My 1983 Honda Prelude got 100HP from its carburetted 1.8L engine, so I don't see this an 'awesome achievement'.

But for its intended audience I think this is another Honda winner. A refined blob.

 

Your 1983 Prelude also likely got much worse fuel economy, had less refinement, more noise and more harshness, and greatly worse emissions than this engine will achieve.

Compared to other 1.5L N/A 4 cyl engines, it is a great achievement.

 

Honda Fit/Jazz Voted Japans Car of the Year
Honda’s entry-level Fit compact has taken Japan’s coveted Car of the Year award, beating runners up Nissan and its new Skyline coupe as well as the Subaru Impreza. Judging was handled by a 60-member panel made up primarily of auto journalists and industry analysts.

Surprisingly, Honda has won five of the awards over the past ten years the event has been run, with on those going to the first generation Fit. Last year saw the Lexus LS sedan take home the award, reports Automotive News.

The second-generation Fit, also known as the Jazz in some markets, is one of the most popular models in Japan and has already racked up 20,000 sales after being launched just two weeks ago.

 

The exterior looks a little better but the interior seems a step down and I don't really like it. I don't really see alot of fits on the road so I am surprised it seems to sell pretty good. I am surprised the Fit is pretty highly regarded for its drive and handling in its class because when I see it on the road it looks like it would have alot of body lean with the small tires and it being narrow and high. Not my kind of car but I hope it is successful for Honda.

 

There's a handful up here. If you haven't seen a Fit in real life, you'll be in for a shock. It is TINY (well I would've used smaller case instead of caps lol).

The length of a Fit makes my Prius look like a fullsize Avalon. And it's quite spacious inside too. The flexible seating arrangement is top notch for its class.

However Honda has cut corners. It only has one licence plate bulb (actually most Hondas do), doesn't have a driver's footrest, no floor mats, doesn't have anti-chipping spray in the wheel wells (you see the body colour overspray instead of black) and to be honest the steering wheel feels yucky (for a lack of a better word).

The engine is a bit noisy and the transmission is geared towards acceleration. Every time I accelerated, it was like I was mashing the pedal as it screams towards 3-4,000rpm. Just had to tell the salesman that I wasn't trying to destroy the Fit lol.

 

The car does what it was meant to do and it does it well...

Not bad IMO...