2009 Honda Fit consumer reviews

In spite of its name Honda is not fit for general use. Braking distances are excessive especially for such a light car. Car is o.k. on straight smooth roads so long as there are no winds, even moderate ones which will blow it all over the place and is very disconcerting. A winding road is to be avoided,I have a large luxury sedan which handles a winding road 1000 times better. The handling, along with the feel, is one of Honda's worst features. the body rolls excessively, and there is under-steer like I have never experienced before on any car. I have driven vans which have handled a lot better than this! Most manufacturers put lousy tires on their cars, Honda is no exception, and one of the first things I have done with a new car is to swap out the tires. On Honda there is no choice as the OEM tires are the ONLY ones that will fit the wheel! These tires are just terrible, more like rubber bands and feel like they are about to separate from the wheel rims when pushed hard around a curve. I think the handling is by far the worst of any car. Relatively minor gripes are the seat material which seems to attract and not let go of any lint which might be around. The "carpeting" is more like a sort of minced cardboard than actual carpet. Also there is no lock to the gas cap, and no cruise control which is surprising in a car touting gas mileage, but in spite of that the mpg exceeded all expectations with an overall average of 33. However the computer readout read between 39 and 40 - Honda could not even get that right, alhough the actual speed and odometer were accurate. My windshield cracked the second week, bad luck or bad design and materials, who knows. I had already put the car on the market by then anyway. Yes I finally got shot of it after a few weeks of unhappy ownership, but it cost me several thousand dollars. The dealer would not even give me a trade in price. They had so many new ones left unsold that they obviously did not want another. My complaints to Honda were unanswered. If you care about cars and driving and not jsut the number of cupholders you get, avoid Honda like the plague!

Gave my 2001 CR-V to my stepdaughter when she graduated law school so I needed a new car. Was going to buy another CR-V but saw the base Fit in the car lot, and tried it out. Excellent visibility, great handling (especially the steering), and lots of interior space for a subcompact. Dislikes: No locking gas hatch, no rear hatch release from driver's seat, plus one of the "electronic" keys given to us didn't work (disables the car--needed to be reprogrammed). Driver's seat should have had adjustable lumbar and height (CRV had manual adjustment wheels on the seat) Mileage is better than claimed--30 in city, 38 on highway. I put in a K&N air filter which might account for the slightly higher mileage. Overall, very happy with my decision!

I was very pleasantly surprised with the Fit's performance because, frankly, I wasn't expecting much when I bought it. The car turned out to be perfect for my home-to-workplace, workplace-to-home commuting. It gave me decent fuel efficiency, could be easily manuevered, needed little servicing and was comfortable, especially considering I don't have a very big family (just me and my wife)

This is a fantastic handling car. I've played with the paddle shifters and they are only fun for me on twisty mountain passes. I have 7k on the car and had to replace a cracked windshield (I hope this isn't a design flaw) It cost $750.00, which is much more than standard pricing. The black cloth seats are lint magnets and this is really annoying!! If I have to drive for more than twenty minutes and can't use the cruise control my upper leg starts to hurt. I need another inch of seat travel. My inseam is 32 so if you are that size or longer you might want to think twice about investing in this ride. This fit really reminds me of a go cart the way it corners. It is a fun little care to drive with great visibility.

I have been in the market for a new car for the past year. I previously was driving a 1997 Nissan Sentra GXE. I have a commute of about an hour through four towns. I had my heart set on the Mazda 3 and actually put a deposit on a 1997 5 door model. I decided to take one last look at the Fit Sport. I had test driven it before driving the Mazda 3. After weighing my options I decided on the FIT Sport and have already, after 1000 miles realized it was the best consumer decision I've ever made. I'm getting 36 miles per gallon thus saving myself almost $10 per week. I love the USB iPod hookup. It is extremely fun and comfortable to drive. The Mazda 3 might have been a little more comfortable of a ride but the road noise was annoying. I live in a town notorious for horrible roads and the ride does not bother me one bit. You know when you are on a rough road but it is no worse than the other models I test drove. The road to my work is a road to a marina and only is a road by definition. The potholes are horrible. I have to do some manuevering but I never bottom out. Also, the Mazda and Toyota dealers kept referring to the FIT as a "smaller car." It actually has much more room in the hatchback area. My 5 year old male golden retriever fits with no problem. I fit two car seats in the back and there is enough space betweent the kids to prevent flailing arms from reaching their targets. There is actually enough room for a regular-sized school backpack. The seat configurations are unmatched by the "larger" 3 and Matrix. The drawbacks are that it isn't quite as flashy as the other two. The interior is basic but nice. It has a lot of pep for such a small engine. In the event that you encounter a steep, and I mean steep, hill the engine does work enough for you to hear it. The paddle shifters are useless. I used them a couple of times to get a feel for them, but other than that they are for show. I love this car. I must say that I did not even want to look at it when I started my car search. I am so glad that I did.

