When my 2008 Fit (55k miles) comes to a stop, it chugs roughly and sounds like it will stall (but hasn't fully stalled). More recently, when I accelerate sharply or go over a hill, it chugs once like it's working harder. It doesn't always do this, there have been some days it doesn't at all (possibly when it's warmer).
I had a friend hook it up to a computer and it's not throwing any codes. No check engine light.
Regular oil changes, checked transmission fluid, put fuel line injector in without change.
Reading here I've heard that a valve adjustment or coil replacement might be warranted. However, I didn't hear people mention issues with acceleration. So I'm checking with you guys for any ideas.
Some mechanics I mentioned said that they thought I should bring it to the dealer, that they would be better able to handle this than a local one. Is this true?
Thanks.

 

I'd say coils but swapping out parts randomly can get expensive. I'd say find a mechanic that is willing to test the coils and perhaps the upstream O2 sensor. If the coils need changing, I'd say get in there and do the plugs while you're at it. It should cost you no more than 50$ for all 4 iridium plugs that are recommended for this engine.

 

^^^ Only if you replace the plugs yourself. Don't forget, a mechanic will charge labor if you do not DIY.


Some others have reported sluggish acceleration (due to the partial miss-fires) with problems like these. So since you have obviously read those (somewhat lengthy) topics, you kinda know what you are in for.




1.. Adjust the valve clearances.

2.. Replace the spark plugs (W/ Denso or NGK Iridiums)

3.. Replace coils (W/ OEM or Hitachi part # ending in 053)


Whether you want to do everything at once is up to you. An Indie mechanic would do the job for less, just make sure they use the specified parts for best results.

 

Sounds like a intake leak. When it is warm or when the engine warms up the leak is sealed due to material expansion.

 

^+1 for excellent advice. These are the common culprits for this car and are the best place to start.

Valve clearances are also affected by engine temperature. Plus it's a common issue in this car. You could also randomly check different things like intake leaks, clogged fuel filters, clogged injectors, throttle body build-up, or whatever else under the sun if you want to severely diminish your chances of hitting the actual problem in a short amount of time.

You'd be better off tackling the common issues first.

 

Is your EGR valve clean?

 

t 55k it needs a tuneup. Replacing spark plugs is certainly needed but you can clean the electrodes and regap them at .035 to .040" at no cost. if that doesn't cure the sluggesness then you can go the full tune up plugs, coil paks, and valve clearances. You can do the valve gaps yourself or with some experienced assistance when you re gap the plugs. DIY is no cost for either.,
cars aren't computers, they require parts replaced. good luck,

 

Solved! Bad coil pack cylinder 3


I just started experiencing symptoms like these but I'd like to add some specificity to hopefully rule out some of these possibilities before I start spending money.

I brought my car to the mechanic a few days ago and he looked it over and said "it's fine, it's just old".

I don't buy it.

I have 240 000km (150 000mi) on my 2007 Fit. About a week ago, I started noticing 2 issues:

1. When idling, the vehicle will idle normally for about 40-70 seconds and then there will be an abrupt and short-lived shake. Like the whole car vibrates very noticeably for about 0.5 - 0.8 seconds. No significant change in RPM, it stays between 850 - 1000. Then it continues idling normally for another 40-70 seconds until the next shake, and so on. This does not seem to be related to temperature, as it happens just as often right when I start the engine as when I exit from the highway and stop at a red light.

2. When accelerating, but MAINLY at low RPM, I will experience "hiccups" or abrupt losses of power. It's like a repeating hesitation that'll last for a split second and then you feel the car accelerate normally for a split second and then another interruption in the power delivery. This is very RPM dependent. Here are some approximate numbers to illustrate what I mean:

If I'm in 2nd gear and accelerating from 3800RPM to the red line, I can floor the gas and accelerate normally. However, if I'm still in 2nd gear and accelerating from 1800RPM to 3500RPM, the car will produce intermittent power during that run and then behave normally once I exceed 3500RPM. The same pattern is true for every gear - if I try to accelerate without first downshifting and revving the engine to a minimum of 3500RPM, then I cannot get normal performance.

3. At constant speed, there are no problems unless I'm trying to climb a hill and I don't downshift more than I should have to. Like if the highway has, say, a 10º incline where shifting from 5th to 4th would have previously been appropriate so I'm not flooring the gas in order to maintain speed, now I have to shift down to 3rd and rev the engine unnaturally high so that I don't get the "hiccups".

There's no check engine light. I brought it to the Honda dealership about 3 weeks ago for a checkup (before this problem started happening) and they checked the spark plugs but did not replace them since they said the condition was fine (even though I've almost doubled the recommended lifetime mileage). No impending stall like OP experiences.

