So I have a 2007 Honda fit with 100,000 miles on it that I'm going to get a new body for because mine is rusting out to a dangerous level. I was wondering what advice you guys would have for maintenance that I should do at 100,000 miles. I'm thinking put in the hk-22 spark plugs check the valve lash and have that set correctly and a new timing belt while it's all out of the car is there anything else you guys would recommend for general maintenance for 100,000 mi fit? Also I'm hoping to do some performance upgrades if anyone has a stainless steel exhaust they're trying to sell or intakes or other things that they no longer need I'm very interested. I'm looking to make a bullet proof Honda fit. I kind of got screwed when I bought the car the guy hid the fact that the entire subframe is rusting out but I fell in love with it and now I want one that'll make it to the 500,000 mark. My plan is to take the shell I'm getting and clean up any areas that are starting to rust. Then use rhino liner to coat the entire thing on the bottom and exterior and I'm thinking even remove the carpet and rhino line the entire interior for weight reduction and I just think it would be cool. Plus I could put in a couple drain plugs and be able to wash it out with a hose if I ever need to. Basically I'm looking to make a really high-end mad Max build. But yeah I need advice on maintenance to do while the motors out. Or things to watch out for. I Have a little bit of cash saved up and I'm hoping to make a car that can last for the next 20 years, and 400k

 

Regarding your rhino liner idea, you should check out several recent posts about undercoating on cars. If everything goes perfectly, undercoating *may* help prevent corrosion, but if there is any break in the surface, uncorrected corrosion beneath the undercoating, or undiscovered corrosion inside a panel, your application of undercoating will most likely accelerate panel rust perforation.

I think you're better off fixing any issues on the undercarriage and then washing regularly. Lots of folks here have provided useful ideas for DIY undercarriage washers. For example, someone recently suggested attaching a lawn sprinkler to a piece of lumber so that you can slide the sprayer back and forth under the car to get at all areas. I use extensions on my pressure washer wand, including one with a 90 degree bend, to spray under my Fit. It's cold and no fun in the winter, but my 2010 has no rust.

If you insist on some sort of undercarriage protection, a wax-like treatment such as Fluid Film, Blaster Surface Protect, or Woolwax may be a safer and more effective option.

Regarding interior treatment, I'm not sure about the unit weight of rhino liner but I doubt that it's less than the weight of the carpet. Having completely removed and reinstalled the interior of a 2010 Fit Sport a few years ago I can tell you that the back seat weighs much more than the carpet and all of the interior plastic trim combined, so if you're looking to drop weight I would ditch a seat or two before pulling carpet.

Did you also mean to say that you want to use rhino liner on the exterior of the car? Just my opinion, but I don't think that would be a great idea. I suspect it would make your Fit even more of a heat trap than they already are, plus the rough surface would be impossible to clean. Where I grew up in the Midwest there are folks who put bed liner on the exterior of lifted diesel trucks to show how cool they are (in case we missed the giant set of truck nuts dangling off the hitch receiver or the 10-inch diameter exhaust stacks routed through the bed). Again, just my opinion, but I wouldn't let a friend do that to a perfectly good Fit.

As for engine maintenance, your manual explains all the recommended jobs. If you really want to be proactive, go ahead and replace anything that's more easy to access with the engine out of the car and you should be set. Unless some sort of tragedy occurs, a well-maintained, regularly cleaned Fit can easily last for 20 years/400k miles without any of the modifications you're considering.

 

I'd like to hear more about that. Seems like a LOT of work!