You’re at the pump again, watching your trusty Honda Fit gulp down another tank, and you wonder: “Didn’t Honda make an electric version of this?” You’ve heard whispers. You’ve seen a forum post or two. Maybe you’re chasing a practical dream, all that Fit magic, but silent and guilt-free. Here’s the uncomfortable truth we need to face together: if you’re comparing these two cars, you’re chasing a ghost that was never really meant to be caught.
We’re going to cut through the confusion with cold facts and warm understanding. One car you can actually buy used anywhere. The other? It’s automotive folklore. Only 1,100 lease-only units that vanished back into Honda’s hands years ago. Let’s figure out what really happened, celebrate what made both special, and land on what you should actually do today.
Keynote: Honda Fit vs Honda Fit EV
The Honda Fit delivered legendary cargo versatility through its Magic Seat system and 300+ mile range. The Fit EV sacrificed practicality for electric efficiency, achieving 118 MPGe but only 82 miles range. Honda leased just 1,100 units in 2013 to 2014 as a compliance vehicle, reclaiming all returns. Today, gas Fits remain available used for $10,000 to $14,000, while Fit EVs are essentially extinct, making this comparison primarily historical rather than practical for buyers.
The Brutal Reality Check: Why This Comparison Is (Mostly) Academic
The Fit EV Was Never Meant to Be Yours
Industry insiders called it a “compliance car” from day one. This wasn’t a vehicle Honda wanted you to own. It was a regulatory chess move.
The numbers tell the story: exactly 1,100 units for the entire US market between 2013 and 2014. That’s fewer cars than some dealers sell in a month. Available only in California, Oregon, and five East Coast states. You needed a waitlist in specific zip codes just to qualify for a lease.
Honda built the Fit EV to satisfy California’s zero-emission vehicle mandates, nothing more. It was a hand-assembled experiment, pieced together in the same facility where they built the FCX Clarity fuel cell vehicle. The lease-only program made perfect sense once you understood the mission: gather real-world data, meet regulatory requirements, and maintain total control over every single unit.
You Genuinely Cannot Buy One Today
Here’s where the story gets even stranger. Zero Fit EVs on Carvana, CarFax, or Cars.com as of 2025. The used market is a complete desert.
All leases ended years ago. Honda reclaimed every single vehicle. They vanished, presumably shipped back to Japan for engineering analysis and teardown studies. Some lessees loved their Fit EVs so much that Honda offered two-year lease extensions at just $199 per month. But eventually, everyone had to give them back.
Translation: This is a history lesson, not a shopping guide. Unless you’re an automotive archaeologist hunting for unicorns at wholesale auctions, you’re not driving home in a Fit EV. Period.
But You’re Still Here, So Let’s Honor Both
Your curiosity isn’t silly. It’s about understanding what could have been. About learning from a brief, brilliant flash of electric ambition.
The gas Fit earned a cult following for brilliant reasons we’ll explore. It became the vehicle that proved you don’t need bigness to deliver usefulness. The Fit EV represented a bold idea ahead of its time, a glimpse of tomorrow that Honda never intended to scale. That story matters too. It teaches us about the gap between compliance exercises and genuine market commitments.
Why the Gas Fit Became the Hero Nobody Saw Coming
The “Magic Seat” That Spoiled You Forever
Four seating configurations that defied physics. The 60/40-split rear seatbacks folded perfectly flat with the cargo floor. But the real magic happened in “Tall Mode.”
The rear seat bottoms flipped up and locked against the seatbacks. Suddenly you had a floor-to-ceiling storage area approximately four feet high. Real owners hauled bicycles standing upright, eight-foot lumber, amplifiers, and couches in a subcompact hatchback. It’s the TARDIS of hatchbacks, impossibly bigger inside than its exterior suggests.
Behind those upright rear seats? A generous 20.6 cubic feet. Fold everything down? A cavernous 57.3 cubic feet that embarrassed compact crossovers costing twice as much. The Magic Seat wasn’t a feature. It was the entire value proposition, the reason enthusiasts still defend this car with religious fervor.
The Economics That Actually Made Sense Every Single Month
The 2013 Fit delivered 31 MPG combined with real-world range exceeding 300 miles per tank. You could drive from Los Angeles to San Francisco on a single fill-up. Five minutes at any gas station, anywhere in America, and you’re rolling again.
Original MSRP ranged from $15,425 to $19,790 depending on trim. Genuinely affordable new, which matters when you’re a college graduate or young family. Today’s used market? You’ll find decent examples between $5,000 and $12,000. Honda’s bulletproof reputation is baked into that price.
