heel toe is a method of shifting a manual transmission (in the same group as double clutching). It's done to downshift while braking. Essentially you put the clutch in, hit the brakes, and use the outside of your right foot to blip the throttle to match your engine speed to your wheel speed before putting the car in lower gear. It's not quite that easy and requires some coordination but it makes more sense once you get it.

Obviously, it requires a brake and gas pedal that are pretty close together but if my size six foot can do it in the xA, anyone can. Most mondern manuals have synchronizers that make heel toe less necessary so the pedals are spaced farther apart, hence the comment about actually being able to heel toe. Still, heel toe is perfectly possible in the xA.

 

i heel toe with the stock pedals...so yeah...in all honesty though, I LOVE my xA, but if the fit was available one year ago...I would've gone with that. Why? Two words....Mugen and Spoon...so fetch!

 

the honda fit is expensive for a 6 year old model base car

 

Doing what this guy did is no different than if you were selling a car in the newspaper, someone comes to your house to buy it, and as they are handing you the cash, some guy runs over to tell the buyer their car is for sale too, and the person should buy that car.


All things asides, it is rude is moronic.

 

That guy was completely out of line, both because he was flat out wrong about what he told that girl, and because he was extremely biased when it came to the "xA vs. Fit" argument. The Scion xA and the Honda Fit are very comparable cars. They both are damn near the same in every department, except for cost. According to, lets just call him "Mr. Fit", according to Mr. Fit - "It's similar in size and price to the xA, but it's twice the car, has twice the space, better handling, better interior." The price range for the xA is between $12,780 - $13,580, while the price range for the Fit is between $13,850 - $15,970. There is one mark against his credibility right out of the gate. Saying the the Fit is twice the car as the xA is another incorrect statement as they are comparable in nearly every aspect. Twice the space is another rediculous claim, as the xA actually provides more leg room for passengers than the Fit. And again, handling and interior are at a very similar standard in both cars.

I guess my point with all of this is, that guy is a jackhole, and an ignorant one at that. Just because there is another car out there that is similar to yours doesn't necessarily mean that yours is better just because you happen to find it more appealing. So theres my .02¢.

 

Well when comparably equipped to the Fit Sport, the Scion xA is around the same price. Like if you include Side Airbags, Side Curtain Airbags, Rims, Cruise Control, Security System, and full body kit.

Well, I am not sure if the guy was referring to passenger volume or cargo space. If you look at the boot space (with all seats in the upright position), the Fit does have almost twice the cargo space. Fit has 21.3 cu. ft.; xA has 11.7 cu. ft. That's almost twice the space.

With seats down, the Fit has 41.9 cu. ft.; xA has 32.8 cu. ft. So the Fit does have more cargo space.

In my humble opinion, I think the Fit interior is much nicer than the xA. Looking at pictures of both xA and Fit interiors; I think it's not even close. Show someone that doesnt own either xA and Fit; and they will most likely say the Fit has a better interior.

From the C&D comparo of subcompacts; they said the Fit Sport was by far the best handling subcompact. I understand that the xA wasnt included in the comparo, but I have never read of any kudos given to xA with respect to handling similar to what they said about the Fit.

"What truly set the Fit apart was its handling—not a pretense of handling but the real deal, with springs and struts that allowed one gentle rebound and no more, the only car here that felt happy storming the switchbacks."


http://automobiles.honda.com/images/...141_eprint.pdf

 

As a Toyota owner with 3000 miles on my xA, I really wish I had a FIT. After owning 4 Hondas, I'm convinced that Honda just makes a better overall product than Toyota.

 

and yet another noob question : why cant you just downshift while pressing clutch and brake without gas? I've never driven a manual before but I'm pretty sure my xA will be in manual so yeah....better start learning. Also, sorry for the mini-thread jack.

 

It's to keep the revs in the powerband while taking a corner to exit quicker.

