Boomer23 said:
surfingslovak said:
Thank you for the detailed review Phil, I believe that it's head and shoulders above anything else I have seen on the topic. I put a tracker on this thread, and was amazing by the amount of traffic it attracted. There were folks from GM on here as well. They must have followed
Scott's thread on the Volt forum, I never saw them on MNL before. Thanks again, let's hope that BMW will let you review the i3 ;-)
Thanks, George, much appreciated. I enjoyed the press preview and the writing process very much.
Let me add my thanks as well. I too have been waiting for an affordable BEV with more sporty driving characteristics. Not having an HFE to look at/drive, I walked over to my local Honda dealer to look at a regular Fit. I have to say, if Honda had left well enough alone with the HVAC controls on the HFE and had been able to fit everything in without change, the HFE would be at the top of my list for general design and features, taking over the spot of the 'i' (which gets dinged by me primarily for its much too-short range). Unfortunately, Honda felt it necessary to go with ACC and electronic controls instead of the simple, manual three-dial HVAC controls in the gas Fit that I prefer; someone needs to come up with simple HVAC controls workable by feel that still allow remote climate control.
It's got the 'B' mode I insist on, and lots of greenhouse area for good 360 degree vis (although I didn't drive the car, so can't say if some blind spots might have become apparent). Although Japanese cars have been getting better as their population has gotten taller, I was still short on leg room in the driver's seat (I'm 6' tall but have a 34" inseam, so more leg than torso length). I didn't notice it, but there was probably insufficient thigh support owing to a too short seat cushion as well; this has been the case in almost every Japanese car I've driven subsequent to my '69 Datsun roadster, where you sat on the floor with your feet stretched out straight in front of you.
Back seat knee room was fine with the front seats all the way back, toe room height too, although I wouldn't want to spend a lot of time back there as my knees were up high owing to the position of my feet. I think the car would definitely be too narrow to comfortably handle three across if any was an adult, not that that's a concern of mine. Head room was ample front and rear.
It also appears from your photos that the rear seat was raised compared to the gas version. In that, with the rear seats folded down you have a flat load floor (there's a slight discontinuity at the junction), instead of what appears to be a slope in the HFE. And I was hoping that Honda would also manage to leave room for the temp spare that the gas Fit has - I'm assuming that there are batteries under the foam organizer holding the EVSE in the HFE? The gas Fit lacks that organizer but has the spare, which I definitely want.
Finally, although I realize this is irrelevant for the vast majority of buyers, I couldn't stretch out and sleep lying straight with the rear seats down, something I want to be able to do in any car I buy. Although the Fit is about 15" shorter than my Forester there appears to be ample length to do this with the front seats slid forward and the seat backs folded ditto, the problem is the relative narrowness of the car plus the lack of a center console armrest, and the provision of a folding armrest on the inboard side of the driver's seat in its place. In my Forester, my head fits between the front seats and rests on the top of the center console, so I can stretch out; in the Fit the armrest and inboard sides of the seats prevent this. It was possible for me to sleep in the back by lying diagonally, but I don't want to do that again (had to in my '88 Subaru Wagon). The Leaf allows straight sleeping; the top of the cargo organizer provides a level floor right to the back hatch.
All in all, between your write-up and my perusal of the gas Fit, I think the HFE is a very serious contender in the affordable BEV market, even if it doesn't suit my needs (the RAV4EV comes closest at the moment, but is at least $10k too expensive). IMO the car that it will really have a negative impact on is the Coda, which already has pretty anemic sales prospects. The range is close to the 31kWh version of the Coda, and I suspect the HFE beats it in virtually every other category of driving and utility other than 5-passenger room, while being from an established manufacturer. Coda really needs to get the 36kWh battery out soon, as superior range @ price is their primary selling point.
Given the Leaf battery's problems with high temps, I think Honda may be right to limit the HFE's to lease-only at the moment, given the unknowns of LTO chemistry in large-scale use.
Added: BTW, any details on the battery warranty?