Annual maintenance costs averaged around $390, below the subcompact average. Oil changes, tire rotations, the occasional brake job. Simple stuff any mechanic could handle. No proprietary technology, no specialized training required. Just reliable transportation doing its job month after month.
The Surprising Joy of Driving Something “Just Right”
Here’s the thing: the Fit wasn’t trying to be a sports car. Its 1.5-liter engine produced 117 horsepower at a high 6,600 RPM. You had to rev it, work the gears if you chose the manual transmission. But that engagement made it fun.
0 to 60 in 8.9 seconds with the manual isn’t fast. It’s adequate, which was always enough. The Fit made Car and Driver’s 10Best list every year from 2007 until discontinuation. “The Fit Is Go” wasn’t marketing hype. It was a promise kept in every corner, every merge onto the highway, every moment when the car felt more alive than its specifications suggested.
Lightweight at around 2,500 pounds, nimble steering, responsive handling. Grocery runs felt like minor adventures. You sat low, saw everything through expansive glass, and enjoyed driving in a way that modern crossovers will never replicate.
The Fit EV’s Brief, Brilliant Flash
The Specs That Looked Revolutionary on Paper
The 92-kW electric motor delivered 123 horsepower, barely more than the gas version. But torque? Here’s where the EV rewrote the rules.
189 pound-feet of instant torque from zero RPM. A 78% advantage over the gasoline model, available the moment your foot touched the accelerator pedal. No gear changes, no waiting for the engine to climb into its powerband. Just silent, seamless acceleration that made city driving genuinely exciting.
Honda achieved something remarkable with efficiency. The Fit EV earned an EPA rating of 118 MPGe combined, the most efficient car in America at launch. It beat the Nissan Leaf’s 99 MPGe and the Ford Focus Electric’s 105 MPGe. For urban commuters counting every electron, those numbers mattered.
0 to 60 in under nine seconds in Sport mode matched or beat the gas Fit, but the experience felt completely different. No engine noise, no vibration. Just thrust.
The Painful Compromises Nobody Talks About
EPA range of just 82 miles from a 20 kWh battery pack. In 2013, when most people drove less than 40 miles daily, that seemed adequate. In reality? Range anxiety was absolutely real.
Cold weather could slash that 82-mile rating down to 60 or 65 miles. Highway driving drained the battery faster than city driving. Aggressive use of Sport mode? You’d watch the range estimate drop like a stone. Every trip required planning, calculation, and a constant awareness of charging locations.
But the deepest cut was what the Fit EV lost. The legendary Magic Seat vanished entirely. Battery placement underneath the floor eliminated the complex folding mechanism that defined the Fit’s identity. The EV got conventional 60/40-split rear seats that didn’t create a flat load floor. “Tall Mode” was impossible.
Cargo space behind upright rear seats? Just 12 cubic feet compared to 20.6 in the gas model. Fold everything down? 49.4 cubic feet versus 57.3. The Fit EV transformed from one of the most versatile subcompacts into one of the least practical.
Level 2 charging only, no DC fast charging capability whatsoever. Even with the Fit EV’s impressive 6.6 kW onboard charger, a full recharge required roughly three hours at home. No 20-minute quick charges at public stations. No road trips. This was purely an urban vehicle with a permanent electronic leash.
The original MSRP? $36,625, though nobody ever paid that directly because of the lease-only structure. Honda offered initial leases at $389 monthly with zero down, later dropping to $259. The federal $7,500 EV tax credit went to Honda, not the lessee, subsidizing those artificially low payments.
What the Honest Reviews Actually Said
MotorTrend praised the instant torque and how it transformed city driving dynamics. The silence, the smoothness, the effortless surges through traffic made it genuinely pleasant.
Car and Driver delivered the gut-punch assessment: “It loses everything we love about that car.” The cargo space compromise hurt. The range limitation stung. The lack of purchase option frustrated buyers who actually wanted to own one long-term.
General consensus among automotive journalists landed on a nuanced truth. The Fit EV was thrilling to drive within its element, an exceptional urban commuter for the right person. But as your only vehicle? Impossible to justify unless you had extremely predictable patterns and access to a second car for everything beyond local errands.
