4 ms·

While I'm inclined to agree, the incentives have just never been right. Take something like the Honda Fit - its price point meant that you could spend somethin

While I'm inclined to agree, the incentives have just never been right. Take something like the Honda Fit - its price point meant that you could spend something like a thousand more and get a Civic. In order to go with the Fit, you either needed that small margin to matter a lot, or you just really had to want a cheaper car. Economies of scale don't work here because of the chicken-and-egg problem, and possibly because size simply isn't as big of a driver of cost as labor and mandatory features. And you never really pay a non-monetary price for having a larger vehicle. We have a minivan and I never hit height maxes, never feel like it's too big to drive anywhere (except for Manhattan, haha). Cheap interest and long terms probably shrunk the cost difference quite a bit too. Safety of the passengers will be a battle you have to fight, particularly for people who spend significant time on the interstate.

hgsgm 3y ago
Civic burns more gas and is a little harder to manipulate into small spaces.
- wing-_-nuts 3y ago
  The civic was only a little more thirsty than the fit when it was here in the US. It also has significantly higher performance (~7s 0-60 vs 9s for the fit). Acceleration doesn't matter much in the city but being able to safely complete a pass on a two lane road is a major concern for a lot of america. Overall, for a few thousand more, the civic is just simply a nicer car. If you went with the fit, you made significant sacrifices for those 'magic seats'
- Brendinooo 3y ago
  Been awhile since I was fresh on the numbers, but a quick search says in 2020 the Fit got 33/40 MPG and the Civic got 32/42? Definitely not enough to move the needle for most prospective buyers. Maybe it's different in Europe, dunno if it's a supply or demand thing but the US market notoriously does not offer the weaker, more fuel efficient motors. I just looked it up the other day; the Camry offers motors under 170HP for some markets but nothing under 200 in the US.

hgsgm 3y ago

Civic burns more gas and is a little harder to manipulate into small spaces.

wing-_-nuts 3y ago
The civic was only a little more thirsty than the fit when it was here in the US. It also has significantly higher performance (~7s 0-60 vs 9s for the fit). Acceleration doesn't matter much in the city but being able to safely complete a pass on a two lane road is a major concern for a lot of america. Overall, for a few thousand more, the civic is just simply a nicer car. If you went with the fit, you made significant sacrifices for those 'magic seats'
Brendinooo 3y ago
Been awhile since I was fresh on the numbers, but a quick search says in 2020 the Fit got 33/40 MPG and the Civic got 32/42? Definitely not enough to move the needle for most prospective buyers. Maybe it's different in Europe, dunno if it's a supply or demand thing but the US market notoriously does not offer the weaker, more fuel efficient motors. I just looked it up the other day; the Camry offers motors under 170HP for some markets but nothing under 200 in the US.