PaleMelanesian's 2009 Honda Fit

[niky]

Great work on the pan. Except for the ties, looks almost factory!

[PaleMelanesian]

Wheels and tires! I got a great deal on a set of Konig Helium wheels and Goodyear FuelMax tires. The stock 16" tires cost more, so downsizing the wheels saves money in tires. After tax and rebates, the wheels were only $150 for the set. Next time I buy tires I'll recover that completely.

Wheels 15*6.5, 40 backspace (oem 16*6, 53 backspace)
11 lb each vs 17 lb

Tires 195-60-15 (oem 185-55-16)
Same overall diameter, same driving rpm, +10 width, -2 lb, +?? mpg.

The oem tires (Dunlop sp sport 7000as) were junk. Poor traction and terrible tread life. This is the 2nd set this car has worn, completely finished at 64k miles. I know the FuelMax's are good, having run a set on the family Odyssey. They added (approximately) 1 mpg highway there, from 25, for a 4% increase over the already good Michelin Symmetry oem's.

I've dropped 32 lb overall, lowered my RRc, improved my acceleration and braking (slightly), improved rough-surface suspension handling (noticeably!), and improved traction and comfort.

Aerodynamics is a slight loss, with the very open spokes and a 3/4" track width increase. The wheels were really sunk in before, so they're still mostly covered by the body. Most of my driving is local "suburban" stuff so that's worth it to me.



Oh, and I got bronze color. I like the look of dark wheels, but the pure black I had before looks bad with weathered not-quite-black tires.

[Daox]

Very nice. How does it feel with the new setup?

[kafer65]

Congratulation on the new edition! What oil grade is required on the Fit? ZeroW20? 10K oil interval sounds good to me. Used to do that on the Jetta but I'm just now getting enough miles to do an oil analysis on a 5k interval for Mobil 1 ow-20.

[kafer65]

I also have the problem of highway rpm being too high and my tank is usually down about 1-2 mpg if I'm mostly highway driving. Removing the mirrors helped me pick up a few mph and hold the same mpg. If I get faster than 62m.p.hour I'm in the mpg penalty box. I had a nasty D-pillar blind spot that the inboard mirrors helped as well.

[PaleMelanesian]

Spec is 5w20. I have a stash of Mobil1 in both 5w20 and 0w20. It has a smart oil-life gauge that considers driving style and conditions. It's gone between 8 and 10,000 miles each time so far, now at 64k.

The car is smoother and quieter now with new tires. It was a squish-mobile at the spec 32 psi but stable and responsive at the sidewall max 51. Not as solid as before but that was like driving on shopping cart wheels, in a bad way. The rubber was hard and there was no tread left.

The light weight is noticeable on speed bumps and parking lot entrances and rough surfaces. The suspension responds faster and transmits less to the body. The extra bit of sidewall I think contributes to the shock absorption as well.

There is a bit more "tread squirm", as is expected. I was at the wear bars before, now I have an extra 1/4 inch of new (softer) rubber at the car-road interface. It's noisier on cornering. I haven't pushed the corners yet as I haven't learned their on-the-limit behavior safely yet. I will...

As expected from any old tires to new ones, braking is VASTLY improved.

[jetto-setto]

Cool car! Looks great in white (but I may be biased).

I would bet Toyota 0W-20 would work great in your car once you've gone through your stash.

[California98Civic]

Love the wheels and the look of the white. Nice car.

[Gasoline Fumes]

Originally Posted by PaleMelanesian

As expected from any old tires to new ones, braking is VASTLY improved.

You brake?

[Fat Charlie]

The Fit's combination of low HP and high drag makes for great brake performance.