By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

Today’s pic is from Guaili E.’s Honda Fit ride page!

By Speedhunters

Car Culture At Large

Isn’t it a bit ironic that “luxury-tuned” compact cars are getting to be just as popular as traditional big body luxury sedans? While visiting Japan again, I’ve been reminded at how just how small the roads can be here, not to mention the high taxes you pay to the Japanese government to keep a large displacement vehicle on the road. Keeping that stuff in mind, it’s no surprise at all that cars like this Honda Fit are some of the most popular platforms for luxury tuning. After all, I can’t remember ever hearing that a car had to be large to be luxurious. Continue reading at Speedhunters

By Mike Garrett

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

I was expecting Honda to win this one, but the feisty Fiesta upstaged the Fit for a convincing win in this week’s Showroom Showdown. Think the Fiesta will be hit with the tuner crowd?

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

I came away pretty impressed with the 2011 Ford Fiesta last week. Yes, the Fit costs more, but I don’t think it would be fair to put the hot new Fiesta up against something bland like a Yaris or Versa. The Fit has a 117 hp 1.5 liter four banger and the Fiesta has a 118 hp 1.6 liter four banger. Both cars are available with a 5 speed manual. The base Fit starts at $14,750 while the Fiesta should start around $12,000. So let’s say you are comparing a base Fit to a better equipped Fiesta. Which would you choose?

By Ryan Porter

IN-N-OUT Editor

Before I picked up the smart I was very interested in the Honda Fit and I had to spend a lot of time convincing myself to hold out for the fortwo. As you know I stuck it out and I’ve been rolling the fortwo for about a year now, but every once in a while I see a Honda Fit that makes me think “what if…?”  More images of this sick Fit over at HellaFlush

By Ryan Douthit

Drivingsports.com

The 1970 Clean Air Act was, in its time, the most stringent emission standard in the world. Under the new law, the carbon monoxide, hydrocarbon and nitrogen oxide levels in emissions of 1975- and 1976-model vehicles had to be at least 90% lower than for 1970 and 1971 models. That’s a massive leap forward in thinking.

What was considered a detriment by the U.S. auto industry, created a unique opening for a virtually unknown car maker out of Japan: Honda. In 1972 it debuted a car equipped with the first new motor designed for the stringent requirements. That motor was dubbed the CVCC, but since it’s impossible to pronounce words without any vowels, Honda eventually renamed the car the Civic.

Continue reading after the jump.

Continue reading "2009 Honda Fit Sport" »

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

I met Neil Tjin over at the Honda booth and talked to him about the cool little Honda Fit he and his brother built for SEMA. Turns out that Neil shops for his colors at Home Depot. Watch!

Ok, so this week’s Showroom Showdwon was a bit… different. I really wasn’t sure which way it would go, and after tallying up all the votes, it looks like we have a tie. As usual, some of you liked this showdown, and some of you hated it. All we can say is thanks, and sorry.

We’re gonna skip the showdown next week while we’re at SEMA, but then come back with something truly mind-bending the following week. If you have any suggestions for future showdowns, post them below.

Ok, so it’s the week before SEMA (not to mention the presidential election) and we’re all feeling a little punchy. So I decided to mix it up a bit. In other words, this is not your standard Showroom Showdown. So here’s the deal: you get free use of either a Honda Fit or a Hummer H3 for two years. At the end of two years (and just as the Chevy Volt is about to hit dealer lots) you can decide to either keep the vehicle and own it outright, or sell it and pocket the money. Obviously, you’ll save several thousand dollars in gas if you go with the Fit, and we all know that the Hummer’s value will drop like a bomb (will the company even exit in two years?). And we’re comparing the top of the line Fit Sport ($18k) vs. the base H3 ($34k). Which would you rather drive for two years? Which will be worth more in two years? Which would you choose?

The 2009 Tjin Edition Honda Fit is just about finished and ready to debut in the Honda booth at SEMA. Gene Tjin just updated his ride page with this cool shot of his custom painted matte black and brushed 16" BBS RS wheels, matched to 205/40/16 Dunlops. Gotta love the old school look on a brand new ride. We’ll be sure to snap plenty of pics of this car at SEMA next week, so stay tuned.