I'm not a "fan" of the Prius, but why would you say it's not gonna save someone $$ on gas? what is that based on? Even though the Prius is not for me, I'd say that it IS well suited to use less gas than 98.7% of all other cars - credit where it's due.

As for the Fit....

I'm surprised, impressed...and wow! about the pic of the 2 bikes....I'm always surprised who much stuff you can fit in that little car.

It's on my "maybe" list....now only if they offered an option sun/moon roof.

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The world is full of pricks who can only criticize. Are you one of them?

Your time and energy are limited. Are you wasting them by talking shit on the forums? -Dave Tate

Not exactly a "tri" car but a car that I can use for all of my outdoorsy adventure sport stuff, of which tri is a big part. I may want to throw in mountain bikes, camping gear, kids, dogs, etc etc. I want a very practical vehicle for those purposes.

As I have said, the fit is just too small for me. Yes, it can fit bikes, but I have a lot of other stuff. Mini is the same thing.

The mini van is not going to work. My wife already outlawed a minivan and I have too much dignity to drive one as a man still in my twenties.

Keep the ideas coming. I like them.

How many more ideas do you need?!

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"Lemond is cycling's version of Rev Jessie Jackson." -johnnyperu 5/18/07
"Just because I suck doesn't mean my bike has to" -rickn 9/2/08

I'm just saying you already have that if you have a CRV. Get another one? Bleh.

MS3 or Mini for times when you just have "some" stuff to bring with you and you want good mileage and a fun car. When you have "more" stuff just take the CRV and let your wife drive the MS3/Mini. Easy.

Well, if you end up getting an Element, you could get one of these for it:

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My business-eBodyboarding.com

Yeah, you're probably right. My wife keeps telling me I'm making this harder than it is. I guess I just want a car that I can get excited about. The CRV is a little soccer momish. I'd like more of a man's car, but I'm having a difficult time trying to justify the economics of it.

"My wife keeps telling me I'm making this harder than it is"

Understatement of the year.

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"Lemond is cycling's version of Rev Jessie Jackson." -johnnyperu 5/18/07
"Just because I suck doesn't mean my bike has to" -rickn 9/2/08

Ok, so for anyone who was following this post months ago, I finally decided and purchased my new car. I got a newly remodeled 2009 Honda Fit. I love it. It has a sportier look than the last one. It comes with some neat stuff like sport shifter paddles, Ipod/usb port standard, fog lights std, spoiler std, nice sport alum 16" wheels std, chromed exhaust, and lots more. It is incredibly fuel efficient, rated at 28/35, but I've been getting more like 30/39.5. Best of all, it is incredibly practical. It offers a variety of seat combinations. You can lay all seats flat, including the front, or lift the seat bottom of the back seat up to have tall storage space, or you can lay the back seats down 60/40/100. You can easily fit two bikes standing up right in the back, which you would never believe by looking at the car. I put my bike in there last week and still had about 6" of clearance above the saddle. I put in a Saris fork rack made for interiors of vans and SUVS and it fits perfectly. Plus, it is not attached so I can just pick it up and put it in my wife's CRV. The car features Honda reliability and will be high on resale. Plus, it is relatively inexpensive. I got mine for 17,500. You wouldn't believe the high quality of the factory sound system either. In any event, I would rate this as the best value on the road and the best car for tri transportation if value and fuel efficiency is your #1 priority.

I loved my saab 9-3, but I'm not missing it a bit. Enjoy the pics.

nice little cart.

if honda made a hybrid version, i'd be at the dealership yesterday.

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Where would you want to swim ?

how about a pic with the bike in there? pics or it didn't happen.

nice ride. i have one of the new civics (2006) and love it. the bike won't stand up in mine, but it will fit with the seats down (and its a coupe, no less). not sure about your sound system, but mine is great - and factory. i wouldn't have added a sub, but i like that it has one.

and, my mileage has improved over the three years of ownership (best of 42mpg average for a tank).

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mckenzie

How tall are you? I doubt I could get my bike in there, and my seat is probably low by ST standards. :)

I rented a Pontiac Vibe and drove Atlanta to Clermont and back for Great Floridian ~ 1800 miles include some side trips. It was great. You can get a 54cm tri bike in laying down if you take front wheel off and move passenger seat up slightly.

I mention this bc I imagine a pre-owned American car like this wb a good deal, still under warranty. It had XM and iPod input.

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Damn, that's a cold ass honkey.

can you tell me the model of that Saris rack? That is sweet that it fits in there like that. A friend and I went to soma and drove down with our bikes, and now mine has a scratch on it. :( I'll be getting a new car in 2009, and love the small zippy cars. the bike rack inside is a BONUS!!!

I made my own with a $25 Yakima mount and $4 piece of 1X6 from Lowes. You can custom fit it to your vehicle with not much expense.

The Yakima mount is like this:

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Suffer Well.

That thing is cool. Good color choice too. One nice little detail is the up-front windows. Very fun. It's nice and swoopy. I like it. Cool.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Congratulations on avoiding a "Keeping up with the joneses" mentality and getting a sensible car =)


All of you with huge ass cars go punch yourself in the nuts for being silly.

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Kat Hunter reports on the San Dimas Stage Race from inside the GC winning team
Aeroweenie.com -Compendium of Aero Data and Knowledge
Freelance sports & outdoors writer Kathryn Hunter

Most of the "joneses" I know are switching to cars like the Fit.

Can I punch you in the nuts on general principles? :D

John

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Top notch coaching: Francois and Accelerate3 | Follow on Twitter: LifetimeAthlete |

How fun is it to drive? That car weighs like 2400 lbs, so it's got to be a hoot with those comparatively wide tires.

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Ignorance is bliss until they take your bliss away.

I'm a big fan of the Fit.... ever since I used one with ZipCar.

Though I'll likely get a Scion xb next (currently have a 2000 honda accord and a 2006 Honda pilot family wagon/sport utility vehicle - though in our case it actually is an suv with a bike roof rack, and at least 2 running shoes and a jogger in the back at any time) when the Accord dies.

Though I love the pilot... gets about 21mpg (not the greatest but not the worst for a vehicle of it's size), it can easily carry bikes on top, 8 people inside (6 - 7 adults comfortably) and some gear....

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MyGearGarage - Track all your gear!

I'm assuming you take at least the front wheels off.

The Fit can fit 3 58cm bikes with the front wheels off.

All of you with huge ass cars go punch yourself in the nuts for being silly.

We may be in the minority but some people have a legit need for a large SUV. My wife has an Expedition and we love it.

Can someone post a pic of this? I have a fit and I love it. Only ever need to transport 1 bike so i just lay it flat in the back (with the front wheel on). So great to just throw the bike in the back after a ride with such ease!!

The Fit is an awesome car- you can't go wrong with a Honda.

On a side note, has anyone seen this setup by any chance?..



EDIT: Looks like it can hold two...

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goals, personal:
- under same username post st rr of Kona m80-84ag mop, tail end of the dopers finish
- shoot age from tips on par 72
- beat SuperDave in one-on-one
all within single wk- Viva Chopin, Fryderyk; Faulk, Peter; Helmsley, Sherman; Palillo, Ron; Rogers, Fred McFeely; Sanford, John Elroy; Snuka, Jimmy- and the water bottle isn't half fuller on the other side

You get a 2 x 4 and put on 3 Yakima mounts at an angle so that you can turn the handle bars. The back wheel goes towards the front of the car.

I have NOT done this but saw this done.

I do the same as you just lay the bike it there it is very nce.