The Honda Fit is Taking Off
Hybrid Cars from Hybrid Hippie!
I am hearing that this car is all that and a bag of chips. If your looking for a hybrid this is one worth looking into.
- Rumors about a hybrid Fit began in February when the Japanese newspaper Nihon Keizai Shimbum reported that the new hybrid was on its way. Honda introduced the conventional Fit subcompact hatchback to the U.S. market in April 2006. The Fit is one of Hondas hottest selling models in Asia and Europe, where it is sold as the Jazz. More excitement was stirred when Edmunds Inside Line suggested that the Honda Fit Hybrid could mean an 80-mpg car selling for under $12,000. Hyperbole and gossip notwithstanding, the prospect of an affordable subcompact hybrid could restore Honda to its hybrid glory days when the company introduced the Honda Insight as the first hybrid on American roads in 1999. If Hyundai delivers on its own plans later this year for a subcompact hybrid in the form of an Accent/Rio, then a new chapter in the hybrid saga will begin: the entry-level or economy hybrid. This will create a dilemma for journalists who have criticized the recent "muscle hybrids" as not worth the price of admission: Will they need to dig out their dusty old criticism of hybrids as silly econoboxes?
The emergence of subcompact hybrids might also encourage environmentalists who have criticized the same high-performance and SUV hybrids as a misuse of hybrid technology. They say that advances in automotive technology (including hybrid technology) over the past decades have been misplaced on larger and faster vehicles not well suited to increasingly crowded roadways—all with a big environmental cost.
A More Practical InsightThe debate will be settled by the marketplace. If gas prices continue to climb, will mainstream consumers give up a few feet of legroom for maximum fuel economy? The Nihon Keizai Shumbum report said that Honda is targeting fuel economy for the Fit hybrid in the 60-mpg range. As a subcompact, the Fit is cute and small—but has over 90 cubic feet of passenger volume (only slightly less than the midsize Accord) and 21.3 cubic feet of cargo capacity, nearly as much room as a Honda Element. The 60/40-split folding rear seats even allow the Fit to do some minor hauling. In that light, the Honda Fit hybrid could be viewed as a more practical four-door version of the Honda Insight.It's unlikely that a Fit hybrid would sell anywhere near $12,000. The new conventional Fit subcompact is priced starting between $13,000 and $14,000. Commonly, the hybrid version of vehicle sells for a couple of thousand dollars more than its conventional sibling. Even with the Fit's hybrid premium, its price will beat out the Civic Hybrid by approximately $5,000 and a Prius by $7,000 or more. The gas-only Fit is powered by a 109-horsepower 1.5-liter, four-cylinder VTEC engine. The hybrid version. according to the HybridCars.com interview, will utilize a 1.0-liter engine.
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I am hearing that this car is all that and a bag of chips. If your looking for a hybrid this is one worth looking into.
- Rumors about a hybrid Fit began in February when the Japanese newspaper Nihon Keizai Shimbum reported that the new hybrid was on its way. Honda introduced the conventional Fit subcompact hatchback to the U.S. market in April 2006. The Fit is one of Hondas hottest selling models in Asia and Europe, where it is sold as the Jazz. More excitement was stirred when Edmunds Inside Line suggested that the Honda Fit Hybrid could mean an 80-mpg car selling for under $12,000. Hyperbole and gossip notwithstanding, the prospect of an affordable subcompact hybrid could restore Honda to its hybrid glory days when the company introduced the Honda Insight as the first hybrid on American roads in 1999. If Hyundai delivers on its own plans later this year for a subcompact hybrid in the form of an Accent/Rio, then a new chapter in the hybrid saga will begin: the entry-level or economy hybrid. This will create a dilemma for journalists who have criticized the recent "muscle hybrids" as not worth the price of admission: Will they need to dig out their dusty old criticism of hybrids as silly econoboxes?
The emergence of subcompact hybrids might also encourage environmentalists who have criticized the same high-performance and SUV hybrids as a misuse of hybrid technology. They say that advances in automotive technology (including hybrid technology) over the past decades have been misplaced on larger and faster vehicles not well suited to increasingly crowded roadways—all with a big environmental cost.
A More Practical InsightThe debate will be settled by the marketplace. If gas prices continue to climb, will mainstream consumers give up a few feet of legroom for maximum fuel economy? The Nihon Keizai Shumbum report said that Honda is targeting fuel economy for the Fit hybrid in the 60-mpg range. As a subcompact, the Fit is cute and small—but has over 90 cubic feet of passenger volume (only slightly less than the midsize Accord) and 21.3 cubic feet of cargo capacity, nearly as much room as a Honda Element. The 60/40-split folding rear seats even allow the Fit to do some minor hauling. In that light, the Honda Fit hybrid could be viewed as a more practical four-door version of the Honda Insight.It's unlikely that a Fit hybrid would sell anywhere near $12,000. The new conventional Fit subcompact is priced starting between $13,000 and $14,000. Commonly, the hybrid version of vehicle sells for a couple of thousand dollars more than its conventional sibling. Even with the Fit's hybrid premium, its price will beat out the Civic Hybrid by approximately $5,000 and a Prius by $7,000 or more. The gas-only Fit is powered by a 109-horsepower 1.5-liter, four-cylinder VTEC engine. The hybrid version. according to the HybridCars.com interview, will utilize a 1.0-liter engine.
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posted by Car Boys Media @ 5:34 PM
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