> A casual search for one of these turns up only two hits in my neck of
> the woods. Were they that rare, or are owners holding on to them
> despite criticisms of their bland styling?
they were that rare.
sales dorks at honda usa tried to kill the hatchback with that
generation and only imported them for the last couple of years. they
had to back-track once it became clear they'd made a mistake, hence we
now have not only the civic hatch [albeit in limited quantities] but the
fit hatch as well. can't make the fit fast enough to satisfy huge
demand apparently.