I have a 2008 Fit base with 75k miles on it and the 5sp automatic transmission. There's a sound coming from my transmission that my mechanic couldn't solve, so I wanted to see if anyone else has experienced this now that I've at least pinpointed it.

The sound is a kind of chirpy ticking sound. I noticed it very faintly a few months back, but couldn't reproduce it enough to even mention to the mechanic. Last month, it got much more noticeable and consistent. It mainly occurs under load, when accelerating or going uphill. When I back off the accelerator, it stops. It's a steady, rhythmic tick that occurs maybe every 1-2 seconds. The car usually has to get warmed up before you can hear it and it's most noticeable after longer drives. The thing is, I've had no issues with performance and no slipping or shifting problems. It runs just fine.

The mechanic said it's definitely coming from the transmission. He checked the fluid and the fluid itself was OK but there was a bit of metal debris in it. He changed the trans fluid but the sound persists. He said, given the relatively low mileage and that performance is OK, keep driving and pay attention for any slipping, etc. But my main use for this car is longer drives and I'd hate to run into trouble far from home in the middle of nowhere. I'll likely get a second opinion but wanted to see if anyone has any insight into this. Everything I see about the AT in the GD is that it will last forever, but I guess anything is possible.

 

I just don't see a transmission making a ticking noise.... I'd be willing to bet it's a mount or something loose that's ticking. Or it's the sound of the injectors? Could be a lot of things. Is it possible to get a sound clip or video of the issue?

 

Thanks for the reply. The mechanic said he thought it was definitely coming from the transmission since it's from underneath rather than up top. It's tough to get a recording since it mostly happens while driving, but I'll give it a try this week. Ticking may not even really be the best description. Maybe tapping? Sometimes there's almost a high pitch chirp to it. I'm also getting a second opinion from another mechanic, so maybe that will offer some more insight.

 

Most likely it's coming from axle or exhaust system (exhaust tend to vibrate under load)
slipping transmission do NOT make noise
noise is typically made by failing gears, bearings, shafts
Get the second opinion (unless your mechanic has a "chassis ear" testing device

 

Is there any chance the alternator would make a noise under load? I was literally taking it in to my regular mechanic for a 2nd opinion and the alternator died. They have to replace that to even investigate the other issue, but maybe the other guy (who I went to because my regular shop was booked up) just had it all wrong. It would be great if it's somehow the same issue. Given my mechanic never got to hear the noise before, it might be hard to tell but we'll see.

 

Hi.

Without earing the sound itself, its a bit hard to confirm if the noise i had is similar to yours, but..
It only occured when the car was warm, when accelarating, very noticable on uphills, removing the foot from the accelarator stops the noise. Never understanded if the noise was comming from left/right side of the car.
The noise, was a loud ticking/clicking sound.

2 years after the noise started, engine light started popping up, a lot of misfires..leaved the car on a Honda dealer to fix the engine light, they cleaned the EGR valve and removed a lot of carbon from manfold intake and cylinders (was pretty bad).

Now the car is smoother, no engine light and no clicking/ticking sound!

Maybe something was loosed or maybe the noise was caused by the excess of carbon..but since the car came back from Honda the noise is gone.
​​​​​​​No parts was replaced on the service.

 

How did they remove the carbon?? I just opened up my intake manifold and there was a lot of carbon build up, when I changed the spark plugs there was a lot of carbon on them and after changing the PCV valve and it not testing I think there’s more carbon in there

 

Thanks so much for the input. The second mechanic I took it to is stumped. It was not the alternator; that was a separate issue unfortunately. They said it *might* be the transmission but they aren't sure. But I did finally get it on video. It's a little hard to hear over the engine/road noise but I had the best luck playing it on my phone since it's a bit higher pitched. (I couldn't hear it at all on my "good" speakers.) It's a rapid squeaky tick.

 

The sound I hearing is similar to an "old american truck clunking"
lets do this find the speed it is most pronounced
(film it with speedometer and tachometer in frame)
check if its speed or rpm dependent (not Fit specific but gives a good start)
drive at speed it most pronounced in different gears (I would not do it in lowest gear as engine roar will cover this sound)
if it stays at the same speed consider axles, wheel hubs and possibly tires
if with lower gear it goes to higher rpm consider engine/transmission (input shaft, oil pump and torque converter)
next when holding constant speed at level road with noise shift to N and release the gas
If noise still present wheel bearings, brakes or tires should be checked for sure
If noise goes away repeat neutral test, but keep engine rpms same as in gear (let say 2200 rpms) if noise is present it is engine related belt driven accessories
Noise at heavy pull (any gear) indicates bad engine bearings, leaking spark plug or exhaust

 

After 2 mechanics were stumped, I finally took it to a Honda dealer. They claim it's the ignition coil and they also recommended replacing the spark plugs. Of course the dealer is crazy expensive so I declined their service and have an appointment with my regular shop next week to check it out now that they have some direction. Weirdly, after getting a bit louder and more rapid over time (though the car still performing just fine), the sound suddenly substantially decreased in volume last weekend! On my way to the dealer this morning I was concerned they wouldn't even be able to hear it. Seems they did, though of course I didn't get to speak to the technician who worked on it. Anyway, this sound feasible to anyone? I'd hate to pay for service then find it doesn't resolve the issue.

 

While I have no idea what the actual problem is, usually bad coils or plugs on the Fit cause noticeable performance issues, which you don't seem to have. BTW, the Fit is coil-on-plug, so you have a coil sitting on top of each plug.

 

After all that, it seems it was the spark plugs. The Honda dealer came back with a loooong list of "critical maintenance" that would have totaled more than the value of the car if I had them do it all! Instead I told them thanks but no thanks and took the report to my regular mechanic who said 90% of what they recommended was not needed. What they did do was replace a brake caliper and the spark plugs. No more sound! (Safe to say it was not the caliper, given the conditions the sound would occur.) I probably wouldn't have fretted this so much if I wasn't worried it was the transmission. In the end, changing the spark plugs resolved the problem which is not something I would have ever guessed. Cars are weird.