Today, I stopped into an auto repair shop in Gardena. I asked the mechanic to listen to my valves and tell me when he thought I would need a valve adjustment. He said, "We don't adjust the valves until the car throws a code." This shop is highly rated on Yelp, and all of the mechanics are trained at Honda's training center in Southern California. Maybe this one.

I have never heard of any thing like this before, and, if this is what Honda teaches, I wonder if it sheds any light on Honda's intension when they designed their Maintenance Schedule.

He also told me that the belt tensioner makes a loud knocking noise when it needs to be replaced, and that my belt tensioner showed no signs of needing replacement.

 

you know that is not true for the Fit the valves need to be adjusted for best performance.

here is what i think. The Fit is mechanically unique vs many Honda models, at least the GD GE. The L was barely used in the US market back then. And the newest ones are likely to have ten years and 100k miles on them now. It would be no surprise that Honda techs don't focus on learning the ins and outs of this model, vs the many MANY civics and crvs and accords they will see. I believe Honda does recommend a mileage valve adjustment, but for many models they might not need review until a problem arises. What Soichiro would recommend to keep an engine in top tune may be in excess of what a harried, throwaway consumerist American wants to hear about their cars.

I bet you in Japan they adjust the valves proactively

another thing is: the valves on the GE. Unlike the spark plugs, they don't cause big problems as the engine goes out of tune. We've heard that the bad tune can eventually clog the cat, but that may or may not happen. Otherwise it just manifests as a car that is slower and slower until you replace it. My coworker had a GD that just got slower over time until one day it stopped going anywhere on a Maine uphill.

Here is a final thought. Honda techs may not commonly see the GE because they just run well overall. When my Fit snapped an axle, I asked the service manager if he thought these were reliable cars. He said, yes, actually we rarely work on them - "until they come in on flatbed. Then we know right away what's up. Like yours"...

 

@fujisawa Thanks, Fuji.

The idea of waiting for a code to adjust the valves on any car was a new one on me. Hearing it from someone who was trained by Honda (whatever that may mean) also got my attention.

 

well, there certainly will be no "valves need adjustment" code. it will be something like a misfire or 02 sensor reading out of line. the valves will just be an educated guess to fix the problem if they are overdue.

it's been interesting to me that my dad's GE is on its second cat and 02 sensor by now, at only 65k miles. i admit i did not push him to adjust the valves because he was well shy of the mileage (still in warranty for the cat at the time), and there was no clicking/noise. Nor had he had any plug or coil issues. Maybe I shoulda, as the 02 is coming up yet again recently.