Does my situation rule out any of the previously mentioned possible causes?

 

If the dealer said the plugs look fine, that's one thing down. If you have owned the car since new (and you KNOW the plugs are OEM) I'd plan to replace them, however.

Next, I'd do the valve clearances.

Finally, I'd replace the coils as stated in my post #3.


Do this stuff NOW before you shorten the life of your catalytic converter.

 

I made a 1 min video today that should help clarify my wordy explanation...

I also noticed that even at high RPM's, it still happens a little bit but to a much lesser extent.

In the video, I say "it's totally fine" but after watching it I realized that the issue is still happening somewhat at high RPM.

 

You need a body cam LOL.

You will feel a mis-fire more at low RPM...less inertia and time between power pulses.

Plus, the PCM will change timing of ignition under high accel/wide open throttle so you will 'feel' the mis-fires even more.

I think it's the 'classic' Fit misfire.

 

Your video shows the textbook symptoms of coilpack issues

At 150,000 miles, you should have already checked and adjusted your valve clearances at least twice and changed your spark plugs at least once if you're following Honda's minimum recommendation.

Again, my suggestion to you is to: adjust the valves, change the coilpacks, and change the spark plugs - if you haven't already followed Honda's minimum recommendations. Tackling each of those maintenance items just takes you one step closer to the next maintenance item. Just do them all together because it's time to do them, you're experiencing symptoms of those problems, and many others before you have had positive results with those exact items solving their issues in the exact same car.

 

Hahaha, yeah I know my video is really ghetto. At first when you said "body cam" I started panicking, thinking that's related to the cam-shaft LOL....

I just reviewed my maintenance records and remembered that on Nov 17th of this year, I noticed that I had 235 000km (148 875mi) on this car and the spark plugs had NEVER been changed. My mom bought the car new and maintained it well for the most part but when I got the car 1.5 years ago, I audited her maintenance records and found some oversights.....

I brought the car into the dealership for a spark plug change and they ended up charging me $50 to clean them, lube the threads, inspect, and then they didn't replace them because they said they are still in good condition....

Is it possible for spark plugs to last that long or is the dealership lying to me?

 

I brought the car into the dealership at 150 000mi because my owner's manual says just that..... but they said "in general, valve clearances don't present issues so it'll be a waste of your money and labour to tear everything apart just to check that when there are no symptoms" (since I brought the car into the dealership like 3-4 weeks ago, when there were not yet any symptoms).

But yeah, I'll go ahead and address everything else you've mentioned and hold on the valve clearances for now JUST IN CASE I can solve the problem without spending over a grand for valve adjustment....

 

There's no guarantee that your acceleration issue is the coilpacks, but I've had the same issue before and it was exactly like in your video. A grip of people have had the same issue too and it was their coilpacks. A few people have reported their problems were solved with a PCM, EGR valve, or something else. But those are few instances and the overwhelming majority of these problems arise from the coilpacks.

But you should still get those other maintenance items taken care of, or they might come back to haunt you later.

 

Workers in the dealerships don't always know what's best.

Valve clearance issues may present as low fuel economy, noise from the engine, low power at high rpm, low power at low rpm, slow engine response, rough idling, misfiring at idle, misfiring under load, misfiring when cold, misfiring when hot. And the list goes on. A lot of vehicle problems show overlapping symptoms.

Just like someone going to a doctor complaining of a cough. This person might have allergies, a cold, asthma, lung cancer, pulmonary hypertension, fluid in the lungs, a punctured lung, bronchitis, chemical inhalation, and it goes on forever.

 

When I go on RockAuto under my engine 1.5L L4, I cannot tell whether the coils are the "Spark Plug (Coil-On-Plug) Boot" or "ignition coil" since the pics all look the same..... this word "coil pack" seems to be slang, as I don't see this terminology on auto parts websites

 

It's there
More Information for HITACHI IGC0053



Coil on plug.

 

Weird, I see this listed under "ignition coil" not under "coil-on-plug"

 

Both are correct.. Coil on plug just means there are 4 of them one for each spark plug.
This is literally a 30 minute tops job in your driveway, order the plugs and coil packs from rock auto, you need a small ratchet and a 10mm socket and a spark plug socket.

This is easier than hooking up the average surround sound stereo system!

Rock sells just the lower boots for the coil pack, you need the whole deal,, about 195 for 4 of them.

These are MAINTENANCE items.. Normal, don't overthink it.

Any shop that works on VW's or Hondas can do the valve adjust but its easy enough to do yourself as well. its about 1 banana on the shade tree howler monkey mechanic scale..