The Honda Fit is a five-door hatchback subcompact car, manufactured by the Honda Motor Company of Japan, first introduced in June 2001 and now in its second generation. The Fit uses Honda’s Global Small Car platform, also used by the City/Fit Aria, Airwave, Mobilio, and the Mobilio Spike.

The Honda Fit distinguishes itself from all other subcompacts with agile handling, zippy performance, and impressive practicality. A four-door hatchback, the Fit is amazingly comfortable, given its dimensions, even in the back seats.

The Honda Fit offers five-passenger seating and a unique second-row “Magic Seat” that either folds flat with the cargo floor, or flips up to carry tall items behind the first row of seats. The Honda Fit is available in two trim levels, the base Fit and the Sport, both are powered by a 117-hp 1.5-liter i-VTEC four-cylinder engine with front-wheel drive and a choice of a five-speed manual or five-speed automatic.

Standard safety features include front airbags, front side airbags, side-curtain airbags, four-wheel ABS and electronic brake-force distribution. Electronic vehicle stability control is now optional on the Fit Sport.

The Honda Fit is completely redesigned for 2009, which adds more interior space and new standard equipment such as telescoping steering column, active head restraints, dual vanity mirrors and a driver’s footrest.

Other Information

• Manufacturer: Honda Motor Company
• Also called: Honda Jazz
• Assembly: Suzuka, Mie, Japan; Sumaré, São Paulo, Brazil; Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China; Ayutthaya, Thailand; Karawang, Indonesia
• Class: North America: Subcompact; Europe: Supermini
• Platform: Honda Global Small Car
• Body style: 5-door hatchback
• Layout: FF layout

Price

• MSRP: $14,750 – $16,260
• Invoice: $14,236 – $15,685
• Market Price: $14,524 – $16,004

Tags: 2009, compact car, Honda, honda fit, honda motor, honda motor co, subcompact car