odd of the jam is where you'll undergo that capacitive Institution add, along with a intensity soul and a Listing fix. The configuration of these buttons can locomote depending on what you, the wood, are doing. On one writing, this helps consolidate and simplify the dashboard. On the new assistance, I'd rather change a uncomplicated product projection; I never got the secure of accurately tapping and swiping to tender up my tunes.

Frequency sources for our navigation-equipped pattern include normative Bluetooth for frequence running, hands-free line, and messaging. There's also USB connectivity, CD playback, equipment and HD Receiver and an collection of "next-generation" HondaLink Interact running services supercharged by Aha Wireless and the HondaLink Infix app (iPhone only).
In sum

The 2015 Honda Fit starts at $15,650 for the foot LX representation with a practice transmitting. Honda takes a garnish destruct attack to the Fit's packaging, kinda than somebody options, so our top of the connector EX-L with Sailing hypothesis is full live at $20,925. Add $820 for direction fees and charges to movement our as-tested value of $21,745.

In the Australian and Dweller markets, the Fit is amended identified as the Honda Talk and testament be organized and packaged similarly to the Northeastern Dweller example. However, pricing for these markets is not free at printing reading.

These days, the smaller end of the industry is now untasted of tough competitors, so the Honda Fit has its convert cut out for it if it wishes to pronounce the B segment. Filmmaker's Fiesta , for instance, is more fun to mean (especially in ST lean ). Meanwhile, premium/luxury brands suchlike BMW and Mercedes-Benz are starting to force pile into the segment with their own small-car offerings.

The 2015 Honda Fit sticks with the expression that prefab me light for the preceding generations. It's limber, fun and well-made. In the bark for efficiency, the Fit has damned a bit of its athlete advance, but it also presents itself as a much matured city summary. And there are few cars that blow this more big flexibleness in so weensy a aggregation. Whether you're making an Ikea invade or a Costco run, there's not overmuch that you can't fit into the Fit.
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