Honda Fit – The Car Exam

Honda Fit – The Car Exam

2015 Honda Fit: Somewhat Better…But Far From Perfect

Good Grades: The styling on the 2015 Honda Fit is an improvement. It looks sleeker and more up-to-date. No longer available in Base/Sport Trims, they are designated as: LX, EX, EX-L, and EX-L/with Navigation. The new base model is the LX, which The Car Exam tested. It now packs 130 horsepower, 13 more than the 2013 model. It’s mated to a CVT automatic transmission, which gives the Fit all around better fuel economy in the city and on the highway (33 CITY 41 HWY, 2015 vs. 28 CITY 35 HWY, 2013). Braking and steering in the 2015 Honda Fit are also just fine. The interior quality is better than the 2009-13 Fit–it looks more upscale. The Magic Seats in the 2015 Honda Fit are still there, which is a great thing–and the load floor to the rear hatch is still nice and flat. Those qualities keep cargo hauling easier than every other car in its class. There’s an outside temperature gauge now, something sorely missing from the last generation Fit, and the USB auxiliary input is now exposed in a convenient place close to the driver.

 

Honda Fit – The Car Exam

Bad Grades: The 2015 Honda Fit comes up short in a number of areas: handling is not as crisp as it is in the 2013 model; it provides a softer ride, but cornering ability suffers. The 2009-13 feels like a taut and fun–the 2015 Fit doesn’t. The new Fit has more engine horsepower, but it still strains and it’s loud and booming, worse than the old Fit. What happened to the additional sound insulation, Honda? It’s inexcusable for the new Fit to be so noisy.

Honda Fit

The new Fit loses about 4 cubic feet in cargo room to help allow for more rear leg room, and it’s a noticeable trade-off. The Fit LX gets a stereo with a volume control knob–great–but every other trim has an odd touch control for the volume, and it works poorly. Most drivers will need to adjust the volume from the steering wheel to do it safely. What’s worse, Honda is using that same flawed volume control on more of its new cars–a very bad thing. The 2015 Fit also loses the top storage in the dash, which is too bad.

Honda Fit – The Car Exam

Final Grade: The Fit earns a “B” grade–there’s definitely much room for improvement. There are more than enough fixable flaws with the 2015 Fit to prevent it from earning a better grade. It’s better in some areas, but it can be a lot better in others. If you go with the Fit, know what you’re getting–take an extended test drive before you decide.

Honda Fit – The Car Exam

 

2015 Honda Fit LX (as tested, MSRP): $16,450.00

 

Ford Fiesta – The Car Exam

Ford Fiesta – The Car Exam

Ford Fiesta SE Hatchback Quick Test

Good Grades: The Fiesta is a good transportation car–it gets decent fuel economy (28 CITY, 36 HWY), engine power is adequate (120 horsepower, and 112 lb. ft. of torque)–the six-speed dual clutch automatic transmission works generally well with the engine, the brakes work fine, it handles corners confidently, the ride is acceptable (not too harsh, not too soft) and the driver’s seat is comfortable. It feels like a solidly-built car–it doesn’t feel cheap and tinny. The Aston-Martin-like front end styling Ford has adopted on many of its vehicles in recent years works especially well here on the Fiesta, as it does on the Fusion and the Focus.

Ford Fiesta – The Car Exam

Bad Grades: There is no rear leg room in the back seats (entry and exit into the back seats is also difficult); the cargo capacity–even with the rear seats folded town is terrible (many other cars in its class are far roomier), the stereo is complex and has far too many buttons (very small buttons) and it isn’t easy to use at all (which is too bad, because it sounds good), rear visibility is subpar, and watch your head when getting into the front and back seats–it’s easy to hit your head on the roof–and it hurts!

 

Final Grade: The Fiesta (even though it’s a very nice-looking car) needs a well-conceived redesign to get it right–it only earns a “C” grade. Ford is building better cars than before, but the Fiesta has too many crucial and functional shortcomings–and those flaws make it much less competitive than other subcompact cars in its class.

 

Ford Fiesta – The Car Exam

 

2015 Ford Fiesta SE Hatchback Base Price (as tested): $15,595

 

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