Hello guys, I have a Honda Fit 2009 262 000km. I'm in Montreal and roads are quite bad. I've changed so far the link kits and the rear shock absorbers. I'm wondering what could I change to make the ride more comfortable. I'm pretty sure the comfort level is much worse that when it was new. If the shocks are functional, not leaking, and the springs haven't compacted too noticeably, what is there to change? Some rubber things in some places? Thanks

 

Based on your vehicle age, mileage, and driving conditions, there's a good chance that the bushings and ball joints in your suspension are worn. That will allow the suspension to move in ways that's it's not meant to move and negatively impact ride quality (and handling).

I have always assumed that the front struts on a front wheel drive car like the Fit take a lot more abuse than the rear shocks. If you felt the need to replace the rear shocks there's a good chance that the fronts should be replaced as well. Also check the upper strut and shock mounts as well as the bump stops.

Another option to improve your ride relates to your wheels and tires. You might consider changing to smaller wheels combined with taller tires (so that the overall circumference changes as little as possible). Your tires give a bit of cushion, so a taller tire/smaller wheel combo will ride better than a bigger wheel with a lower profile tire. If you have 15- or 16-inch wheels consider dropping down to 14-inch wheels. I use older 14-inch Civic alloy rims with 185/70R14 winter tires and they ride noticeably better than my non-winter 16-inch Fit Sport wheels with 185/55R16 all-season tires.

Finally, whatever wheels and tires you run, pay attention to your tire pressure. Lots of folks (including me) like to run their Fit tires a bit higher than the recommended pressure on the door panel, both for handling and fuel efficiency. I definitely do it on long trips and when I might see better roads, but my local roads are horrible, so when I'm only driving locally I keep them right at the recommended (32 psi) pressure vs upper 30s psi on long trips. Even a few psi makes a difference to ride quality.

 

Great thanks for your reply!

 

Ball joints replacement look like an expensive job :/
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@Drew21 Drew, can you recommend a link or a page that would give a how-to for inspecting bushings and ball joints? If not, I'll YouTube it.

Thanks.


E​​​​​DIT: ​@Guillaume St-Cyr 's video right above is helpful. Don't know how I missed that yesterday.

 

I don't have any specific reference. I'm sure there are tutorials and Youtube videos.

Whenever I get my car in the air (e.g., tire rotation) I give the wheels a good shaking with my hands at 9 and 3 and again at 12 and 6 (pretend the wheel is a clock). This tells you about wheel bearings and various suspension components. Even if you don't know what is bad, if the wheel moves you know something is bad. I've seen cars where you can rock the wheel in and out with the car on the ground. If the bushings get really bad, it will be obvious when you look at them.

The video a couple posts above gives some tips on diagnosing ball joints.

For the original poster, I do think you reach a point, especially if you plan on keeping a car, where it makes sense to replace everything in the suspension: bushings, ball joints, shocks/struts, end links, etc. It will be more expensive than doing it a piece at a time (but probably reduce overall labor cost if you're paying someone to do it), but if you put a new component in a worn suspension it's not going to last as long.

I'm probably approaching this stage (2010 Fit Sport, 117K miles), but since I didn't start driving the car until 103K miles I can honestly say that it rides/handles the same as when I got it, allowing me to put the work off a bit longer.