Material selection and layout as well as fit and finish are commendable. The quality and operation of the windshield wipers are surprisingly good for such an entry-level car. Front-row storage is decent, particularly with the door-mounted bins. The Fit LX also includes a 12-volt power outlet up front and a MP3-capable stereo delivering good sound quality under 4,000 rpm. Oddly enough, though, remote entry is a $239 option. Why not make it standard, especially with the nicely-equipped LX model?
 

Front-row storage is decent, particularly with the door-mounted bins.

Climate control, a must
Buyers should really opt for this trim level, which comes standard with climate control. The base ventilating system is not enough to purify the air and cool the interior, so you have to keep the windows down on warm days. With the air conditioning unit, however, you don't even have to put the fan at full speed.

Outstanding thriftiness
How can that engine burn so little fuel? After all, the Honda Fit is powered by a 1.5L four-banger, not a 1.2L or smaller engine. Yet, the 109-hp mill is remarkably thrifty; under my watch, it averaged a fuel consumption of 5.25 L/100 km. Outstanding. What's more, the engine teams up with a 5-speed manual transmission to deliver more than decent performances. That's the genius of Honda at work.

Smooth at low RPMs, the Fit loves to rev; it won't be shy if you're in a hurry and hammer the throttle, easily reaching 6,000 RPM. Honda engineers are fond of variable valve timing and their VTEC system really gets the most out of the engine. The Fit LX sprints from 0 to 100 km/h in about 11 seconds and from 80 to 120 km/h in less than 8 seconds, which is the maximum for safe passing maneuvers. A lot of 3.0-liter engines struggle to even get those results.

Meanwhile, the brakes are among the best in the category: Honda was wise to include ABS as standard equipment, not to mention electronic brakeforce distribution (EBD). As a result, I was able to stop from 100 to 0 km/h over less than 41 meters. That's what I call a balanced performance.

The Honda Fit is powered by a 1.5L four-banger.