Honda Fit EV Leases Extended As Hydrogen FCV Delayed

Make no mistake about it, as cool as the Honda Fit EV is, it was clearly designed as a compliance car, a placeholder for when Honda’s first production hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle (FCV) comes to market. With its FCV possibly delayed until 2017 or later, Honda has opted to extend the lease options on the Fit EV both both existing and new buyers.

It’s an interesting turn of events, especially considering that the Fit EV went out of production last fall. Yet the popular compact electric car has proven to be something of a hit, with a months-long waiting list in some parts of California (the only place you can buy a Fit EV I believe). With the earliest leases on the verge of ending, and no replacement in sight, Honda has offered up a $199 a month extended lease deal. That’s down from the $259 monthly payment and extends the free maintenance and unlimited milage offers of the original lease.

Considering the Honda Fit EV first arrived in 2012 as a 2013 model, the Japanese automaker should have had some kind of replacement by now. That hasn’t happened despite the promise of a new EV though, and with its hydrogen FCV plans pushed back as well, Honda could end up paying hefty fines to California’s Air Resource Board for failing to put enough zero-emissions vehicles on the road.

Maybe Honda should just commit to building the Fit EV instead? People seem to love it, it’s competitive with many other electric cars on the market, and consumers are clearly turned on by the idea of an electrified Honda. Why not just give us what we want?