Ok, dumb and kind of pointless question but its been bugging me ever since my friend said that the Honda Fit was based on a small car platform, but the xA was on a more-or-less midsize one. Or at least that the platform was much larger than the Honda's.

Is that true? I thought it was based on the same as the Platz/Echo, and I know the Echo is pretty damn small...

I still expect to drive my 2004 xA for a good long while... but if I had to get a new one dunno what I'd do, move on to the xD or try out the Fit... I dig the style of hatchback though, and it's a lot easier to find a parking space in Cambridge...

 

....you are exactely driving a toyota echo, just diffferent exterior styling and a hatchback instead of a trunk.

in maryland the registration on my tc says sub compact. the xa is too. the xa is a compact, or a sub-compact. so is the fit and the xd.

 

i would assume that ours is also on a smaller "platform"

 

Yeah, I figured it wasn't much bigger at its core than the Fit.

Still, a great amount of interior space. The car IS taller than most compact cars, and most of what passes for midsize these days...

 

my girlfriend has a Fit. side by side the Fit is slighty longer, as far as interior space the fit has slightly more. but as far as fun and styling the xA is the way to go. The fit is an excllent car though.

 

It seems like the Fit was doing more interesting things in repostioning the seats and what not. Plus, maybe a kickier engine though that's not a priority for me.

 

At the end of 2006/ early 2007 I was seriously considering the Fit for a car. I took a sport AT out for a test drive , liked it (the paddle shifting seemed cool ... but in taking turns while shifting w/paddles seemed very cumbersome). What I mainly did not like about it was the $18K price tag I was considering a white stock Fit = which I would have had to place an order for($500 down) , and wait 10+ weeks for it to come in from Japan , plus the stock Fit was still $600 more then the stock xA ! I also don't like how Honda likes to keep SUPPLY LOW on the dealership lots (to then hopefully create an artifical HIGH DEMAND) = equates to the consumer paying more $$ for there product. Homey don't play dat Honda can make a good product , but the way in which they play the consumer I don't appreciate.

Also, in learning more about VTEC engines (have a tendency to burn oil at higher milage 75+K miles) , I'd prefer to stick with the VVT-I Toyota situation.

I still say us consumers need a 300 HP car, that can get 50+ mpg's , for like $20K dollars. In reality, it will probably take about 1-2 more generations for the economy/market to match that wish/request - even though the technology is probably there right now !

 

both cars were on top of my list of choices but I never got past the xA test drive. I bought it a couple days later.
Although I do really like the Fit's styling.

 

I was considering a Fit when I found my xA just as a comparison for what I was getting into (Or mightbe missing out on), but to be honest the styling is a bit off. Doesn't look as sleek, too top heavy or something. Reminds me of a minivan shrunk down. I couldn't see what the extra cost would give me. The engine wasn't any better, if not a bit weaker. Reliability was about the same. I suppose brand loyalty might play a big part with them selling, as not too many people even know Scions are Toyotas. I dunno, maybe the Fit will gradually be restyled into a hot looking xA replacement over the next few years. Less bubbly, more sleek. Aftermarket parts is going nuts with the Fit, though.

What is weird, and more on topic to the thread, is that I know the xA is a small car. But when I park it in a full parking lot, it actually looks big compared to the smaller pickups, and older Sentras and such.

With State Farm my xA is simply listed as a hatchback.

 

I made some animated GIFs of the two cars spinning:
http://kisrael.com/viewblog.cgi?date=2006.10.19
My that's then, and still are, that the xA does 2 things better than the Fit, from a design standpoint (though obviously they're similar looking cars)
1. The xA has bigger wheel wells, making it look more solid. By contrast, on the Fit the wheels look a bit small
2. the Fit has "body color" on the rear sides, behind the back windows, to either side of the hatch. I think this somehow adds to the "minivan" feeling of it

If it doesn't have a better Engine, than I think the only advantages the Fit might have is in interior space (?) and seat repositioning.