This post is sponsored by Honda and their redesigned 2015 Fit, the champion of resourcefulness.
As a long-time SUV driver, I’ve always been both intrigued and deterred by small cars of any kind. I never saw the point, as weekends, for me, typically mean entire days spent away from home – coffee, surf, breakfast, friends, lunch, skate, hike – you get the point. The wee hours of Saturday mornings are reserved for gathering belongings and heaving them into the back of my ride. Lots of things get tossed in because there’s lots of room. I never have to think twice about whether or not I should bring something because space isn’t a limiting factor. So when I heard a 2015 Honda Fit was en route to The Inertia‘s Venice headquarters, I shuddered at being locked down on a pristine weekend with plenty of swell to chase. I was less than excited, to understate it, but that skepticism would soon dissolve.
At lunchtime, the Fit finally pulled up. My first thought was, “Yep, it’s small alright.” I started to consider what activities would inevitably get the axe come Saturday morning. I didn’t even bother getting inside to feel it out. Instead, I went back up to the office and continued with my workday. When I finished, I begrudgingly grabbed the keys, opened the door and obliged the vehicle. And perceptions changed almost immediately.
I pushed the start button and the engine purred loudly like a wildcat back at me. Impressed? Oh yeah. This was the start of a four-day love affair. If my SUV could’ve seen me with this new sub-compact, it would’ve been green with seven shades of jealousy.
That evening and well into the night, I paraded my Fit all over town – from the office to home, from home to dinner, from dinner to a friend’s house, from his house to Malibu, and from Malibu back to Venice. I couldn’t stop driving it, nor could I believe I was having fun driving a tiny car – a first for me. The next day, however, was Judgment Day: the day I’d decide how to spend my precious hours of sunlight, and pack accordingly.
When it came, I was anxious about the potential sacrifices I’d have to make. But when all was said and done, courtesy of the rear-folding Magic Seat, I comfortably fit two surfboards, two skateboards, a four-person tent and all its trappings, a guitar, a football, a lantern, plenty of camera gear, and Bruce the Party Shark. (You never know.)
What’s more? It all fit in the Fit. Easily, too. If I didn’t need to see out the back window, I could’ve chucked in at least two more surfboards, a fully-grown yellow Labrador and my entire collection of original Hardy Boys books – that’s 39 for all you diehards out there. Point is, I found out the fun way that I don’t need all the space an SUV affords. The new Fit has an excess of storage space, a large, seven-inch audio system that kept me more than entertained and an eco-friendly engine setting that made sure I didn’t feel the slightest guilt about cheating on my SUV.
But, as with every weekend, I had to give it all up on Monday. I’ll be honest, though – I’d take the Fit for another spin in a heartbeat.
