I’m at 111k miles and the alternator died. Dealership said that the after market alternators don’t play well with 2010 and older models. Oem is $680 and after market is 360$.

Thoughts on this?

 

Go with the OEM. That is not many miles on an OEM Honda alternator but aftermarket ones generally don't last long. If you want another 100k out of it then go OEM if you are just going to put another 20k on the car and sell it then maybe aftermarket would be good.

 

Is this an actual OEM part? https://www.hondapartsunlimited.com/...IFJlc3VsdHM%3D

Dealer says that there’s is $680 part only.

 

No. P/N is not for a 09 Fit. OEM alternator is made by Mitsubishi.

 

No, that is not the right part. Mitsubishi made the alternator for our Honda GE.
This one
https://www.hondaautomotiveparts.com...i-31100rb0004?


What was the symptoms that made the dealer/technician came to the conclusion that your alternator failed?

 

You're right, I did have the wrong link. That just seems so high for OEM.

For the past 2 weeks when I start the car up in the morning, the battery light would come on, after 10-30 minutes, the light would go off. It got progressively worse. Yesterday while driving into a parking lot, I lost power steering, then ABS breaks. I parked, let it idle for a bit, the radio shut off (was off but the back light was on) and then the car chugged and died. Would not start back up.

Opinions on getting OEM vs non-OEM? Autozone has one for over half the price. Is what the dealership is saying sound reasonable that 2010 and older fits have issues with non-oem?

 

Hello,
Thanks for describing your symptoms. Dealership usually want to sell Honda OEM parts because either they have spare parts sales quota to meet or they are only allowed to sell Honda OEM parts at their dealership. Those service manager, they work on commission, and they can only make that commission if you buy from them...
Having said that, I strongly believe a Honda OEM parts will works well and reliable for sure if you are looking for a peace of mind...
but if you are tight on budget, then the parts from Autozone should work fine. It might not last as long as the original Honda OEM parts, but you also can buy 2 of them for the price of one Honda OEM parts, and you don't pay double upfront. So in the end, they have about the same value from money point of view. I think Autozone will not source their parts from unreliable sources...

 

Are you saying that the aftermarket typically doesnt last long? Less than 100k? We are on a budget, was going to install with a family member that is good with mechanics.

 

Typically yes, because this replacement non Honda genuine parts were design to meet much lower price point (and still good margin for reseller like Autozone to carry/stock them) as alternative for customer who want to save cost. But again even if this non Honda genuine parts only last 50k instead of 100k, (this is just me guessing), you can buy 2 instead of only 1 for the original Honda one, and you only pay half price upfront.

 

Modern cars have a lot of electrical demand and some are very sensitive to clean power supply. And the FIt battery is undersized. For these reasons, I would go OEM.

I have "saved" too much money on non-OEM electronics with failure a few months down the line and sometimes difficult to diagnose issues.

Finally, typical failure is the voltage regulator. Maybe bearings are also worn. You can buy a rebuild kit from the usual scumbags for $35. Problem is that knockoff bearings can wear quickly. And low quality voltage regulator may self destruct rapidly and/or provide unstable voltage/spikes which can damage or prematurely wear out the battery and electronics. [EDIT - make sure you are sourcing bearings and voltage regluator from top-tier reliable source else you will get chinesium garbage]

I would assemble your own rebuild kit with OEM parts (type in you car model, transmission, year, etc).

https://www.hondapartsonline.net/v-2...tor-mitsubishi

Or maybe you have an alternator rebuilder in your area? My uncle used to do this but the cheap child slave labour in China killed those businesses in my area.

Honda Fit alternator install looks easy:

 

If you are going to me doing it yourself , with your friend’s help . I’d buy 2 salvage alternators, get them tested at Autozone , and put one in . They are easy to change out and keep a spare

 

I can be wrong, but based on description it sounds more like bad soldering joint inside of the alternator (Fit alternator components are joined by soldering , not by screws like late 80-s modular design. I've also observed that one of two brushes (the one closer to pulley wears faster than other. So..
I would go to wrecking yard, strip the rebuilt alternator and clip the rear end of it; open an original alternator and change visually bad components (brushes) then re-assemble and re-test.
This option is not so great for GD3 where an alternator change requires removal of the intake.