Head-to-Head: The Comparison You Came For
The Side-by-Side That Tells the Whole Story
| What Really Matters | Fit (2013 gas) | Fit EV (2013) |
|---|---|---|
| Daily efficiency | 31 MPG combined | 118 MPGe |
| Real-world range | 300+ miles per tank | 82 miles EPA (60-70 winter reality) |
| Power delivery | 117 hp / 106 lb-ft | 123 hp / 189 lb-ft instant torque |
| Refueling reality | 5 minutes anywhere | 3 hours Level 2, no road-trip fast charging |
| Cargo magic | Magic Seat, haul anything | Battery compromised flexibility |
| Finding one today | Common used market | Essentially extinct |
| 5-year ownership cost | ~$17,950 (purchase + fuel + maintenance) | ~$12,260 (if you could find one) |
The Driving Experience Gap
The gas Fit asks you to participate. You shift gears, you rev the engine, you work for the acceleration. It’s predictable, trustworthy for three-hour highway hauls, competent in every situation without ever being spectacular.
The Fit EV delivers instant gratification. Silent operation, zero hesitation, perfect for 30-second sprints through traffic lights. The three-mode drive system let you choose your personality: Econ for maximum range but sluggish acceleration, Normal for balanced daily driving, Sport for unleashing the full 123 horsepower and aggressive throttle response.
Think of it this way: the gas Fit is your reliable road-trip buddy who’s ready for anything. The Fit EV is the exciting friend who’s absolutely brilliant at what they do but can’t stay long and can’t venture far from home.
The weight difference told another story. The EV’s 3,252-pound curb weight, nearly 700 pounds heavier than the gas model, created a more planted highway feel. Honda replaced the standard torsion-beam rear suspension with a sophisticated multi-link independent setup to accommodate the battery. That upgrade delivered a noticeably smoother, more composed ride over rough pavement.
The Hidden Battery Time Bomb
After ten years, any Fit EV still running today faces the battery degradation question. Replacement could cost $5,000 to $8,000, assuming you could even source the parts for a discontinued compliance vehicle with 1,100 total units produced.
Gas Fit maintenance remains cheap Honda routine. Oil, filters, predictable wear items that any mechanic can handle. The devil you know versus the specialized lithium-ion devil you don’t.
Why Both Vanished (And What It Says About What We Actually Want)
The SUV Takeover That Killed Small Cars
By 2020, Americans collectively decided that practicality wasn’t enough. We wanted to sit higher, feel bigger, dominate traffic. Crossovers offered that psychological comfort even at the cost of efficiency and maneuverability.
Honda discontinued the Fit in the US market. Toyota killed the Yaris. Ford dropped the Focus and Fiesta entirely. The HR-V “replaced” the Fit by offering two inches more height and a commanding driving position. Never mind that it cost more and delivered less cargo flexibility.
We voted with our wallets, and small cars lost decisively. The Fit’s brilliance couldn’t overcome America’s preference for height and perceived safety over actual usefulness.
The EV Technology Just Wasn’t Ready Yet
2013 battery technology couldn’t deliver affordable long-range electric vehicles. An 82-mile range seems almost quaint now, a relic from the early electric era when every electron counted and range anxiety ruled decision-making.
Honda chose hybrids and fuel cells instead, waiting for battery economics to improve. They were right to wait. Today’s affordable EVs routinely deliver 250+ miles of range, proving the Fit EV arrived before the infrastructure and technology could support mass adoption.
The lack of DC fast charging capability sealed the Fit EV’s fate as a local-only vehicle. That single omission made it obsolete the moment competitors added 30-minute quick-charge capability.
The Fit Still Exists, Just Not Here
Fourth-generation Fit (called Jazz in some markets) continues selling in Japan, Europe, and other regions. It’s thriving in markets that still value efficiency and urban practicality over commanding sight lines.
North American dealers deemed it unprofitable. Margins on small cars are thin, and buyers weren’t interested. The loss is cultural, not just automotive. We lost a vehicle that proved you could live fully without excess.
What You Should Actually Do Today
If the Gas Fit Still Calls to You
Hunt for 2015 to 2020 models representing the third-generation refinements. Honda addressed earlier issues with improved soundproofing and better materials. Budget $10,000 to $17,000 depending on mileage and condition.
Watch for common issues. Early models suffered occasional ignition coil failure and premature starter problems. Test the CVT transmission thoroughly during your inspection. Listen for unusual noises, check for hesitation during acceleration, verify smooth operation through all gears.
Why it’s still brilliant: that reliability-space-affordability triangle Honda mastered. The used market offers excellent value for a vehicle that’ll run another 100,000 miles with basic maintenance. Join the enthusiast forums, learn the quirks, and enjoy a car that still makes sense in 2025.