 

Blipping the throttle matches engine speed to wheel speed and prevents the "buck" you see when some people throw in the clutch, shift, and pull the clutch back out. Without heel toe, dropping from say...4th to 2nd to corner would cause a buck, with heel toe you don't get one. Smoother ride, and better for the tranny.

 

and it sounds cool

 

I respectfully disagree. I think car purchases by car nuts are bought on passion. I spent 6 months researching the Mini and Audi A3 and bought the xA without even driving one! This is basically a pattern that has followed me since my first ride, a '56 Chevy. If a car is just a means of transportation, then logic will probably dictate. But, if a car is both a work of art, an engineering marvel and an extension of yourself, then passion rules! Chances are, if you're reading this, you are a car nut.

 

I've never driven a Fit, but I can tell you that the 1nz-fe feels more responsive in the xA compared to the xB, so I'm not so sure comparing engine response of the xB to a Fit is fair.

Oh, and that "Jesus" guy is just looking for attention. I wonder if the story is even true to begin with.

 

Well said! My xA is the first car I've ever bought that I did any kind of research on before buying...everything else was based on whether or not I liked the car in question, not whether it was suitable for my needs at the time, or any other practical consideration. The xA was also purchased with Mrs. Tikiguy's input, which had never happened previously...guess she got tired of having to live with my impulsive buying!

 

If that's the case, then to an xA owner the Fit may feel fairly similar. I can only compare it to the xB I had, but if what you say is true, then there you go. Between the xA and Fit, regardless of the way I may have come across earlier, I definitely don't think one is hands and fist above the other, and if similarly equipped I think it's all down to taste as to which to get. I do think in the long run the Fit may have more tuning potential, simply because there's a larger aftermarket overseas for it, but our problem now is that Honda saw to it to make the car just different enough in some areas that current JDM parts can't be used w/o some modification, or outright just can't be used. xA/xB was the same in the beginning too, though, so we'll just have to wait and see.

 

Yeah, it always does come down to personal taste. I haven't looked too much into the Fit, but if Toda, Mugen and Spoon start dishing out goodies like they do for the K20 folks, there will be some really mean Fits running around.

 

there's no right or wrong in this argument. it's a free speech country. we do know for a fact that the dealer wasn't even confident about his product.. so, LOL

 

Haha, I like your analogy but there is a flaw. In fact, what he did is even more ridiculous than what you're suggesting.

What actually happened is someone went to the house to buy the car, and then a complete stranger ran over to tell the purchaser that THE NEIGHBOR'S car is also for sale, is TWICE AS GOOD as the car the purchaser has their heart set on and that they should check it out because, after all, it's right over there just a short walk away.

The guy had no vested interest in the situation, is the point I'm trying to make. Buying a car is one part research and one part passion. By the time anyone makes up their mind on a five year committment and is at the dealership signing papers, they already own that car in their mind's eye. Trying to instill doubt in them is simply rude and shows a complete lack of understanding of the human psyche. It's too late to dissuade them at that point. All you can hope to do is make them wrought with worry over their major purchase, and in a case like this, there is NO justifiable reason for doing so. Buying an xA is not going to indanger them or ruin their life. It's a great car, just like the Fit. He should have left well enough alone instead of meddling.

Making a forum thread about it just shows how immature he is, nevermind the senseless replies to follow.

 

Wow, that was really funny. He didn't even own a Fit...hahaha. I wonder if he's driven either.

Nearly everyone tells you you're wrong, including Honda salespeople, and you still think you're right. Now that's what I call persistence.

 

Imagine if you proposed to a girl, in a really nice setting, and some random guy walks up and yells, "don't do it!"

Justified or not, you don't C Block someone and not expect hostility in return. . . especially if a dealer is nice enough take the time to show you a car (if you're just looking and not buying), why would you go ruin a potential sale. Even if the Fit is better (and IMO it's not), you're hurting the salesman, not Toyota, by reducing 1 sale. Idiot.