The smallest car from Honda is surprisingly roomy inside

With Honda’s Accord moving up to compete with classier sedans, and the Civic taking its place to fight for attention with the small-sedan market, the new creation from Honda fits a much needed gap in the company’s market: the sub-compact.

The Fit is Honda’s answer to Toyota’s Yaris, and it’s a challenging retort to say the least. The Fit’s base price is about three grand more than the comparable Yaris Liftback model, but it has benefits to back up that difference. At first glance, one might notice that this Fit is indeed almost a foot shorter than the Yaris. However, it exceeds the Yaris in every interior room dimension (head room, shoulder room, etc.). With the rear seats down, the Fit boasts and impressive 41.9 cubic feet of room. With an innovative 60/40 rear seat design and a fold-flat front passenger seat, the interior can be configured to meet many storage needs.

The Fit comes in two trims, the standard of which is called Fit, and the peppier version is known as Fit Sport. The Sport trim comes with larger alloy wheels, a pumped up stereo system, some exterior body accessories, and a few other perks. Both trims are equipped with the same 109-hp, 16-valve VTEC, 4-cylinder engine that can be paired with either a five-speed manual or five-speed automatic transmission.

One of the very few drawbacks to the Fit is that the fuel economy for the US models is not as good as expected. The EPA estimates that the Fit manages 33 MPG in the city and 38 MPG on the highway at best, which is hardly impressive given the Civic’s 30/38 rating.

Every new Honda, including the small but roomy Fit, is covered by a comprehensive three-year, 36,000-mile warranty.

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