While the Honda Fit EV is en route to select California and Oregon markets, the Japanese automaker continues to turn up the green factor, announcing the Euro-spec Honda Fit will be available with an engine stop/start system to improve fuel economy. With the technology already spreading into the subcompact segment, we wonder whether it might serve Honda well in the subcompact segment here in the U.S.
As the 2012 Honda Fit approaches the end of its life cycle, the hatchback gets as high as 28/35 mpg city/highway. The 2013 Kia Rio will be available with the tech in the Eco model that adds 1 mpg in the city for an EPA-estimated rating of 31/40 mpg. In our 2012 Kia Rio First Drive story, we noted that the system wasn’t as seamless as it could be, but “isn’t bad at all for a first go-around in a segment that thrives on value.”
