There is less wind noise thanks to improved aerodynamics including a larger floor undertray and recessed windscreen mounts along the A-pillar. There remains a lot of suspension noise and the ride was comfortable but became flustered over large bumps. Crossing a set of railway tracks sent the Fit into a minor pogo. Maybe we should have slowed down for those…
In the city, the Fit excels. LaneWatch is now on the Fit (Honda’s sensational side-camera that shows up in HD in the seven-inch centre-stack display), making lane changes and even parallel parking a breeze. Just tap the button on the end of the indicator stalk, park, and voila! Or, even better, use your indicator like you should and the camera turns on automatically.
   2015 Honda Fit, rear seats, front seats. Click image to enlarge |
The turning circle is tight enough for small spaces and the steering feels perfectly firm at low speeds. The Fit also now has a standard back-up camera across all trims.
The leather seats in the EX-L model add luxury to the interior, and the top trims also get a smattering of soft-touch material alongside the centre stack and over the cover directly in front of the passenger. The door trims including armrests, dash top and the console are all hard plastic though. The armrests in particular need more support. The steering wheel is a leather-look, but a brick-feel. It has no suppleness at all and the stitching is purely aesthetic. In any other car this might be a valid complaint, but at around $20K you get a hell of a lot of car, so I don’t think a little bit of scrimping on materials hurts.
I preferred the cloth seats to the leather, but both sets are well-shaped and comfortable. We spent over three hours in the saddle and found them comfortable the entire journey – a journey that included Toronto’s worst and most famous daily gridlock, the Don Valley Parking Lot.
You also get a spattering of faux aluminum trim to give a little texture to the cabin, and a handy centre armrest bin which is large enough to swallow an iPad. If you have iPhone as well you can can connect it via HondaLink to the seven-inch infotainment screen. Android phones and iPads are not yet supported.
HondaLink allows Apple users to mirror some apps in the screen, and gives access to navigation (via your data plan) for models from LX and up.
   2015 Honda Fit centre console storage, navigation, fuel economy display. Click image to enlarge |
Base models get the luxury of a tuning and volume knob as well as a five-inch infotainment display, while LX models and up have the touchscreen-only seven-inch system. The touchscreen is still not up to par. Sure, the icons are clear and it’s easy to figure out, but the touch response is slow and inconsistent. Also it is infuriating that you can’t change stations/tracks without navigating back to the audio display and using the touchscreen. The steering wheel controls are great if you use presets only, but if you prefer to scroll through channels you’ll need to use the touchscreen.
The rest of the dials are wonderful. They’re clear, easy to read and the large central speedometer is ringed by the EcoAssist lights. Little strips of light glow blue or green depending on how economically you’re driving. To the right is a round TFT that has a permanent fuel gauge on the bottom and permanent instantaneous fuel readout at the top. It was a pleasant surprise to be able to see both average and instantaneous readouts at the same time, and kudos to Honda for giving this now-vital piece of information a full-time home.