My household now owns two Fits (a 2009 and a 2007) both manual sports. I have found the fit to be an remarkably reliable car. Great gas mileage, solid performance, and a lot of usable space inside due to the seat design. As a Mid-20something, I thought this was the most car for my buck under $20,000 (new). I can load a bunch of stuff, have enough room (barely) to take 5 people somewhere around town, keep my gas down, and avoid maintenance and repairs. Beyond taking the car in for service when the meter reaches 0% I have had no unexpected costs (even with the 2007 model with 30,000+ miles already) The only bad thing is that the car really doesn't have any 'luxury' in it. No high performance and the seats can get a bit stiff on long drives (over an hour). However, the car has a lot of torque with can be utilized in the manual transmission unlike the automatic that can be a bit sluggish.

I have always been a fan of Honda until now. I bought the Honda Fit off the show room floor and have had nothing but problems. I'm not getting the gas mileage that was stated on the sticker and it has no guts. I have taken it in four times for annoying problems from rattles and squeaks to my breaks locking up unexpectedly. Many of the wires under the dash have also been coming loose. My advice would be to borrow the car for the day and see if it fits all of your needs.

The sterio is now only 160watt on the sport where in the 07-08 it was 200watt standard in the sport. Otherwise - GREAT purchase. I am getting 38 MPG city and 43 Highway!

I bought a 2009 Fit Sport 5 speed manual in Jan 2009. I have 3500 miles on it since then, mostly commuting in a 50/50 city highway mix. No long trips yet. I am averaging 36 mpg, and that's in winter, which typically drops mpg about 10%. Last two tanks are at 38 mpg, so I expect it to climb to near 40 when the weather warms up. At 6' 2" and 190 lbs, I fit fine in this car. Lots of head and legroom. Seats are good for me and my 5' 4" wife. This is my commuting car - my summer car is a 2006 Mazda MX-5 with some speed mods. So, I have something to compare the Fit to as far as handling. Not bad, but not a sports car either. Steering is nice, brakes are good, suspension is reasonably firm but rolls a bit more than I like in corners. The rear seats are wonderfully designed. Fold flat in a heartbeat, tons of room. Last weekend I carried 30 bags of mulch from Home Depot in one trip. Earlier this year I had four wheels and tires from a Civic, three Bucket Boss buckets and a 12 gallon shop vac back there, and still had a decent amount of room left over. No locking gas cap, which is pretty cheap of them. The foglights actually work and improve the lighting to the side of the road noticeably. Stereo is decent, but no steering wheel controls. The iPod jack in the upper dash is nice. Plays and charges at once. Moves around a little bit in cross-winds, but not too objectionable. Allioy wheels look good. They actually put some decent OEM tires on the car (Dunlops) that are quiet and still handle decently. Even with rear drum brakes, the brakes are fine. It's not a race car, but I can activate the ABS, so plenty of stopping. I was going to buy another 2006 Civic to replace the one I sold to my daughter, but the rear seat arrangement caught my eye and I went this route. Haven't regretted it. Not the most stylish car, but it runs great and meets my needs just fine. When I want to go fast, I get in the other car. This is my commuter car/pickup/hauler/everything car. Things I would like to see on the car and would pay a few hundred more for - 6th gear on the manual (runs at about 2950 rpm at 60 mph), locking gas cap, steering wheel audio controls.

Scraped the front end on a bumpy road within the first 2 weeks. It scraped the paint right off. 3 weeks after that got a flat on right front tire. I would def invest in the tire insurance. Other than that this has been a good car for it's money. Fill ups are about every 285 miles. Mine are mostly city/country miles. Can actually fit a twin size mattress in it.