If You Want What the Fit EV Promised
Modern affordable EVs deliver on the promise the Fit EV couldn’t fulfill. The Chevy Bolt EUV offers 247 miles of range. The Nissan Leaf reaches 212 miles in Plus trim. The Hyundai Kona Electric achieves 258 miles.
| Modern EV Alternative | EPA Range | DC Fast Charging | Starting Price (Used) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chevy Bolt EUV | 247 miles | Yes (55 kW) | $18,000-$25,000 |
| Nissan Leaf Plus | 212 miles | Yes (CHAdeMO) | $20,000-$28,000 |
| Hyundai Kona Electric | 258 miles | Yes (77 kW) | $22,000-$30,000 |
These vehicles fulfill the Fit EV’s promise with today’s battery technology. You can actually buy them, own them, and road-trip in them without constant range calculations and charging anxiety.
If You Want Fit Practicality in New Form
The Honda HR-V carries forward the Magic Seat configuration. It’s taller, heavier, less efficient, but maintains that cargo flexibility that defined the Fit. Current used market pricing ranges from $18,000 to $28,000 depending on year and condition.
The Honda Civic took over entry-level duties in Honda’s lineup. Excellent reliability continues, though you lose the hatchback versatility unless you spring for the Civic Hatchback variant.
The Kia Soul offers quirky boxy styling with similar pack-anything spirit. Not as flexible as the Fit’s Magic Seat, but surprising cargo capacity and a devoted following for its personality and practicality.
Conclusion: The Small Car We Loved and the Future That Arrived Too Soon
We started with a simple question that led us down automotive history’s rabbit hole. The gas Fit was a brilliant answer to “how much car do you actually need?” that America eventually rejected in favor of sitting higher and feeling bigger. The Fit EV was a compliance exercise and a glimpse of tomorrow that Honda never intended to scale, a promise made before the technology could keep it.
Your actionable first step today: If you want that Fit magic, buy a used gas one before they’re all worn out. Prices remain reasonable between $10,000 and $14,000, and the enthusiast community is strong. If you want guilt-free electric driving, honor the Fit EV’s vision by choosing a modern EV with real range and real availability.
Final thought: The Honda Fit proved small cars can hold big ideas. The Fit EV proved good intentions without infrastructure make for expensive experiments. Both deserved better than they got, but their legacy lives on in everyone who still believes you don’t need three rows and a lift kit to live a full life.
Honda Fit EV vs Honda Fit (FAQs)
Why did Honda only lease the Fit EV and never sell it?
Yes, it was purely a compliance strategy. Honda built the Fit EV to satisfy California’s zero-emission vehicle mandates, producing only 1,100 units total. The lease-only model let Honda control all vehicles, claim the federal $7,500 tax credit to subsidize payments, gather real-world electric vehicle data, and avoid long-term warranty obligations on experimental battery technology. It was never meant to be a mainstream product you could own.
What happened to all the Honda Fit EVs after lease returns?
No, you can’t find them on the used market. Honda reclaimed every single Fit EV when leases ended. The vehicles were reportedly shipped back to Japan for engineering analysis and teardown studies. Some lessees loved them enough that Honda offered two-year lease extensions at $199 monthly, but eventually everyone had to return them. This makes the Fit EV one of the rarest modern vehicles, with essentially zero availability today despite over 1,000 being produced.
Is the Honda Fit EV a good used car to buy?
No, it’s effectively impossible to buy one. Even if you found a Fit EV that somehow escaped Honda’s reclamation program, the 82-mile range and lack of DC fast charging make it obsolete compared to modern EVs.
Battery degradation after 10+ years could require $5,000 to $8,000 replacement costs with uncertain parts availability. For the same $9,000 used price, a gas Fit delivers superior practicality, or a modern used EV offers triple the range with fast-charging capability.
How does Fit EV range compare to modern electric cars?
Not favorably at all. The Fit EV’s 82-mile EPA range falls far short of modern affordable EVs. The 2024 Chevy Bolt EUV delivers 247 miles, the Nissan Leaf Plus reaches 212 miles, and the Hyundai Kona Electric achieves 258 miles. Cold weather could drop the Fit EV’s range to 60 or 65 miles, while today’s EVs maintain usable range even in winter. Battery technology improved dramatically in the decade since the Fit EV’s 2013 debut.
Does the Fit EV have DC fast charging capability?
No, and this is its fatal flaw. The Fit EV supports only Level 2 AC charging through its 6.6 kW onboard charger, requiring roughly three hours for a full charge. It has no DC fast-charging capability whatsoever, meaning you can’t quick-charge in 20 to 30 minutes like modern EVs.
This limitation permanently restricted the Fit EV to urban commuting with overnight home charging, making any road trip or spontaneous long drive impossible.